I’m going to break radio silence and write something about Carr here tomorrow. Not much — I only met the man once — but this is just a terrible loss, and I want to say something about why.
Right now, I’m just shocked and saddened beyond all reasonable measure of acquaintance.
Condolences to his family. I can’t imagine what it would be like to be a coworker and see this happen in the office.
10.
Hal
I just mentioned in the other thread I’ve been listening to him on NPR and Maddow this week about Brian Williams, and how he sounded ill to me. I just thought he was under the weather. Terrible news. Great writer. RIP.
Christ what a horrible year for people in their fifties–which I am, myself, so its starting to feel really real for me.
13.
SiubhanDuinne
Terrible shock, terrible loss. May he RIP. Condolences to his family, friends, and colleagues.
14.
Villago Delenda Est
Condolences to his family.
15.
Suzanne
God, this is just horrible. Not a good week for journalism.
16.
Mike J
David Carr—by his own account an ex-crack addict, onetime jailbird, formerly abusive boyfriend and neglectful parent—hardly fits standard notions of a movie idol. He’s an even more unlikely candidate for premier media columnist at The New York Times.
Yet the 53-year-old Carr is both—the widely read byline on the Media Equation, his influential Monday business column, and the breakout star of Page One, a surprisingly gripping documentary, opening June 17, about the legendary newspaper coping with omens of imminent extinction in the age of the Internet.
“I’m not what you would call the classic Timesman,” Carr tells me in a rare stab at understatement. “It’s sort of a contextual thing: You have this button-down ivy growing everywhere, and this oddly shaped tumbleweed comes rolling through the middle of it. I joke about looking homeless, but my neck is bent, my voice is torn up, and there’s always schmutz on my shirt.”
Bob Simon. David Carr. I would add Richard Sher, not technically a journalist but a fixture in radio for many years (he was creator and host of the quiz show “Says You”).
Add in the Brian Williams kerfuffle and Jon Stewart’s announced resignation, and it’s been a week full of suck for media.
Seth Mnookin (who apparently was a close friend) has a series of tweets up. Be warned, he’s currently at the point in grief where you’re pissed off at the person for a lifetime of smoking (I’ve been there), so don’t judge Mnookin too harshly based on those most recent tweets:
“Stevie Ray Vaughn is dead and we can’t get Jon Bon Jovi in a helicopter.”
God speed Bob Simon and David Carr, your journalism will be greatly missed.
24.
Omnes Omnibus
@TR Donoghue: FWIW my ex used to work for an aviation catering company and Bon Jovi actually had a good reputation with them. He helped carry his luggage to the plane and was considerate to the staff (the only other person with that rep was Springsteen). I still hate Bon Jovi’s music, but he seems to be a good guy.
Los Angeles, CA (February 12, 2015) – It was announced today by Steely Dan’s Donald Fagen and Walter Becker that the band’s 2015 “Rockabye Gollie Angel Tour” will extend into the summer with special guest Elvis Costello & The Imposters.
26.
Omnes Omnibus
@Mike J: Buying. As soon as available. Thanks for the heads up.
27.
Mike J
@Omnes Omnibus: I still want to know who decided to put a 20,000 seater on a two lane road in the middle of nowhere. I’ll probably go to the concert, but I’m already dreading the traffic and it’s not until July.
Mind you, the Bills’ fans are still burning him in effigy because of the rumors that he planned to move the team to Toronto permanently.
29.
Joey Maloney
From the obit:
Earlier in the evening, he moderated a panel discussion about the film “Citizenfour” with its principal subject, Edward J. Snowden; the film’s director, Laura Poitras; and Glenn Greenwald, a journalist.
Would it be irresponsible to speculate?
30.
Violet
That’s terrible news. I always enjoyed his columns. RIP and condolences to his family.
31.
sharl
@Joey Maloney: Depends on the specifics of the speculation, I suppose, but if you compare the photo of Mr. Carr in the NYT piece linked by JGC with the photo taken at the event you cited, he had clearly become a frail and unhealthy man.
