Andrea Pitzer is the author of three books of narrative nonfiction that explore untold histories. She was the editor of Nieman Storyboard from 2009-2012,
AP Photo/McElroy Sil A tourist attraction falls into decline. Grand urban renewal schemes fail to deliver. Residents talk about mafia infiltration, corruption and random arson. What might sound like a lost … Read more
Stephen Colbert mocking the national Christmas tree’s Twitter account shows that the frivolousness of the plucky social media tool is still up for debate. No doubt Twitter’s popularity offsets some of the mockery, and it has contributed to … Read more
Our latest “what we’re reading” draws on the stalwart print newspapers and magazines that have carried the banner of long-form narrative for so long. From a 5-part investigation of a shipwreck to a story of an athlete’s final months, these … Read more
Was artist Larry Rivers a sexual swashbuckler, breaking taboos and changing the way we think of the human body, or did some of his work have truly disturbing elements? Our latest Notable Narrative, “Crimes of the Art?” from … Read more
Narrative journalism has been dogged for years by the idea that it is too subjective or somehow less capable of conveying hard numbers to the public than a traditional news story. In a world where data mining and visualizations have … Read more
For our latest installment, we were taken with some recent contest winners, including a documentary about a group of adult men with autism and their 65-year-old caretaker, who wants to retire. Veterans step out of society, the married elderly struggle … Read more
We talked by phone this week with Jay Caspian Kang, author of The Morning News essay “The High Is Always the Pain, and the Pain Is Always the High,” our latest Notable Narrative. Kang, who has written for … Read more
In our latest Notable Narrative, “The High Is Always the Pain, and the Pain Is Always the High,” we meet Jay Caspian Kang, a gambler who dreams of being a novelist. Kang’s essay from The Morning News shares … Read more
Roy Peter Clark holds the post of senior scholar at the Poynter Institute, and as such is one of narrative journalism’s hardest-working midwives. You may have already encountered him here on Storyboard or through his books on … Read more
Today, we set aside election reporting (which we’ll return to soon) in order to gin up some reading for your Thursday anxieties: dubious conviction and cultural claustrophobia, not to mention suicide and delusion. But there are surprises – and hope – tucked … Read more