Video: Michael Kinsley @ The ‘Separate But Equal’ Digital Ellies

Michael Kinsley

The greatest benefit of moderating a session at the Magazine Publishers Association conference on e-reading today was the chance to witness Slate founding editor Michael Kinsley’s induction into the Magazine Editors’ Hall of Fame. I caught his wry acceptance on video but missed the chance to record Nicholas Lemann’s touching introduction of the man a lot of people think of as the definition of “editor.” (The video embedded below is brief but a little shaky at times due to operator error; for those of you who prefer, here’s an mp3.)

Not coincidentally, this all took place during the inaugural National Magazine Awards for Digital Media, the first time the American Society of Magazine Editors has honored editorial achievement on the web and mobile devices in the same way as print. Or, as Kinsley put it, after years of struggle by ASME, “I think the Supreme Court said it best in Plessy vs. Ferguson, ‘separate but equal.'” The winners, led by NewYork.com’s award for general excellence, are listed here. Kinsley bridges both: in addition to Slate, his other magazine resume lines include editing roles at The New Republic, Harper’s Magazine, The Economist, and The Washington Monthly. He is now a senior editor for The Atlantic, advising on The Atlantic Wire, among other things.

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