but he still wrote a half way decent piece... some bad mistakes but steve was choosen, and that is good.
Even if it was fiction, it was a warm piece, more human that I expect from the Times.
But just where did Bai get the bad info? Did he make it up?
Pacific John, and everyone --
No, he didn't make it up.
Bai interviewed around, called here and there. The fact checking was simply very, very weak. And as I pointed out in my piece, Bai made a number of factual errors. He also made other errors I didn't point out in the first piece, not to mention framing the article in a bullshit way.
What I don't want to let happen though, is let all that steal from Gilly. Let me quote what I wrote earlier tonight over in a thread at Feministe:
Yes, the Times employs fact checkers.
Jen and I were talking earlier today about how badly they failed to get anything other than basic facts correct.
Trust me — Gilly was anything but the celibate impotent black geek boy the Times paints him as. Too bad Matt Bai is so threatened by a strong black sexy man that he must emasculate him in order to feel safe.
He lamented that he didn’t know what it was to “wake up naked in a strange bed,”
Total crap.
Jen was neither Gilly’s lover or girlfriend, but as Jen and I talked about today, Gilly had girlfriends, lovers, and opportunities to just get laid. There’s something about a strong articulate man that simply turns smart women on — and Gilly had enough smarts and genuine strength for ten men.
If Matt Bai and the fact checkers from the Times had bothered to actually listen when they called Jen, or had bothered to check with the rest of us who worked with Gilly and have been privileged to serve his community after his passing, perhaps they might have got their facts straight, or even half-way bent.
That said, I will always be thankful that The New York Times saw fit to honor our friend in such a fitting way with the other notable passages of 2007. This article will mean a great deal to the Gilliard family, and that means a great deal to all of us at GNB.
In the end, what matters most is not the errors in the article, but what a great man Steve Gilliard was, and how he effortlessly touched everyone around him.
I just read Wolcott's take on Steve- it was really nice.
Do not expect integrity from the New York Times.
They sold out before either of us was born.
The thing that mystifies me is why so many people who have, allegedly, been around the block, still consider them to be the "paper of record".
But then, the apparently bottomless capacity of Americans to swallow complete bullshit (and spew it forth again as violent and repressive action) was something that Heinlein noted, again, before I was born.
Any paper that accepts William Kristol as a guest columnist is suspect from the start - suspect as to their sources, their facts and their basic integrity.
kycole, link?
Sorry, this luddite can't do links. You can go to the blogroll.
KyCole and littlest gator:
http://www.vanityfair.com/politi...e-it-a-
poi.html
The best insight to Steve was to read his writings he talked about the important stuff, and left out the bits that didn't matter.
That's what made Steve so unique, you really got in his head everyday. Damn I miss him.
Hello - just wanted to drop a note to say hi. Thanks to Markos highlighting the NYT piece and then linking to the commentary here, I was reminded of this spot and have really enjoyed what I have been reading. Officially my favorite new site going into '08 
During the 2004 campaign, I used to go down to the local fish warp (The Oregonian) and stand outside with a cardboard sign; "Will fact check for food." After a couple of days I changed it to; "Will fact check for health care."
They never did take me up on it.
They hired Bill Kristol. What did you expect?
Does anyone remember the days when the NYT was the paper to read?
delurking. Wolcott's piece was a tribute, but I think he was mistaken in one area:
"A sense of incompletion will always nag, in part because no one has been able to fill the role he left behind and probably no one ever will--he left so much behind, but he took so much more with him."
While no one will ever be Steve, I think you at Group News Blog - Jesse, Hubris, Lower Manhattanite, Littlest Gator, and Jen as the bridge (and I suspect heart), are doing a darned (damned) fine job of taking up the mantle and keeping the flame alive. Yes, Steve had so much more to give, and who knows what, however, he's gone. I have so much admiration for you folks who are trying to keep that flame alive, yet are strong and brave enough to infuse it with your own energy/insights/opinion etc and keep the folks coming back. You are doing well, nay, very well. I enjoy this site. return whenever I'm online, and recommend it. AND I'm not an American! Writing well done is not common these days, and you folks are an oddity I enjoy. Keep up the good work....
Yes, I miss Steve. However, he's off elsewhere and isn't coming back. In the meantime, Youse has done pretty damned good and get better every month.
Back to lurking.
The lesson here is simple. The press almost always has most of the facts wrong. We don't see that until something we are knowledgeable about gets mangled by them.
It isn't just the Times, it's all media, all the time.
So remember dear readers, don't believe everything you read!
