Five years ago, Paul Pringle and Matthew Doig belonged to the same team. Los Angeles Times veteran reporter Pringle and newspaper editor Doig were working on the final article. Substance abuse Former Dean of the University of Southern California
The report led to a series of other investigations, including USC, which ultimately led to Pulitzer Prize For Mr. Pringle and two other reporters in 2019.
But behind the scenes, bad blood was flowing. Pringle published a book called “Bad City” last week. The book claims that top Times editors, including Doig, tried to slow-walk and defend its first groundbreaking article. One of the USC School of Medicine was using the drug for young people, including women who had to rush to the hospital after an overdose.
Doig, now USA Today’s research editor, snapped back last week MediumCalls Pringle “a fablist who is terribly misrepresenting the facts in support of his false story.”
The journalism industry has become a prime candidate for this season’s media debate, ensuring that summer songs and must-see blockbusters exist. Over the past two weeks, reporters and editors in New York, Washington, and Los Angeles have exchanged notes to discuss who is right and who is wrong.
Did the Times editors pay close attention, or were the cowards threatened by major city agencies affiliated with the newspaper, such as the book festival on campus? Did the investigative journalist enthusiastically overcome the obstacles set by his newspaper, or did he blame too much? The New York Times was even drawn into controversy when the newspaper’s positive review of Pringles’ book attracted criticism from Doig and others.
“That’s a fun gossip, isn’t it?” Said Maer Roshan, editor-in-chief of Los Angeles magazine. Pringle’s counterargument To Mr. Doig’s medium post on Monday afternoon.
Or, Janice Min, CEO of The Ankler and former editor of Us Weekly and The Hollywood Reporter, said, “It’s definitely summer and it’s definitely late. That’s definitely what people are talking about.” Stated.
Media debates in Los Angeles often don’t get the attention of entertainment-dominated towns. But this dust-up is different.
“Part of the reason it settled here in LA is mostly translated into the screen of the heroic Crusaders vs. Institutions vs. Institutions story, which has an echo of the amazing newsroom drama Hollywood previously created. “I think you can see,” said Min, whose entertainment is covered by Uncle’s newsletter and podcasting network. “In that sense, the story has a cinematic quality, which makes it really appealing to the people of LA.”
Journalists, in particular, also had a rare view of the awkward business of compiling research articles. When Doig published a medium post, he also posted a primary source. He published the first draft of the article with a handwritten note painted in red in the margin.
In many cases, news reports that are broadcast thoroughly after publication are something that has gone terribly unsuccessful. However, this was a rare case of peeking into a draft of the final published article, which proved to be bulletproof.
Bill Grueskin, a professor of journalism at the College of Columbia and a former editor of Bloomberg News at The Wall Street Journal, said: And Miami Herald. “I teach a news editing class. All his marked drafts will be a great exercise for the class. Look at the unpublished draft and turn it into a publicly sophisticated story. It’s unusual to push and see what has changed, what has been brought out, and what has been taken out. “
Pringle objected to how long it would take for the article to be published (he and his colleagues submitted a draft a few months ago), and before the editor’s intervention, the final version was earlier. Said it wasn’t “measured” in the version. Doig pointed out that the treatise had an article on the front page and had an immediate impact.
Storms also strike the ancient nerves of journalism: tensions in the editor-reporter relationship. Both goals are the same (publishing an influential story), but privileges and approaches can be different.
“As an editor, you deal with writers, and writers have an opinion on what should be news and how things are done,” Roshan said. “As an editor, you are responsible for your institution, your institution’s reputation, etc.
“If you are sued, the magazine will pay the statutory fee and cover the writer,” he continued. “As an editor, you have an additional obligation to ensure that you’re okay. It’s another kind of lens that you approach the story.”
A month after the first article was published in July 2017, Doig was fired alongside other top editors of The Times, Davan Maharaj and Marc Duvoisin. The company said the Times were now under separate ownership at the time, and said the move was part of the restructuring. Pringle said he was investigating how he handled USC articles. Mr Doig said he was never given an explanation as to why he was fired. Maharaj, who also opposed Pringle’s allegations, said his dismissal was said to be part of a reorganization of the newsroom.
“We didn’t do anything wrong,” said Maharaj, a former Times editor. “We challenged him to tell a much better story.”
“His claim has no substance,” said Duboisin, editor-in-chief of the Times, about Pringle.
In an interview, Pringle and Doig said they were moved by receiving many messages of support from their peers. But both men are still dissatisfied with how it all went down — and are deeply confident they are right.
Pringle said: Is it fun? No, but it’s an important task. I have to do it for the reader. “
Doig said in an interview that the experience was not exactly what he enjoyed.
“I hate it,” he said. “I wish I had talked to you about something else related to the media.”
Doig said he was considering writing a follow-up to the first Medium post.
“It’s an unpleasant position to be there, but it’s better now because I’ve received emails from every corner of journalism,” he said. “It helped, but I don’t like this, but rather want to do something else.”
