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The Trust: The Private and Powerful Family Behind The New York Times
A National Book Critics Circle Award finalist, The Trust is the "eye-opening" biography ( Newsweek ) of the Ochses and the Sulzbergers, the families that have owned and run The New York Times for more than a century.
Throughout the tumultuous "American century," a single family controlled America's newspaper of record, setting the agenda not only for the New York Times but for the nation as well. In a narrative that dramatically, evokes world events, internecine struggles, and both the privilege and the burden of wealth and influence, The Trust reveals for the first time the extraordinary story of one of America's most powerful families.
"A lively, lavishly detailed epic...The authors have the journalist's instinct for telling the right story." --Ron Chernow, New York Times Book Review
Throughout the tumultuous "American century," a single family controlled America's newspaper of record, setting the agenda not only for the New York Times but for the nation as well. In a narrative that dramatically, evokes world events, internecine struggles, and both the privilege and the burden of wealth and influence, The Trust reveals for the first time the extraordinary story of one of America's most powerful families.
"A lively, lavishly detailed epic...The authors have the journalist's instinct for telling the right story." --Ron Chernow, New York Times Book Review
928 pages, Paperback
First published December 30, 1999
21 people are currently reading
624 people want to read
About the author
Alex S. Jones
14 books2 followersAlex S. Jones is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist who has been director of the Joan Shorenstein Center on the Press, Politics and Public Policy at Harvard's John F. Kennedy School of Government since July 1, 2000. Jones is also a lecturer at the school, occupying the Laurence M. Lombard Chair in the Press and Public Policy.
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
October 17, 2019
Page 46 (my book)
In the end Adolph (the publisher) decided he liked his own invention [catchphrase] best and decided to keep it. In early February, 1897 “All the News That’s Fit to Print” appeared for the first time in the upper-left-hand corner of the front page where it remains today.
This book is the history of the New York Times starting when Adolph Simon Ochs purchased it in 1896. At that stage the newspaper (then written as The New-York Times) was failing. Adolph turned that around and made it a success and kept it as a quality newspaper as opposed to the bulk of the New York sensationalist tabloids of that era. One of his most risky and fruitful ventures was to lower the price from three cents to one cent! This increased both circulation and advertising.
Adolph Ochs and his spouse Effie Marian Wise had only one child Iphigene, who married Arthur Hays Sulzberger in 1917. Although Iphigene never became publisher, she was the ruling matriarch of the New York Times. She lived until the age of 97 (she died in 1990). Iphigene was liberal in outlook and her influence was felt through several generations of publishers - on her husband Arthur Hays Sulzberger (publisher from 1935-61), the short publishing reign of her son-in-law Orvil E. Dryfoos (publisher 1961-63), her son Arthur Ochs Sulzberger (commonly known as “Punch”, publisher 1963-92), and her grandson Arthur Ochs Sulzberger Jr who ended his reign in 2017 – and gave it to his son – yes, you guessed it, his name too is Arthur. (Note that this book was published in 1999; I looked the last couple of publishing years on the internet.)
As all this aptly demonstrates the New York Times is a family run newspaper. As the authors point out it has the features of both a corporate enterprise and a monarchy.
In many ways the Ochs-Sulzbergers over the years have tried to be as inauspicious as possible. They kept their Jewish roots hidden, Adolph in particular never gave prominence to Jewish issues in his newspaper.
I did find the authors continuing emphasis on the “modesty” of the family clan through the decades over the top. They lived with the ruling matriarch Iphigene in a large estate, Hillandale, in Connecticut and had nice apartments in Manhattan with servants. They were a part of the New York City elites. Punch Sulzberger had a dominant position on the board of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
This is a family history where we get loads of information on marriages, births and deaths – and affairs and transgressions. Too much I felt. I would have liked more chapters like the one on the Pentagon Papers. The far-flung international reporters of the Times get little mention (except for Cyrus Sulzberger). The cataclysm of the Civil Rights era in the 1950’s and 1960’s is not mentioned at all – even though they were often front-page news. It would have been interesting to know how the publishers and their families reacted to these events and the impact they had on the New York Times.
There is little on the rise of the woman’s movement and the Vietnam war protests that occurred across the United States.
There is much as to how the newspaper evolved in a mechanical sense. Up to the 1960’s there were only two sections – and then special feature sections were introduced. There were many labour strikes where the newspaper did not publish over several weeks. Orvil E. Dryfoos, in 1963, suffered a fatal heart attack due to the stress from this labour dispute.
