OPPapers.com

Gonzo Journalism

Gonzo journalism is a style of journalism which is written subjectively, often including the reporter as part of the story via a first person narrative. The style tends to blend factual and fictional elements to emphasize an underlying message and engage the reader. The word Gonzo was first used in 1970 to describe an article by Hunter S. Thompson, who later popularized the style. The term has since been applied to other subjective artistic endeavors.

Gonzo journalism tends to favor style over accuracy and often uses personal experiences and emotions to provide context for the topic or event being covered. It disregards the 'polished' edited product favored by newspaper media and strives for the gritty factor. Use of quotations, sarcasm, humor, exaggeration, and even profanity is common. The use of Gonzo journalism suggests that journalism can be truthful without striving for objectivity and is loosely equivalent to an editorial.

The term "Gonzo" in connection to Hunter S. Thompson was first used by Boston Globe magazine editor Bill Cardoso in 1970 when he described Hunter S. Thompson's The Kentucky Derby Is Decadent and Depraved, which was written for the June 1970 Scanlan's Monthly, as "pure Gonzo journalism"[1]. Cardoso claimed that "gonzo" was South Boston Irish slang describing the last man standing after an all night drinking marathon[2]. Cardoso also claimed that it was a corruption of the French Canadian word "gonzeaux", which means "shining path", although this is disputed[3]. In Italian, Gonzo is a common word for a gullible person, a "sucker" [1]. Another speculation is that the word may have been inspired by the 1960 hit song Gonzo by New Orleans R&B keyboardist James Booker. This last possibility seems to be supported by the 2007 oral biography of Hunter S. Thompson where it is stated that the term "Gonzo" is taken from a hit song by James Booker[citation needed]. Yet this conclusion still says little of why Hunter Thompson or Bill Cardoso would...