7 ms·

David Carr Dies at 58

240 points by sethbannon 12y ago

sethbannon 12y ago
Earlier today Carr moderated a panel with Laura Poitras, Glenn Greenwald, and Edward ‪Snowden‬ that's worth a watch: http://timestalks.com/laura-poitras-glenn-greenwald-edward-snowden.html http://timestalks.com/laura-poitras-glenn-greenwald-edward-s...
- deleted 12y ago
  [deleted]
- username3 12y ago
  Coincidence?
  - sarciszewski 12y ago
    Probably.
  - pdabbadabba 12y ago
    Well, unless you can think of a reason why someone would want to kill David Carr for interviewing Snowden, Greenwald, and Poitras, but not be motivated (or not able) to kill Snowden, Greenwald, or Poitras themselves, the answer is probably 'yes.'
    - rand334 12y ago
      Yeah, Snowden and Greenwald have insurance policies. Carr likely didn't. If they kill Snowden or Greenwald, more secrets leak. Why do you think Snowden's been so slow to release everything?
    - A_COMPUTER 12y ago
      I don't seriously think that Carr was assassinated, but Andrei Sakharov (Soviet scientist, human rights activist) believed that the KGB killed people near him because he personally was too high-profile to be killed without international outrage.
calcsam 12y ago
A long piece; reporting on his past life as a junkie: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/20/magazine/20Carr-t.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0 http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/20/magazine/20Carr-t.html?pag...
noart 12y ago
David Carr was one of the english language's finest cultural critics. His recent (last?) piece on Brian Williams & Jon Stewart was utterly piercing: http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/12/business/media/brian-williamss-and-jon-stewarts-common-ground.html?smid=tw-share http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/12/business/media/brian-willi...
- misiti3780 12y ago
  that was really great
- mattlutze 12y ago
  I wonder sometimes if the sort of clarity and vinegar with which this man writes, is only borne from the kinds of past struggle and experience he and many artists seem to share.
  - atonse 12y ago
    After watching "Page One" where you learn about his past, I noticed he seems to have a very "I don't give a crap what people think" attitude, which is a great quality for a journalist.
- vermontdevil 12y ago
  This quote is great: "Perhaps he sensed that he was king of an entropic kingdom imprisoned by incontinence and cholesterol ads."
- emehrkay 12y ago
  One thought that entered my mind, and wouldn't quite leave, while reading this is: "I hope that people like and value my work after I'm gone." This article is good writing, even though most of it is just re-telling of actual events.
  - cmyr 12y ago
    The re-telling of actual events in an engaging way is the foundational act of storytelling.
sgustard 12y ago
Help out his family by buying his excellent memoir. http://www.amazon.com/Night-Gun-reporter-investigates-darkest-ebook/dp/B001DXNZ9Q http://www.amazon.com/Night-Gun-reporter-investigates-darkes...
- edvinbesic 12y ago
  Don't get me wrong, I don't mind helping out, but with the risk of downvoting, why does a prominent journalist family in NYC need help? Honestly, not trying to be snarky, truly wondering.
  - ff10 12y ago
    His wife is working as an international operations manager for Shake Shack. I don't think they rely on handouts. I suggest donating to addiction treatment centers.
- deleted 12y ago
  [deleted]
- petesoder 12y ago
  Believe me, you don't need to read his book to simply participate in commerce. Without a doubt, this book was one of the most moving memoirs I've ever read. Very highly recommended. The bonus is that he's an incredible writer.
bby 12y ago
Damn. I thought this was the football player.
bhaumik 12y ago
His Reddit AMA reads like an insightful glimpse into his personality, wisdom, and sense of humor. http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/16k598/iama_columnist_and_reporter_on_media_and_culture http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/16k598/iama_columnist_....
- wozniacki 12y ago
  Does anyone - anyone at all, even at the fringes, even at the international fringes, anyone English, Irish, Scottish or anyone even remotely related to the English Isles - resemble David Carr at all, even in the slightest at all? To me, Paul Carr, and most other Carrs resemble a striking similarity to him. Its uncanny, like any ever is. Its spellbinding. It really is. Ask me how. Please do.
