I wish Jonah Lehrer success in his life. I’ve told him so personally and privately, though that was easier for me than most since I don’t think of myself as a science writer, so his betrayal did not strike as close to home. When I read How We Decide in 2006 I actually thought it was a pretty good book, but a friend who was a Ph.D. student in cognitive psychology told me to be very careful of Jonah, because he cut corners. A few years ago another friend recounted to me the story of how she recommended one of Jonah’s books for a book-club in her graduate program, and a colleague offered that though he found Jonah’s work interesting, whenever it touched something he knew about it seemed either superficial or error filled.
So we’ve established that heretofore Jonah has a history of not being exceedingly punctilious toward the source material, fabrication and plagiarism aside. A contrast might be with Carl Zimmer. Sorry to pick on Carl, but I’d have a heart attack if I found that he did something sensationalist I’d be so shocked. Rather, the issue is whether Jonah is “one of the most gifted nonfiction writers of his generation.” Is his storytelling ability and writing style so exceptional to warrant this appellation? Many people are expressing a lack of surprise. Jonah fits the expectation of a “boy genius” writer on paper. He looks the part, he speaks the part. I used to joke that he was the “boy king of cognitive neuroscience.” To be plain about it, Jonah is a young white male, so he’ll be given particular breaks in this world. I am generally averse to this kind of reductive thinking, but it is hard in this case to avoid concluding that there is something to this. He rose fast, he rose high, and he fell far. And now he’s back where few could ever aspire to be, all within a few years.
The issue is simple for me, and it has to do with numbers. Many, many, people want to be science writers. That’s why there are now professional programs to train you to do this. But very few make a good living in this area. One issue that immediately comes to mind is that you probably need some financial buffer to really take this risk as far as a career choice. It could be family money, or, it could be that your partner has a more conventional job which can allow for income smoothing over time. I also happen to know that Jonah had some powerful and influential mentors, so it wasn’t hard for him to become a public intellectual, and so bring to the table the requisite synergy that agents are looking for. Every now and then literary agents contact me, and one issue that comes up is that they want me to increase my public profile so that I will be able to push copies of anything I publish using my own resources of my own personal fame. I have not forged that path, rather, I’d like to think I’m a much more eccentric character who has tracked himself into much more exotic territory, career-wise. But back to the numbers, the vast majority of people who aspire to be science writers will not become science writers. Jonah was one of the few who had made it, and spectacularly so. He then flamed out, again, spectacularly so. Now he’s back, seemingly on his way to success. Is he such an exceptional talent that he deserves this? Are there no other Jonah Lehrers in the world who haven’t been given a chance and who happen not to have Jonah’s baggage? It is hard for me to believe that.
That is why I wish Jonah and his family success in the world, but I’d have hoped he would have moved on to another line of work, and allowed others to step into the glory and fame. There are many people in the trenches who I think could actually succeed in doing what he did. To me it’s a matter of just desserts. To become a writer who can buy a million dollar house is a once in a lifetime opportunity. Jonah blew it. It is now rightfully the turn of others. But perhaps Jonah is just so good, such an incredible talent, that they had to snap him up again, justice be damned! Honestly of that I’m skeptical. Despite his transgressions, my interactions personally with Jonah have been cordial. He seems cool. But just because he’s a good guy is not enough to warrant a second chance in his chosen career as a writer. There are many people out in the world who don’t have the privilege of choosing their careers. Perhaps Jonah needs to experience that more pedestrian life too.
Comments are closed.