Articles Quote by Nat Hentoff
![“They [FBI] had a lot of clippings, a lot of articles I'd written. And to me the - the funniest one was - I had done a piece for Playboy about J. Edgar Hoover.” quote by Nat Hentoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/fdc/nat-hentoff-1615_articles_they-fbi-had-a-lot-of-clippings-a-lot-of_1036896.jpg)
“They [FBI] had a lot of clippings, a lot of articles I'd written. And to me the - the funniest one was - I had done a piece for Playboy about J. Edgar Hoover.”
About This Quote
Source Interview: Radio Show, 1970s
The speaker humorously recounts being assigned to write about a powerful figure, highlighting media’s role in shaping public perception.
In simple terms: Writing about famous people can be funny and revealing.
Key Takeaway
Consider the impact of your work on public image.
Themes
media
humor
power
journalism
Mood
witty
critical
Type
journalistic
satirical
When to use this quote
- magazine articles
- biographical pieces
- media analysis
- public relations
Key Concepts
satire
media critique
Questions to Reflect On
- What responsibilities do journalists have when covering powerful individuals?
- How does satire influence public opinion?
A Different Perspective
Humor may downplay serious issues.
![“We're interested in complex characters and he's a complex character, [J. Edgar] Hoover. I like these types of dramas. I've made a few of them and I'm also interested in power structures so it just has elements that fascinate me, and the more you learn about Hoover, the more polarizing you realize…” quote by Brian Grazer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/981/brian-grazer-10816_character_we-re-interested-in-complex-characters-a_837343.jpg)
![“It's an incredible education [for the movie J. Edgar Hoover] . It was like I did a college course on J. Edgar Hoover but not knowing and understanding the history and reading the books, but understanding what motivated this man was the most fascinating part of the research.” quote by Dustin Lance Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/538/dustin-lance-black-4536_book_it-s-an-incredible-education-for-the-mov_699402.jpg)
![“I have great respect for the FBI, and I know that there have been some rumors lately that the FBI was disenchanted because of what we were doing in story, or doing a certain take: that's not true. Actually the FBI was tremendously enthusiastic about us doing [ J. Edgar Hoover ] film.” quote by Clint Eastwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/6bb/clint-eastwood-513_certain_i-have-great-respect-for-the-fbi-and-i-k_648960.jpg)
![“If Congress is going to investigate baseball players about whether or not they told the truth, how can we justify giving the most powerful intelligence official, [James] Clapper, a pass? This is how J. Edgar Hoover ended up in charge of the FBI forever.” quote by Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/544/edward-snowden-555_ball-player_if-congress-is-going-to-investigate-base_388233.jpg)
![“[ J. Edgar]Hoover, I'm sure, felt that he was right in everything he did and even the things that we don't like about his character.” quote by Clint Eastwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/327/clint-eastwood-513_character_j-edgar-hoover-i-m-sure-felt-that-he-was_185739.jpg)
![“[Margot Hentoff] thinks - first of all, she - this I hear from a lot of people beside her. She thinks that men have no business getting into this argument at all unless they're going to be pro-choice. But it turns out that a fair number of fetuses are male, and besides that, we are all one part of…” quote by Nat Hentoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/060/nat-hentoff-1615_argument_margot-hentoff-thinks-first-of-all-she-t_42891.jpg)
![“My chronology is terrible. [Work with William Shawn] must have some ago. It was after he was fired by Newhouse. After New - when Newhouse bought The New Yorker, he said in one of those grand press” quote by Nat Hentoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/b15/nat-hentoff-1615_chronology_my-chronology-is-terrible-work-with-will_68342.jpg)
![“We disagree heavily on abortion [with Margot Hentoff].” quote by Nat Hentoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/b48/nat-hentoff-1615_abortion_we-disagree-heavily-on-abortion-with-mar_70628.jpg)
![“[My wife Margot] was the - I guess, the coordinator or the production manager [of The Jazz Review], and we got to know each other and we married.” quote by Nat Hentoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/18d/nat-hentoff-1615_coordinator_my-wife-margot-was-the-i-guess-the-coord_104123.jpg)
![“[A.J. Muste] was - he - I don't know what he finally came out believing in, but it was some kind of higher being.” quote by Nat Hentoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/c49/nat-hentoff-1615_believe_a-j-muste-was-he-i-don-t-know-what-he-fi_209477.jpg)
![“Margot [Hentoff] dislikes Bill Clinton because he's totally untrustworthy, and you really ought to have some faith in whoever's going to be your president.” quote by Nat Hentoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/cc7/nat-hentoff-1615_bills_margot-hentoff-dislikes-bill-clinton-bec_218363.jpg)
![“I wrote an article about the marine landing [in Haiti] right away, but barely mentioned the oil, because my article would come out two months later and I assumed by then, "of course, everybody knows." Nobody knew. There was a news report in the Wall Street Journal, in the petroleum journals, and…” quote by Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/dc5/noam-chomsky-42_articles_i-wrote-an-article-about-the-marine-land_13341.jpg)
