The Blogosphere Strikes Again. This time taking down a best-selling author.
The non-fiction book “A Million Little Pieces,” by the memoirist James Frey is the latest victim — this time of The Smoking Gun website. Published in 2003, the book is a memoir chronicling Frey’s life: his plunge into alcoholism, drug addiction and crime, followed by his rehabilitation and final redemption. Subsequent to Frey’s appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show in late October 2004, the book shot to the top of The New York Times nonfiction paperback best seller list.
The Smoking Gun website, its mainstay the compilation of celebrity mug shots, sought to add Frey to the collection. In its search for a mug shot, Smoking Gun investigators discovered that Frey had embellished many parts of his story. They claim, in addition, with much documentary support, that Frey had, in fact, fabricated several memories, including those central to his story.
The Smoking Gun investigation generated widespread national coverage. Frey confessed to some “inadvertent errors” in a NYT Op-ed on January 11. And Oprah, not to be deterred by his detractors, phoned in her support during Frey’s appearance on The Larry King Show on the 12th.
The final chapter has yet to be written. Some readers want a refund, but the publisher Doubleday has said no. Sales of the book remain brisk. The victim? Perhaps the genre of memoirs, itself. Frey’s next book, he says, will be a work of fiction.
In the Age of Transparency, the “truth will out,” sooner or later. And blogs are a handmaiden in the outing.
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