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John Ross was a man who lived as he chose and wrote it as he damned well pleased. A reporter with a cause in the time-honored leftwing American tradition of John Reed and I.F. Stone, Ross chose to live most of his life in Mexico in a kind of exile from his native United States. He documented the last half century from the perspective of that country's callejones, its ejidos and pueblos, and we have been enriched by his effort. Ross was a political outlaw of the utmost integrity, and this book, Rebel Reporting, is the maximum legacy of a man who fought injustice all his life with poetry, and with passion. There are some pearls of true wisdom here for the next generation, and for that handful of reporters who may choose to be defiant and brave, and to live like John Ross. -- Jon Lee Anderson, Guerrillas: Journeys in the Insurgent World and Che Guevara: A Revolutionary Life John Ross was Jack Kerouac, Hunter Thompson, Roque Dalton and Che Guevara all rolled up together, but most of all he was himself, observer and participant at once, listening carefully to the poorest, challenging hypocrisy wherever he detected it oozing from the mouths of the powerful. John's spirit permeated the stories he covered so thoroughly that his writing dazzled like that of no other reporter I know. The inimitable, take-no-prisoners voice of John Ross rings clear on every page of this book. In writing a primer for the rebel reporter, John Ross has written a primer for life. -- Mary Jo McConahay, Maya Roads: One Woman's Journey Among the People of the Rainforest and Ricochet: Two women war reporters and a friendship under fire [John's] state of self-exile gave him a huge gift, that of imagining and describing the potential truth of things beyond the rational boundaries of journalism. His Tonatiuh's People [1998] is one of the greatest political novels I ever read, with abiding insights into the soul of a writer and a revolution. -- Tom Hayden, Writings for a Democratic Society: The Tom Hayden Reader and editor of The Zapatista Reader John Ross was uncompromising in his dedication to the poor, the downtrodden and the victims of empire. He was not welcome on the television talk show circuit frequented by journalistic elites and political players, nor was he invited to the cocktail parties of the rich and powerful. He was always most at home among the people in the slums and barrios of the world. John Ross was the personification of the peoples' reporter, a troubadour for justice who chose to cast his lot of conscience with those who have the will to live and the heart to resist against all odds. Simply put, John Ross was the Robin Hood of journalism. -- Jeremy Scahill, Blackwater: The Rise of the World's Most Powerful Mercenary Army and Dirty Wars

The book ... is a tribute to the long string of independent journalists who have helped right many wrongs throughout history. The Capital Times The book is a wonderful read and should make people think. The Tico Times John Ross was a man who lived as he chose and wrote it as he damned well pleased. A reporter with a cause in the time-honored leftwing American tradition of John Reed and I.F. Stone, Ross chose to live most of his life in Mexico in a kind of exile from his native United States. He documented the last half century from the perspective of that country's callejones, its ejidos and pueblos, and we have been enriched by his effort. Ross was a political outlaw of the utmost integrity, and this book, Rebel Reporting, is the maximum legacy of a man who fought injustice all his life with poetry, and with passion. There are some pearls of true wisdom here for the next generation, and for that handful of reporters who may choose to be defiant and brave, and to live like John Ross. -- Jon Lee Anderson, Guerrillas: Journeys in the Insurgent World and Che Guevara: A Revolutionary Life John Ross was Jack Kerouac, Hunter Thompson, Roque Dalton and Che Guevara all rolled up together, but most of all he was himself, observer and participant at once, listening carefully to the poorest, challenging hypocrisy wherever he detected it oozing from the mouths of the powerful. John's spirit permeated the stories he covered so thoroughly that his writing dazzled like that of no other reporter I know. The inimitable, take-no-prisoners voice of John Ross rings clear on every page of this book. In writing a primer for the rebel reporter, John Ross has written a primer for life. -- Mary Jo McConahay, Maya Roads: One Woman's Journey Among the People of the Rainforest and Ricochet: Two women war reporters and a friendship under fire [John's] state of self-exile gave him a huge gift, that of imagining and describing the potential truth of things beyond the rational boundaries of journalism. His Tonatiuh's People [1998] is one of the greatest political novels I ever read, with abiding insights into the soul of a writer and a revolution. -- Tom Hayden, Writings for a Democratic Society: The Tom Hayden Reader and editor of The Zapatista Reader John Ross was uncompromising in his dedication to the poor, the downtrodden and the victims of empire. He was not welcome on the television talk show circuit frequented by journalistic elites and political players, nor was he invited to the cocktail parties of the rich and powerful. He was always most at home among the people in the slums and barrios of the world. John Ross was the personification of the peoples' reporter, a troubadour for justice who chose to cast his lot of conscience with those who have the will to live and the heart to resist against all odds. Simply put, John Ross was the Robin Hood of journalism. -- Jeremy Scahill, Blackwater: The Rise of the World's Most Powerful Mercenary Army and Dirty Wars

Author Information

In his lifetime John Ross published ten volumes of fiction and nonfiction and numerous books of poetry. He was the recipient of the American Book Award in 1995 and the Upton Sinclair prize in 2005. Norman Stockwell serves as WORT Radio’s Operations Coordinator. Cristalyne Bell is a freelance journalist and activist with experience in print, radio and video journalism.

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