Journalism

Journalist Carl Honoré on ‘The Slow Fix’: Finding Our Slow Mojo

April 13, 2013UncategorizedBusiness, Carl Honore, CIUT, Creativity, In Praise of Slow, Interview, Journalism, Kevin Caners, politics, Problem Solving, Productivity, Slow Momvent, Speed, The Public, The Slow Fix, Work Smarterkevincaners Leave a comment

It’s fairly safe to say that we are a society enamoured, if not outright obsessed, with quick and easy solutions. Practically everywhere you turn we’re bombarded with promises of how in 5-easy-steps or 6-minutes-a-day we can achieve a flat stomach, earn more money from home, or cultivate the perfect marriage.

You can see it in how we treat our problems from business to politics. Underperforming sports team? Fire the coach! Rising crime? Put in mandatory minimums!

But in his new book The Slow Fix: Solve Problems, Work Smarter and Live Better in a World Addicted to Speed Journalist Carl Honoré makes a compelling case that our problems are rarely as simple as we like to imagine, and that when we go for the quick fix, often it means we’ve failed to undertand the complexity of the issue we’re trying to solve.

The Slow Fix

So how to overcome this impulse to just do what’s easy? How can we learn to better deal with the issues at hand?

Using a blend of case studies from around the world, science, as well as a touch of philosophy, Honoré delves into the type of qualities that typify successful approaches to finding solutions to complex problems. From looking at the big picture, and fostering collaboration, to admitting mistakes – Honoré lays out a manifesto for a new way of approaching problems, and shows us that to solve well, often it means we need to solve slow.

To find out more about The Slow Fix, or see some of Carl Honoré’s other writings, visit him online at http://www.carlhonore.com/

Longtime Harper’s Editor Lewis Lapham on The Flaws of Journalism and Excesses of The American Ruling Class

March 27, 2013UncategorizedAmerica, American Politics, author, climate, Clinton, Culture, editor, George Bush, Harper's Magazine, history, Interview, Ira Glass, Journalism, Lapham, Lapham's Quarterly, Lewis Lapham, manhattan, Mark Twain, media, Philosophy, politics, Radio, ruling class, San Francisco, Society, This American Life, writer, Yalekevincaners Leave a comment

Lewis Lapham editor of Lapham’s Quarterly

Whenever anyone happens to mention the name Lewis Lapham – the renowned American writer, and social thinker – chances are that a reference to Harper’s Magazine isn’t too far away. Over the course of the almost 30 years he spent in the role as editor of the influential magazine, Lapham and Harper’s became virtually synonymous.

Although he left his day-to-day role at Harper’s in 2006, the magazine still bears many of his distinctive marks; from its layout, to the style of writing – even the Index and Readings sections which were created in a 1984 redesign he spearheaded – Lapham in many ways shaped the magazine into what it is today. And although the circulation of Harper’s has never rivaled that of more mainstream publications, an impressive number of people, from Ira Glass to Thomas Frank, credit Lapham and the magazine with influencing their journalistic sensibilities.

Harper’s Magazine

But it’s not just for his role as an editor that Lapham become widely known. He is also by many considered one of the most prescient voices in America today. For decades through his columns and books, Lapham, with sharp wit and fierce independence, has been deconstructing the social-cultural landscape of America – traits which have seen him compared with both H.L Menken, and Mark Twain.

He came from a privileged background –attending both Yale and Cambridge, but Lapham has never been shy in criticizing what he sees as the excess, greed and short-sightedness of the ruling elite. He vocally argued for the impeachment of George W. Bush for launching the Iraq War, was openly critical of the Clinton’s, and regularly has taken to task the mainstream media and press for their subservience to power and unwillingness to tackle the important issues.

Lapham’s Quarterly

While he left Harper’s in 2006, Lapham has by no means slowed down. Having long been passionate about the wisdom that can be gleaned from examining history, he immediately went to work founding and editing Lapham’s Quartery a unique publication that takes an issue or topic of current interest and concern—War, Religion, Money, – and examines it in a historical context using the voices and events of the past to bring the topic to light.

I spoke to Lewis Lapham at his office in downtown Manhattan.

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Thomas Frank of Harper’s Magazine on Obama, Wall Street, and Pitying The Billionaire

March 24, 2013UncategorizedCulture, Easy Chair, Election 2012, Harper's Magazine, Harpers, Interview, Journalism, Obama, Obama's second term, Pity The Billionaire, Radio, The Baffler, Thomas Frank, Wall Street Journal, Writekevincaners Leave a comment

Thomas Frank is probably best known for his regular easy chair column in Harper’s Magazine – the opening essay in which he draws together elements from history culture and politics to make insightful, often unexpected observations into the social-political landscape of our time.

In his columns he has taken on everything from the high cost of tuition and the obsession with austerity in Washington D.C, to the culture of gun violence in America.

Thomas Frank, Easy Chair columnist at Harper’s Magazine

He was born in Kansas City Missouri in 1965, and attended the University of Virginia to study history. Although he originally was conservative, and was even briefly involved with the campus Republicans, soon he discovered his interest in writing, and while still an undergrad, he along with a group of friends founded THE BAFFLER magazine, a journal of cultural criticism.

In 1988 he began studying American history at the University of Chicago, from which he received a PhD in 1994. His dissertation was eventually turned into THE CONQUEST OF COOL a book about how industry had successfully commercialized the idea of rebellion and 60’s counterculture. After leaving academia, he became a full time journalist, although his main interest was culture, while writing for the Chicago Reader he became increasingly drawn to political and economic topics from investigating the advertising efforts of Enron, to challenging the dominant free market ideology of the day.

During his career as a newspaper and magazine columnist He also has written four best selling books – His most recent is called Pity the Billionaire: The Hard-times Swindle and the Unlikely Comeback of the Right.

Journalist and Political Force Chris Hedges on The Corporate Coup D’Etat

March 24, 2013UncategorizedActivism, America, American Politics, Chris Hedgs, days of destruction days of revolt, inequality, Interview, Joe Sacco, Journalism, Obama, Occupy, social justice, Wall Streetkevincaners Leave a comment

This week, a conversation with Pulitzer Prize winning journalist, and outspoken public intellectual Chris Hedges on his latest book Days of Destruction Days of Revolt (co-authored with Joe Sacco) and his life spent fighting for political and social justice.