A Public Conversation on the ins and outs of long-form and literary journalism with leading authors of the genre, including: Philip Gourevitch, Adrian Nicole LeBlanc, Alastair Reid, and Robert S. Boynton; Lawrence Weschler, Suketu Mehta, Elizabeth Rubin, Wojciech Jagielski, and others.
"Kapuscinski's writing, always wonderfully concrete and observant, conjures marvels of meaning out of minutiae... [The Emperor] transcends reportage..." - Salman Rushdie
This two-day event offers an exciting public conversation about the state of the art of reportage amid a rapidly changing media landscape, the various approaches to and practices of long-form and literary journalism, and the ongoing legacy of renowned practitioners like Polish journalist Ryszard Kapuściński. At a time when categorical differences between fiction and nonfiction are increasingly ambiguous, and the gap between their respective segments of the publishing market increasingly small, a discussion of reportage as literary art form is paramount.
This conversation may be understood as a continuation of two previous discussions initiated and co-presented by the Polish Cultural Institute in New York: Literary Reportage: The Forensics of Crisis, which took place at Idlewild Books in May 2009, and the Tribute to Ryszard Kapuscinski at the PEN World Voices Festival in 2007. Here, however, Kapuściński is taken less as an object of reflection and homage than as a point of departure for understanding the current state of reportage and its future. As a Polish writer Kapuściński both represents a tradition of journalism that is understood as serious literature (the Polish School of Reportage) and offers to English-language readers a perspective on postcolonial experiences and global relations that is unique.
Participants include leading U.S. and international authors: Robert S. Boynton, Jane Ciabattari, Joshua Clark, Ted Conover, Klara Główczewska, Eliza Griswold, Arif Jamal, Adrian Nicole LeBlanc, Suketu Mehta, Alistair Reid, Elizabeth Rubin, and Lawrence Weschler, as well as representatives of the post-Kapuściński Polish School of Reportage: Wojciech Jagielski and Paweł Smoleński.
This free public program is presented in association with the Overseas Press Club of America and Words Without Borders.
The symposium coincides with the launch this fall of the Literary Reportage concentration at NYU's Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute as well as a special issue on literary reportage of the online magazine Words without Borders, which features work by a number of the participants.
At a time when categorical differences between fiction and nonfiction are increasingly ambiguous, and the gap between their respective segments of the publishing market increasingly small, a discussion of reportage as a literary art form seems paramount.
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
- 5:00-7:00 PM - "The Art of Reportage on the Ground and on the Page"
How does narrative arise from reportage? What transformation occurs during the writing process? Answers from journalists who combine investigative skills and literary craft.
Participants: Jane Ciabattari (moderator), Joshua Clark, Eliza Griswold, Arif Jamal, Elizabeth Rubin, Paweł Smoleński. - 7:30-9:30 PM - "Literary Reportage Between Fact and Fiction, Self and Other"
If a strictly objective take is self-evidently impossible, what sort of warrant as to strict veracity ought the reader expect from the creator of long-form narrative nonfiction? To what extent, if any, ought that writer's vantage be grounded in a personal "I" voice, and to what extent does even that commitment shade into a sort of fiction?
Participants: Lawrence Weschler (moderator), Wojciech Jagielski, Adrian Nicole LeBlanc, Suketu Mehta, Alastair Reid.
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
6:30-8:30 PM - "Kapuscinski's Legacy in the 21st Century"
Ryszard Kapuściński was one of the most celebrated, albeit controversial journalists of the last fifty years, a gorgeous stylist and a rhapsodic, if at times not strictly reliable, witness. To what extent is the kind of reportage he engaged in even possible today? What lessons can the next generation of writers draw from his example?
Participants: Robert S. Boynton (moderator), Anna Bikont, Ted Conover, Klara Główczewska (she translated three of Ryszard Kapuściński's books, including ), Philip Gourevitch.
Information provided by the Polish Cultural Institute in New York where more detailes could be found. See also for the full programmme: nyih.as.nyu.edu
All of the events are free and open to the public on a first-come, first-in basis (no reservations).
Place:
NYU's Hemmerdinger Hall
100 Washington Square East
(entrance midway between Waverly and Washington)