Victor Navasky

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Victor Navasky

Victor Saul Navasky is a journalist and publisher emeritus at The Nation, where he has worked since 1978.[1] He is also the George T. Delacorte Professor in Magazine Journalism Emeritus at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism.[2] He is the author of several books, most recently The O'Dell File, which chronicles the life of Jack O'Dell, "the unsung hero of the Black Freedom Movement".[1]

Content of Writing

In a 2015 piece, Navasky defended the PEN award going to French satirical journal Charlie Hebdo, admitting his "sentimental attachment to journals of political satire as unique and effective instruments of criticism, constructive and otherwise."[3] The magazine had a history of caricaturing the Prophet Muhammad in its cartoons and had suffered an Islamist terror attack that killed twelve people in its offices only a few months before receiving the award.[4]

Navasky recognized objections that "'cartoons of the Prophet must be seen as being intended to cause further humiliation and suffering' for a 'population that is already marginalized, embattled, and victimized.'"[3] Despite these concerns, he argued Charlie Hebdo was not obsessively focused on mocking Islam because it satirized many religions and political figures with equal fervor. Navasky also argued that the award was for journalistic courage, not the magazine's content, and the murdered Charlie Hebdo writers deserved to be honored as martyrs for freedom of expression.[3]

Career

Taken from:[1]

  • 1978, began work at The Nation, where he has been editor, publisher and is currently publisher emeritus
  • 1970’s, editor at The New York Times Magazine
  • 1960’s, founding editor and publisher of Monocle, a "leisurely quarterly of political satire"

Affiliations

Navasky is a member of Columbia Journalism Review's Board of Overseers.[5]
He has been a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences since 2006.[6]

Books

Awards

Both for Mission Accomplished! Or How We Won the War In Iraq, A Matter of Opinion:[1]

  • 2006, Ann M. Sperber Prize
  • 2005, George Polk Award

Contact

Navasky's Agent:
Amanda Urban
International Creative Management (ICM)
825 Eighth Avenue
New York, NY 10019

Phone: (212) 556-5600
Email: aurban@icmtalent.com

Email at The Nation: vic@thenation.com

Related SourceWatch

The Nation

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Victor S. Navasky, Bio, personal website, accessed November 22, 2019.
  2. Columbia Journalism School, Victor Navasky, university website, accessed November 22, 2019.
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 Victor S. Navasky, "Why I Support PEN’s Courage Award to ‘Charlie Hebdo’", Nation, May 5, 2015, accessed November 22, 2019.
  4. BBC, "Charlie Hebdo: Gun attack on French magazine kills 12", BBC, January 7, 2015, accessed November 22, 2019.
  5. Columbia Journalism Review, Masthead, publication website, accessed November 22, 2019.
  6. AMACAD, Victor Saul Navasky, honor society website, accessed November 22, 2019.