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 Ethics Reading List
 
The following books are possibilities for your JOMC 141 book report.  Each listing indicates the library or libraries where the book is available, the call number for Davis or the Undergraduate Library and, where available, the Amazon.com review or synopsis.
 
1. Personal History by Katharine Graham
Two copies in Davis and 1 in Undergraduate Library
Z473.G7 A3 1997
Amazon.com Review:
                     A remarkable book by an even more remarkable woman,     Personal History recounts a life that would seem implausible in a work of fiction.  Now 79, Katharine Graham, née Meyer, grew up in a world of high
privilege among the New York and Washington aristocracy. She spent
her first two adult decades as the wife of Phil Graham, who had taken
over the Washington Post from Katharine's father. But in August 1963,
Phil's growing mental problems culminated in his suicide. A month later,
Katharine took over the company--and, with virtually no prior training,
built it into one of the nation's most respected news organizations. In
graceful, intelligent, and bluntly honest prose, Graham provides an inside
look at key events of the last few decades and offers insightful firsthand
portraits of dozens of prominent figures. The most fascinating portrait,
though, may be the self-portrait drawn indirectly by the author.
 

2. In All His Glory: The Life and Times of William S. Paley by Sally Bedell Smith.
One copy in Davis
HE 8689.8.P34 S65 1990
Amazon. Com:
            Impressive biography of Paley, the son of immigrant cigar workers who turned CBS into the "Tiffany Network" and became one of the most powerful media giants of the 20th century.
 

3. Good Life : Newspapering and Other Adventures by Benjamin C. Bradlee
One copy in Davis and 2 non-circulating in Park
PN4874.B6615 B73 1995
Amazon.com Review:
                     Ben Bradlee's life is mostly the story of how an ordinary newspaper became a great one. When the paper in question is The Washington
Post, the story is fraught with politics. As a cub reporter, Bradlee
became good friends with fellow Harvard and Navy man, John Kennedy,
and Bradlee admits that in those days he suppressed stories that would
have politically hurt his buddy. But a few years later, he found the
strength to withstand pressure from social contacts in the Johnson and
Nixon administrations (the trouble areas were primarily the Pentagon
Papers and Watergate). That sea change is a big piece of American
political history.

                    Ben Bradlee's career as a journalist encompassed many of the most important events of the late 20th century: from World War II to
Watergate, from the domestic revolutions of the '60s to the international
revolutions of the '90s. While serving as the Washington Post's Executive
Editor from 1968 to 1991, the newspaper became a world-renowned
and respected model of fearless and innovative journalism. A witty and
candid story of a good life -- and a great read.
 

4. A Reporter's Life by Walter Cronkite
One copy in Davis; 2 in the Undergraduate Library
PN4874.C84 A3 1996
Amazon.com Review:
                     Awash as we are these days in prurient and sensational tabloid TV journalism, A Reporter's Life is a refreshing story of the medium's
heyday, when newspeople comported themselves with dignity and earned
their audience's respect. During his 31-year tenure at CBS News, Walter
Cronkite set the standard for integrity and compassion. In this
autobiography, Cronkite turns his reporter's eye on his own life and
times, providing a wealth of details about both his public and private
sides. He describes his childhood in Kansas City, how he met his
wife--and how she almost missed the wedding! We learn of his love of
auto racing and sailing; and, of course, Cronkite delivers
behind-the-camera stories from the earliest days of TV news, when no
one knew just what to do and so they made it up as they went along.
 
