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Video of John Avlon, Errol Louis, and Jesse Angelo Talking About Jimmy Breslin and Other Columnists in 'Deadline Artists: America’s Greatest Newspaper Columns'

The great American newspaper columnists are part of a new collection. The book’s editors talk about the best of the best.

Why Create an Anthology of Newspaper Columns?

The great newspaper columns may be talked about by journalists and remembered by readers, but they haven’t been collected and published as comprehensively as they are in Deadline Artists: America’s Greatest Newspaper Columns. Errol Louis and John Avlon talk about what inspired them to start the project.

What Makes a Column Great?

The topic? The lead? The writing? Avlon, Louis, and Jesse Angelo explain how it’s all of those, plus an element underappreciated and underused today: reporting.

Has the Internet Killed Great Column Writing?

Not really. Errol Louis argues that the influence of newspaper columnists has certainly declined, but there is still a great deal of outstanding opinion and column writing.

Why Hemingway and a Former First Lady Are in the Book

Lucas Wittmann, Newsweek/The Daily Beast’s literary editor, notes that there are some surprising names in the book. John Avlon explains why Ernest Hemingway and Eleanor Roosevelt were included.

So Who’s the Best?

Royko? Breslin? Steve Lopez? The editors of Deadline Artists spent hours and hours reading the best of the best, and now say who they think was the greatest ever.

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