David Carr’s Book Reveals that Business Writers Are People, Too

Nearly all members of the media circus knows David Carr. He writes a media column for the business section of the New York Times and is generally on the media “scene”, speaking at events and moderating panels at NYU, among other things. But his book The Night of the Gun offers a fully reported account of his troubled past and eventual triumph over drugs and demons back in his native Minnesota. He went back in time to interview people who knew him before he knew himself and he recounts every great success and “wish-I-would’ve-forgotten-that” moment with the same candor.

As media writers go, Carr is nothing short of the best. I believe his writing and not just the words on the page (or screen) but the intention behind them. Not only is his flavorful take on the sometimes mundane world of business amusing, but it’s honest and clear.

His book is much of the same - honest and clear, flavorful and amusing. A good story-teller obviously, but to tell a great story about the moments of your life that you are not not so proud of is a talent of a much grander caliber.

The book’s website is also a media-rich experience. Check it out here.