It’s very hard to stand up to the government which is saying that publication will threaten national security. People don’t seem to realize that reporters and editors know something about national security and care deeply about it.
BEN BRADLEEYou never monkey with the truth.
More Ben Bradlee Quotes
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I never believed that Nixon could fully resurrect himself. And the proof of that was in the obits.
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As long as a journalist tells the truth, in conscience and fairness, it is not his job to worry about consequences. The truth is never as dangerous as a lie in the long run. I truly believe the truth sets men free.
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In the perfect world every source could be identified, but like the man said, “It’s not a perfect world.”
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There will always be leaks; in Washington, everywhere.
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Those [Watergate] tapes are going to take me to my grave with a huge smile on my face.
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I do worry about how newspapers respond to falling circulation figures. I’m not sure that the answer is for newspapers to try to cater to whatever seems to be the fad of the day.
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Generals who can write always make me nervous.
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To hell with news! I’m no longer interested in news. I’m interested in causes. We don’t print the truth. We don’t pretend to print the truth. We print what people tell us. It’s up to the public to decide what’s true.
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Sure, some journalists use anonymous sources just because they’re lazy, and I think editors ought to insist on more precise identification even if they remain anonymous.
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The champagne was flowing like the Potomac in flood.
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The biggest difference between Kennedy and Nixon, as far as the press is concerned, is simply this: Jack Kennedy really liked newspaper people and he really enjoyed sparring with journalists.
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You never monkey with the truth.
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The history of American politics is littered with bodies of people who took so pure a position that they had no clout at all.
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The Nixon administration really put a lot of pressure on CBS not to run the second broadcast.
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It changes your life, the pursuit of truth, if you know that you have tried to find the truth and gone past the first apparent truth towards the real truth. It’s very, it’s very exciting.
BEN BRADLEE