5. All the News Is Fit to Print : Profile of a Country Editor by Chad Stebbins
One copy in Davis
PN4874.A85 S74 1998
Amazon.com Customer Review:

Spencer K. Stephens from Rockville, MD      December 6, 1999
                     You'd be hard-pressed to tell a boring story about about a plucky country newspaper editor who had principles and stuck to 'em. But this
author has done it. He says the book is an adaptation of his doctoral
thesis. That fits. The book reads like a well-done, fully footnoted college
paper, not like a dramatic novel. It strives to identify key historical facts
at the expense of the reader's interest. With a modest amount of effort, it
could have been reworked as a compelling autobiographical novel
bolstered by its remarkable display of features of midwestern life during
the first half of the 20th Century.
                       Reviewer: A reader from Missouri      July 6, 1999
                     My first reaction upon completing this books was: What a great TV series this would make! It would be in the vein of "Medicine Woman,"
perhaps, although of more recent vintage. It would, however, chronicle
the daily life of a small American town at a fascinating period of
American history. As seen through the eyes of a newspaper editor who
thought everything was, indeed, fit to print, the series could be a story of
America's development. Its location is purely midwestern but allows us
to travel to the metropolises of Kansas City, St. Louis, New York, San
Francisco--to meet fascinating people from all walks of life and to take
pride in what this nation has accomplished. Good reading? You bet!

6. Horace Greeley, Founder & Editor of the New York Tribune by William A. Linn
One copy in Davis
E415.9.G8 L7
No review available.

7. My Life As Author and Editor  by H. L. Mencken, Jonathan Yardley (Editor)
One in Davis
PS3525.E43 Z468 1993
Amazon.com Review:
                     Any best-of list dealing with American political satire has to include H.L. Mencken, who was the country's leading social critic between the world wars. This volume of new material was written at the end of his life, well
after his epochal days at the Smart Set and the American Mercury were
over and his pro-German sentiments had driven him from the national
stage. My Life as Author and Editor is taken from the immense
unfinished manuscript that was deposited in the Enoch Pratt Free Library
upon Mencken's death; in accordance with his wishes, the packet was
not read for 35 years. To modern readers, it is not scandalous as much
as fiercely opinionated; Mencken pulls no punches regarding the people
he met and the life he led from 1896 to 1923. Fitzgerald, Dreiser, Pound,
Joyce, and many others all pass under Mencken's gimlet eye. Along the
way, plenty of the author's criticism is heaped on "Life in These United
States," the stupidity and lack of sophistication that Mencken raged
against his entire career. Better examples of Mencken's satire can be
found, but as an introduction to the author's gruff charm and bombast,
My Life as Author and Editor is well-suited. And, of course, it is a
necessity for the devoted Mencken fan. --Michael Gerber

Synopsis
                    Sealed in a vault for 35 years--upon the direction of Mencken
himself--this account of the writer's early career is so telling and
uproariously opinionated that it might have provoked a storm of libel
suits, had it been published immediately after his death. "Well worth the
wait . . . irreverent, inimitable, often outrageous . . . and, above all,
compelling."--Chicago Sum-Times

8. Tar Heel Editor by Josephus Daniels
Two in Davis; 2 in Davis storage; 1 in the Undergraduate Library
PN 4874. D33 A3
No review available.

 9. A Proud Profession : Memoirs of a Wall Street Journal Reporter, Editor, and Publisher by William F. Kerby
One in Davis
PN4874.K48 A37
No review available.

10. Deadlines and Datelines  by Dan Rather
One in Davis; 1 in Undergraduate Library
PN 4874.R28 A3 1999
From Kirkus Reviews:
                     The well-known and respected television anchorman- correspondent shows a flair for essays in this collection that presents snapshots of our life and concerns in the 1990s. Rather has previously demonstrated his
ability for memoirs in The Camera Never Blinks Twice (1994) and I
Remember (1991), and although a few of the 99 short compositions in
here were written by his colleagues, most are Rather's. They appeared
originally as either a newspaper or magazine article or as a broadcast
from Rather's daily radio program, and are categorized here into five
chapters: ``In the News, Across America,'' ``Foreign Policies, Global
Perspectives,'' ``The Washington Scene: Politics and Politicians,''
``Tributes,'' and ``The Lighter Side.'' The book isnt arranged
chronologically, so the flexibility allows the stories to flow easily from one
subject to another, one year to another. The subjects range from
hard-hitting matters (human rights, foreign affairs) to lighthearted lifestyle
stories (fishing, cartoons, entertainment, personalities), and there are
seven essays philosophical and not sensational commenting on Kenneth
Starr's investigation of President Clinton. Throughout, Rather provides
helpful follow-ups and additional comments to keep the reader
up-to-date about characters and events since the story's original
appearance. His writing may not be as magically poetic as that of other
news personalities, such as the late Charles Kuralt (the subject of one of
the essays), but his strength for journalistic details serves well not only the
serious stories but also the anecdotal ones. Even Rather's most personal
and emotional essay, ``The Last Grandmother'' (written in 1985 and the
only one not from the 1990s), is sweet while avoiding sentimentality
because of his skill for straightforward reportage. Rather loosens the
necktie of his television persona and chats amiably about our times,
offering readers a glimpse of his point of view, his likes and dislikes, his
fears, and his humor. -- Copyright ©1999, Kirkus Associates, LP.
 
