About halfway down the page on this New York Daily News gossip page you will find this three paragraph item:
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Johnny Weir can take a few insults, but don't upset his mom. The Olympic skater tells us he wasn't thrilled with how New York Magazine portrayed him in its current issue, but what really cheeses him off is that his mother "was offended" by the feature.
"She said it seemed I wasn't serious and I was just another New York-area person just going to parties," Weir says, before explaining: "Yes, I was getting ready for red-carpet events, but I was going to them to work and network." Weir also grouses that the feature "attacked my people. ... I can be told to be subjected to a gender test, I can have my clothes attacked, but when you attack my people, my army, that's when I get pissed off!"
A spokeswoman for New York magazine responds: "We love Johnny Weir - as Amy [Larocca] writes in the piece, he's ‘talented and clever and beautiful,' and we think that comes through in the profile and photos."
Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/gossip/2010/08/19/2010-08-19_cops_pull_guns_on_piranha_3d_stars_kelly_brook_jessica_szohr_en_route_to_las_veg.html#ixzz0x2s2X05q
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Obviously they have not read their own piece, because though it's true that Johnny Weir IS talented, clever and beautiful, the piece as written does not portray that very well at all. My friend Misfit Mimes did a wonderful job of describing what was wrong with this article in her brilliant Blogs Guuuuuurrrrrrlll and #YoureACar.
8 comments:
Thank you for the shout-out, Gail! And for highlighting Johnny's response as given to the NY Daily News (who loves Johnny and hates NY Mag--yay, NY Daily News!). Totally agree with you about NY Mag's limp response: "Obviously they have not read their own piece."
I'm right there with Johnny's mom. I was offended by the article, as well. For aside for some wonderful Johnny quotes, the rest of the article did not do the man any justice as the brilliant artist that he is.
The magazine needed to send a more mature and experienced writer to spend time with, and interview Johnny. Ms. Larocca was in over her head and didn't even know it.
Misfit,
You're welcome! You did do such a wonderful job with it, so I figured pointing people in your direction was the best way to explain what was wrong with the article itself.
I realize NYMag probably wants to back their own writer, but they obviously haven't read their own piece (or edited it either, lol!)! And yes, that was a 'limp' response!
PumaJ,
I know! A lot of us were offended. She had such an original, talented and unique subject to work with, how the hey did she come up with such a mish mash? She implied he was drinking, she wasn't very nice about his 'buddies', and in fact she reminded a lot of us of a certain annoying Blogger who, along with his little reperatory group of the same commentors (most of whom are 'anonymous'), trash Tara and Johnny along with his friends and so on.
I didn't read any of her other pieces, but it seems like she's written enough that she should be able to be a little more objective, and not just follow along with focusing on what so many others have focused on; plus learn to fact check and proof read...
Johnny Weir is a personality so media-ready, and yet is so continually under-served by them that it shocks me every time I read a feature about him. I honestly don't know what happens from the time the reporter and Johnny shake hands, to when the final draft hits the editor's desk...what kind of disconnect occurs?
He's an interview diamond in the rough...are there no reporters up to the task?
Thank you very much for this, Gail!
Judging from the spokeswoman's response, NY Mag needs not only a writer who can understand her interviewee exactly and write accordingly but also a spokesperson who can read their articles properly (and efficient fact checkers).
Debora,
He's an interviewer's dream when you really think about it. He's intelligent, talented and he has a quote for everything, but like you said he is continually underserved by the people who interview him. We have seen well done interviews but they tend to focus on one thing first and foremost and there's so much out there to say about him. For example, I've been a fan of his since around 2004 but there are things I only recently found out about him because he just doesn't get covered right so often!
There are reporters up to the task, but this one obviously was not, lol!
Akiko,
YOu're welcome! And you're right, not only do they need factcheckers, and a reporter up to the job who can understand and properly write about her subject, but also an editor who properly edits. And like you said, a good spokeswoman, lol!
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