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Flirting with Danger: Confessions of a Reluctant War Reporter
Former star correspondent for CNN, Siobhan Darrow covered the world’s hottest war zones over the last two decades, reporting from the front lines in Moscow, Chechnya, the Balkans, Albania, Israel, and Northern Ireland. Her fearless pursuit of stories placed her in countless life-threatening situations, prompting Darrow to wonder what about her character so attracted her to adrenaline, and so alienated her from the family life a part of her longed for. Darrow approaches this question with the same honesty–and seat-of-the-pants courage–that established her reputation as a premiere reporter, and the answers she arrives at form this riveting memoir of a woman assigned to cover history in the making, even as she chases down the most elusive “get” of all: her own happiness.
- GenresNonfictionHistoryMemoir
208 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2000
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
February 9, 2017
Darrow is cavalier in her approach to facts, and ethically challenged to put it very mildly.
No fact-checkers were hurt in the making of this slim volume, which means that the onus of facepalms is entirely on its unfortunate readers. Russia is described as Darrow's long-time obsession and area of expertise, yet there was hardly a Russian word in the book that wasn't misspelled, and her grasp of local geography is tenuous at best (she describes Dagestan as a city. it's a republic). Imagine how many gaffs can be discovered in her reports from countries that are NOT her area of expertise.
As to the ethically challenged part, she consistently takes the side with the highest tally of war crimes in multiple conflicts, couching it in the highfaluting bullshit of "hearing both sides." As in, on p. 119-20, "Western news organizations saw the Serbs as the bad guys in the Balkans, since Serb forces there were clearly taking directions from Slobodan Milosevic, the Serb leader in Belgrade who was later demonized in 1999 for massacres in Kosovo. But I knew that there were two sides to every story". Yeah, a reader is tempted to say, and you can read lengthy Hague tribunal transcripts to prove that one side is demonstrably more at fault. It's no longer demonization if you do orchestrate massacres, it's a plain statement of fact.
Or, on p. 163-4, I wanted to yell, "It doesn't matter who is right and who is wrong; people are suffering!" Only it does matter, doesn't it? Non-intervention means that you favour the side of the stronger aggressor (demonstrably Serbs in this case), and are giving them the carte blanche to eliminate their victim.
Or, perhaps most damningly, on p. 164, "I wanted [...] to talk about the Serb in a black woolen mask who had knocked on the door and ordered the Albanians out [...] I could explain that he hadn't been born bad, that I might have even been to the village his family was driven from, where his grandmother probably died in a concentration camp run by Croation fascists and he had been weaned on stories about cruel Croats and Albanians." Take a moment to take in this freaking gem. The man is perpetrating ethnic cleansing, and Darrow is somehow volunteering to paint him as a victim because of a weaponized version of WW II history from which his ancestors ~might have~ suffered? Because he was raised with ethnic prejudices? Last I checked, ethnic prejudices were not an extenuating circumstance but a description of a hate crime.
From what I gather, she's no longer in war reporting, to which I can only say, good riddance.
No fact-checkers were hurt in the making of this slim volume, which means that the onus of facepalms is entirely on its unfortunate readers. Russia is described as Darrow's long-time obsession and area of expertise, yet there was hardly a Russian word in the book that wasn't misspelled, and her grasp of local geography is tenuous at best (she describes Dagestan as a city. it's a republic). Imagine how many gaffs can be discovered in her reports from countries that are NOT her area of expertise.
As to the ethically challenged part, she consistently takes the side with the highest tally of war crimes in multiple conflicts, couching it in the highfaluting bullshit of "hearing both sides." As in, on p. 119-20, "Western news organizations saw the Serbs as the bad guys in the Balkans, since Serb forces there were clearly taking directions from Slobodan Milosevic, the Serb leader in Belgrade who was later demonized in 1999 for massacres in Kosovo. But I knew that there were two sides to every story". Yeah, a reader is tempted to say, and you can read lengthy Hague tribunal transcripts to prove that one side is demonstrably more at fault. It's no longer demonization if you do orchestrate massacres, it's a plain statement of fact.
