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Think of some of the news stories you’ve read in the past. The ones that have stopped you in your tracks; made you pause, perhaps even had you gasping out loud. These stories, the ones that took the world by storm, the ones that changed the course of history, would never have made print if it weren’t for the tenacious journalists behind them. These four podcast episodes explore the journalists responsible for breaking open some of the biggest news stories of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries.
When I think of breaking news or "hard-hitting journalism" the first story that comes to mind is, of course, Watergate. We have all read the history books, seen the movies, watched the documentaries that chronicle this historic series of events. But have you listened to the man behind the story, Bob Woodward, talk for an hour about everything from how he has covered 20% of the presidents this country has had to who he thinks portrayed him better in movies? No. Well, I suggest you press play now.
Does anyone address the FBI agent listening to your phone calls, or is that just me? I think we have a great rapport; he's a great listener. We all know the man who let us know the government was spying on us, but do we recall the man who led the coverage of Snowden's disclosures? We most definitely should. Barton Gellman, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist who led The Washington Post's coverage starting in May 2013, began his journalism journey back in high school; and he was as fierce a protector of the first amendment then as he is now. Learn why he sued his high school principal and more in this episode.
The more you learn about historical events, the more you realize the history textbooks in school left out ninety percent of what happened. It turns out, that Vietnam was a bit more complicated than what chapter 34 told us. Neil Sheehan was one of the two brave reporters who risked their lives to reveal the truth to the American people about what was really happening in Vietnam. Sheehan is also the man responsible for exposing the Pentagon Papers in the pages of the New York Times starting in June of 1971. Neil Sheehan (with a bit of David Halberstam thrown in) discusses his part in reporting on Vietnam and what he thinks the role of journalism is in this enlightening episode.
If you're interested in the full story of the Pentagon Papers, I suggest checking out American Scandal's series by the same name.
In 2018 The New York Times and The New York won the Pulitzer Prize for Public Services for their coverage of the abuse of women in Hollywood. One of the reporters behind this coverage was Ronan Farrow. Farrow has reported on individuals including Harvey Weinstein, Bill Cosby, Woody Allen (his father), Brett Kavanaugh. In this episode, Farrow discusses how he first came to investigate such personal matters, why abuse of power must be exposed, and how he began college at age 11. Yes, you read that right, age 11. Farrow's resume not only includes a Pulitzer Prize but a Law Degree from Yale, a Doctorate from the University of Oxford, and a Rhodes Scholarship.
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