God and the Editor: My Search for Meaning at the New York Times

by Robert H. Phelps

For nearly twenty years Robert H. Phelps ran interference for, cheered on, and sometimes scolded star reporters and top editors at the New York Times. Starting his editing career at the desk of the Providence Journal-Bulletin, Phelps joined the New York Times as a copy editor, eventually serving as the Times news editor for the Washington bureau. Along the way he struggled with balancing his moral ideals and his personal ambition. In this compelling memoir, Phelps interweaves his personal and professional experiences with some of the most powerful stories of the era. brbrWith candor and keen observation, Phelps chronicles both the triumphant and the tragic events at the Times. He explains the missed lessons of the Pentagon Papers, why the Times played catchup with the Washington Post on the Watergate scandal but eventually surpassed it on covering that seminal story, and how the Times failed to report a key element of the riots at the 1968 Democratic convention. Phelps offers mixed appraisals of such luminaries as A. M. Rosenthal, James B. Reston, E. Clifton Daniel, and Max Frankel, and expresses great admiration for Seymour Hersh, Neil Sheehan, and Bill Beecher, three unlikely scoop artists. brbrAs Phelps settled in at the New York Times, journalism became the religion he had searched for since his adolescence. Over his tenure of nearly two decades, however, Phelps found that journalism's stark emphasis on fact was insufficient to address many of life's dilemmas and failed to provide the sustaining guidance he envied in his wife's Catholic faith.

284 pages, Hardcover

First published April 1, 2009

Reviews

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book provides a real look at journalism during the Watergate era. For someone who is unfamiliar with this area, it's a real eye opener and makes you realize what this profession may be losing as more and more newspapers close their operations

[Aminul Haque · Rating 3 out of 5]

God, religion and spirituality come early in the book, are mentioned passingly, and reappear very late. There is little to expound on the title of the book.

And there is this sentence; "At the Times I had adopted its high standards as a substitute for religion; at the Globe I quickly realized that I needed to make converts because so many were nonbelievers in objectivity".

Religion may simply mean doing one's job to a high standard and conviction, after making sure that the job achieves common good and is not entirely motivated by financial gain. This even applies to a job such as journalism which replaces faith with objectivity and depends on skepticism for its success. The basic rules of spirituality still apply.

[judy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I can only recommend this to complete journalism junkies, of which I am one. I didn't find much in his low-key story that interested me. (I lived through most of it). What I did find is a real appreciation for the editors whose names we never know. They make sure the style is consistent and in a million ways make the stories more accurate. Do they still exist? Is someone at each news outlet checking to make sure both sides of the story are presented fairly? Is someone meticulously checking the "hot tips" as well as the reliability and motives of the people who provide them. Is someone making sure that reporters do understand the difference between analysis and opinion? Most importantly, is someone in charge of monitoring journalistic ethics and making sure that everyone understands and follows them every single day?

[Bryan Allison · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book. I enjoyed Phelps' stories about internal politics and strategy at the New York Times and Boston Globe in the glory days of newspapers. Reminds me why I was so taken with the industry.

[Janice]

1/19/2010