The 'New' New Left
By Brian Morton (online)
Dissent
In one of the lesser-known rituals of the literary world, every five years or so I interview for the position of book review editor of the Nation. Twice I've been a finalist, only to learn that the magazine had "decided to go in a different direction," and once I withdrew before the magazine could get a chance to tell me about the excitingly different direction they had decided to go in.
But each time the experience has been worthwhile. I've had enjoyable conversations with Katrina vanden Heuvel, the editor of the Nation; I've pondered the question of whether I should wear a tie to an interview like this (and thus look serious) or not wear a tie (and thus look hip); I have even used the occasion to think about what I would like to see more of, and less of, in the largest-circulation magazine on the left.
The first two times I was interviewed—roughly ten years ago, and then five years ago—my idea of what might improve the Nation's book section was simply that the Nation should use more of the writers you see in Dissent. (Maybe that's why I never got the job.)
This last time, about a year ago, I still wanted to import Dissent people, but it occurred to me that there was a whole new crew of writers whom I thought would improve the Nation, and thinking about them, I realized how deeply the intellectual landscape on the left has changed over the last few years, and how deeply it has changed for the better.
I'm talking about a new breed of liberal writers who have emerged on the web—a network of writers who are bringing together reformism and idealism in a way we haven't seen in many years. I'm thinking of people like Joshua Micah Marshall (the man behind Talking Points Memo); Eric Alterman, the Nation columnist, author of many books, and blogger for Media Matters for America; Ezra Klein (The American Prospect); Kevin Drum (the Washington Monthly); Glenn Greenwald (Salon); Matthew Yglesias (the Atlantic); Bob Somerby (the Daily Howler); Rick Perlstein (the Campaign for America's Future); and the writer who goes by the name of Digby who blogs for her own website, digbysblog. I think of Paul Krugman and Harold Meyerson as two of the spiritual godfathers of this kind of politics. Meyerson has edited some of these writers at the American Prospect; and Krugman makes frequent reference to their work in his columns and on his New York Times blog. (TM note: you could probably add Joe Conason, David Corn and Greg Mitchell, among others.)
(Continued here.)
Dissent
In one of the lesser-known rituals of the literary world, every five years or so I interview for the position of book review editor of the Nation. Twice I've been a finalist, only to learn that the magazine had "decided to go in a different direction," and once I withdrew before the magazine could get a chance to tell me about the excitingly different direction they had decided to go in.
But each time the experience has been worthwhile. I've had enjoyable conversations with Katrina vanden Heuvel, the editor of the Nation; I've pondered the question of whether I should wear a tie to an interview like this (and thus look serious) or not wear a tie (and thus look hip); I have even used the occasion to think about what I would like to see more of, and less of, in the largest-circulation magazine on the left.
The first two times I was interviewed—roughly ten years ago, and then five years ago—my idea of what might improve the Nation's book section was simply that the Nation should use more of the writers you see in Dissent. (Maybe that's why I never got the job.)
This last time, about a year ago, I still wanted to import Dissent people, but it occurred to me that there was a whole new crew of writers whom I thought would improve the Nation, and thinking about them, I realized how deeply the intellectual landscape on the left has changed over the last few years, and how deeply it has changed for the better.
I'm talking about a new breed of liberal writers who have emerged on the web—a network of writers who are bringing together reformism and idealism in a way we haven't seen in many years. I'm thinking of people like Joshua Micah Marshall (the man behind Talking Points Memo); Eric Alterman, the Nation columnist, author of many books, and blogger for Media Matters for America; Ezra Klein (The American Prospect); Kevin Drum (the Washington Monthly); Glenn Greenwald (Salon); Matthew Yglesias (the Atlantic); Bob Somerby (the Daily Howler); Rick Perlstein (the Campaign for America's Future); and the writer who goes by the name of Digby who blogs for her own website, digbysblog. I think of Paul Krugman and Harold Meyerson as two of the spiritual godfathers of this kind of politics. Meyerson has edited some of these writers at the American Prospect; and Krugman makes frequent reference to their work in his columns and on his New York Times blog. (TM note: you could probably add Joe Conason, David Corn and Greg Mitchell, among others.)
(Continued here.)
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