Scotty: James B. Reston and the Rise and Fall of American Journalism

by John F. Stacks

An in-depth portrait of one of the twentieth century's finest and most influential journalists describes the role of James B. Reston in shaping and transforming American journalism and sheds new light on Reston's impact on U.S. politics and the corruption of power on a man who helped make The New York Times the most important newspaper in the world. 25,000 first printing.

Genres: Biography, Politics

384 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2002

Reviews

[Ernst · Rating 5 out of 5]

Vivid history of the end of the pre-Watergate era of journalism, when high level politicians and even Presidents told reporters what they actually thought and trusted them to figure out what to keep secret, what to clean up, and how to report it. Reston was the king of journalism in that time, and his calamitous failure to figure out that Kissinger was using him was almost as important to the end of the era as Watergate itself. Great stories of John Kennedy, Halberstam, and other people Reston helped.

[Peter Burton · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good solid biography of an influential US newspaperman.Easy to read giving info on many of the issues in the Cold War.Late in life his career suffered from his closeness to Kissinger who fed him false stories about the Paris Peace Talks to end the Vietnam War which soon were shown to be false.He rose from poverty to wealth so the American Dream worked for him by sporting ability,luck and an engaging personality.Hard to imagine who’d read it today,perhaps students of history.

[Rob · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to read this book because of my prior experience in journalism, plus the fact that while doing research at the University of Illinois's archives, I would walk past the office holding Reston's papers. Overall, this is an interesting book, but not exceptional. It is an easy read, and Stacks has a pleasing writing style, but again, it isn't anything special.

[Joe Alewine · Rating 2 out of 5]

A mediocre book about a mediocre columnist who was nonetheless very powerful in his day. Not too insightful, but at least it's a fast read.

[Michael Harris · Rating 4 out of 5]

An APL Recycled Reads find. This is a well written story of the early days of print journalism and of two time Pulitzer winner Scotty Reston's professional life. A fascinating story well told.