Gonzo Journalism Tips and New Journalism

Chris Horrie's top tips to create gonzo journalism:

-In gonzo go for the 'quest.'

- Self effacement 
This is the key to getting the style right, it's important to not to take yourself seriously.  

- Pick an unusual situation

Go into the situation with no prejudice views. With your camera.

-Adopt an approach where you act like you've never seen it before doing this will make you interested in the situation. 

-Focus on small details for example colour. Fascinating over something so small is what gonzo journalists do. Similar to Tom Wolfe's style, the book in cold blood- a news story reconstructed a novel then a film. Or like John Steinbeck, fiction writer. 

Tom Wolfe, Ryzard Kapuscinski etc are the elite of this style of journalism ours would be more high street. 

Tom Wolfe's rules:

Scene by scene construction

Phonetic dialogue, actual speech, 

Third person restricted point of view (no 'I see," used "it is") you've restricted the view if you use 'I' adopt third party view.

Concentration on symbolic status life as the subject matter. Where you are interested in social status. People are motivated by glamour people fear being hated so the ange ad is to analyse how people in social situations asset their status in social situations. Fashion journalism in the broadest sence, personal appearance etc. 

Performance Journalism is very popular. (Our Winol students Liam Garrahan and Claire Lomas are good at this type) The documentary Supersize Me is an example of performance journalism where the journalist has to authentically experience the subject. In Supersize Me Morgan Spurlock eats only Mcdonalds for one month to investigate how good, or should we say bad, the food really is.

Flickr CC: Joshua Smelser 

Often a lot of Solipsism in confessional interviews is used which is a gonzo style thing to do. With lots of 'I, I, I'- first person reporting. A report of everything you saw, all the details. This isn't necessarily good for confessional interviews.

Anthropology Observational journalism:

USA magazine LIFE is picture led. Steinbeck wrote for LIFE

Flickr CC: Tom Simpson

Another anthropology observational journalism magazine is the UK's Picture Post magazine published in the UK from 1938 to 1957.  

New journalism: 

Photography in journalism was only introduced in the 30's. Television has been taking over," it's the drum of the nation" it has impacted on journalism partially in the features area. Gonzo journalism was called the alternative journalism. 

During the 1960s/70s of popular culture in USA was a generational change. 

Anti Vietnam war, anti consumerism, feminism (spare rib magazine just females), black power, popular existentialism movement (just do it slogan), rock music, the Beatles, post-expressionism, The baby boom. 

During these changes some of the elite gonzo journalists wrote many interesting articles. 

Tom Wolfe's "Radical Chic"article about a dinner party in Manhattan where The Black Pantha's (political party) are in the same room as the head of the Metropolitan opera. Wolfe explores the environment and focuses on the canapés etc.  Mau- Mauing flat catches are the bureaucrats. 

Tom Wolfe's "The Electric Cool Aid Acid Test." Gonzo piece about Ken Kinsey and LSD. Film made out of it "the one flew over the cooku's nest."

Hunter S Thompson wrote " fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" commissioned to write about drag racing. But he was distracted by LSD. 

Rsyzard Kapuscinski wrote "The Emperor"- high art.