CARL HIAASEN BIOGRAPHY Carl Hiaasen, a Native Floridian, Started
CARL HIAASEN BIOGRAPHY Carl Hiaasen, a native Floridian, started writing his trademark satirical columns for the University of Florida student newspaper. After a stint at Cocoa Today (now Florida Today ), he joined the Miami Herald in 1976. He served as a member of the investigative team at the Herald and also wrote for the Sunday magazine before switching to the Metro section as a regular columnist. He has won numerous awards for his exposure of corrupt politicians, avaricious land developers, and illegal business practices. Diane Stevenson compiled several of Hiaasen’s columns in the book, Kick Ass (University Press of Florida, 1999). Hiaasen has also authored wildly successful novels, including Tourist Season , Skin Tight , Double Whammy , and Sick Puppy . Author Tony Hillerman calls Hiaasen “the Mark Twain of the crime novel” and Donald Westlake says “Hiassen is so good he ought to be illegal.” His fame extends to the musical world, where he has been immortalized in song by Warren Zevon, who put two Hiaasen- authored tracks on the album Mutineer , and by Jimmy Buffett, who based his song, “The Ballad of Skip Wiley” on Hiaasen’s Tourist Season . SUMMARY The interview begins with Mr. Hiaasen’s memories of journalism school at the University of Florida and his experiences writing for the student newspaper. He also discusses the differences between being an investigative reporter and a columnist, drawing from his experiences at the Miami Herald . He reserves particular contempt for the corporate mentality that he feels plagues newspapers today. He also addresses some of his favorite topics from his writings, including the environment, Walt Disney World, Big Sugar and the Everglades Restoration, Miami politics, Elian Gonzales and the 2000 presidential election.
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