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Michael Hastings, 'Rolling Stone' Contributor, Dead at 33
- AJ007 13y agoMichael Hastings wrote notable and impactful Rolling Stone pieces such as "The Rise of the Killer Drones." It is with some irony that Rolling Stone publishes more serious journalism than half of the headline grabbing mass news web publishers I see on HN daily. Too bad.
- octo_t 13y agoRolling Stone has always been a political magazine. Often with a certain je-ne-sais-quois (see Hunter S Thompson), but political never the less. In the 90s they shifted to a more media-based based magazine, compared to previously and they have endeavoured to move back to being a political magazine.
- dionidium 13y agoAlso, two of David Foster Wallace's best non-fiction pieces were for Rolling Stone. [0] [0] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Foster_Wallace#Non-fiction_work http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Foster_Wallace#Non-fictio...
- CamperBob2 13y agoAny details on the car crash?
- deleted 13y ago[deleted]
- meric 13y agoI don't know about anyone else, but I feel something isn't quite right. "Fearless Journalist Car Crash Into Tree And Dies In Explosion.". http://ktla.com/2013/06/18/driver-killed-in-fiery-car-crash-in-hollywood/#axzz2WcYdbrFl http://ktla.com/2013/06/18/driver-killed-in-fiery-car-crash-... Mythbusters have shown this doesn't usually happen. http://dsc.discovery.com/tv-shows/mythbusters/videos/crash-and-burn.htm http://dsc.discovery.com/tv-shows/mythbusters/videos/crash-a... EDIT: I made up the headline.
- ceejayoz 13y ago"Explosion" is likely a dramatization of "caught fire and burned rapidly".
- CamperBob2 13y agoWow. Yeah, that's ... unusual.
- harold 13y agoJust google "fiery car crash" and you'll see it is unfortunately fairly common.
- stephengillie 13y agoThe intersection where the car crashed. A median with trees and light posts begins here heading southbound, as well as some trees on the sidewalk west of the street. I don't know which tree was collided with. https://maps.google.com/?ll=34.083531,-118.338458&spn=0.001387,0.000755&t=h&z=20 https://maps.google.com/?ll=34.083531,-118.338458&spn=0.0013... Either the reporter was driving drunk (at 4:15am on a Tuesday morning aka Monday night) or this is some kind of conspiracy (body burned beyond recognition). I'm still not sure how a car "jacknifes", unless that's referring to the opposite ends of the car wrapping around a tree. Normally, that phrase refers to a tractor-trailer combination turning sideways around the towing joint.
- nackerwillis 13y agoI saw this on my way to work this morning. I live close, actually. I went around to survey the accident since it's looked pretty odd. Those tree's span for quite a while, and it took him all that time to "jacknife" into one? To answer your question: He hit the 3 or 4 tree in.
- acjohnson55 13y agoA close friend of mine died in much the same way. It happens.
- leolll 13y agoVideo from local news crew: http://ktla.com/2013/06/18/driver-killed-in-fiery-car-crash-in-hollywood/ http://ktla.com/2013/06/18/driver-killed-in-fiery-car-crash-...
- coldtea 13y ago>A contributing editor to Rolling Stone, Hastings leaves behind a remarkable legacy of reporting, including an exposé of America's drone war, an exclusive interview with WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange at his hideout in the English countryside, an investigation into the Army's illicit use of "psychological operations" to influence sitting Senators (...) People have been killed or "vanished" for less. Just saying.
- sillysaurus 13y agoThis is a little over the top. His car jackknifed into a tree. In order for your theory to make sense, his assassins would have had to ensure his car 1) hit a solid object, 2) caught fire.
- triplesec 13y agononetheless, these things are not unknown to have happened nefariously
- tptacek 13y agoIf that's true, you should be able to provide an example.
- protomyth 13y agoI don't believe this was nefarious and I do respect you tptacek, but cutting the break line is not an unknown way to attempt to off someone. It was even in the wheelhouse of these gomers http://5newsonline.com/2013/03/06/moms-brake-line-cut-over-custody-fight-police-say/ http://5newsonline.com/2013/03/06/moms-brake-line-cut-over-c...
- tptacek 13y agoAny cases where anyone murdered a reporter by sabotaging their car, or where the US government murdered a reporter by any means at all would be fine.
- rl3 13y ago"Why don't you give answers that aren't bullshit for a change?" Hastings replied. This man was a badass.
- pasbesoin 13y agoI'm glad to read that someone took the opportunity to say to their face, what I think daily when I can even talk myself into watching / listening to such apparatchiks, any more.
