--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In another life, before taking the veil…" description: "\"In another life, before taking the veil of journalistic purity, I practiced the black arts of a political operative, including 'debate prep.\" — Jeff Gr..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f84/jeff-greenfield-12787_another-life_in-another-life-before-taking-the-veil-o_1306712.jpg" --- # In another life, before taking the veil of journalistic… ![“In another life, before taking the veil of journalistic purity, I practiced the black arts of a political operative, including 'debate prep.” quote by Jeff Greenfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f84/jeff-greenfield-12787_another-life_in-another-life-before-taking-the-veil-o_1306712.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f84/jeff-greenfield-12787_another-life_in-another-life-before-taking-the-veil-o_1306712.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f84/jeff-greenfield-12787_another-life_in-another-life-before-taking-the-veil-o_1306712.jpg) > “In another life, before taking the veil of journalistic purity, I practiced the black arts of a political operative, including 'debate prep.” [Jeff Greenfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-greenfield/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Before journalistic integrity, the author engaged in political strategy, including debate preparation. **In simple terms:** Former operative turned journalist. Key Takeaway Recognize past influences on current work. Themes politics journalism ethics career transition Mood reflective critical Type ethical analytical When to use this quote - political campaign - news analysis - public speaking Key Concepts media bias strategic communication Questions to Reflect On - How does prior experience shape reporting? - Can bias be fully mitigated? A Different Perspective Past tactics may conflict with journalistic standards. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Another life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/another-life/) [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Debate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/debate/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Political](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political/) [Purity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/purity/) ## Related quotes > [And I remember looking at Gray Davis and, you know, Gray is the consummate political operative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-curb/and-i-remember-looking-at-gray-davis-and-you-know-gray-is-the/) [Mike Curb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-curb/) > [There's a difference, though, between being a political appointee and putting a political operative in charge of a U.S. attorney's office.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-marshall/there-s-a-difference-though-between-being-a-political-appointee-and/) [Josh Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josh-marshall/) > [I'm not a policy wonk, and I don't dream of being a political operative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clint-howard/i-m-not-a-policy-wonk-and-i-don-t-dream-of-being-a-political-operative/) [Clint Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clint-howard/) > [Bannon should never have had a permanent seat on the NSC, as he is a political operative, and the NSC has traditionally been a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-bergen/bannon-should-never-have-had-a-permanent-seat-on-the-nsc-as-he-is-a/) [Peter Bergen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-bergen/) > [As a writer and a director, I simply don’t have the time I need to write and prep the movie I would have wanted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-ross/as-a-writer-and-a-director-i-simply-don-t-have-the-time-i-need-to/) [Gary Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-ross/) > [ I enjoy the physicality a little more, with Vinnie Paz \[in Bleed for This\] that was the most prep I've ever had to do… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miles-teller/i-enjoy-the-physicality-a-little-more-with-vinnie-paz-in-bleed-for/) [Miles Teller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miles-teller/) > [I don't ... like rhythm, assonance, all that stuff. You just go on your nerve. If someone's chasing you down the street with a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-o-hara/i-don-t-like-rhythm-assonance-all-that-stuff-you-just-go-on-your/) [Frank O'Hara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-o-hara/) > [I just never want to be in this situation where I get to set and they're like, 'We rewrote this scene, you're now naked.'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-greenfield/i-just-never-want-to-be-in-this-situation-where-i-get-to-set-and-they/) [Max Greenfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-greenfield/) > [I grew up playing field hockey and lacrosse - prep school sport - and I was terrible at them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-bowen/i-grew-up-playing-field-hockey-and-lacrosse-prep-school-sport-and-i/) [Julie Bowen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-bowen/) > [The fact is that in my prep school, I went to a boarding school, 39 young men graduated from that prep school. Five years…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-ayers/the-fact-is-that-in-my-prep-school-i-went-to-a-boarding-school-39/) [Bill Ayers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-ayers/) > [You prep, you prep, you prep. And on the day that you film, you let all of that go. I try to achieve emptiness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-bridges/you-prep-you-prep-you-prep-and-on-the-day-that-you-film-you-let-all/) [Jeff Bridges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-bridges/) > [If we wanted to make it the way I imagined I knew that we would have to wake up earlier and start very early.