Originally uploaded by Lindsay Beyerstein.
This weekend, The New York Times Magazine includes a piece on Steve Gilliard, a Democratic blogger who died this past June at the age of 42. Steve was the author of The News Blog, which remains in our blog roll. The powerful and moving piece by Matt Bai covers Gilliards life as a writer, historian, and searing critic of the war in Iraq.
Steve's efforts as a writer are survived by the other contributors of The News Blog, who've started another site - The Group News Blog. Jesse Wendel, one of their authors, has a post up responding to the Times article. Wendel praises the Times for recognizing the life Steve lived, but also corrects some assessments of Steve and his life in Bai's piece. Wendel writes:
Gilly didn't lead a lonely life. It was rich and filled day to day with his work, family, friends and sports. From his niece and nephew, his mother and father, to his co-publisher Jen, and the bloggers and friends he hung out with on a regular basis in person and on-line, this was a man who had a full, rich life. I've got an email from a national blogger who just read the Times story and wrote me saying, "Honestly, the man knew where in my kitchen I kept my knives." (She'd also been to Harlem before the funeral.) She was Gilly's friend, and he was a friend to her and to many others.
Gilly was a good friend, an amazing writer, and a mentor to more people than he knew.
I would suggest that you read both Bai's article followed immediately by reading Jesse Wendel's piece.
I can only echo what Jesse wrote. I knew Steve through the New York progressive blogger scene and considered him a friend. He was warm and friendly in person. Every time I spoke with him, I learned something, be it about military history, electoral successes, or Steve's unerring critique of the mainstream media. I've never met someone who responded faster to emails and I can recall debating with Steve into the wee hours over political strategy. Steve had one of the clearest moral compasses of anyone I've ever met. He was a blogger's blogger - someone who taught me how to write more clearly about what I believe by living the example himself every day. As Jesse says, Steve was "a mentor to more people than he knew" and we miss him dearly.
Comments
Matt - nice piece. Thought you handled this controversy incredibly well. Folks were little harsh with Bai.
Thanks Tom. I think Jesse's post really speaks for itself with its assessment of who Steve was and the life he lived. I was just trying to add to that.