- B0Z 13y agoLove her or hate her, Rachael Maddow said of Hastings tonight (paraphrased from memory) "There are a lot of journalists who hope to be or claim to be fearless in their reporting. Michael Hastings was fearless. Most people got the impression after talking to him briefly that he wasn't like everyone else -- you were NOT going to be able to ignore him." He was an infrequent guest on Up with Chris Hayes. I remember fast forwarding through most guests verbal essays to listen to his. He'll be sorely missed... in an era when we need people like him the most.
- mtowle 13y ago"Traffic collision"
- 8ig8 13y agoI wonder if these conspiracy thoughts would be so prominent if not for the recent NSA news? It seems once trust is lost, everything is questioned.
- adventured 13y agoExactly. It's clearly a case of: if they'll do X, will they do Y? The US Government does have a rather sordid history though, it's not like they're saints. From the fake Iraq weapons claims, to the Gulf of Tonkin incident being used to get us into Vietnam. If they'll go to such lengths to get us into wars that kill massive numbers of people (our own included), I do find it hard to believe they won't kill a single journalist (without implying that's what happened to Hastings). "The second Tonkin Gulf incident was originally claimed by the U.S. National Security Agency to have occurred on August 4, 1964, as another sea battle, but instead may have involved "Tonkin Ghosts"[6] (false radar images) and not actual NVN torpedo boat attacks. "The outcome of these two incidents was the passage by Congress of the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, which granted President Lyndon B. Johnson the authority to assist any Southeast Asian country whose government was considered to be jeopardized by 'communist aggression'." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gulf_of_Tonkin_incident http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gulf_of_Tonkin_incident Or this (US military admitting to having sprayed black communities in St Louis with radioactive chemicals in the 1950s and 1960s): http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/suit-filed-over-government-test-spraying-in-st-louis-during/article_9bc1fc7d-7093-58a3-b557-0cbac5dc38ab.html http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/suit-fil...
- danso 13y agoHastings did an IAMA on Reddit a year ago: http://www.reddit.com/r/politics/comments/uaha0/iam_michael_hastings_a_reporter_for_buzzfeed_and/ http://www.reddit.com/r/politics/comments/uaha0/iam_michael_... Here's some tips he gave about pursuing journalism as a career: Okay, here's my advice to you (and young journalists in general): 1.) You basically have to be willing to devote your life to journalism if you want to break in. Treat it like it's medical school or law school. 2.) When interviewing for a job, tell the editor how you love to report. How your passion is gathering information. Do not mention how you want to be a writer, use the word "prose," or that deep down you have a sinking suspicion you are the next Norman Mailer. 3.) Be prepared to do a lot of things for free. This sucks, and it's unfair, and it gives rich kids an edge. But it's also the reality. 4.) When writing for a mass audience, put a fact in every sentence. 5.)Also, keep the stories simple and to the point, at least at first. 6.) You should have a blog and be following journalists you like on Twitter. 7.) If there's a publication you want to work for or write for, cold call the editors and/or email them. This can work. 8) By the second sentence of a pitch, the entirety of the story should be explained. (In other words, if you can't come up with a rough headline for your story idea, it's going to be a challenge to get it published.) 9) Mainly you really have to love writing and reporting. Like it's more important to you than anything else in your life--family, friends, social life, whatever. 10) Learn to embrace rejection as part of the gig. Keep writing/pitching/reading.
- joonix 13y agoI hate car crashes. It's such a waste of life. We have the technology to prevent these, it's just a matter of investing in getting them into every car on the road.
- paulrademacher 13y agoI presume you're talking about self-driving tech?
- swamp40 13y ago38 comments, and no one mentions his problems with addiction: http://trueslant.com/michaelhastings/2009/04/28/a-case-of-the-relapse-for-young-addictauthor/ http://trueslant.com/michaelhastings/2009/04/28/a-case-of-th... 4:30am on a residential street - the CIA/NSA couldn't kill me that way if they tried. (The video is horrendous - bad way to die.)
- nackerwillis 13y agoThis is eerily spooky. I saw this accident this morning on my way to work. They completely blocked off Melrose and Highland with about a 2 block radius. I had no idea this accident was tied to him till I arrived home. I was able to drive around and get a scope of the accident scene and felt something wasn't right. The center divider has about a 3/4 miles worth of trees. I want to know where he 'lost' control. Street has multiple stops along the way...
- mathattack 13y agoIt's a shame to lose such a bold journalist when they are in short supply. There is an irony that the Rolling Stone is the place to house free speech.