Annie Jacobsen: belief

Transcript context

…What are they like? What struck you? Everybody’s different. I don’t think you could put people into a box. I am astonished. Look, one of the things about being a reporter is that you allegedly are objective. I think the past 10 years have shown us that that is actually not true, yet you should strive to be. So, when I’m reporting books, I aim to be objective so that I can gather agnostic details and come to a conclusion. Sometimes afterwards, having spent a lot of time with a person, then they might even become a friend. The book’s out, and that is maybe where I would get to know someone even better. Who’s coming to mind is Billy Waugh who became a friend of mine after I reported. He was the main character in my book about the CIA’s paramilitary called Surprise, Kill, Vanish. Billy was extremely complicated. After the book published and we became friends, he shared with me a lot of things that were deeply personal, that are not to be on the public record, but made me realize — and you are going to say this is a cliché, but I’m going to say it anyways — we are all so much more alike than we are different. That would be my answer, in fact. I don’t mind if it’s a cliché. I would agree with you. I think they’re more analytic than other individuals I meet on average, just as you might say, “Well, the Swiss are more orderly,” but they’re not that different deep down.…

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