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luc-besson/if-we-wanted-to-make-it-the-way-i-imagined-i-knew-that-we-would-have/) [Luc Besson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luc-besson/) > [Consumers around the world always want something unexpected and exciting, and that's what drives me. I love the challenge of reinterpreting my designs in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tommy-hilfiger/consumers-around-the-world-always-want-something-unexpected-and/) [Tommy Hilfiger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tommy-hilfiger/) > [The first two pictures I did, I played a young student in prep school. When I did Lifeguard, everyone was saying, You're so Southern…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/parker-stevenson/the-first-two-pictures-i-did-i-played-a-young-student-in-prep-school/) [Parker Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/parker-stevenson/) > [ Be humble and say okay, all right, I have to prep myself. So everybody prepped, and we finished the film \[Valerian \] four days… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luc-besson/be-humble-and-say-okay-all-right-i-have-to-prep-myself-so-everybody/) [Luc Besson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luc-besson/) ## More by Jeff Greenfield > [In politics, Bugs Bunny always beats Daffy Duck. Daffy's always going berserk, jumping up and down, yelling. Bugs's got that sly smile, like he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-greenfield/in-politics-bugs-bunny-always-beats-daffy-duck-daffy-s-always-going/) [Jeff Greenfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-greenfield/) > [There is something discordant about a team of speechwriters and political operatives hammering away to create an image of the 'real, inner' candidate. And,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-greenfield/there-is-something-discordant-about-a-team-of-speechwriters-and/) [Jeff Greenfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-greenfield/) > [Describing the jury in the OJ Simpson murder trial: These people have served a longer sentence than some people who have committed murder.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-greenfield/describing-the-jury-in-the-oj-simpson-murder-trial-these-people-have/) [Jeff Greenfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-greenfield/) > [History doesn't turn on a dime; it turns on a plugged nickel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-greenfield/history-doesn-t-turn-on-a-dime-it-turns-on-a-plugged-nickel/) [Jeff Greenfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-greenfield/) > [In every debate, whatever the format, whatever the questions, there is one and only one way to identify the winner: Who commands the room?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-greenfield/in-every-debate-whatever-the-format-whatever-the-questions-there-is/) [Jeff Greenfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-greenfield/) > [Television is one of the most fickle businesses that there are, you are in favour one minute and out the next.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-greenfield/television-is-one-of-the-most-fickle-businesses-that-there-are-you/) [Jeff Greenfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-greenfield/) > [As a general proposition, campaigns do not linger on the vice presidential nominee. When they have, it's always meant very bad news for the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-greenfield/as-a-general-proposition-campaigns-do-not-linger-on-the-vice/) [Jeff Greenfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-greenfield/) > [More things in politics happen by accident or exhaustion than happen by conspiracy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-greenfield/more-things-in-politics-happen-by-accident-or-exhaustion-than-happen/) [Jeff Greenfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-greenfield/) > [In the many-mansioned house of Alternate History, I occupy a small corner. The trio of what-ifs I chronicled in 'Then Everything Changed' all begin…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-greenfield/in-the-many-mansioned-house-of-alternate-history-i-occupy-a-small/) [Jeff Greenfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-greenfield/) > [“It was more than just material prosperity. America in 1960 was a country where restraint and boundaries were the natural conditions in all arenas.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-greenfield/it-was-more-than-just-material-prosperity-america-in-1960-was-a/) [Jeff Greenfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-greenfield/) > [Well, politics is war, and in war, truth is the first casualty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-greenfield/well-politics-is-war-and-in-war-truth-is-the-first-casualty/) [Jeff Greenfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-greenfield/) > [When Ronald Reagan chose George H.W. Bush in 1980, it was a clear signal that he was running an inclusive campaign; that he welcomed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-greenfield/when-ronald-reagan-chose-george-h-w-bush-in-1980-it-was-a-clear/) [Jeff Greenfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-greenfield/) > [When George W. Bush picked Dick Cheney, it was a reassuring sign that the Texas governor would have an experienced, prudent voice at his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-greenfield/when-george-w-bush-picked-dick-cheney-it-was-a-reassuring-sign-that/) [Jeff Greenfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-greenfield/) > [In the post-Watergate atmosphere of 1975 and 1976, the just-plain-folks personalities of both Ford and Carter seemed the perfect antidote to Nixon's arrogant, isolated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-greenfield/in-the-post-watergate-atmosphere-of-1975-and-1976-the-just-plain/) [Jeff Greenfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-greenfield/) > [The Supreme Being I would sign up for would not prove his omnipotence by saving one life while ending dozens, or hundreds, or thousands.