Read the following article from the New York Times and respond to the following:
a) How will this situation ultimately affect this author's credibility in the future?
b) What struck you most about this article? Be specific.
Due by Thursday 11:59 pm
21 comments:
Well the authhor obvisouy isn't going to be trusted if they she says that her book is based on a truthful story. But if the author chooses to write fictional books like this,Then her future should not be jeprodized at all. Obvisouly this book is a big hit, so therefore people will later forget about the lies in this book and they will find other vooks that have been lied about. what she did may affect her as now, but it wont affect that harshley later in the future.
The thing that struct methe most in this article is how she based some of the incidents that happened in the book off of some of her friends. I know if I was one of her friends and someone based such an intense book on me, I think that i would be a little offeneded. I would think that she didn't have a perfect life either and she should write a book about her experinces and not others.
I know that I kind of say the oppiste thing in both paragraph, but I feel as the community it doesn't matter at all. But if i was a person realted to this book an anyway, i would be very offended.
a) How will this situation ultimately affect this author's credibility in the future?
I think this will effect her as an author in the future because she led people to believe that she went through all of those expieriances. To me people read books because sometimes it gives them a look into someones else's life, or they can see something from someone else's point of view. But i think the reason why people got so upset is because when they read her story they felt deeply for what she had said and what she had gone through. When they found out she didn't even really go through those things they might have felt as people feel when you tell them a story that isn't true. I like how the author referenced a million little pieces, because i read it and even though it was mostly a lie i still thought it was a really good book.
b) What struck you most about this article? Be specific.
Not so much the article, but how putting a word or two words on the cover of your book can change everything. I don't think that it should matter if its true or not, but if its well written or is interesting to whoever reads it.
a) How will this situation ultimately affect this author's credibility in the future?
I think this will effect her as an author in the future because she led people to believe that she went through all of those expieriances. To me people read books because sometimes it gives them a look into someones else's life, or they can see something from someone else's point of view. But i think the reason why people got so upset is because when they read her story they felt deeply for what she had said and what she had gone through. When they found out she didn't even really go through those things they might have felt as people feel when you tell them a story that isn't true. I like how the author referenced a million little pieces, because i read it and even though it was mostly a lie i still thought it was a really good book.
b) What struck you most about this article? Be specific.
Not so much the article, but how putting a word or two words on the cover of your book can change everything. I don't think that it should matter if its true or not, but if its well written or is interesting to whoever reads it.
SAMSON NGUYEN
a) How will this situation ultimately affect this author's credibility in the future?
I believe that because this is blown completely out of proportion by the media, to the extent of even recalling the books. There is nothing wrong with writing fabricated fiction if the author admits to it... especially since she was writing it under a pseudonym.
However, like I said, media and critics are blowing it way out of proportion to the extent of recalling the books. Many people may be literate, but they wouldn't put the situation into perspective. It's the way that those people portray her that will damage her credibility. The general public will take the bait, and that's what will hurt her.
b) What struck you most about this article? Be specific.
What struck me the most about this article is that a rich white girl who grew up going to a private school could write about G's in tha 'hood so vividly and professionally. I know several people who have grown up with terrible lives and gone through terrible times in reality, but always look forward to the future and hope for the best. It's almost kind of like the opposite of what that author did. Instead of looking through and writing about the perspective of a G', they are hoping to be in the shoes of someone who is leading a happier and more peaceful life.
a) How will this situation ultimately affect this author's credibility in the future?
Well in most general view of people they would say that it would effect her in the future because now people won't believe her anymore due to the fabricated book she wrote that she claimed was entirely true. But in my view i would say that it's no problem to exaggerate on little facts to make the book more interesting and appealing. But this is what the media does and trys to persaude you into thinking that.
b) What struck you most about this article? Be specific.
It hard to believe that most people actually believe a rich white girl that grew up in a nice enviroment. She doesn't try to make others look forward then that past but she making it seem like the people who actually did go through all these expierence should stay in the past.
