Boston Globe Article - Winter 4000 footers

[Raven]

If the writer was trying to give a snapshot of what hiking the W48 is like, I'm not sure he could have missed the mark by more. I'm not forwarding this to anyone I know.

With all the beautiful, descriptive words and stories of challenge and triumph, joy and beauty, or nature and man that could have filled the page in discussing this, we get talk of bowel movements, mountain top creepers, and how to use "Depends."

His teacher needs to give him back his rough draft and tell him to try again. This one's not worth grading.

No Soup For You!! One Year!

Mike P is on to it - hastily written, poorly researched.

Edit: Also agree the article on the grid was good. Interestingly, I met Ed and his group on my first round W48 finish at the West Bond Spur.

 

[Billy]

Love that picture of the hiker on Mount Bond. All the times I've been on Bond, and I've yet to see that view there. I'll have to go back and search for it.
A crappy article in the Boston Globe?.....hang on while I try to contain my surprise.

 

[NHClimber]

I am surprised that so many folks here found the writing to be poor. It is no surprise to me. Most main stream media outlets are interested in selling their stories and to do that requires any angle of sensationalism that they can find. Journalism in the main stream media is largey dead folks. And most articles these days have a lot of editorializing in them as opposed to research and reporting of facts to allow the reader to make an informed judgment.

 

[erugs]

I just looked at the writer's Linked In page and from what I saw, he should have been well-qualified to write a better piece than that. As an occasional free-lancer myself, I don't like to second guess another writer, but in this case, I can only imagine that he was really pressed for time/money and didn't practice what he has preached or been taught, even if publishing standards have been lowered. The Globe probably doesn't pay much these days, so why not scrap something together. Oh, wait, I know - a person's reputation is at stake. If we mention his name, any publisher considering his work will find this link in a Google search.

 

[sierra]

Many news outlets screw up in their reporting on mountain activities, nothing new and no surprise. The secrets and details of mountain travel are researved for those who choose to live it. This bad reporting makes me smile, we know whats what and they will never know, nah nah nah nah.

 

[Grey J]

It's a shame these kinds of articles inevitably over-emphasize the risks and dangers involved, but it seems to be the template for any article or book on the Whites: to start out with a scary lead then work your way back to the part about 64 year old grandmothers engaging in it.

Perhaps, to coin a phrase, we should label this "yellow snow journalism."

 

[skiguy]

Very weird indeed. But hey anyone writing an article like this probably thinks going to the gas station is dangerous let alone hiking in the mountains during Winter. http://adjenz.com/funnypics/cache/Cartoons & Comics/Freeze Your Ass Off_595.jpg

 

[RoySwkr]

I'd suggest that one has to be very careful about what they discuss with any reporter. Unless you have final say of the copy, you never know what the writer will decide is most interesting.

Yup

I am surprised that so many folks here found the writing to be poor. It is no surprise to me. Most main stream media outlets are interested in selling their stories and to do that requires any angle of sensationalism that they can find.

I thought the EdH article captured the essence of winter peakbagging much better so there can be good writers

But I am unfortunately not surprised that bad writers continue to exist, some of the worst writers at my local paper are the ones that win the "columnist of the year" awards so somebody must like them

 

[gaiagirl]

Folks passed this on to me because many people I know would not even have the foggiest notion that people hike in the mountains in winter at all if they didn't know me (some of my friends and acquaintances are not what you would call "outdoors-y" ). I thought it was interesting only from the stand-point that winter peak-bagging would get any press at all. Beyond that, yeah, I would agree, it was basically absolutely worthless.

 

[hikerfast]

one thing that always got to me was the portrayal in every tv show in mt washington in winter. they ALWAYS show it in the clouds with 10 feet visibility and windy and 10 below zero and no views. why not show it on a beautiful winter day, sunny, and 30, with a bunch of hikers having a great time at the summit with great views? they always have to portray the badass scenario.