Former New Republic Editor Chuck Lane on Shattered Glass and Stephen Glass

Our special guest this month is Chuck Lane, the former New Republic editor who was portrayed by Peter Sarsgaard in Shattered Glass! We had a blast talking with Chuck, who left the magazine about two years after the events featured in the movie and went on to a long and illustrious career at the Washington Post.

Chuck was gracious as we peppered him with questions about the events of the film, and got his take on Shattered Glass director Billy Ray's assessment of the central conflict between Lane and Glass' loyalists at TNR, which Ray described to us as "the least popular kid in high school taking on the most popular kid." 

We also asked him about a story Adam Penenberg (Steve Zahn in the film) told us about Lane's decision to give the story to Howard Kurtz of the Post after Penenberg discovered Glass had fabricated  the story "Hack Heaven": "I felt all along like we should not let anybody else report on what we did without our knowledge. In other words, we shouldn't get scooped on our own wrongdoing, because it would look like a coverup."

Quotes: "One of the great psychological factors in all of this is that it's very dangerous to accuse somebody of faking their stories unless you really have it nailed cold, like the way I eventually did. I think everybody's default rule is just to accept what's on the printed page until proven otherwise."

" I know Adam feels to this day—and all of them, Kambiz Faruhar and [everyone]— they felt that was like doing them wrong. But on the other hand, I guess one word in my defense is—they were the internet! They should have been able to go up instantly with their own story."

Recommended reading: "Praised Be Greenspan," Stephen Glass, The New Republic

"New Republic Fires Writer Over 'Hoax,'" Howard Kurtz, The Washington Post

Hosts: Josh Feit and Erica C. Barnett

Edited by: Erica C. Barnett