The Morning Anchor in the Morning

http://www.si.com/more-sports/2014/08/25/si-60-mourning-anchor-rick-reilly-bryant-gumbel-olympics

http://www.si.com/more-sports/2014/08/25/si-60-qa-rick-reilly-bryant-gumbel-mourning-anchor

I came across Rick Reilly’s “The Mourning Anchor” twice while researching on the Internet.  I searched for “best sports stories ever published” and the story came up.  I search for “best feature profiles written by Rick Reilly” and again the piece came up again.

Read “The Mourning Anchor” by Rick Reilly and then write a detailed response that answers the following questions:

Do you think Rick Reilly’s “The Mourning Anchor” deserves to be considered a great piece of journalism?

Before you write your response, please consider the issues below.  I encourage you to answer these questions separately either in your head or on paper and then incorporating those thoughts into your response to the larger question.

How would you describe Bryant Gumbel after reading this piece?  What type of person is he?  What details from the story give you that impression?

How do you think Reilly was able to obtain the information for this story?

Do you think the story is fair and balanced? Explain.

How well do you think the article succeed in climbing the full ladder of abstraction?

Are the moments described in the profile samples or signatures?

What is the essential purpose of this story?

What if anything do you think the reader gains from reading this article?

How do you think Gumbel reacted to the story (assuming he read it of course)?  What about the other members of his family?

Most feature profiles present the central figure of the story in a positive light.  This profile is an exception.  Do you think Reilly had an obligation to tell the story in the manner that he tells it?

The ladder of abstraction is a concept designed to help explain how excellent nonfiction narrative operates best. At the top of the ladder is the most abstract idea, a universal truth that holds meaning to all people. At the bottom of the ladder are specific details that are vivid and essential only to the story being told in the narrative.

Signatures are details that reveal essential aspects of a person's character.

Samples are less essential and are just actions that a character takes in a story or really in life in general.

Please finish this in class today so you can work on your story only for homework.