Search results for “context”

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How a Rubik's cube helped a father understand the puzzle of his son

How a Rubik’s cube helped a father understand the puzzle of his son

 New York Times sportswriter John Branch is best known in the journalism world for  “Snow Fall: The Avalanche at Tunnel Creek.” His gripping long-form narrative, which reconstructed a fatal avalanche in…
September 28, 2018
After the fires: A surprising story of a haunted hero and the ashes of regret

After the fires: A surprising story of a haunted hero and the ashes of regret

Who knew there was a beat called “fire coverage,” or it was a job they would learn to love?Certainly not Lizzie Johnson, who was covering city hall for The San…
September 18, 2018
Christopher Solomon on how he captured the controversial wolf man of Washington

Christopher Solomon on how he captured the controversial wolf man of Washington

Before Christopher Solomon took on the case of the wolf researcher who ignited a political firestorm, the situation had sparked plenty of regional coverage. In particular, The Seattle Times, where…
September 11, 2018
"Do not despair of our present difficulties. We believe always in the promise and greatness of America, because nothing is inevitable here."

“Do not despair of our present difficulties. We believe always in the promise and greatness of America, because nothing is inevitable here.”

This photo released by Hanoi’s Vietnam News Agency shows Lt. Commander John S. McCain III as a prisoner of war in 1967.Coming at the end of his elegant posthumous valedictory…
August 29, 2018
"During six Sundays, he never varied his routine, faithful as a migratory mallard, his route taking him through a neighborhood of apartments that all seemed to be dying of boredom."

“During six Sundays, he never varied his routine, faithful as a migratory mallard, his route taking him through a neighborhood of apartments that all seemed to be dying of boredom.”

Sometimes a sentence stops me for reasons I can’t entirely explain, or even defend. Often it includes a moment of description or metaphor that teases out a personal memory, or…
August 15, 2018
Immigration reporting from the inside-out: through the mouths and eyes of babes

Immigration reporting from the inside-out: through the mouths and eyes of babes

America’s debate over immigration has played out to the recorded cries of children separated from their parents at the U.S.-Mexico border, to broadcast images of tears and hugs as some…
August 14, 2018
Letter from Sing Sing: Writing from inside

Letter from Sing Sing: Writing from inside

Editor’s note: Reporter and teacher Shaheen Pasha (2018 Nieman Fellow) met John J. Lennon when she interviewed him for a larger package she did on writing programs and newspapers inside America’s prisons.…
August 9, 2018
Learning to read: The daily news as information and inspiration

Learning to read: The daily news as information and inspiration

Editor’s note: Our third Shop Class – part of our Story Craft posts – grew out of breaking news stories and blogs that offer rich lessons on how to do the…
July 27, 2018
Avi Selk eulogizes the long life and too-soon death of Spider 16, and what she taught us

Avi Selk eulogizes the long life and too-soon death of Spider 16, and what she taught us

EDITOR’S NOTE: Writing about science and animals (creatures?) can be challenging. It is essential to get it right. It is also essential to make it accessible. In other words, to…
July 18, 2018
Learning to see beyond first sight

Learning to see beyond first sight

Editor’s note: We are trying out a new feature. Call it writing practice (with a nod to Natalie Goldberg’s “Writing Down the Bones,” where I first encountered the term). Or…
June 28, 2018