Sub-edited
I was contacted by The Guardian yesterday to respond to a survey that suggested that fat celebrities are poor role models for obese teens. They said they wanted a 'spirited response' to the researcher in question. While I was writing it they got Susie Orbach to write a piece as well. Understandable as they weren't sure I would be up for it. Anyway I sent the piece as below. It was radically re-ordered and had a couple of my main points taken out of it as you might imagine. Ultimately I think it's wasn't what they wanted, and so made what they did want out of a few of my points. Just interesting from the point of view of how papers work. At no point was I contacted about the edit, or did anybody say, we're going to change it around, is that okay? I'm not pissed off at all, more fascinated by the process...
The unedited article follows...
‘Survey Says…’
A ‘survey’ conducted by Nuffield Health has stated that, obese celebrities such as James Corden and Beth Ditto provide ‘dangerous role models’. Consultant Professor Michael McMahon went on to say that “…viewers admire them and do not take their own weight as seriously as they should." That is certainly a point of view. However one should take this ‘survey’ with the customary pinch of salt, but you should probably go for a reduced sodium variety.
Such ‘surveys’ tend to posit something incendiary or ludicrous at the top of their press releases just to crowbar their way into the news cycle. The very fact that I am here responding to it in another newspaper would indicate that this ploy was a success. The central tenet is however, utter bollocks. People do not think its okay to be obese just because Beth Ditto is witty and talented.
We are constantly reminded how wrong it is for us to be obese. There is more information available on ‘the obesity crisis’ in the media than I can recall at any other time in my life. Paradoxically, the general pervasiveness of the perfect body in films and music and TV and advertising and marketing imagery is genuinely psychologically damaging and therefore an actual contributory factor to obesity. James Corden wobbling his gut in Matthew Horne’s face once a week, is not.
I have been overweight for most of my life and I have been aware that it’s a problem. But it is my problem thank you very much. I deal with it in my own way. I have never thought that my weight was permissible simply because I listened to Bad Manners or loved Jo Brand. My feeling is that if the popularity of Corden and Ditto can help to stop fat kids being picked on by their peers then they are performing a valuable service. A ‘survey’ like this is the kind of toss that sends people straight back to the fridge. The obesity crisis will only be solved by a radical overhaul of education, health and social policy, and certainly not by pinheaded inflammatory half arsed ‘surveys’ like this. Michael McMahon should be fucking ashamed of himself. Sorry, that was the fat talking…
The unedited article follows...
‘Survey Says…’
A ‘survey’ conducted by Nuffield Health has stated that, obese celebrities such as James Corden and Beth Ditto provide ‘dangerous role models’. Consultant Professor Michael McMahon went on to say that “…viewers admire them and do not take their own weight as seriously as they should." That is certainly a point of view. However one should take this ‘survey’ with the customary pinch of salt, but you should probably go for a reduced sodium variety.
Such ‘surveys’ tend to posit something incendiary or ludicrous at the top of their press releases just to crowbar their way into the news cycle. The very fact that I am here responding to it in another newspaper would indicate that this ploy was a success. The central tenet is however, utter bollocks. People do not think its okay to be obese just because Beth Ditto is witty and talented.
We are constantly reminded how wrong it is for us to be obese. There is more information available on ‘the obesity crisis’ in the media than I can recall at any other time in my life. Paradoxically, the general pervasiveness of the perfect body in films and music and TV and advertising and marketing imagery is genuinely psychologically damaging and therefore an actual contributory factor to obesity. James Corden wobbling his gut in Matthew Horne’s face once a week, is not.
I have been overweight for most of my life and I have been aware that it’s a problem. But it is my problem thank you very much. I deal with it in my own way. I have never thought that my weight was permissible simply because I listened to Bad Manners or loved Jo Brand. My feeling is that if the popularity of Corden and Ditto can help to stop fat kids being picked on by their peers then they are performing a valuable service. A ‘survey’ like this is the kind of toss that sends people straight back to the fridge. The obesity crisis will only be solved by a radical overhaul of education, health and social policy, and certainly not by pinheaded inflammatory half arsed ‘surveys’ like this. Michael McMahon should be fucking ashamed of himself. Sorry, that was the fat talking…
posted by Jupitus at
09:27
7 Comments:
I work as a sub and it is pretty unreasonable for them not to contact you for changes to a comment piece. For a feature that is clearly not comment, then the edit would have been justified, but for comment it is bad practice to completely rewrite and reorder, especially without checking with the writer as the reader obviously assumes the words are unedited views of the author. If they weren;t happy with it they should have rewrote it with your input or not run it.
where is the edited version available? i usually read G2 at work (while wrapping nespaper returns) and haven't seen one since thursdays.
i'm fat. not through choice, but through a scooter accident 7 years back.
i also have a love of buster, your good self, and other rotund persons, but at no stage did i think "oh yes, heart and general health problems are the way forward for me!"
up the 'slow and steady revolution', and lets hope it IS televised, cos i can't be arsed with all that running around.
http://www.twitter.com/barnsleysime
Good points made Phillip. Well done! There's such a wide range of contributing factors as to why people are overweight to blame it on obese celebrities is a cry for media attention from the man who blurted out the unconfirmed statement.
Well said MrJ. Apart from the excellent point you make about inflammatory statements attached to 'research findings' designed to attract media attention; you are also right to be surprised, and at least a little disappointed in the Guardian, for not having the courtesy to tell you they were messing with your piece. Even if they weren't offering you approval of the changes.
I apologise on behalf of the UK press industry.
I see what they've done there: cut your first two sentences off (because yours was the second article, they don't need to restate where the survey came from).
Then dropped the first gag as that would have been an odd start. They could have worked it in later but that's a rewrite, not a cut, so is more disruptive to the flow of your writing.
Then it looks like they dropped the line about press releases. They might cite reasons of space, but frankly I imagine they just didn't like acknowledging that PR BS had made it into print. Shame - because there's nothing wrong with acknowledging that (actually it takes a bit of guts) and Shortcuts is mostly funny, weird stuff anyway - it's not hard news.
And then finally, they cut off your last line because the original mention of McMahon was removed and to explain who he was at that point would again disrupt flow.
Why didn't the call you? Because they shortened it not rewrote it. Which they are entitled to do.
Don't blame the subs though - that'll have been a combination of editors and designers who cut you down.
Journalists. We're only one rung above ambulance-chasers in hell. Cx
Great article Mr J. As a fat bloke fighting to control his weight it's nice to hear someone stand up, be counted and shout down the people who claim to have easy answers.
Keep up the good work.
I was bullied at school for being fat, and my weight constantly varies due to depression and the medication taken for same. I feel I can't win sometimes.
Thanks to Classic Rock for plugging the Perfect 10 website, by the way, and tell Mr. Wilding that I agree with his comments on the Michael Jackson 'Was That It?' song as shown on GMTV.
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