“I’d like to see your link-dump escape from the Taliban!”
New York Times reporter escapes Taliban compound after seven months in captivity
Bad-ass reporter tells Huffington Post link-monkeys to suck it
With newspapers all over the country folding daily (pun…apologized for) or becoming online only web-link aggregate sites, it has to feel good for the staff of the embattled New York Times to show there are some things bloggers can’t do. Like scale the wall of a Taliban outpost in Pakistan after being held hostage for almost a year. I mean, I’m sure they’re equally glad to have reporter David Rohde back safely, but this is a pretty nice argument for “traditional news reporting is still relevant.” Let’s be fair, newspapers aren’t just going under because the internet ruins everything (though it does), but because investigative journalism is EXPENSIVE. It’s far cheaper to have a couple of web-guys collect and comment on news stories that someone else paid to dig up.
You know, like I’m doing now. Didn’t cost me a thing but a domain name and my utterly worthless time.
Two things about the story impressed me. One, that media outlets kept a cover on the story for seven months, lest the publicity endanger Rhode’s life, or a rescue attempts. Two, that David Rohde is fucking BAD-ASS. According to the story, “Rohde knew the reporting trip would be dangerous and that his editors would likely not allow him to make it. So he sent his editors an e-mail that he knew they would receive too late to stop the trip.” This isn’t even the first time the guy’s been kidnapped in search of a story - in ’96 he was taken prisoner by Serbian officials who accused him of being a spy, and tortured for 10 days. Screw Wolf Blitzer running around in a flak jacket, Rohde is the real Rambo of journalism.
Anyway, welcome home, sir. I’m sure you’ll have a hell of a story to tell.