By the way, that Citizenfour discussion forum can be viewed here. I haven’t watched it myself, so I have no opinion on it. It looks like it is about an hour in duration.
eta, I went back to that discussion forum site and got lucky with the time elapsed slide bar, and through my crappy laptop speakers Carr’s voice sounded reasonably vigorous, considering how unhealthy he looks. FWIW…
32.
Elizabelle
Just awoke to this sad and unwelcome news. What a loss. RIP David Carr.
33.
Elizabelle
One of Seth Mnookin’s tweets:
Oh fuck. It’s hard to be surprised by the death of a chain smoker w/a health history that should be taught in medical school. But just fuck.
34.
Keith G
I listen to the Times via Audible. Whenever a story was introduced with a David Carr byline, I focused my attention as I knew that the next two or so minutes would be very interesting.
@sharl:
A slide show at the Times shows an increasing frailty. It seems he was facing at least one serious chronic condition…and still he did important work.
Where does a junkie’s time go? Mostly in 15-minute increments, like a bug-eyed Tarzan, swinging from hit to hit. For months on end in 1988, I sat inside a house in north Minneapolis, doing coke and listening to Tracy Chapman’s “Fast Car” and finding my own pathetic resonance in the lyrics. “Any place is better,” she sang. “Starting from zero, got nothing to lose.”
…
I now inhabit a life I don’t deserve, but we all walk this earth feeling we are frauds. The trick is to be grateful and hope the caper doesn’t end any time soon.
37.
barbara
I always read David Carr the NYT– when I saw his name, I always turned to the piece with anticipation of something intelligent and well written and sometimes provocative. Very sorry to hear this. And very sorry about Bob Simon too — a real journalist who risked his life many times to bring us the story.
38.
david
What a great reporter and writer. “The Night of the Gun” is such gritty, moving, and funny memoir of his addiction, and it is so honest. He was one of the good guys.
Mnemosyne (iPad Mini)
Jaysus. Bad week to be a journalist in New York.
Pogonip
My condolences to Mr. Carr’s family, friends, and fans.
Cole, in these trying times some puppy video would cheer us up…
CaseyL
Oh, damn. I liked his work a lot. Saw a documentary about the NY Times a few years ago that featured him as one of the paper’s defenders.
He overcame addiction and FSM knows what other health problems to be one hell of a writer and commentator.
Damn, damn, damn.
carolinadave
Wasn’t he just interviewed about Jon Stewart? and Brian Williams?
Tom Levenson
I’m going to break radio silence and write something about Carr here tomorrow. Not much — I only met the man once — but this is just a terrible loss, and I want to say something about why.
Right now, I’m just shocked and saddened beyond all reasonable measure of acquaintance.
rikyrah
RIP, Mr. Carr
Major Major Major Major
That’s awful.
Valdivia
really terrible news. RIP.
PsiFighter37
Condolences to his family. I can’t imagine what it would be like to be a coworker and see this happen in the office.
Hal
I just mentioned in the other thread I’ve been listening to him on NPR and Maddow this week about Brian Williams, and how he sounded ill to me. I just thought he was under the weather. Terrible news. Great writer. RIP.
Hungry Joe
Oh, NO. GodDAMMIT. He was one of the best. I always, always read his column. Just … goddammit. That’s all.
aimai
Christ what a horrible year for people in their fifties–which I am, myself, so its starting to feel really real for me.
SiubhanDuinne
Terrible shock, terrible loss. May he RIP. Condolences to his family, friends, and colleagues.
Villago Delenda Est
Condolences to his family.
Suzanne
God, this is just horrible. Not a good week for journalism.
Mike J
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2011/06/24/david-carr-goes-hollywood-in-page-one.html?via=twitter_page
SiubhanDuinne
@Suzanne:
Bob Simon. David Carr. I would add Richard Sher, not technically a journalist but a fixture in radio for many years (he was creator and host of the quiz show “Says You”).
Add in the Brian Williams kerfuffle and Jon Stewart’s announced resignation, and it’s been a week full of suck for media.
Mandalay
@Suzanne:
@SiubhanDuinne:
While the fall of Brian Williams in itself was not a joyous event**, it was actually very healthy for journalism.
