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lies like truth

Chloe Veltman: how culture will save the world

Cutting Room Floor

cut.jpegIt’s a sad but all too common thing when an artist shares their experiences with a journalist for an article and then their comments don’t actually make it into the published story.

Most interviewees understand that journalists do a lot more reporting than can possibly be used in the average piece. But sometimes they don’t get it and you feel just awful about it.

I felt particularly bad about a source that got omitted from the article I wrote for today’s New York Times about Bay Area string quartets. I interviewed many people for the story and much of the input ended not even making it into the article. But this one very quirky and under-the-radar string quartet, where the musicians combine playing their instruments with singing, was supposed to get a mention. For space reasons beyond my control, the lines I devoted to talking about this group ended up on the cutting room floor.

I did something I don’t usually do: I wrote to the interviewee yesterday afternoon after I saw the final edit to tell her that her ensemble wouldn’t be appearing in the paper. I don’t know what compelled me to contact the interviewee — after all, I didn’t email at least half a dozen other sources to tell them the same thing. I think it was just something to do with the fact that we connected on the phone so well and that I am very interested in the group’s approach to string quartetting, being a singer and the host of a radio show about the vocal arts (VoiceBox on KALW). Plus, this quartet doesn’t have the same visibility as some of the other ensembles that did make the final cut. So I wanted to temper her expectations and apologize for the editors’ decision.

My source’s disappointment was palpable. She bemoaned being “the one group that always gets left out” and i had to write to tell her that many sources got left out. Sigh.

Interviewees need to understand that talking to a journalist is just one step in the process. The moral of the story: It’s wisest not to send out an email to your entire network telling people you’re going to be appearing in the New York Times until the article actually comes out.

lies like truth

These days, it's becoming increasingly difficult to distinguish between fact and fantasy. As Alan Bennett's doollally headmaster in Forty Years On astutely puts it, "What is truth and what is fable? Where is Ruth and where is Mabel?" It is one of the main tasks of this blog to celebrate the confusion through thinking about art and perhaps, on occasion, attempt to unpick the knot. [Read More...]

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