As for the colossus of personality that Steve blessed us with I miss that voice and attitude every day. Every single day.
And I am very sure that each of the four apostles that I now read here every day would say the same.
And I forgive Bai his screwy facts because he did mention the work of Steve's that I loved the most, and the choice was not an easy one.
The massive essay on colonialism is worth the read if you have an interest in the subject {Steve and I discussed this very topic often in emails as I live in a colony} and I really wish that it would see print.
How about it GNB?
The news of the Times' slightly fractured salute to the Life of Steve gave me a chill. They say ghosts can do that.
On another note, will the Times be having a comment section for the Kristol editorials? I hope so.
They wrote something, thats what counts.
No, this is supposedly The Paper of Record. They got it wrong. What counts is that they have to be held accountable. On this, and EVERY story they get wrong (and they are legion).
On another note, will the Times be having a comment section for the Kristol editorials? I hope so.
RC | 12.30.07 - 11:46 am
If they do, they probably won't for long.
Just another pile of chopped liver over here....
WhattheH
don't forget mrs. r, and thanks for the support. we are certainly trying. but his shoes are impossible to fill.
happy new year all! it is 12/31 here in the land of the rising sun. getting ready to ring in, what will hopefully be a year of change for the better
WhattheH -
You missed our lovely Sara Robinson. *smiles*
Four of us are Masthead bloggers at GNB. In alphabetical order, Hubris Sonic, Jesse "Doc" Wendel, Lower Manhattanite, and Sara Robinson.
The Littlest Gator guest blogs, as well as being our Facebook Administrator. And we'll have other guest bloggers hopefully in the near future.
Jen is around, but does not play any official role at GNB. And of course, we talk with her, listen to her, and do everything we can to make sure she's well and taken care of. But mostly, she's taking a well-deserved break from the blogging world.
Oh hi, Sara - aka chopped liver. I'm officially adding you to the GNB authorship as some previous posters have forgotten you as one of the four founders.
Bai's article was beautifully written despite the inaccuracies about the real Steve ... I was moved my many memories of the years of columns I experienced with joy, anger, amazement, laughter and hunger (yep - the food posts were tasty!).
Yes, I miss Steve, as we all do. But the GNB crew helps fill the void every day, and for that I thank you!
Here's to a better 2008. Jesse -continued best wishes to your Dad for a full recovery.
Wolcott's piece.
And man, do I ever miss Gilly.
I just want to know the answer to one question: how the fuck did Steve Gilliard get to be a fan of Motorhead? (I have a hypothesis - a New York connection spelled R.A.M.O.N.E.S - but I'd still like to know for sure.)
Wish I could have the answer from the horse's mouth.
Thanks murfmom. He's doing fine.
I've just been made aware of this Gilly bloke -came on the back of a story i tracked on another new york blog re the heroic subway muslim trainee accountant Hassan Askari (07 Dec 07)...links and thinks. Pity I hadn't stumbled across him when he was alive and kicking the shit out of stupidity. Keep on truckin'. Mickeykins.
I miss Steve -in fact got the chance to tell someone all about him the other day when they were reading through a list of those who have passed on in 2007. Gave them links and set them on their way to some good reading. I still can't take his blog link out of my favourites and still have that box of Lancashire tea I was going to send once he came home.
But thanks for GNB. Wouldn't be without it. You people get me thinking, make me laugh, let me share the outrage and the joy from way across the pond. Thanks for everything you do.
while there was only one Gilliard the idea that no one will fill his void is bullshit, we got a handfull here and more spring up around the net every day. That is the true bueaty of what steve did. that was his core genious. he inspierd others to fight along with him. he showed us that it wasn't a hopelss battle. that we could unite that we could win. the foundation that he built is growing every day.
"I wish I wouldve met you
Now its a little late
What you couldve taught me
I couldve saved some face
They think that your early ending
Was all wrong
For the most part theyre right
But look how they all got strong
Thats why I say hey man nice shot
What a good shot man
A man
Has gun
Hey man
Have fun
Nice shot
Now that the smokes gone
And the air is all clear
Those who were right there
Got a new kind of fear
Youd fight and you were right
But they were just to strong
Theyd stick it in your face
And let you smell what they consider wrong
Thats why I say hey man nice, nice shot
What a good shot man
A man
Has gun
Hey man
Have fun
Nice shot
I wish I wouldve met you
I wish I wouldve met you
Id say
Nice shot"
miss him like the brother I felt he was. TNB truly was home. thank you to all of you for making the GNB happen...
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