[** Except at CNN, where they are savaging him, then defecating on the remains from a great height.]
David Koch
It’s really an insult to mention, compare or connect BriWi in any form with an actual reporter like Bob Simon.
pseudonymous in nc
@Hal:
He had just come from a screening of CitizenFour at the New School. The photos from the event on the NYT website, well, in hindsight, yes.
An exemplar for journalism, and a great loss. Thoughts to his loved ones, and to his colleagues.
PlanetPundit (used to be Sir Laffs-a-Lot)
I was acqquainted with David when he lived here in Minneapolis. A remarkable mind and a fascinating fellow, Very sad.
Mnemosyne (iPad Mini)
Seth Mnookin (who apparently was a close friend) has a series of tweets up. Be warned, he’s currently at the point in grief where you’re pissed off at the person for a lifetime of smoking (I’ve been there), so don’t judge Mnookin too harshly based on those most recent tweets:
https://mobile.twitter.com/sethmnookin
TR Donoghue
“Stevie Ray Vaughn is dead and we can’t get Jon Bon Jovi in a helicopter.”
God speed Bob Simon and David Carr, your journalism will be greatly missed.
Omnes Omnibus
@TR Donoghue: FWIW my ex used to work for an aviation catering company and Bon Jovi actually had a good reputation with them. He helped carry his luggage to the plane and was considerate to the staff (the only other person with that rep was Springsteen). I still hate Bon Jovi’s music, but he seems to be a good guy.
Mike J
@Omnes Omnibus: Was waiting for you to show up:
Omnes Omnibus
@Mike J: Buying. As soon as available. Thanks for the heads up.
Mike J
@Omnes Omnibus: I still want to know who decided to put a 20,000 seater on a two lane road in the middle of nowhere. I’ll probably go to the concert, but I’m already dreading the traffic and it’s not until July.
Morzer
@Omnes Omnibus:
Mind you, the Bills’ fans are still burning him in effigy because of the rumors that he planned to move the team to Toronto permanently.
Joey Maloney
From the obit:
Would it be irresponsible to speculate?
Violet
That’s terrible news. I always enjoyed his columns. RIP and condolences to his family.
sharl
@Joey Maloney: Depends on the specifics of the speculation, I suppose, but if you compare the photo of Mr. Carr in the NYT piece linked by JGC with the photo taken at the event you cited, he had clearly become a frail and unhealthy man.
By the way, that Citizenfour discussion forum can be viewed here. I haven’t watched it myself, so I have no opinion on it. It looks like it is about an hour in duration.
eta, I went back to that discussion forum site and got lucky with the time elapsed slide bar, and through my crappy laptop speakers Carr’s voice sounded reasonably vigorous, considering how unhealthy he looks. FWIW…
Elizabelle
Just awoke to this sad and unwelcome news. What a loss. RIP David Carr.
Elizabelle
One of Seth Mnookin’s tweets:
Keith G
I listen to the Times via Audible. Whenever a story was introduced with a David Carr byline, I focused my attention as I knew that the next two or so minutes would be very interesting.
@sharl:
A slide show at the Times shows an increasing frailty. It seems he was facing at least one serious chronic condition…and still he did important work.
DCrefugee
Well, fck. He was younger than me…
Elizabelle
“Me and My Girls”, a NYTimes magazine excerpt from Carr’s 2008 memoir, The Night of the Gun. On his life with drugs, and how his daughters’ arrival (their mother was his girlfriend/drug dealer) spurred him to fight his addiction.
This excerpt’s first and last lines:
…
barbara
I always read David Carr the NYT– when I saw his name, I always turned to the piece with anticipation of something intelligent and well written and sometimes provocative. Very sorry to hear this. And very sorry about Bob Simon too — a real journalist who risked his life many times to bring us the story.
david
What a great reporter and writer. “The Night of the Gun” is such gritty, moving, and funny memoir of his addiction, and it is so honest. He was one of the good guys.
mainmati
Same thing happened to Tim Russert in 2008. Except he dropped dead just before doing the Meet the Press gig. He was 58; same age as Carr.