Nomi Weitzman
Gang Memoir- Response
a) How will this situation ultimately affect this author's credibility in the future?
Ms. Seltzer has no credibility and probably never will. When you lie about something, especially something that is this powerful, and affected this many people, for so long, people tend to never trust you again. Ms. Seltzer will probably never have the chance to publish anything ever again because no one will ever trust her. Not only does she loose credibility but also respect, she forged a story as if it were her own, a real and powerful story that many people are living through right now. She could’ve tried to publish it as fiction, even is getting fiction books published is hard, its wrong and disrespectable to publish her book as non-fiction when its fiction. People who actually experienced a life like one in her book have the right to call their book a memoir. But making up a story biased on other people’s experiences and calling it your own/real is wrong.
b) What struck you the most about this article, be specific.
What struck me the most is the amount of remorse Ms. Seltzer showed, none. I thought I had an opportunity to make people understand the conditions that people live in and the reasons people make the choices from the choices they don’t have.” Ms. Seltzer doesn’t even seem to care what her actions caused, the deception. She doesn’t even make an excuse, she just says it was an opportunity. Her lies made an effect on other people, her publisher, has lost some credibility, her children are aware that their mother lied to the nation. I just think that she should regret her actions, feel bad, anything. It wasn’t just one lie, it was a whole set of lies, she worked with her publisher for 3 years spouting these lies and doesn’t feel an ounce of guilt? I feel that her reaction should have been different, and that really struck me.
JOSH PUENTESPINA
How will this situation ultimately affect this author's credibility in the future?
I think that after this incident this writer Ms. Seltzer would totally ruin her credibility in almost any field that she goes into from here. I think that she would have a hard time being published because she wasn’t truthful with the people who helped and edited her book. Like it was stated if she had been truthful the whole time she could have made the book compelling as well. What does suck is that all of these books got recalled and now since they apparently touched a lot of people they must feel maybe bad or stupid for believing it after they bought into it so much. I think that exaggerating facts would’ve been fine because they did happen but completely making up a pretty much different life was totally uncalled for. I really think that this author cannot keep writing because she has lost so much of her credibility so she will not be so easily published.
b) What struck you most about this article? Be specific.
The thing that struck me the most is how often this seems to happen because there is another memoir of the holocaust that ended up fake as well and this is how this came into light. The thing that really did strike me completely was the fact that she was able to keep this story totally under wraps with the same story over and over without people being able to tell that it was fake because they felt sorry for her and thought her story should get out. Also to think that a family member was the one that ratted her out to the news was kind of sad and sounds like a huge betrayal.
Daniel Kim Said
I'm pretty sure that the author's credibility will probably never be believable again. I only say probably because she could try really hard to prove that what she wrote in that book was mostly related to her close friends. I guess she would have to prove it by saying things on television with her friends vouching for her. Another thing that she could do is write a book, or letter and publish that as well to prove that she wrote this for a meaning instead of money. But overall, the author of Gang Memoir will not be credible unless she works very, very hard to prove that she is a truthful writer.
A couple of things struck me when I read this article. The first thing was that she lied and she confessed after she sold thousands of copies. The second thing that struck me was that there was a Holocaust memoir that was a lie. I think that if you lie about something as tragic as the Holocaust, you should be looked down by society. A lot. I mean, people still get very emotional even when they think about it now.
After reading this article, I think that it was very wrong for Seltzer to lie about the story, even if it was spreading awareness and giving people an idea about the life that some people have to live in. In the future, she is most likely not going to be trusted, especially when it comes to publishing another book. People are always going to have to second guess her and dig deeper to make sure that she has not lied. To lie to the extent that she did, will leave a deep scare. She lied directly to the face of major publishers and editors who trusted her and believed in her story. Seltzer was going to succeed, but because she could not come clean and say the book was fiction, it hit her career hard in the face. I do think that if she is able to be honest about whether or not her future stories are true, she might still have a career in writing.