11. Front Row at the White House : My Life and Times by Helen Thomas
One in Davis
PN 4874. T424 A3 1999
Amazon.com Review:
                     Anyone who has watched a televised White House news conference has seen and heard Helen Thomas at the front of the press room; the United Press International correspondent always asks one of the first
questions--usually one of the toughest. She has covered eight presidents,
and considers herself, as she writes, "privileged to be a witness to instant
history." Now, with the publication of Front Row at the White House,
the general public finally gets an opportunity to learn about how she came
to such a prestigious position. Thomas was a pioneering reporter in the
1940s and '50s, entering the field at a time when most women were
relegated to covering society events. In fact, that's how she made it to the
White House beat, initially covering Jackie Kennedy, who Thomas says
hated her and the other women reporters following the Kennedys' every
move. Thomas has been there ever since, and she clearly has a reverence
both for the institution of the presidency and for the sacred trust and
responsibility reporters have to find the truth and tell it. "We in the press
have a special role since there is no other institution in our society ... that
can hold the president accountable," she writes. "I do believe that our
democracy can endure and prevail only if the American people are
informed."
                     Just as she has little patience for presidents who limit access and refuse to answer questions, she is equally dismissive of anyone who doesn't get
how hard it was for women reporters when she started. Once, when
another reporter asked her whether she faced obstacles that a man
wouldn't have, she responded tartly, "Where did you come from, Mars?"
That feisty spirit is amply reflected in the engaging (and often moving)
Front Row at the White House. She dissects the presidents, first ladies,
and press secretaries she has known; discusses the press conference
ritual; talks about travel on Air Force One; and recalls great and small
moments of presidencies past and present. Jokingly suggesting that she is
probably best known as the "torturer of presidents," she adds, "I didn't
get into this business to be loved; I'd rather be respected for being fair."
--Linda Killian
 
12. Reporting Live by Lesley Stahl
One in Davis; 1 in the Undergraduate Library
PN4874. 563 A3 1999
Amazon.com Review:
                     No TV news blond has more steel than 60 Minutes' Lesley Stahl, whose Reporting Live is one impressively substantive celebrity memoir. As a
rookie in the CBS Washington, D.C., bureau in 1972, she got an
assignment too grubby and unpromising for the big reporters: Watergate.
She didn't just date Bob Woodward, she vied with him for scoops. For a
quarter century, workaholic Stahl saw more of presidents and fellow
bulldog newshound Sam Donaldson than her own daughter and husband,
Urban Cowboy writer Aaron Latham.
                     Stahl's book belongs on any political-history shelf. Besides a briskly readable account of epochal events witnessed up close, she offers canny
insights into what broke Nixon, backs up Tom Shales's opinion of Carter
as "a combination Mr. Rogers and John the Baptist," assesses Reagan's
mysteriously fogbank-like mind, and paints a startlingly warm portrait of
George Bush (though not Barbara). Not only can Stahl fire fierce
questions at world leaders against hair-raising deadlines, she can analyze
trends with cool detachment, sometimes busting her profession or herself
as guilty parties. She laments the "moral McCarthyism" of our times and
compares her profession to a pack of wild dogs she'd encountered on an
African safari.
                     What did it mean to be a woman in a man's world? Menachem Begin sexually harassed her, but her experience with teenage girls proved useful in understanding Reagan's bitchy, backstabbing male staff. Stahl sketches her personal life (and Latham's near-fatal depression), but her stuff on media and politics is the real news here. --Tim Appelo
 

