The history of American politics is littered with bodies of people who took so pure a position that they had no clout at all.
BEN BRADLEEThe history of American politics is littered with bodies of people who took so pure a position that they had no clout at all.
BEN BRADLEEThe Nixon administration really put a lot of pressure on CBS not to run the second broadcast.
BEN BRADLEEIf an investigative reporter finds out that someone has been robbing the store, that may be ‘gotcha’ journalism, but it’s also good journalism.
BEN BRADLEENational security is a really big problem for journalists, because no journalist worth his salt wants to endanger the national security, but the law talks about anyone who endangers the security of the United States is going to go to jail.
BEN BRADLEEThere is nothing like daily journalism! Best damn job in the world!
BEN BRADLEEI 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.
BEN BRADLEEMore likely to mean the security or the personal happiness of the guy who is telling you something.
BEN BRADLEEAs a child, one looks for compliments. As an adult, one looks for evidence of effectiveness.
BEN BRADLEESure, 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.
BEN BRADLEETo 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.
BEN BRADLEEEverybody who talks to a newspaper has a motive. That’s just a given. And good reporters always, repeat always, probe to find out what that motive is.
BEN BRADLEEIt is my experience that most claims of national security are part of a campaign to avoid telling the truth.
BEN BRADLEEAs 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.
BEN BRADLEENothing’s riding on this, except the First Amendment to the Constitution, freedom of the press and maybe the future of the country. Not that any of that matters, but if you guys f-k up again, I’m gonna get mad.
BEN BRADLEEMaybe some of today’s papers have too many ‘feel-good’ features, but there is a lot of good news out there.
BEN BRADLEEThere will always be leaks; in Washington, everywhere.
BEN BRADLEE