Professional columnist project

Tobin Harshaw is an opinions and editorials staff editor at the New York Times.

Harshaw has written on subjects ranging from the economy to the Tea Party movement to blogs over the past semester. His writing style shows the same strong background in reporting that the textbook 'Writing For Impact' demanded for opinions writing.

Harshaw does this by letting other people prove his points for him at times. In a January article about whether or not the recession was coming to an end, Harshaw uses the scepticism of multiple economists and business professionals to underscore his own.

Next, he draws out the counter argument from a Washington politicist--that inventory shifts are a natural part of economic returns.

Counter point made, he refutes that with more testimony from yet another expert. He says almost nothing directly through the entire article, but his opinion on the matter is both clear and backed up by evidence.

Another trick Harshaw uses effectively is the drawing question--Will Wall Street be Saved by Porn? , Assassinating Americans, Killing the Constitution?  and Which Justice Will Prevail? are good examples of this.

Clever headlines and drawing ledes followed up with small-scale narratives such as the one about blogger  Matthew Yglesias' opinion on President Obama and anti-terrorism techniques.

Harshaw is slightly snarky about his attitude while still complimenting Yglesias' writing skills. The trick makes him appear to be even tempered on the subject.

He explores both sides of the issue and discusses whether the Republicans are right to point out Obama's apparent disconnect between his stated stance on fighting and prosecuting terrorists and what he is actually doing.

Because of that, he arrives at middle of the road opinion on this story noting that Republicans are wrong to criticize Obama, but that his shift may jeopardize future movement towards prisoner rights.

Harshaw has other tricks besides those of a good writer or journalist. He is well aware of the capabilities of new media. In each of the above articles, he has several links to other stories where he gathered information, including rival newspapers and blogs.

Lastly, he finishes strong. Harshaw asks a single question at the beginning of his articles, goes into a narrative, zooms out to the broader spectrum and impact then draws a conclusion based on the information listed in the stories and testimonies gathered. The answers are definitive. Others allow for future development.

The techniques and patterns were all consistent to the writing style of an established professional. Harshaw is the kind of writer who has developed through a combination of experience and practice at the craft.