Stop the Presses newsletter author Mark Jacob was our Monday Zoom lunch guest today. It was a doozy. Sparks can fly when over 50 folks gather on a Zoom call to discuss journalism from a learned perspective. Take a listen.
In 2018, Mark left one of the top jobs in journalism, as Metro Editor of the Chicago Tribune, partly because he had become disillusioned with right-wing lies and felt the media was being ‘outfoxed.’ As he says on our call, traditional journalism wasn’t confronting the systematic lying of the right-wing machine.
The podcast offers a fascinating conversation with a man who has been deeply involved in the news business and is now writing about how easily lies and disinformation can manipulate the media.
As is often the case, our participants added great comments and questions, including Iowa Writers’ Collaborative members:
, , .Other participants on the call include former Iowan Bill Sniffen, who Zoomed in from his adopted home state of Wyoming, where he ran a successful digital news and information site.
Mark writes the Stop the Presses newsletter, part of the Courier Newsroom digital platform. Iowa Starting Line is also a part of that network. He is the co-author of 10 books, including the upcoming Everybody Needs an Editor, a writing guide in which he served as editor, and Globetrotter: How Abe Saperstein Shook Up the World of Sports, a biography of the Harlem Globetrotters founder that he wrote with his brother Matthew. He lives in Evanston, Illinois.
To join our Monday Zoom Podcast call, please subscribe (free or paid). Each week, you will be introduced to a fascinating guest who will tell you things you do not know:
To learn about the Iowa Writers’ Collaborative members:
In case you missed it, here is the roundup of our member columns from last week:
Okoboji
The Okoboji Writers’ and Songwriters’ Retreat has seats remaining. The dates are September 22-25, and it will be a life highlight. All skill levels are welcome, from novice to published writers. Panels, workshops, make new friends, and have some serious fun. Read more here:
A Chicago journalist is devoting his efforts toward taking on right-wing media