Or, on p. 163-4, I wanted to yell, "It doesn't matter who is right and who is wrong; people are suffering!" Only it does matter, doesn't it? Non-intervention means that you favour the side of the stronger aggressor (demonstrably Serbs in this case), and are giving them the carte blanche to eliminate their victim.
Or, perhaps most damningly, on p. 164, "I wanted [...] to talk about the Serb in a black woolen mask who had knocked on the door and ordered the Albanians out [...] I could explain that he hadn't been born bad, that I might have even been to the village his family was driven from, where his grandmother probably died in a concentration camp run by Croation fascists and he had been weaned on stories about cruel Croats and Albanians." Take a moment to take in this freaking gem. The man is perpetrating ethnic cleansing, and Darrow is somehow volunteering to paint him as a victim because of a weaponized version of WW II history from which his ancestors ~might have~ suffered? Because he was raised with ethnic prejudices? Last I checked, ethnic prejudices were not an extenuating circumstance but a description of a hate crime.
From what I gather, she's no longer in war reporting, to which I can only say, good riddance.
July 6, 2025
Siobhan if you see this: can we please be pen pals?!
Incredible storytelling, witty humor, very relatable. Revives my hope to be a reporter one day. Here’s a passage from the end of the book that really resonates with me:
I was enraged by the U.S. coverage of the war, which demonized the Serbs in an oversimplistic way, mindlessly repeating NATO jargon about morality. I wanted to tell, “it doesn’t matter who is right and who is wrong; people are suffering!”
Incredible storytelling, witty humor, very relatable. Revives my hope to be a reporter one day. Here’s a passage from the end of the book that really resonates with me:
I was enraged by the U.S. coverage of the war, which demonized the Serbs in an oversimplistic way, mindlessly repeating NATO jargon about morality. I wanted to tell, “it doesn’t matter who is right and who is wrong; people are suffering!”
July 23, 2020
Interessant kijkje in het chaotische leven van een oorlogsjournalist. Maar, iets minder romantiek en iets meer over de verslaggeving was welkom geweest.
December 11, 2023
Really enjoyed this, very interesting reading about a pretty close lens to wars all over the world, but also very personal struggles that the author deals with.
January 15, 2015
Alexa Kennedy
1/14/15
Mrs. O’Rourke
Flirting With Danger
Flirting with Danger by Siobhan Darrow is a story about her trying to figure out her life. I picked this book because the short paragraph in the back looked and sounded like an interesting read. I did like the book but I do feel like it was a little slow at times. She travels to Russia to find out if she likes it or not. Throughout the book she talks about her experience there and the traveling to a different country and how difficult it can be; being an outsider that is. I believe this book is for readers that can understand the concept of love and the struggles and sacrifices for love. Also readers that can understand the concept of war and the danger it can put you in.
Siobhan is a good story teller explaining her life to all types of readers. Her style is more so about the life experience. There is sympathy for her also sorrow and a little bit of anger hinted in the book. Siobhan was descriptive in her story she was sharing. In a way I could almost feel like I was there with her. An example is when she first moved to Russia she was describing the way she felt and how hard it was to live there. You could actually feel like you were there with her how she struggled for food. Also how she sold most of her U.S. things in Russia just to try and pay off the bills or scavenge for food or at least cheap food from the streets. The type beer when she was in Russia was a cheap yellow gasoline tasting disgrace for a beer. For readers this book is a good read but can be slow at the slower points in her life.
I can relate to Siobhan in some ways because she has struggled in her life, as did I. in a way we are similar, we both have to work hard if we want to achieve things in our lives. Dima her husband for many years lived in Russia he was introduced in the beginning of the book when she moved to Russia. The CNN crew was introduced when she got a small job at the bottom of the list for CNN. She then moved up top to finally be a reporter like she dreamed of. She never really imagined being a war reporter but she figured she could do it so why not give it a try. Siobhan described Dima as a great guy originally but then she observed that he just used their marriage just to go to the U.S. after it taking almost seven years he finally was approved to leave Russia. After in the U.S. they finally got divorced.
