University Press publishes anthology of journalism professors

Despite the variety in content, all of the authors share the distinction of having taught journalism courses at the University in the past decade as Ferris, McGraw or Robbins professors.

“Our goal was to bring together excellent writing in a kaleidoscope that readers would find compelling and worthwhile,” Carol Rigolot, who co-edited the book with journalism professor John McPhee ’53, said in an e-mail.

Rigolot is also a member of The Daily Princetonian’s Board of Trustees.

The writings included in the anthology were selected by the contributors themselves and arranged by Rigolot and McPhee by theme.

“It wasn’t at all rigid or compartmentalized,” McPhee explained. “There’s a free-associational component because the pieces may be a little surprising as one comes after the other. At the same time, there is a thematic connection.”

The works in the collection range from compelling to humorous and cover everything from the politics of the Middle East and national security issues to drama and touching memoirs.

“The book is actually a verbal and informational feast, ranging from a hotel in Sweden made of ice to extraterrestrial aliens and something called the Achenblog, from a tragedy on Lake Minnetonka to arson in Philadelphia, from positional plagiocephaly to the use of hypnosis in the case of a missing child and from a felon in college football to the pot of gold that is cyberpornography,” McPhee explains in the preface.

A Pulitzer Prize-winner who writes for The New Yorker, McPhee has written or edited more than 30 books, most recently “The Silk Parachute” in 2010. He noted that each author’s piece “reflects the kind of journalism that the individual does.”

In 2000, McPhee and Rigolot published “The Princeton Anthology of Writing,” which included pieces from visiting professors from the previous 40 years. However, the staggering increase in visiting professors over the past decade — currently about nine or 10 professors teach every year — encouraged them to publish “The Princeton Reader” as somewhat of a sequel.

Although the University journalism program, which is run by the Council of the Humanities, currently does not offer a certificate, Rigolot maintains that “it is one of Princeton’s jewels” and a “valuable resource for all students, not only those who are specifically focused on the media.”

McPhee said he is pleased with the journalism programs’ growth since his days as a student in the 1950s, when creative fiction was the only writing course offered.

“As a practitioner of nonfictional writing, I’m really quite interested in the fact that this subject has 10 professors coming to teach it now,” he said, adding that not having a certificate gives the program “a sort of flexibility and variety.”

Get the best of the ‘Prince’ delivered straight to your inbox. Subscribe now »

He noted that the greatest strength of the journalism program comes from the individual professors who create courses with their own unique writing experience in mind.

“All through the years, I have told incoming Ferris, McGraw and Robbins professors that I’d be happy to offer suggestions to help them plan their courses,” McPhee notes in the preface. “They thanked me politely and did their own thing.”