David Halberstam
1979
America’s love-hate relationship with the media is not a new phenomenon. The days of scoops and exclusives are long over, the press’s ability to influence a nation has been tarnished by the economic need to get and sell the story. The events, which lay the ground work for today’s media feeding frenzy, are laid out in a fascinating detail, in a book written decades ago by David Halberstam, The Powers That Be. Also feted by his examination of the 1950s, in The Fifties, Halberstam gives context, scope and downright good gossip on the beginnings of today’s journalistic legends including Henry Luce of Time magazine, William Paley of CBS, and the Grahams of The Washington Post and the Chandlers of The Los Angeles Times.
Reading the book not only gives the reader insight into the uniquely American combination of business and journalism, but the added spice of politics. Without exception, the titans of these media used their influence and power to bring politicians up –as The Los Angeles Times did with Richard Nixon--and down--in the case of The Washington Post and the very same Mr. Nixon.
From FDR to Woodward and Bernstein, The Powers That Be is a lesson in history that reads like a Hollywood script.
David Halberstam was the author of 11 books including The Best and The Brightest and The Reckoning. He has won every major journalistic award including the Pulitzer Prize.
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