  - wozniacki 12y ago
    Well, that's an unfortunate turn of events. Isn't it?
    - coldpie 12y ago
      I didn't downvote you, but I have no idea what your comment was supposed to mean. Sorry.
  - henderson101 12y ago
    ??? Alan Carr, Jimmy Carr, Paul Carr, none of them look similar.
- deleted 12y ago
  [deleted]
wozniacki 12y ago
Since there is a feverishly down-voting activity in this particular grade, let us all ask what it is that you fledgling participants who wish to have their opinions heard, have to say. Please do so. Downvoting isn't going to the swing the pendulum to the other extreme. Trust me on this. I've been on here long enough. Please explicate your opinion and I shall make happen it, if I shall. Thank you.
- dang 12y ago
  Please don't break the HN guidelines by complaining about downvoting. Please don't post comments like this as off-topic replies to the top comment. That's an abuse of the commenting system. (We've detached this one.)
- logn 12y ago
  The feverish downvoting is in response to the low-content posts. From the current downvotes I think the only opinion wanting to be heard is that we need better quality comments.
deleted 12y ago
[deleted]
CmonDev 12y ago
Who was the dude? I would mention in the title. Would save me those wasted few minutes.
unicornporn 12y ago
Visting his Twitter feed is so strange... It gives me the feeling that in a way he's still here. :( https://twitter.com/carr2n https://twitter.com/carr2n 10h ago carr2n retweeted: Watch @citizenfour @TimesTalks w/ @ggreenwald, Laura Poitras, Ed Snowden & @carr2n. Livestream starts in 15 minutes: http://timestalks.com/laura-poitras-glenn-greenwald-edward-snowden.html http://timestalks.com/laura-poitras-glenn-greenwald-edward-s...
72deluxe 12y ago
I'm sorry but who is he? Could someone update the title to be more informative?
- maxerickson 12y ago
  Here's the first paragraph of the link: David Carr, a writer who wriggled away from the demon of drug addiction to become an unlikely name-brand media columnist at The New York Times, and the star of a documentary about the newspaper, died on Thursday in Manhattan. He was 58. If you didn't already know his work, I can't see why you would care to know any more than that. I've responded to your comment, but really, I'm responding to the whole category of comments that say "Why should I care about this.". Moreover, if those comments aren't interested enough to spend a couple minutes looking into it themselves, how interested are they actually going to be in any responses?
  - mathgeek 12y ago
    I believe the obvious point here is that when there are two or more semi- to relatively famous people who share the same name, it's generally better to put which one you're referring to in the title. If it's not obvious who the other famous David Carr is, consider for a second that to someone who doesn't read the Times, it's the same situation. To me, there is an obvious age difference, which makes the title alright in the end.
    - maxerickson 12y ago
      I don't really know either one. I just can't reconcile the "it's important to me to know this" with the "I didn't read the first paragraph."
      - mathgeek 12y ago
        It really depends on how you consume your headlines. "David Carr dead at 58" is, in my opinion, less informative that "David Carr, acclaimed NY Times journalist, dead at 58."
mitkok 12y ago
It looks like Hacker News is becoming NY Times proxy.
codeaken 12y ago
I first heard of David Carr in the documentary about New York Times called Page One [1]. David Carr is extensively covered in it and you, amongst other things, learn of his troubled past. [1] http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1787777/ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1787777/
- scott_s 12y ago
  I highly recommend that documentary to anyone with any interest in journalism.
flippyhead 12y ago
Such a bummer. I really liked David Carr. He's a great journalist and his personal story is incredible.
3am 12y ago
Tom Levenson posted a very nice tribute to him here: http://www.balloon-juice.com/2015/02/13/on-david-carr/ http://www.balloon-juice.com/2015/02/13/on-david-carr/
krebby 12y ago
One of the best scenes from Page One: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iLmkec_4Rfo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iLmkec_4Rfo Carr talks to the Vice guys about their deal with CNN: "Just because you put on a fucking safari helmet and looked at some poop, doesn't give you the right to insult what we do."