This book was published in 1999 so we do not get to know the full brunt of the internet revolution on the New York Times.
Page 607
The physical embodiment of the company’s soaring fortune was the edition of Sunday, September 13, 1987 – at 1,602 pages, the largest in Times history.
Even though there is a hereditary process to the main management position of publisher (and other significant positions as well) let it be known that the family members (mostly male it would seem) undergo ample training at various posts in the business. They get to know their empire from bottom to top. Even though the family is tolerant, woe betide an employee (in particular a high-level one) who does not cooperate in this training of family members. It will be compelling how this monarchy continues to rule The New York Times as the family tree has greatly expanded from what it was in the mid-twentieth century.
And as the authors state the importance of the voice of The New York Times continues to be felt over the years.
Page 597
In 1976, when U.S. News and World Report had published a cover story on the nations top thirty leaders, headlined “Who Runs America” President Gerald Ford had come in first, Punch [The New York Times publisher] at number thirteen. When the survey was repeated in 1982, Punch was still ranked thirteen, but everyone else above him had changed.
… Presidents had their moments on the national stage and world stage, but The New York Times remained a constant, a power unto itself.
In the end Adolph (the publisher) decided he liked his own invention [catchphrase] best and decided to keep it. In early February, 1897 “All the News That’s Fit to Print” appeared for the first time in the upper-left-hand corner of the front page where it remains today.
This book is the history of the New York Times starting when Adolph Simon Ochs purchased it in 1896. At that stage the newspaper (then written as The New-York Times) was failing. Adolph turned that around and made it a success and kept it as a quality newspaper as opposed to the bulk of the New York sensationalist tabloids of that era. One of his most risky and fruitful ventures was to lower the price from three cents to one cent! This increased both circulation and advertising.
Adolph Ochs and his spouse Effie Marian Wise had only one child Iphigene, who married Arthur Hays Sulzberger in 1917. Although Iphigene never became publisher, she was the ruling matriarch of the New York Times. She lived until the age of 97 (she died in 1990). Iphigene was liberal in outlook and her influence was felt through several generations of publishers - on her husband Arthur Hays Sulzberger (publisher from 1935-61), the short publishing reign of her son-in-law Orvil E. Dryfoos (publisher 1961-63), her son Arthur Ochs Sulzberger (commonly known as “Punch”, publisher 1963-92), and her grandson Arthur Ochs Sulzberger Jr who ended his reign in 2017 – and gave it to his son – yes, you guessed it, his name too is Arthur. (Note that this book was published in 1999; I looked the last couple of publishing years on the internet.)
As all this aptly demonstrates the New York Times is a family run newspaper. As the authors point out it has the features of both a corporate enterprise and a monarchy.
In many ways the Ochs-Sulzbergers over the years have tried to be as inauspicious as possible. They kept their Jewish roots hidden, Adolph in particular never gave prominence to Jewish issues in his newspaper.
I did find the authors continuing emphasis on the “modesty” of the family clan through the decades over the top. They lived with the ruling matriarch Iphigene in a large estate, Hillandale, in Connecticut and had nice apartments in Manhattan with servants. They were a part of the New York City elites. Punch Sulzberger had a dominant position on the board of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
This is a family history where we get loads of information on marriages, births and deaths – and affairs and transgressions. Too much I felt. I would have liked more chapters like the one on the Pentagon Papers. The far-flung international reporters of the Times get little mention (except for Cyrus Sulzberger). The cataclysm of the Civil Rights era in the 1950’s and 1960’s is not mentioned at all – even though they were often front-page news. It would have been interesting to know how the publishers and their families reacted to these events and the impact they had on the New York Times.
There is little on the rise of the woman’s movement and the Vietnam war protests that occurred across the United States.
There is much as to how the newspaper evolved in a mechanical sense. Up to the 1960’s there were only two sections – and then special feature sections were introduced. There were many labour strikes where the newspaper did not publish over several weeks. Orvil E. Dryfoos, in 1963, suffered a fatal heart attack due to the stress from this labour dispute.
This book was published in 1999 so we do not get to know the full brunt of the internet revolution on the New York Times.
Page 607
The physical embodiment of the company’s soaring fortune was the edition of Sunday, September 13, 1987 – at 1,602 pages, the largest in Times history.
