How to Get Into Gonzo Journalism

If you’ve been wanting to knowabout how to become a part of crazy journalism, or even the background of it, you’ve found the right website.

The source was Hunter S. Thompson. gonzo journalism is a style of writing in which you’re covering an event or topic. However you’re mixing personal ideas and experiences into your writing.

Typically, in journalism, the norm is that you don’t mention yourself and are expected to remain impartial when you write. You’re just an observer, trying to present the facts as accurately as possible.

In gonzo journalism, you’re like a character in the story, and it determines who you are and what you think about the world or experience specific experiences.

You’re still covering the subject or event that you’re covering but from a more personal viewpoint than the traditional reporter.

Today, we are seeing more first-person journalism than back in the past, mainly when people can publish themselves online with their content. It’s a style that audiences are accustomed to reading and comparing to when it began being published.

When gonzo journalism was beginning to gain popularity, it was a brand new type of writing that the majority of people had never experienced before.

In this article, we’ll explore the background of gonzo journalism, the factors that make it different from other writing styles, and the best way to start writing these kinds of writing if this is your intention.

Is it journalism that is Gonzo?

Hunter S. Thompson was among the first writers to be acknowledged for writing in goofy journalistic styles.

As per Wikipedia, “The word “gonzo” is believed to have been first used in 1970 to describe an article about the Kentucky Derby by Hunter S. Thompson, who popularized the style.”

Bill Cardoso, an editor at the Boston Globe, said, “‘Gonzo’ was South Boston Irish slang describing the last man standing after an all-night drinking marathon.”

It was an excellent description of Thompson’s writing style and how he portrayed things.

It’s a form of writing that eliminates the slant of objectivity and is written in the first-person narrative. It is usually a form of satire paired with social criticism in which the writer is the main character throughout the story.

Your perspective and background as a writer are essential to include.

While Thompson had a bold writing style, only some journalists are as daring, sometimes, it’s just personalized reports on news.

What is the best instance of journalism that is Gonzo?

One of the first works of gonzo journalistic was the sports report “The Kentucky Derby is Decadent and Depraved” by Hunter S. Thompson.

Instead of writing about the Kentucky Derby and reporting the actual events, Thompson wrote about the local town’s festivity and the surrounding area around the Derby itself. Thompson wrote about his opinions and observations as he walked through the race while writing about the surrounding events.

Bill Cardoso, editor of The Boston Globe, loved the piece and wrote, “This is it, this is pure Gonzo. If this is the beginning continue to roll.”

This article kicked off what was known as”the “new journalism movement,” where journalists began to push the boundaries and challenge the established rules of journalism.

Another well-known piece of the gory journalism style can be found in The Fear of Loathing and the Heart in Las Vegas by Hunter S. Thompson. Although it is strictly a fictional book, it is written in a gonzo journalistic style.

The Fear of Loathing and the Loneliness in Las Vegas is a fantastic text to study if you want to completely dive into the writing style and discover how it operates.

Beyond Thompson, Tom Wolfe is another well-known gonzo journalist. The book The New Journalism describes how journalism was changing and the emergence of new writers as the ones leading the charge.

Lester Bangs from Rolling Stone magazine is among the first journalists to introduce this writing style to music. (You may recognize him in the film Almost Famous, where Philip Seymour Hoffman plays the character.)

Bangs shared his personal experiences and thoughts in his writing, something that musicians had not written before that point.

What is gonzo journalism?

Gonzo’s journalism could be a reference to the words of Bill Cardoso when he was explaining the essay “The Kentucky Derby is Decadent and Depraved” by Hunter S. Thompson.

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