Joe Hagan
Corpus Christi native Joe Hagan first interviewed Dan Rather in 2004, a few days after his infamous 60 Minutes report on George W. Bush’s Texas Air National Guard service. “I suddenly found myself in the middle of a national story during a polarized election,” says Hagan, who is a contributing editor at New York magazine, Rolling Stone, and Men’s Journal. “And as I tried to get to the bottom of it, the facts got weirder and weirder.” Soon Hagan realized that the backstory of how Bush’s service became a political football was more interesting than the story itself—and, in fact, was the real story.
Mimi Swartz
Executive editor Mimi Swartz was not entirely surprised when she first heard the sex, money, and drug rumors swirling around famous yogi John Friend: she had profiled the Woodlands-based founder of Anusara in 2010 and seen hints of trouble back then (“Downward Dog”). What did astound her was the volume of commentary online. “Yoga people are very literate, high-strung, and emotionally expressive,” she notes. And, as a yoga student who has practiced many styles over the years, she was disappointed. “Anusara was my favorite,” she says. “I’m glad my old teachers are still teaching—whatever it is they’re teaching.”
Paul Knight
When assistant editor Paul Knight went to interview Marcus Luttrell about his new book, Service, he thought he’d get about an hour with the retired Navy SEAL. Instead they spent twelve hours together—and went hog hunting. (Luttrell loaned him clothes so he wouldn’t ruin his office duds.) “He’s a genuine guy,” says Knight. “He told me not to f— up the story because he doesn’t ever want to lose respect as a Texan or as a SEAL.” When he’s not taking aim at swine at dusk, Knight fixes his sights on potential errors in the magazine as a fact-checker.