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-greenfield/the-supreme-being-i-would-sign-up-for-would-not-prove-his-omnipotence/) [Jeff Greenfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-greenfield/) [Explore all 53 Jeff Greenfield quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-greenfield/) ## More Another life quotes > [“Small memories of another life flutter through my head like moths — all grey images and tearstains”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-r-kahler/small-memories-of-another-life-flutter-through-my-head-like-moths-all/) A.R. Kahler > [When you chopped logs with the ax and they split open they smelled beautiful, like Christmas. But when you split someone's head open it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-atkinson/when-you-chopped-logs-with-the-ax-and-they-split-open-they-smelled/) [Kate Atkinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-atkinson/) > [“I love the dark hours of my being. My mind deepens into them. There I can find, as in old letters, the days of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-maria-rilke/i-love-the-dark-hours-of-my-being-my-mind-deepens-into-them-there-i/) [Rainer Maria Rilke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-maria-rilke/) > [In another life, I would be your girl. Capable of making promises. We would rule the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katy-perry/in-another-life-i-would-be-your-girl-capable-of-making-promises-we/) [Katy Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katy-perry/) > [I couldn't even think about wanting to be something else; I wouldn't let myself visualize another life. But I wrote because I couldn't stop.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-z/i-couldn-t-even-think-about-wanting-to-be-something-else-i-wouldn-t/) [Jay-Z](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-z/) > [And whatever my life had been up to that day, it was another life after that. And that is the gospel truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-barry/and-whatever-my-life-had-been-up-to-that-day-it-was-another-life/) [Sebastian Barry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastian-barry/) > [Literature duplicates the experience of living in a way that nothing else can, drawing you so fully into another life that you temporarily forget…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kingsolver/literature-duplicates-the-experience-of-living-in-a-way-that-nothing/) [Barbara Kingsolver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-kingsolver/) > [Whatever you have received more than others-in health, in talents, in ability, in success, in a pleasant childhood, in harmonious conditions of home life-all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-schweitzer/whatever-you-have-received-more-than-others-in-health-in-talents-in/) [Albert Schweitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-schweitzer/) > [“Let me give you a bit of advice.' the girl said bitterly, 'from one working girl to another; life isn't easy, no matter where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-j-maas/let-me-give-you-a-bit-of-advice-the-girl-said-bitterly-from-one/) [Sarah J. Maas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-j-maas/) > [“The vibrations he felt in his sleep had nothing to do with his soul easing out of his body as he dreamily thought; they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author-poet-aberjhani/the-vibrations-he-felt-in-his-sleep-had-nothing-to-do-with-his-soul/) Author-Poet Aberjhani > [I wasn't born with a tie or with Mark Shields stapled to my left hip. I have another life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brooks/i-wasn-t-born-with-a-tie-or-with-mark-shields-stapled-to-my-left-hip/) [David Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brooks/) > [For many observers, a child who has known nothing but war, a child for whom the Kalashnikov is the only way to make a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ishmael-beah/for-many-observers-a-child-who-has-known-nothing-but-war-a-child-for/) [Ishmael Beah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ishmael-beah/) > [I mean, is there a chance for me? To have another life after this, a better one?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/i-mean-is-there-a-chance-for-me-to-have-another-life-after-this-a/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [We, all who live, have A life that is lived And another life that is thought, And the only life we have It's the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fernando-pessoa/we-all-who-live-have-a-life-that-is-lived-and-another-life-that-is/) [Fernando Pessoa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernando-pessoa/) > [The death-change comes. Death is another life. We bow our heads At going out, we think, and enter straight Another golden chamber of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-james-bailey/the-death-change-comes-death-is-another-life-we-bow-our-heads-at/) [Philip James Bailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-james-bailey/) [Browse all 433 Another life quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/another-life/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "In another life, before taking the veil of journalistic purity, I practiced the black arts of a political operative, including 'debate prep.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jeff Greenfield" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-greenfield/in-another-life-before-taking-the-veil-of-journalistic-purity-i/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Another life" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-greenfield/in-another-life-before-taking-the-veil-of-journalistic-purity-i/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f84/jeff-greenfield-12787_another-life_in-another-life-before-taking-the-veil-o_1306712.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f84/jeff-greenfield-12787_another-life_in-another-life-before-taking-the-veil-o_1306712.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f84/jeff-greenfield-12787_another-life_in-another-life-before-taking-the-veil-o_1306712.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“In another life, before taking the veil of journalistic purity, I practiced the black arts of a political…” — Jeff Greenfield", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Jeff Greenfield", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-greenfield/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "In another life, before taking the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-greenfield/in-another-life-before-taking-the-veil-of-journalistic-purity-i/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-greenfield/in-another-life-before-taking-the-veil-of-journalistic-purity-i/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```