240 points by sethbannon 12y ago

Earlier today Carr moderated a panel with Laura Poitras, Glenn Greenwald, and Edward ‪Snowden‬ that's worth a watch: http://timestalks.com/laura-poitras-glenn-greenwald-edward-snowden.html http://timestalks.com/laura-poitras-glenn-greenwald-edward-s...

deleted 12y ago
[deleted]
username3 12y ago
Coincidence?
- sarciszewski 12y ago
  Probably.
- pdabbadabba 12y ago
  Well, unless you can think of a reason why someone would want to kill David Carr for interviewing Snowden, Greenwald, and Poitras, but not be motivated (or not able) to kill Snowden, Greenwald, or Poitras themselves, the answer is probably 'yes.'
  - rand334 12y ago
    Yeah, Snowden and Greenwald have insurance policies. Carr likely didn't. If they kill Snowden or Greenwald, more secrets leak. Why do you think Snowden's been so slow to release everything?
  - A_COMPUTER 12y ago
    I don't seriously think that Carr was assassinated, but Andrei Sakharov (Soviet scientist, human rights activist) believed that the KGB killed people near him because he personally was too high-profile to be killed without international outrage.

calcsam 12y ago

A long piece; reporting on his past life as a junkie: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/20/magazine/20Carr-t.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0 http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/20/magazine/20Carr-t.html?pag...

noart 12y ago

David Carr was one of the english language's finest cultural critics. His recent (last?) piece on Brian Williams & Jon Stewart was utterly piercing: http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/12/business/media/brian-williamss-and-jon-stewarts-common-ground.html?smid=tw-share http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/12/business/media/brian-willi...

misiti3780 12y ago
that was really great
mattlutze 12y ago
I wonder sometimes if the sort of clarity and vinegar with which this man writes, is only borne from the kinds of past struggle and experience he and many artists seem to share.
- atonse 12y ago
  After watching "Page One" where you learn about his past, I noticed he seems to have a very "I don't give a crap what people think" attitude, which is a great quality for a journalist.
vermontdevil 12y ago
This quote is great: "Perhaps he sensed that he was king of an entropic kingdom imprisoned by incontinence and cholesterol ads."
emehrkay 12y ago
One thought that entered my mind, and wouldn't quite leave, while reading this is: "I hope that people like and value my work after I'm gone." This article is good writing, even though most of it is just re-telling of actual events.
- cmyr 12y ago
  The re-telling of actual events in an engaging way is the foundational act of storytelling.

sgustard 12y ago

Help out his family by buying his excellent memoir. http://www.amazon.com/Night-Gun-reporter-investigates-darkest-ebook/dp/B001DXNZ9Q http://www.amazon.com/Night-Gun-reporter-investigates-darkes...

edvinbesic 12y ago
Don't get me wrong, I don't mind helping out, but with the risk of downvoting, why does a prominent journalist family in NYC need help? Honestly, not trying to be snarky, truly wondering.
- ff10 12y ago
  His wife is working as an international operations manager for Shake Shack. I don't think they rely on handouts. I suggest donating to addiction treatment centers.
deleted 12y ago
[deleted]
petesoder 12y ago
Believe me, you don't need to read his book to simply participate in commerce. Without a doubt, this book was one of the most moving memoirs I've ever read. Very highly recommended. The bonus is that he's an incredible writer.

bby 12y ago

Damn. I thought this was the football player.

bhaumik 12y ago

His Reddit AMA reads like an insightful glimpse into his personality, wisdom, and sense of humor. http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/16k598/iama_columnist_and_reporter_on_media_and_culture http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/16k598/iama_columnist_....

