News Junkie

Book 65 of my 2016 Reading Challenge
read from August 11 - 15

I received this book for free at a book convention.  There was no expectation of a review but since it was a giveaway, I figured better safe than sorry regarding a disclaimer.

News Junkie by Jason Leopold

Summary (via the book jacket)
In 2002, Jason Leopold seemed to be on top of the world. His reporting about Enron's bankruptcy and the controversy surrounding it was being used by NPR, he was hot on the trail of a possible connection to an army secretary, and he was one of the few reporters granted an interview with Enron President Jeff Skilling. And then it all came crashing down.
When Salon was forced to take down Leopold's article about Army Secretary Thomas E. White's role in the Enron bankruptcy, his world began to unravel. Ostracized from the mainstream media, slipping into a deep depression, with no prospects on the horizon, Jason Leopold was forced to start from scratch.
News Junkie is Jason's story, an addict to the core, he traded an early life of drugs and crime for the equally addictive world of breaking news. From the top of the reporting world to its dregs and back again, Leopold takes us on a journey through some of the biggest events of the recent past, all the while letting us into his inner struggles.
With an unforgettable array of characters, from weepy editors and love-starved politicos to steroid-pumped mobsters who intimidate Leopold into selling drugs and stolen goods, News Junkie shows how a man once fueled by raging fear and self-hatred transforms his life, regenerated by love, sobriety, and a new, harmonious career with the media.

My Opinion
He's sleazy but is completely honest about it.

He did such a good job describing his decline and pulling me in that I had to take breaks for my own mental health.  It was engrossing but I was so uncomfortable reading it.  I had sweaty palms because I was waiting for everything to crumble like I knew it was going to.

Also, while I knew about Enron in a passing way through the news, this book helped me understand just how horrible it was.