Elliman Interviews Dan's Papers Founder Dan Rattiner

If you’re not sure Dan’s Papers is still making waves in the Hamptons, check out this article, “‘Dan’s Papers’ – Still Making News in the Hamptons,” from the April 2016 issue of Douglas Elliman’s real estate and lifestyle magazine, Elliman. In it, Brad Goldfarb interviews Dan’s Papers founder and lifelong Hamptonite Dan Rattiner, who the discusses his newspaper’s humble beginnings and gradual rise to becoming an East End media giant with 30 employees, a circulation of 32,000, major events and a popular website.

In one particularly interesting segment, Rattiner opens up about his unconventional approach to journalism, and how he started Dan’s Papers simply to tell stories.

“I had a wonderful teacher in high school who taught us about newspapering,” Rattiner tells me. “I found myself having a pretty strong reaction to what he was saying about truth.” But instead of following the prescribed format of placing the critical information up front and proceeding to the lesser details—the classic “who, what, when, where and how” approach of traditional journalism—Rattiner was drawn to a more personal, quirky style. “I said to my teacher, ‘But that’s not how you tell a good story. It may not even be how you get to the truth…’”

The article goes on to describe the various iterations of Dan’s Papers over the years—24 in total—from the original Montauk Pioneer, first published in 1960, to other East End editions, such as The East Hampton Summer Sun, The Beach and The Summer Day. Rattiner eventually changed them all to Dan’s Papers, which is what most readers called them, and later consolidated them into the paper it is today.

Elliman‘s article is loving tribute to Dan Rattiner and a great read for anyone interested in Dan’s Papers‘ colorful and unique history. Check it out it at ellimanmedia.com.