wozniacki 12y ago
Does anyone - anyone at all, even at the fringes, even at the international fringes, anyone English, Irish, Scottish or anyone even remotely related to the English Isles - resemble David Carr at all, even in the slightest at all? To me, Paul Carr, and most other Carrs resemble a striking similarity to him. Its uncanny, like any ever is. Its spellbinding. It really is. Ask me how. Please do.
- wozniacki 12y ago
  Well, that's an unfortunate turn of events. Isn't it?
  - coldpie 12y ago
    I didn't downvote you, but I have no idea what your comment was supposed to mean. Sorry.
- henderson101 12y ago
  ??? Alan Carr, Jimmy Carr, Paul Carr, none of them look similar.
deleted 12y ago
[deleted]

wozniacki 12y ago

Since there is a feverishly down-voting activity in this particular grade, let us all ask what it is that you fledgling participants who wish to have their opinions heard, have to say. Please do so. Downvoting isn't going to the swing the pendulum to the other extreme. Trust me on this. I've been on here long enough. Please explicate your opinion and I shall make happen it, if I shall. Thank you.

dang 12y ago
Please don't break the HN guidelines by complaining about downvoting. Please don't post comments like this as off-topic replies to the top comment. That's an abuse of the commenting system. (We've detached this one.)
logn 12y ago
The feverish downvoting is in response to the low-content posts. From the current downvotes I think the only opinion wanting to be heard is that we need better quality comments.

deleted 12y ago

[deleted]

CmonDev 12y ago

Who was the dude? I would mention in the title. Would save me those wasted few minutes.

unicornporn 12y ago

Visting his Twitter feed is so strange... It gives me the feeling that in a way he's still here. :( https://twitter.com/carr2n https://twitter.com/carr2n 10h ago carr2n retweeted: Watch @citizenfour @TimesTalks w/ @ggreenwald, Laura Poitras, Ed Snowden & @carr2n. Livestream starts in 15 minutes: http://timestalks.com/laura-poitras-glenn-greenwald-edward-snowden.html http://timestalks.com/laura-poitras-glenn-greenwald-edward-s...

72deluxe 12y ago

I'm sorry but who is he? Could someone update the title to be more informative?

maxerickson 12y ago
Here's the first paragraph of the link: David Carr, a writer who wriggled away from the demon of drug addiction to become an unlikely name-brand media columnist at The New York Times, and the star of a documentary about the newspaper, died on Thursday in Manhattan. He was 58. If you didn't already know his work, I can't see why you would care to know any more than that. I've responded to your comment, but really, I'm responding to the whole category of comments that say "Why should I care about this.". Moreover, if those comments aren't interested enough to spend a couple minutes looking into it themselves, how interested are they actually going to be in any responses?
- mathgeek 12y ago
  I believe the obvious point here is that when there are two or more semi- to relatively famous people who share the same name, it's generally better to put which one you're referring to in the title. If it's not obvious who the other famous David Carr is, consider for a second that to someone who doesn't read the Times, it's the same situation. To me, there is an obvious age difference, which makes the title alright in the end.
  - maxerickson 12y ago
    I don't really know either one. I just can't reconcile the "it's important to me to know this" with the "I didn't read the first paragraph."
    - mathgeek 12y ago
      It really depends on how you consume your headlines. "David Carr dead at 58" is, in my opinion, less informative that "David Carr, acclaimed NY Times journalist, dead at 58."

mitkok 12y ago

It looks like Hacker News is becoming NY Times proxy.

codeaken 12y ago

I first heard of David Carr in the documentary about New York Times called Page One [1]. David Carr is extensively covered in it and you, amongst other things, learn of his troubled past. [1] http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1787777/ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1787777/

scott_s 12y ago
I highly recommend that documentary to anyone with any interest in journalism.

flippyhead 12y ago

Such a bummer. I really liked David Carr. He's a great journalist and his personal story is incredible.

3am 12y ago

Tom Levenson posted a very nice tribute to him here: http://www.balloon-juice.com/2015/02/13/on-david-carr/ http://www.balloon-juice.com/2015/02/13/on-david-carr/

krebby 12y ago

One of the best scenes from Page One: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iLmkec_4Rfo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iLmkec_4Rfo Carr talks to the Vice guys about their deal with CNN: "Just because you put on a fucking safari helmet and looked at some poop, doesn't give you the right to insult what we do."