The thing that surprised me most about this article was that the publishing company did not try to make sure that it was really her story. If they had done a little more deeper digging, they would have found out that the story was not based on her life before publishing. If they had done this, they would not have found out from someone who knew of the author and that was not the life that she lived when she was growing up.
a) How will this situation ultimately affect this author's credibility in the future?
I think this person's credibility has just completely been shot. I think this person won't get the credibility that she intentionally wanted to gain, but she now has oppositions and people are just against her. I don't she will gain any sort of credibility for this. I also believe that it was a good attempt to try to get something out that she felt strongly about, but maybe she came about the whole situation wrong.
b) What struck you most about this article? Be specific.
The think what struck me most about this article was how this person used experiences from other people's lives, and calling them her own. She claims that she went through all these things, but in the end, we have to find out that she just forged her image into something completely different than who she really was. I think lying about who you really are just to get a message, or some sort of awareness out, I don't think was the right way to do that. There are many other possible alternatives that she could have done. I think she came about this situation completely wrong, and the negative feedback that she got out of it, wasn't even worth doing in the first place.
a) How will this situation ultimately affect this author's credibility in the future?
I doubt that the author's credibility will go up from the little incident. I think everything is going to be going downhill for her from now on. It's horrible to read about a serious topic and later find out that what was read was an entire lie.
b) What struck you most about this article? Be specific.
What struck me about this article was when it said that she lives in Sherman Oaks, went to a nice private school, and is basically living the life exactly opposite from what she has wrote about. I know she was trying to connect with certain audiences and trying to inspire them but it's just not the same. It's a different story when someone who hasn't lived that "hood" life and writes a memoir on her non existing life, it's just less effective to readers.
Jaryl Gutierrez
a) How will this situation ultimately affect this author's credibility in the future?
It will ultimately affect her credibility in the feature poorly because of the fact that she lied to many people who felt sorry for her, and helped her write the book. Also because people spent time with her felt sorry for her and helped her for three years writing this book and they never noticed that her story always stayed the same and had no cracks which is very suspicious, because as an author when you look back you will add pieces or subtract some but they said that her story never changed. Maybe it was a good story and people needed to hear it, but she could have said the book was going to be about some of her friends experiences throughout life instead of saying she was a foster child and had two African American brothers who joined gangs when they were thirteen and fourteen, that they gave her a gun when she was only fourteen, she bought a burial plot. So now by her doing all this to herself she’s trying to get back at people by saying that she did for the people who couldn’t have their voice herd for whatever reason.
b) What struck you most about this article? Be specific.
What stuck me was that she lied to a lot of people that felt sympathy for her and helped her write this book for three years. And now it all back fired on her, so all those new friends she made dislike her and her family as well. For example if she hadn’t done that interview on the news-paper her sister would have never called the newspaper and tell them it was a lie, this wouldn’t be happening but later on if people were to find out if could have been worse the more you wait the worse it gets. But by her lying about a family and even mention names and dilemmas that had happened anyone can make up for example when you write short stories you make up characters then you develop a plot with an exposition, event, climax, a resolution and a conclusion. So her story could be completely made up just like her bio on the newspaper or she is really telling the story from friend’s experiences.
In the future, Seltzer’s credibility will undoubtedly be questioned more so than any other's. I highly doubt any publisher would consider producing another “auto-biographical” text by her, but they may consider publishing a work of fiction by her, judging by the positive reviews Love and Consequences initially received. Many reviewers considered her work heartfelt and moving, and eliciting that type of emotion through written word is a sign of a talented writer. I believe this situation will negatively affect Seltzer’s career at the moment, but I wouldn’t go so far as to suggest her work as an author had ended.
The bluntness of the author’s sister, Cyndi Hoffman, sparked curiosity in me. It was never mentioned if Seltzer’s sister contacted the author prior to informing the New York Times of the fabrication, but one must question the relationship between these siblings. If your own sister, whom you share some of the same DNA with, goes so far as to publicly announce your lying ways, you must really have some bad blood in between you. What could be the motive to jeopardize your own sibling’s book deal, career and future in the publishing industry? The sibling-drama between these two seems almost more enticing than the original gang memoir.
a)How will this situation ultimately affect this author's credibility in the future?