Even though there is a hereditary process to the main management position of publisher (and other significant positions as well) let it be known that the family members (mostly male it would seem) undergo ample training at various posts in the business. They get to know their empire from bottom to top. Even though the family is tolerant, woe betide an employee (in particular a high-level one) who does not cooperate in this training of family members. It will be compelling how this monarchy continues to rule The New York Times as the family tree has greatly expanded from what it was in the mid-twentieth century.
And as the authors state the importance of the voice of The New York Times continues to be felt over the years.
Page 597
In 1976, when U.S. News and World Report had published a cover story on the nations top thirty leaders, headlined “Who Runs America” President Gerald Ford had come in first, Punch [The New York Times publisher] at number thirteen. When the survey was repeated in 1982, Punch was still ranked thirteen, but everyone else above him had changed.
… Presidents had their moments on the national stage and world stage, but The New York Times remained a constant, a power unto itself.
February 29, 2024
I don’t think every reader of The Trust would give it five stars, but I think those who would downgrade it would probably stop reading before the end. It’s loooong.
If you’re really interested in the history of the NYT and the intertwined histories and machinations of the Ochs/Sulzberger extended clan as such relate to the Paper, it’s hard to imagine a book better sourced or more thoroughly done. The Trust did take me a bit to get into, and I kept returning to the family tree at the start of the book to keep all the characters straight, but once I put in the effort, this book was definitely worth the read. Probably the definitive modern history of the Times. Highly recommend for those deeply interested in print media in general or the New York Times in particular.
If you’re really interested in the history of the NYT and the intertwined histories and machinations of the Ochs/Sulzberger extended clan as such relate to the Paper, it’s hard to imagine a book better sourced or more thoroughly done. The Trust did take me a bit to get into, and I kept returning to the family tree at the start of the book to keep all the characters straight, but once I put in the effort, this book was definitely worth the read. Probably the definitive modern history of the Times. Highly recommend for those deeply interested in print media in general or the New York Times in particular.
September 6, 2006
A fascanating history of the NY Times. Interesting tidbits were:
- The family was Jewish but so afraid of being dubbed a Jewish paper that they barely covered the holocaust - most stories about the mass graves were buried on page 7 and didn't mention the fact that the victims were mostly Jews.
- Adolf Ochs, the first of the family to own the times, bought it completely on borrowed money. He was so in debt it took him 20 years to truly own it. That guy had some large cojones...
- The author really played up the stiff competition each generation for publishership. Seems as the the names (ie Arthur Sulzberger) always won..
- The family was Jewish but so afraid of being dubbed a Jewish paper that they barely covered the holocaust - most stories about the mass graves were buried on page 7 and didn't mention the fact that the victims were mostly Jews.
- Adolf Ochs, the first of the family to own the times, bought it completely on borrowed money. He was so in debt it took him 20 years to truly own it. That guy had some large cojones...
- The author really played up the stiff competition each generation for publishership. Seems as the the names (ie Arthur Sulzberger) always won..
September 18, 2008
Aldolph Ochs arrived in New York from Chattanoga and managed by bluster to secure ownership of the NY Times and turn it to the best newspaper in the country. The ownership has passed from father to son with son in laws stepping in when no sons were available. Hence the Sulzbergers.
This is an entertaining, gossipy account but the history of the paper and significance of the paper, its great reporters. and columnists is totally subordinated to tales of the family which isn't all that interesting. The coverage of the turbulent 12 years of the paper's struggle with New York Typographical Union is so incomplete and shoddy that one must wonder about how reliable the rest of the book is.
The book ends in 1999 which is unfortunate because the last decade has been a disaster for newspapers in general and the NYTimes in particular and one wonders whether newsprint, hard copy newspapers are a business model that can continue to exist for another twenty years.
Read the book, the Paper an account of the Herald Tribune which is far more impressive.
This is an entertaining, gossipy account but the history of the paper and significance of the paper, its great reporters. and columnists is totally subordinated to tales of the family which isn't all that interesting. The coverage of the turbulent 12 years of the paper's struggle with New York Typographical Union is so incomplete and shoddy that one must wonder about how reliable the rest of the book is.
The book ends in 1999 which is unfortunate because the last decade has been a disaster for newspapers in general and the NYTimes in particular and one wonders whether newsprint, hard copy newspapers are a business model that can continue to exist for another twenty years.
Read the book, the Paper an account of the Herald Tribune which is far more impressive.
