Film on fabulist reporter realistic to ex-colleagues

The saga of the Penn graduate who lied his way to journalistic stardom has finally made its way from print to film.

"The director was obsessive about it being realistic," said Washington Post reporter Hanna Rosin, who worked with fraudulent reporter Stephen Glass at The New Republic magazine. "Very few things feel foreign to me."

Glass was executive editor for The Daily Pennsylvanian in 1993 and went on to work for The New Republic in 1995. He contributed articles to Rolling Stone and other publications. Quickly labeled a rising star in journalism, he became known for his fierce work ethic and remarkable stories.

The fairy tale came crashing to an end when New Republic editor Charles Lane, now a reporter for The Washington Post, discovered that Glass had fabricated many facts in his stories, several almost entirely originating from Glass' imagination.

An audience of about 100 students watched a screening of the film Shattered Glass -- held last night in Zellerbach Theatre by the Social Planning and Events Committee -- which charts the fall of Glass' career.

The movie follows the release of Glass' novel, The Fabulist, which chronicles the story of a fabricating journalist.

The movie, written and directed by Billy Ray, is based on a Vanity Fair article about Glass, stars Hayden Christensen and has been well-received by critics. Yet, those who knew Glass were unsure if his story would make for a good movie.

"I had some doubts initially," Lane said, adding that he wondered if the film would have a popular appeal. "There's not a lot of sex and violence in the movie."

Glass himself did not return repeated phone calls for comment.

However, many of Glass' former co-workers agreed that the movie was surprisingly entertaining, and most importantly, was true to the actual events.

Christensen apparently provides an accurate depiction of the bright but insecure Glass.

He captured "a lot of Steve's mannerisms," said Los Angeles Times reporter Charles Ornstein -- a freshman DP reporter when Glass was associate editor in 1992 -- particularly Glass' trademark phrase, "Are you mad at me?"

Glass was known both at the DP and at The New Republic as a charming young man and devoted reporter, yet ostensibly afraid of causing disappointment to those in authority.

He had "an extreme eagerness to please others and a terrific sense of humor," New Republic reporter Jonathan Chait said.

His ingratiating manner is one of the key reasons he was able to invent facts undetected for over two years. Chait said that "knowing [Glass] personally" meant no one suspected him of fabrication.

Lane grew suspicious of Glass' story "Hacked Heaven." He investigated it and realized that Glass had invented quotes, people and Web sites. After firing Glass, Lane found that 27 of the 41 pieces Glass had written for The New Republic were partly or entirely fabricated.

Glass' motives are not clear from the movie, and his former colleagues can only speculate.

Lane said Glass' "highly insecure, ambitious" character may have been the main motivation, but only Glass truly knows.

The personal impact of Glass' deception is felt by many.

"It led me to think about the role he played in my whole career," Ornstein said. "It's very disappointing."

"I'm all for second chances," said Baltimore Sun reporter Scott Calvert, the DP's managing editor when Glass was in charge. "But he's forfeited his right to do journalism."

However, Rolling Stone disagrees, opting to hire Glass to write a story on marijuana laws in Canada this summer.

Students generally did not know who Glass was before the movie, and their reaction was mixed.

"It was OK, a bit slow," College freshman Jessica Lee said. "That he got away with putting in all those things was really surprising."

"Hayden Christensen was definitely a draw," College freshman Kristen Su said. "I was surprised by how much [Glass] got away with. He was pretty manipulative."

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