13. Joseph Pulitzer II and the Post-Dispatch : A Newspaperman's Life by Daniel W. Pfaff
One in Davis; 1 non-circulating copy in Park
PN 4874.P8 P47 1991
From Kirkus Reviews , September 1, 1991:
                     Solid biography of the longtime editor-publisher of the St. Louis
Post-Dispatch, by Pfaff (Journalism/Penn State). Joseph Pulitzer, Sr., was a larger-than-life figure, a Hungarian Jew plagued by diabetes, ill-health, and violent mood- swings who once shot a fellow-legislator for calling him a liar. (Joseph II later took a swing at William Randolph Hearst for calling his father a pimp.) Pulitzer, Sr., continued to run his publishing empire after going blind, all the while harassing his three sons unceasingly. His middle son and namesake (1885-1955) grew into a big, hearty, sports-loving, happy-go-lucky adolescent who was thrown out of prep school, flunked out of Harvard, made friends wherever he went, and became quintessentially American while infuriating Father by his enjoyment of life. As much a book about publishing greats, this is a father-son black comedy about a pair of high-stakes edge-players, both of them awesomely industrious. The father demanded an endless apprenticeship of his sons that involved reporting in detail on daily
activities and being moved about the world like chessmen, but Joseph II never feared him, crossing him from time to time (e.g., by suggesting that lucrative patent-medicine ads be dropped from his father's New York World). Joseph II stuck it out, and after his father's death in 1911 created a great ``crusading, liberal, usually Democratic'' newspaper that sent reporters far afield. ``Many a politician and wealthy St. Louis businessman detested the Post-Dispatch,'' says Pfaff, and with reason--it pioneered investigative journalism on issues including the Teapot Dome scandal, the impeachment of corrupt judges, and even an illegal railroad-franchise scheme involving Joseph II's uncle. By the time of his death in 1955, Joseph Pulitzer II was virtually blind himself, working as hard as his father ever had. The vigor and creativity of the Pulitzers have never been in question, but who they were as people comes through richly here. (Sixty-nine photographs--not seen.) -- Copyright ©1991, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.
 
14. Murdoch : The Making of a Media Empire by William Shawcross
Two copies in Davis
P92.5.M87 S5 1993
Amazon.com Synopsis:
                     It was Rupert Murdoch who invented the modern media empire. Now his reach includes two thirds of the Earth's population. In this revised and updated edition, William Shawcross brings Murdoch's story up to date.
                     "Of all the biographies on Murdoch, this is the most comprehensive and balanced and comes closest to explaining a bundle of
contradictions."--Edwin Diamond, New York magazine.
 

15. Newhouse : All the Glitter, Power, & Glory of America's Richest Media Empire & the Secretive Man Behind It  by Thomas Maier
One in Davis; 1 in Undergraduate Library; 1 non-circulating copy in Park
Z 473. N47 M35 1994
Amazon.com - The author, Thomas Maier , March 3, 1997:
                     How Newhouse media empire controls books, magazines and news.  This paperback version of "Newhouse", voted as "best media book of
the year" by the National Honor Society in Journalism, will come out in May. This is the story of Si Newhouse who owns Random House, The New Yorker and Vanity Fair and one of the nation's largest newspaper chains. It's a story about big media and its impact on journalism and society. As the author, I'd be happy to take any readers questions or partake in any discussions. I can be reached through Johnson Books, attention: Richard Croog
 

16. The Chain Gang : One Newspaper Versus the Gannett  Empire by Richard McCord
One in Davis; 1 copy in Undergraduate Library; 2 non-circulating copies in Park
PN 4874.M3717 A3 1996
Amazon.com Review:
                One of the biggest under-told stories of the past 20 years is the engulfing of independent newspapers by large media chains. The Chain Gang is the account of two battles waged by Richard McCord with his  independent newspapers against the Gannett Company. In Santa Fe,  New Mexico, a small weekly he started had to fight for survival against  Gannett and its nasty tactics. In Green Bay, Wisconsin, he again waged war against Gannett. His experiences make for a fascinating narrative and provide a real-life account of the struggle for an independent voice in the face of a corporate steamroller.
 

17. Binghams of Louisville : The Dark History Behind One of  America's Great Fortunes by David Leon Chandler, Mary Voelz Chandler
One in Davis; 2 non-circulating copies in Park
CT 274.B52 C48 1987
No review available.

18. Inside the Wall Street Journal : The History and the Power  of Dow Jones and Company and America's Most  Influential Newspaper  by Jerry M. Rosenberg
Two copies in Davis; 1 non-circulating copy in Park
HG 4910.R69 1982
No review available.

19. Memphis Commercial Appeal : The History of a Southern Newspaper by Thomas H. Baker
One copy in Davis
PN 4899.M35 C63
No review availble.

20. The News of Detroit: How a Newspaper and a City Grew Together by William W. Lutz
One copy in Davis
PN 4899.D55 N45
No review available.

21. Spiked : How Chain Management Corrupted America's  Oldest Newspaper  by Andrew Kreig
One copy in Davis
PN 4888.O85 K74 1987
No review available.

22. The Wall Street Journal : The Story of Dow Jones and the Nation's Business Newspaper by Lloyd Wendt
Three copies in Davis; 1 non-circulating copy in Park
HG 4910. W37
No review available.
 

23. The Chicago Tribune: The Rise of a Great American Newspaper by Lloyd Wendt.
One copy in Davis; 1 copy in the Undergraduate Library and 1 non-circulating copy in Park.
PN4899.C4 T87
No review available.
 

24. My Life and The Times by Turner Catledge.
One copy in Davis; 1 non-circulating copy in Park.
PN 4874.C32 A3 1971
No review available.
 

25. The Charlotte Observer: Its Time and Place, 1869-1986 by Jack Claiborne.
One copy in Davis; 1 in Undergraduate; 3 non-circulating in Park.
PN 4899.C335 C433 1986.
Amazon.com Customer Review:

            Reviewer: Brian91078@aol.com from Bessemer City, North Carolina
                     September 14, 1999
                     This book despite its size is a book that seems that it needs more. I mean in historical events. The book is for a local history buff, especialy
those here in the Charlotte area. It is fun to read about the history of  where you live.

26. On Guard: A History of the Detroit Free Press by Frank Angelo.
One copy in Davis.
PN 4899.D55 D42
No review available.

27.  Knights of the Fourth Estate : The Story of the Miami Herald by Nixon Smiley.
Two copies in Davis.
PN4899.M365 M57
No review available.

28. Tell It to Sweeney, the Informal History of the New York Daily News by John Arthur Chapman.
One copy in Davis
PN4899.N42 D32 1961
No review available.

29. The Hearst Corporation : 100 Years of Making Communications History by Frank A. Bennack.
One copy in Davis.
PN4734.5.H4 B46 1988
No review available.

30. Raise Hell and Sell Newspapers : Alden J. Blethen & the Seattle Times by Sharon A. Boswell and Lorraine McConaghy.
One copy in Davis
PN4874.B555 B67 1996
No review available.

31. The Life and Times of Los Angeles : A Newspaper, a Family, and a City by Marshall Berges.
Two copies in Davis
 PN4899.L64 L662 1984
No review available.

32. The Information Empire : The Rise of the Los Angeles Times and the Times Mirror Corporation by Jack R. Hart.
One copy in Davis.
PN4899.L64 L663 1981
No review available.

33. Power, Privilege, and the Post : the Katharine Graham Story by Carol Felsenthal.
One copy in Davis
Z473.G7 F45 1999
Amazon.com Review:
                     From Book News, Inc. , November 1, 1993
                     Not so much a profile as a chronological collage--of comings and goings, events, phone calls, letters, and quotes and comments from various
sources. The "story" of the heiress/newspaper publisher remains to be
told with cohesion and insight. Annotation copyright Book News, Inc.
Portland, Or.
                     Synopsis
                     In this "story . . . (of) the interplay of politics ad personality that is the real drama of Washington" ("Washington Post"), Katharine Graham emerges as a courageous women who constantly managed to surprise the men
who choose to underestimate her. 

                     Synopsis
                     The author of Alice Roosevelt Longworth chronicles the life of the owner of The Washington Post, discussing her abused childhood, her
inheriting of the paper, her reputation among employees, and more.
35,000 first printing. $15,000 ad/promo. 

34. In the Shadow of Power : The Story of the Washington Post by Chalmers M. Roberts.
One copy in Davis.
PN4899.W31 W348 1989
No review available.

35.  The Washington Post : The First 100 Years by Chalmers M. Roberts.
One copy in Davis; 1 copy in the Undergraduate Library.
PN4899.W31 W35
No review available.

36. The Good Times by Russell Baker
Two copies in Davis, 1 non-circulating copy in Park.
PS3552.A4343 Z465 1989b
No review available.

37. Confessions of an S.O.B. by Al Neuharth.
One copy in Davis; 1 non-circulating copy in Park
Z473 .N37 1989
Amazon.com Review:
                     America's #1 maverick C.E.O.--and self-proclaimed S.O.B.--tells the story of his rise from AP reporter to becoming head of Gannett
newspapers and creating USA Today, the nation's second largest daily.
"Brazen . . . with nuggets of business wisdom . . . a primer for a                     corporate Machiavelli-in-the-making."--Newsweek.

                     Synopsis
                     The self-made businessman and self-proclaimed S.O.B. who
masterminded USA Today reveals how he rose from Associated Press reporter to CEO of Gannett newspapers.

38.  Knight : A Publisher in the Tumultuous Century by Charles Whited.
One copy in Davis; 1 copy in the Undergraduate Library; 3 non-circulating copies in Park.
Z473.K68 W48 1988
No review available.
 
 39. The Autobiography of William Allen White by William Allen White.
Two copies available by request through Davis storage; 1 copy available in the Undergraduate Library; 1 non-circulating copy available in Park.
PN4874.W52 A3
No review available.

40. The Making of McPaper : The Inside Story of USA Today by Peter Prichard.
One copy available in Davis; 1 copy available in Undergraduate Library.
PN4899.A635 U837 1987
Amazon.com Customer Review:

                              A great history of Gannett's national newspaper
                     Reviewer: A reader from Washington, D.C.      December 6, 1998
                     "The Making of McPaper" is a well-written, all-encompassing history of USA Today – and the only extensive work I've been able to find on the paper. Written by a former editor, it is not just propaganda; praise and
criticism both are included. (Of course, USA Today wins in the end.) It is a quick read for those interested in the business of journalism and the journalism business. Also read "Confessions of an SOB" by Al Neuharth for his take on the paper's start-up.

41. I Want to Thank My Brain For Remembering Me: A Memoir by Jimmy Breslin.
One copy available in Davis.
PN4874 .B67 1996
Amazon.com Editorial Reviews:
                     Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter Jimmy Breslin reflects on his life after surviving a brain aneurysm in I Want To Thank My Brain For Remembering Me. From his childhood in Queens, to covering stories on Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X and the Beatles, to his family and reverence for Catholicism, to the discovery, by "pure luck," that something was wrong, Breslin recalls the events and people of his past and the meaning they have for him in the present. This is his personal tribute to the magic of medicine and the fragility of all life. As Breslin  concludes after the success of his operation, "things turned out pretty well." --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

                     New York Times, Christopher Lehmann-Haupt
                     Mr. Breslin gives you a dizzying glimpse of great depths, both of his own brain under a microscope and of his gratitude to the medicine that saved his life.

                     From Booklist, July 19, 1996
 
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