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Why War Reporter C.J. Chivers Had to Suddenly Stop
- wanderfowl 11y agoExcellently written, and the part about his PTSD-like feelings was tough to read. Reminds me of my friends who've seen some shit.
- jobu 11y agoAgreed, especially the part about his son - that had me in tears. Once you have kids, stories like that hit you in unexpected ways.
- randcraw 11y agoGreat article. Reminds me of the books I read about folks who had fought in Vietnam -- all consuming total immersions in being overwhelmed.
- smacktoward 11y agoI see HN's ongoing War On Linkbait has resulted in the title of this being changed from the one presented on the article itself, "Why the Best War Reporter in a Generation Had to Suddenly Stop." Which feels a little insulting to the reporter in question, the New York Times' C.J. Chivers, since it results in him getting demoted to just "a war reporter." But the edit also manages to make the article sound much less interesting than it actually is! So mission accomplished, I guess?
- electricblue 11y agoI like this actually. Keep expectations low. Hyperbolic titles are the worst.
- dang 11y agoI don't agree that the edit makes the article sound less interesting, nor that it is insulting to take out superlatives, which we do routinely. It does make the title less catchy, of course; that's one reason we do it.
- teacup50 11y agoIn this case, a magazine of note specifically chose to label this individual "the Best War Reporter in a Generation". That's not a link-bait superlative; it's a statement of judgement relevant to the story. "Why a War Reporter Had to Suddenly Stop" is a very different headline for a very different story.
- dang 11y agoOn HN we don't simply accept what a "magazine of note" decides to tell us in its headline. Readers here can make up their own minds.
- mfoy_ 11y agoI thought on HN we didn't editorialize titles. (Unless it's for character count restrictions)
- dang 11y agoThe HN guideline is "Please use the original title unless it is misleading or linkbait." Does that answer your question?
- mfoy_ 11y agoFair enough, although I disagree that the title is link-bait.
- theoh 11y agoOne way to flag titles that you consider to be link bait would be to put quotation marks around them, as in "one weird trick that..." The proliferation of quotation marks would probably give the impression of a somewhat sarcastic and superior editorial policy, but in all seriousness, software people are all about detailed quotation policies, literal references where appropriate, changelogs, version control, etc. HN's stripped-down aesthetic is a bit Procrustean.
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- jschwartzi 11y agoDo you think C.J. Chivers might be the type of person to get upset over being "demoted" to "just 'a war reporter?'" The type of person the article reveals him to be suggests that it might not bother him all that much.
- LordKano 11y agoIt's certainly better than "One weird trick to stop reporting on wars" or "War profiteers hate this man, find out why".
- meatysnapper 11y agoPersonally, I see the Buzfeed-ification of titles as an art form. Appreciate it while it lasts; we will be nostalgic for this soon.
- legohead 11y agowas his title before the demotion, "Best War Reporter"?
- hyperpallium 11y agoIt's funny, the current title "Why War Reporter C.J. Chivers Had to Suddenly Stop" struck me as click-bait. Why not say why, so we don't have to click to find out? War reporter C.J. Chivers had to suddenly stop because of PTDS.
- hyperpallium 11y agoIt's funny, the current title "Why War Reporter C.J. Chivers Had to Suddenly Stop" struck me as click-bait. Why not say why, so we don't have to click to find out? "War reporter C.J. Chivers had to suddenly stop because of PTSD." But I note that HN titles only get changed after they hit the frontpage - after clickbait has done its work.
- RyJones 11y agoWell written and harrowing. Can't blame him for quitting.
- conover 11y agoYou go into the forest long enough, you become a forest creature.
- azernik 11y agoI'd stopped seeing Chivers' field work, and I'd wondered why. Sad to hear. I highly recommend it to HN readers; articles where he talks about the features of armament supply chains and their political effects are fascinating. Some examples: http://atwar.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/09/15/whats-inside-a-taliban-gun-locker/?_r=0 http://atwar.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/09/15/whats-inside-a-tal... http://atwar.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/08/08/taliban-gun-locker-the-frankengun-of-wardak-province/ http://atwar.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/08/08/taliban-gun-locker...
- rdl 11y agoI totally understand this. I lived in warzones for about 7 years, taking substantially less risks than he did almost all of the time (the most dangerous things I did were transit, and I got exceptionally good at selling to people who owned aircraft and would let me ride on missions...), and maybe felt 1% of this. I bailed in 2007 after one-too-many close calls (just didn't go back after a planned 1 week trip), and was glad I had that luxury; ended up going back a year later anyway -- it's distressingly addictive given enough recovery time. Of course, things must be even worse for actual civilians living in war zones. People who didn't choose it at all, who might have started from a less-than-ideal position, and who had nowhere to go.
- jonah 11y agoWill you tell us more about what you were doing while you were there?
- rdl 11y agoI worked with some Iraqi expats setting up an internet exchange in 2003/2004; it got too dangerous and too chaotic, so pivoted to satellite ISP. I ended up moving into a base, and then set up my own satellite ISP, and did backhaul for cellular, did various radio stuff, etc. Left in 2007. 2008-2010 I worked for a company doing medical imaging (radiology PACS) in hospitals across CENTCOM; worked with the satellite stuff but mainly linux servers in hospitals, which was my first exposure to the medical industry.
- jeremonda 11y agoThe fact that reporter C.J. Chivers had to suddenly stop, is why we need ethics in war journalism.
- fapjacks 11y agoIt's more addictive than anything else, being in and around all that chaos. There's a weird experience of liberation and freedom and a sense of taking hold of your own destiny in carrying a weapon in a warzone. Every single day I think of how much I want to go back, at the same time I wish I never went. You really do leave a piece of your soul over there. I can't imagine being a civilian, born and raised in those places.