Sometimes the book was a little slow and I had trouble keep on task with the book. She did find herself again and where she really wanted to be also she got to do the job that she loves. I was very hooked when she started talking about her romance with Dima at first also when she started reporting, it almost gave me a thrill reading it. One of the themes was the actual life events that she had like when she reported the wars and what was going on in the world. I think the culture between Russia and the U.S. is very different. Almost life changing at times.
Flirting with Danger is a good read I do believe it is for a certain kind of audience. I would recommend this book to readers how can be inspired by her story. I would recommend if given as a gift, give it to someone who is struggling because this book will help them keep moving forward and be inspired to do more with their lives. I do like this book but I don’t think I would read another book like this unless I have to but I will stand strong to say that this is a good book.
1/14/15
Mrs. O’Rourke
Flirting With Danger
Flirting with Danger by Siobhan Darrow is a story about her trying to figure out her life. I picked this book because the short paragraph in the back looked and sounded like an interesting read. I did like the book but I do feel like it was a little slow at times. She travels to Russia to find out if she likes it or not. Throughout the book she talks about her experience there and the traveling to a different country and how difficult it can be; being an outsider that is. I believe this book is for readers that can understand the concept of love and the struggles and sacrifices for love. Also readers that can understand the concept of war and the danger it can put you in.
Siobhan is a good story teller explaining her life to all types of readers. Her style is more so about the life experience. There is sympathy for her also sorrow and a little bit of anger hinted in the book. Siobhan was descriptive in her story she was sharing. In a way I could almost feel like I was there with her. An example is when she first moved to Russia she was describing the way she felt and how hard it was to live there. You could actually feel like you were there with her how she struggled for food. Also how she sold most of her U.S. things in Russia just to try and pay off the bills or scavenge for food or at least cheap food from the streets. The type beer when she was in Russia was a cheap yellow gasoline tasting disgrace for a beer. For readers this book is a good read but can be slow at the slower points in her life.
I can relate to Siobhan in some ways because she has struggled in her life, as did I. in a way we are similar, we both have to work hard if we want to achieve things in our lives. Dima her husband for many years lived in Russia he was introduced in the beginning of the book when she moved to Russia. The CNN crew was introduced when she got a small job at the bottom of the list for CNN. She then moved up top to finally be a reporter like she dreamed of. She never really imagined being a war reporter but she figured she could do it so why not give it a try. Siobhan described Dima as a great guy originally but then she observed that he just used their marriage just to go to the U.S. after it taking almost seven years he finally was approved to leave Russia. After in the U.S. they finally got divorced.
Sometimes the book was a little slow and I had trouble keep on task with the book. She did find herself again and where she really wanted to be also she got to do the job that she loves. I was very hooked when she started talking about her romance with Dima at first also when she started reporting, it almost gave me a thrill reading it. One of the themes was the actual life events that she had like when she reported the wars and what was going on in the world. I think the culture between Russia and the U.S. is very different. Almost life changing at times.
Flirting with Danger is a good read I do believe it is for a certain kind of audience. I would recommend this book to readers how can be inspired by her story. I would recommend if given as a gift, give it to someone who is struggling because this book will help them keep moving forward and be inspired to do more with their lives. I do like this book but I don’t think I would read another book like this unless I have to but I will stand strong to say that this is a good book.
Read
July 30, 2011If you're looking for peak into the exciting adventures of an adrenaline junkie, you're not going to get it here. Instead, it is how one person happened into such a life and how such a career was affected by as well as affected her personal biography.
December 3, 2011
Most excellent and engaging. The author is a brave and respectable woman.Though her life reads like a series of tragic events, both personally and at the war-afflicted places she has covered, there is a uplifting tone throughout the book. I almost want to be a reporter now.
Read
November 23, 2008So frustrating - this woman is travelling to and reporting from the most fascinating conflicts on the planet and all she wants to write about is her Bridget Jones love life!
March 13, 2010
Five star Reporter!
November 18, 2010
In my next life, I want to be a reporter or photographer. Interesting personal story and historical background on the fall of communism in Russia.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews