Last Updated: May 20, 1999
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An American editor
Birthday: May 1, 1942
Hometown: Cleveland, Ohio
Marital status: Married; wife, Janice
Children: three sons, one daughter
Self-portrait: Midwestern, boyish, focused, hard-nosed, shy
Newsroom motto: Excellence
Inspiration: George Kienzle, the late director of the Ohio
State School of Journalism, and Katharine Graham; my involvement as an
editor in the Watergate story
Greatest feat: Successfully succeeding Ben Bradlee
Bad habit: Talking when I should be listening
Pet peeve: The political culture of lying
Luxury defined: Free time
Most dangerous story: Northern Ireland
Best story: Series on local court system in 1966 that led to
its abolition and replacement
Best interview and why: Interviewing a combative Margaret Thatcher
near the end of the Falklands War when she wanted to send a message to
Washington that she would accept only a complete British military victory
over Argentina
My newspaper’s strength: Reporting in depth, lively writing,
the best photography in the business, comprehensive big story coverage
Most admired editor: Ben Bradlee
Most admired writer: John McPhee
Favorite publication: The Washington Post sports section
Favorite comic: “Dilbert,” “Herblock”
Favorite columnist: Michael Wilbon
Best part of job: Working each day with so many smart, talented,
dedicated journalists and for a publisher who cares
Worst part of job: My mistakes
Vacation spot: Paris
Books at bedside: “Poet’s Choice: Poems for Everyday Life” by
Robert Hass; “The Blue Flower” by Penelope Fitzgerald