In the future publishing companies will be wary about publishing her works. Who knows if they’ll be what they really are. She should not have lied about it being a memoir, but instead just made it a novel. If I was a publisher, I would not publish anything of hers if it was claimed to be a memoir. She already had one fake life, what would stop her from making up another. I think that if you write a memoir, of course it’s alright to stretch some details, but to completely make up a life is unacceptable. It is then a fictional story, a novel. However, I don’t think this issue should affect her credibility for writing fiction. This just proves that she is a convincing story teller, which may make her more favorable to publish.
b) What struck you most about this article? Be specific.
What struck me most was the fact that she would even think to call it a memoir. I still fail to see the reasoning behind her choice to do that. I think that it could have been just as powerful as a novel, compared to a memoir. I personally, have never heard of a situation such as this; however the article did state a few other cases of this happening. It is an interesting issue because writing is and art form, so do people have the right to make up a life for themselves? I would have to think more about this issue because I have never even thought of this happening
a) How will this situation ultimately affect this author's credibility in the future?
This author in the future is not going to be trusted. She pretty much ruined her future as a writer because if she ever comes out with a new book then no one will trust that its honest because shes lied in the past. Not only did she only ruin her credibillity as a writer but just as a person and as a person. The actions you do reflects your personality and who you are. So if your a lier then no ones going to trust you someones always going to be like.."hey isnt that that one girl who lied in her book?" Not alot of people are going to trust her .
b) What struck you most about this article? Be specific.
i think what struck me most about this article is how low this girl went to gain fame or to be know or whatever. All i know is she seems despret and she lied to all those people who read her book. Whatever her exuse is i think that i doesnt matter...whether it was for a "good cause" or anything. Didnt she relize that shes lying to america? But if i tried to be reasonable and tried to look through her eyes. i can kind of see why she do it because who doesnt want to be famous but still i think she should of told the truth if she just wanted to make people "aware" of gang violence. If her perpose what she claims to be i think she has the right idea but the way she pursued it wasnt thought through enough.
I believe that this authors credibility, and future in writing will be horribly affected by this event. I also think that the subject matter makes it even worse to lie about. Some people could be offended because she accepted sympathy on a life that was not hers, and her real situation is so much different. They gave her a break, but she took advantage of it, and so i don't think anyone else will want to publish her work.
What struck me most about this article is simply how this lady wrote this entire book, and throughout the course of it nobody found out she was lying, and she never once mentioned that it was based on the lives of others. Personally, i think that this was stupid of her, and if i was the publisher, or anybody that helped her, i would be extremely angry.
a) How will this situation ultimately affect this author's credibility in the future?
This situation definitely affects Seltzer's credibility in a really bad way. I mean, if she writes another book publishers either won't necessarily believe anything she says or reject her writing. It'll be a hassle for the publishers if they do choose to accept her writing, because they'll probably have to do background checks and really grill Seltzer about the facts in her life. It's horrible that she had to lie about her book, because if it were to be fictional, people would have loved it. It would have been a revolutionary book. I guess things like these really project how a lie can lead to something so big. But who knows, maybe this Seltzer chick lives her lies or something, you know? Like a compulsive liar, they lie so much that their lies become their truths. Well, not necessarily their truths, but they try to live according to the lies they tell people, and they just keep building up.
b) What struck you most about this article? Be specific.
I agree with Nikia, I find it interesting and offensive that she used her friends to tell her story. If I was one of the people referenced in the book, I'd be really frustrated. I find it surprising that she stuck to her guns the whole time, always telling the press the same things. I guess I credit her for being such a good liar, but she should have known liars always get caught. I'm just disappointed that she couldn't have made her book a fiction book, because the outcome would have been so much better for her! But I don't really think people should be shocked about her lying, it's not like something that hasn't happened before.
a) How will this situation ultimately affect this author's credibility in the future?