August 11, 2008
I just finished this today... fantastic book! Very interesting and detailed history of The New York Times. It's not a page-turner by any means, seeing as it's almost 800 pages long... I kept picking it up and coming back to it. But it was a very engaging read that certainly didn't FEEL 800 pages long! A great look into the family that built this newspaper empire. Lots of interesting tidbits and stories about the family, but it wasn't scandalous or gossipy. I'm so glad I found this book and bought it at a book sale! One of the best $1 I ever spent!
August 25, 2008
Great book about a still very powerful entity. A very interesting story that is well written. The authors relate the history of the family who created the New York Times, both the personal history of the family, including marriages, births, conflicts, etc. and, not as detailed or as in depth, a history of the origins and evolution of the New York Times. The narrative immediately engages the reader and keeps him rapt throughout. If there were not so many books that I want to read, but have yet to read, I would re-read this one.
March 26, 2022
Very well documented and interesting. It tries to stay neutral and non-judgmental with both the family members and the paper as a whole. This book ends in 2000 so you don't have much insight into why the paper has lurched so left (it supported Deblasio!) in the 21st century however the general trend especially in the 1990's was in that direction and this comes out with Arthur Golden Jr taking over in the 1990's.
Also, its admiration of the family sometimes seeps through causing it too not be as impartial as it should be. As with Wikipedia or the news in general what is and is not stated represents Defacto editorial comments. Some of the disconnects:
- One of the big failures of the NYT was the failure to recognize and speak out more forcefully against the rise of Nazism- and this is brought out several times in the book and is probably a legitimate complaint. Conversely, even though the NYT is proud of its many Pulitzer Prizes, Walter Duranty, the NYT communist apologist is never even mentioned. In one bizarre scene, the progressive matriarch (Iphigénie) of one of the owners is on a trip to China, dancing on the Great Wall and meeting the communist leadership in the early 1970's. This is commented on without criticism by the authors- even though China was in the middle of the "Great Leap Forward" which had cumulatively killed over 50 million people through starvation. Indeed, the number of communists on the paper is never addressed (though alluded to several times)- especially in the 1950's. One would have imagined that if there were fascist on the paper at that time there would have been some comment.
- Everyone in the family seems to get divorced multiple times. The lack of fidelity (or picking the right partner) seems rampant. This is not addressed. It may be an affliction of the intelligentsia.
- Several times it is mentioned that up until the Eisenhower the paper had endorsed Republicans as many times as Democrats. Nevertheless, after the early 1960's the paper did not endorse any republicans (including those running for local offices). This is tied into a general blindness to bias and diversity both within the NYT but also to the authors and to me is a flaw of the paper.
- The family, as they progress, increasingly are more and more disconnected from the real world especially starting in the 1950's. The later generations are all educated (usually with mediocre grades) at liberal arts colleges. Military service in the family seemed to stop mid-century. In one telling example, the husband of one family member was in construction- which was looked down upon. There are no architects, engineers, farmers, oil workers in the family. This is one flaw of the book- it continues to emphasis the modesty of the family... but these people mix with other elites and have elite liberal viewpoints- there is little diversity in thought. This may be related to the frequent divorces and marital infidelities- a chronic problem of the intelligentsia.
You walk away from this with both an appreciation for the advantages as well as the concerns with what it means to be a family run business. While you may have considerable concerns about the NYT this book is a very good and well researched history that attempts and largely succeeds in being impartial.
Also, its admiration of the family sometimes seeps through causing it too not be as impartial as it should be. As with Wikipedia or the news in general what is and is not stated represents Defacto editorial comments. Some of the disconnects:
- One of the big failures of the NYT was the failure to recognize and speak out more forcefully against the rise of Nazism- and this is brought out several times in the book and is probably a legitimate complaint. Conversely, even though the NYT is proud of its many Pulitzer Prizes, Walter Duranty, the NYT communist apologist is never even mentioned. In one bizarre scene, the progressive matriarch (Iphigénie) of one of the owners is on a trip to China, dancing on the Great Wall and meeting the communist leadership in the early 1970's. This is commented on without criticism by the authors- even though China was in the middle of the "Great Leap Forward" which had cumulatively killed over 50 million people through starvation. Indeed, the number of communists on the paper is never addressed (though alluded to several times)- especially in the 1950's. One would have imagined that if there were fascist on the paper at that time there would have been some comment.
