Journalism Matters

Recently I read “She Said” and “Catch and Kill” back to back. I didn’t set out to read them on top of each other– “She Said” became available for me at the library right before “Catch and Kill” was released, so I’m considering it a happy accident. I believe that my enjoyment of the books was actually enhanced by reading multiple accounts of the Harvey Weinstein investigation by two types of reporters in about two weeks.

Let me preface my review by making a bold statement. I’ve read over 50 books this year, and these two are among the best. I’d go so far as to say they’re two of the best books I’ve read in many, many years. They feature double agents, spies, intrigue, and adventure–and they just happen to be true stories. Anyway, let me get into it.

Megan Twohey and Jodi Kantor are reporters for the New York Times. Ronan Farrow was a television journalist, who was working to bolster his investigative reporting credibility prior to renegotiating his contract with NBC. Print journalists have different jobs than television journalists, and the work of television journalists evolved as their medium continues to merge with the Internet — television reporting is now backed up by stories published on the news channel’s webpage.

Kantor, Twohey, and Farrow worked on the same story. They quietly investigated allegations of assault against Harvey Weinstein, the man…