This author is very bold for what she did for one but now people are going to look at her differently, like one of the ladies saying that she is naive. If she was going to make a book like this, she should've said the truth or say that it was dedicated to this person or something. The future will be set different especially her children because they also didn't know about it which shocked me at the moment.
b) What struck you most about this article? Be specific.
What struck me most was that she didn;t tell her children about the whole book thing which made them confused on why their mother would do such a thing. Another thing that strucken me was about one of the ladies (i think her name was somehting like Ms.G) saying that they trusted her and the fact that she sounded like it was for real meanign "no cracks" when she was explaining to her about "her life." One last thing that stunned me was that she was inspired by her friends to write this book because she was apart of a gang violence program which led her into writing a book about it.
If she wants to write a book about somebody elses life, at least give those people some credit saying that it was their life or something...
a) How will this situation ultimately affect this author's credibility in the future?
Unless Margaret B. Jones starts writing fiction, nothing she does or writes about will be trusted as sincere and honest because she was able to put on the act so well. As her publisher said, "All the details have been the same." It is obvious that she is a good liar and would have never been caught if her sister hadn't exposed her. However, books still sell even if they aren't true, and people might even buy her book now just because they know it is not true. What she has done has caused a lot of media attention for the book, making it a lot more popular. Now that people are keeping an eye on her work it will probably help her future in book selling, but the readers just won't trust it as much if it is non-fiction.
b) What struck you most about this article? Be specific.
It was interesting that she thought that she had to pretend that she had been living on the streets and been involved in gangs in order to bring attention to the matter. There are so many other ways she could have published the story and still have people read it without having to lie about her life. Because she didn't really experience anything she wrote about , the story was just about how she imagined life on the streets. She says that she uses stories that her friends have told her but it doesn't seem plausible that an upper class, Caucasian woman would really know so many people like the ones described in her book.
Brittney Nguyen
It is my belief that this occurrence will complete ruin Ms. Margaret Seltzer’s career as an author. I do not see any possibility for her book to be published by another company, and I do not anticipate any later ‘memoirs’ by her to receive any similar popularity, if even being published. To tell the full and honest truth, I find that to be rather fitting justice. It is one thing to use artistic license: changing the name, orders of events, or specific details to add to the story (and event that comes off as a bit tasteless), but to completely fabricate a tale is something many people, including myself, is outraged at. To abuse the culture void such as this is also despicable, taking advantage of the notoriety of gang society to make a profit. In addition, her somewhat advanced age really leaves any opportunity for establishing a strong career as an author after this incident is forgotten is highly unlikely.
This article left a bad taste in my mouth, particularly with Ms. Seltzer’s response to being discovered: ‘She insisted, though, that many of the details in the book were based on the experiences of close friends she had met over the years while working to reduce gang violence in Los Angeles.
“For whatever reason, I was really torn and I thought it was my opportunity to put a voice to people who people don’t listen to,” Ms. Seltzer said. “I was in a position where at one point people said you should speak for us because nobody else is going to let us in to talk. Maybe it’s an ego thing — I don’t know. I just felt that there was good that I could do and there was no other way that someone would listen to it.” ’ I find this claim to be almost certainly bollocks. I believe that the only thing that drove Ms. Seltzer was greed. If she wished to bring attention to gang issues, should could have written a fictional book, or even a documentary. What I find to be rather humorous was the fact that at least a couple reviewers caught on before the story came to light: ‘Writing in The Times, Michiko Kakutani praised the “humane and deeply affecting memoir,” but noted that some of the scenes “can feel self-consciously novelistic at times.” In Entertainment Weekly, Vanessa Juarez wrote that “readers may wonder if Jones embellishes the dialogue” ’. It turns out they were both more write then they could have possibly imagined. Life and irony are so inexorably intertwined, no?
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