- Everyone in the family seems to get divorced multiple times. The lack of fidelity (or picking the right partner) seems rampant. This is not addressed. It may be an affliction of the intelligentsia.
- Several times it is mentioned that up until the Eisenhower the paper had endorsed Republicans as many times as Democrats. Nevertheless, after the early 1960's the paper did not endorse any republicans (including those running for local offices). This is tied into a general blindness to bias and diversity both within the NYT but also to the authors and to me is a flaw of the paper.
- The family, as they progress, increasingly are more and more disconnected from the real world especially starting in the 1950's. The later generations are all educated (usually with mediocre grades) at liberal arts colleges. Military service in the family seemed to stop mid-century. In one telling example, the husband of one family member was in construction- which was looked down upon. There are no architects, engineers, farmers, oil workers in the family. This is one flaw of the book- it continues to emphasis the modesty of the family... but these people mix with other elites and have elite liberal viewpoints- there is little diversity in thought. This may be related to the frequent divorces and marital infidelities- a chronic problem of the intelligentsia.
You walk away from this with both an appreciation for the advantages as well as the concerns with what it means to be a family run business. While you may have considerable concerns about the NYT this book is a very good and well researched history that attempts and largely succeeds in being impartial.
January 18, 2021
We tend to take for granted the New York Times. I at least never knew much of anything about the Ochs family. Adolph Ochs start with the Chattanooga Time, my hometown newspaper, and his purchase of the New York Times in 1896 is a family history rich in detail. Reading their history is also the reading of American history during those turbulent years. What a great read.
August 24, 2023
Amazing!
Read
July 16, 2025Way too long. Only got thru 200 pages.
March 7, 2017
Very interesting book especially family vignettes.
July 21, 2021
I read this great NYT biography around 2010, when the competitive rise of free online instant news, vanishing advertising revenues and disappearing help-wanted adds seemed to hammer down the last nail on the printed paper coffin of the NYT.
And yet, as I am writing theses lines in July 2021, the NYT is the last large American daily newspaper that remains privately owned, and is financially profitable in the ever shifting corporate business model of newspaper publishing. Five generations of Ochs - Sulzberger's men have, plowing through good and bad days, successfully kept that newspaper business side up and running, while managing to keep the paper's critical editorial content alive and relevant.
And yet, as I am writing theses lines in July 2021, the NYT is the last large American daily newspaper that remains privately owned, and is financially profitable in the ever shifting corporate business model of newspaper publishing. Five generations of Ochs - Sulzberger's men have, plowing through good and bad days, successfully kept that newspaper business side up and running, while managing to keep the paper's critical editorial content alive and relevant.
November 19, 2015
The New York Times has been owned and operated by one family for over a century and for four generations. As I was reading this, I happened upon an article discussing the next publisher (another family member). If you like hearing about and reading about the Bush Family or the Kennedy Dynasty, this is a good book for you. If you enjoy reading about how a common, every-day product like a newspaper became such an iconic part of America and American history, this book is for you.
May 24, 2010
a fascinating history of the new york times but the best part is showing how the very smart FEMALE members were passed over for sons, even nephews, to run the paper. in addition to the family gossip it tells the stories behind the times taking controversial positions (publishing the pentagon papers for instance).
August 3, 2012
A thorough history of the Grey Lady and the family that controls her. The authors take their time walking through the century of ownership, taking detours through the various family members' lives, quirks and peccadilloes. While it's an interesting read, it's a bit long and may not be of interest to all.
December 30, 2017
An in depth history of the New York Times which focuses on family dynamics & the business side of the paper. Those who already believe that Pinch Sulzberger is an idiot will find little to dissuade them here.
April 13, 2016
The Ochs and the Sulzberger families truly created an institution in the New York Times. I think that Susan Tifft and her husband Alex Jones created a very personal account of the family and the various generations. A good read, although it felt long by the end.
May 25, 2007
A good book about the family that owns and started the New York Times.
January 23, 2008
This was great - I've been talking about it in the context of the WSJ debacle.
August 17, 2008
It's a good book, and it's extremely thorough. I now know more about the Ochs-Sulzberger clan than I really wanted.
October 26, 2011
For us NY Times junkies only, but wonderful! Origins & intrigues of the Ochs family & descendants.
June 11, 2014
An amazing book! Hands-down one of my favorite books--enthralling and very interesting.
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews