Joyce Purnick, the panel chair, led the discussion. Discussion Who’s Who Bauer, Charlotte—Assistant to Editor, Sunday Times, Johannesburg. Berkes, Howard—Correspondent based in Salt Lake City, National Public Radio. Berliner, Uri—Staff Writer, San Diego Union Tribune. Bradlee, Benjamin Jr.—Assistant Managing … Read more
Athens, Georgia To the Editor: Undoubtedly under severe space constraints, my good friend Phil Meyer and his co-author, M. David Arant, plucked a six-word quote from my book to lead their fine article on newsroom ethics (“Changing Values in the … Read more
Joyce Purnick speaks for many a metro and state editor when she describes the strain of keeping up with the news while watching for the big stories. At a midsize regional paper, the metro desk always answers the phone for … Read more
The American Civil Liberties Union has defended the Bill of Rights since its founding in 1920. This proud record does not necessarily mean that the ACLU welcomes an exercise of the First Amendment right of freedom of speech concerning its … Read more
An article in the winter 1997 issue of Nieman Reports, “Getting It Wrong on Whitewater,” refuted the widely reported belief that a portion of an illegal 1986 loan to Susan McDougal propped up Whitewater, and therefore benefited Whitewater investors Bill … Read more
I start with a point from Richard Parker’s discussion of needed improvements in journalism education and apply it more broadly. Parker argues that "fundamental democratic political concerns" should provide the context in which business and economics are taught to journalism … Read more
Some years ago The New York Times editorial page expressed the complacent notion that "great publications magnify the voice of any single writer." The statement is misleading. The instruments of the media multiply or amplify a voice, serving much the … Read more
Richard Parker’s paper is an insightful, scholarly and valuable overview. But his analysis of contemporary watchdog economics journalism and his recommendations trouble this long-time reporter. Consider these quotes: “It seems malign” to insist “that we suffer from too little information … Read more
My departure point for any discussion of national security reporting is an evening in the early 1980’s, when I was a Washington correspondent for The New York Times. Several days earlier, I had been handed a heavily classified memorandum to … Read more
