Publisher looks into Mortenson book fabrication claims

BBC ^ | April 19th 2011 | Staff

[Cardhu]

Greg Mortenson's best-selling memoir, Three Cups of Tea, is being 'reviewed' by his publisher following claims part of it was fabricated.

The book, which follows Mortenson's mission to build schools across Central Asia, is filled with inaccuracies, US news programme 60 Minutes said.

The report disputed his claims that he stumbled upon a mountain village during a failed attempt to climb K2.

Mortenson has denied the allegations, saying he stands by the book.

The book's publisher, Viking, has said it will investigate the claims made by the programme.

"Greg Mortenson's work as a humanitarian in Afghanistan and Pakistan has provided tens of thousands of children with an education," Viking spokeswoman Carolyn Coleburn said in a statement.

"60 Minutes is a serious news organisation and in the wake of their report, Viking plans to carefully review the material with the author."

Three Cups of Tea was published in 2006 and became a best-seller through word of mouth.

Claims disputed

The book describes how Mortenson, a mountaineer, got lost while trekking in northern Pakistan, only to be rescued by the residents of a remote village. In the book, he says the kindness of those he encountered inspired him to build a school.

60 Minutes, a CBS programme, alleged Mortenson's charitable foundation took credit for building schools in Afghanistan and Pakistan which do not exist.

The 60 Minutes investigation said that porters who accompanied Mr Mortenson dispute his claims of being lost and said he did not visit the village until a year after he said he did.

Mortenson told the programme the discrepancy could be because the "Balti people have a completely different notion about time."

The programme also disputed Mortenson's account of being kidnapped in the Waziristan region of Pakistan in 1996.

[driftdiver]

“”60 Minutes is a serious news organisation”

Fake but accurate

[Arm_Bears]

I would be mildly interested had the same level of critical scrutiny been applied to the books allegedly authored by his Zero-ness.

[SMARTY]

“60 Minutes is a serious news organization”

How is it possible for anyone to make a statement like that?

Those guys almost single handedly institutionalized ‘journalistic’ bias in America.

Watching “60 Minutes” is walking into some grotesque time warp and starring the most Byzantine moral/ethical/professional malfeasance in the face.

It seems to me, if you tell only HALF of the story… you have lied as surely as if you lied outright or omitted facts altogether. “60 Minutes” has been doing this relentlessly, consistently and for so long that they have by, now forfeited ALL credibility and relevance.

Their mission and inimical style have been systematically invalidating America/American values, etc. for decades ...this is the rock on which America has shipwrecked itself.

Thank you NEA.

[fishtank]

I despise “60 Minutes”.

BUT.....

I read half of “3 Cups....” after I heard Bill Bennett endorse it on the air.

(That should have been a warning sign all by itself.)

Accuracy aside, Greg Mortenson wrote the book in a tone of narcissism, self-congratulation and self-canonization.

He glowingly compared his own virtue to that of Mother Theresa about halfway through the bookk.

I’ve got theological differences with M.T., but I had to drop the book there.

[IronJack]

I was disgusted by Mortenson’s ready embrace of the backward culture of the islamists and his shame at being Western. He makes it clear that the noble savages of the Himalayan hinterlands are infinitely the cultural superiors of us greedy capitalists, despite the fact that he was basically fleeced out of thousands of dollars worth of building materials by one of his “guides.” I couldn’t finish the book; nausea overcame me.