Bob Woodward: Well, we looked at it differently. It took a long time, and if you examine the sequence, you could identify hundreds of points where the road to full disclosure would have been the thread would have been cut. W. Joseph Campbell does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment. Mr. Bradlee, at what point did you get the inkling that the Oval Office was involved? https://www.encyclopedia.com/history/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/woodward-and-bernstein, "Woodward and Bernstein Robert Redford played Woodward; Dustin Hoffman played Bernstein. He sat down with Woodward, then 32, Bernstein, then 31, their editors, their friends and the two women at the center of the reporters lives. All talk. The Post is a very competitive institution, and I think that was the main reason. Sometimes, people accuse us of bringing down a president, which of course we didnt do, and shouldnt have done,Graham said. One of the managing editors at the Post, Howard Simons, during Watergate this was not on a Watergate story, but I was struggling with a story early in my time at the Post and he came by, and he said, You dont have to understand a man in an afternoon. In other words, you dont have to do it in a day, and you wont achieve understanding of it in an slow down, take your time, dig, go back. The five Watergate burglars and several other Nixon subordinates, including former U.S. Attorney General Mitchell, were sentenced to prison terms. The Supreme Court ordered the president to turn over his tapes, which really sunk him the smoking gun tapes at the end. Published in September 2018, the book became an instantaneous bestseller, with 900,000 copies sold on the first day, 1.1 million in the first week. A drone. George W. Bush's Iraq War, in particular, was enabled by a docile press corps and by a feckless generation of lawmakers and judges -- largely the generation that came of age when I did, during those languid Watergate summers. However, Bernstein was the first of the pair to think that the Watergate case could be related to President Richard Nixon. That version of Watergate has long dominated popular understanding of the scandal, which unfolded over 26 months beginning in June 1972. Dont tell me never. Dont let things elude us. In February the U.S. Senate voted seventy to zero to establish a committee of four Democrats and three Republicans to investigate the Watergate affair. He wouldnt say. There are hundreds of millions of American dreams. You dont have a context for it, so it destroys the very notion of context, because the only context you know as a child is family. Woodwards critics insisted that this informant was a fabrication, or at best, a composite based on a number of sources. While Woodward has written books leveling criticisms against both Nixon and Trump, his critiques have not been limited to Republican presidents, and his praise is not limited to Democratic ones. He was assigned to the police beat, from 7:00 in the evening to 3:00 in the morning, but he did not limit his work activities to his assigned hours. Then in March 1973 one of the Watergate burglars, James McCord, a former CIA official, wrote a letter to Judge John Sirica, who was trying his case, that essentially confirmed the Bernstein and Woodward stories. Woodward and Bernstein, who were already minor celebrities, really cashed in with the publication of their best-selling book All the President's Men, which was adapted into an Academy Award-winning movie starring Robert Redford and Dustin Hoffman, two of the biggest stars of our era. Instead, they wrote 'All the President's Men' and they sold the movie rights to Robert Redford. Much to his chagrin. I may have been an extreme case, but not a unique one. The greater significance of Watergate was something that was hard to grasp in 1974, but seems crystal clear now, at least to me. I think they were really out to get to the bottom of the story. I say we publish it. And three of the journalists all hung up immediately, because we didnt want any we had what we came for, and we didnt want to let her change her mind. Between June 1972 to November 1973, Felt spoke with Bob Woodward 17 times, originally confirming leads the pair found, but eventually, began to offer new information to the team. Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography. Hes a good lawyer, a fair man.. Im thinking of the bookAs I Lay Dying, which is from all different characters points of view, like interviewing people for a story. Woodward and Bernsteins account of the investigation, All The Presidents Men, became a national bestseller and was made into a popular motion picture. Bob Woodward: Its the nature of the business. Woodward -- the one who stayed in the Beltway journalism racket -- had all the access to the highest level officials that he had craved at the start of Watergate, and yet he remained clueless as to how such access could provide as much disinformation as truth. Mr. There was competition. He also felt compelled, as a reporter, to point out that Bernstein's remarks were . Ben Bradlee: Nixon himself? Who were your favorite authors? These actions would lead to his resignation in August 1974. But by end of 1976, they had an ugly breakup and went their separate ways. So I dont make those kinds of assessments. What an incredible jump in your fortunes as a journalist, from one year on a little suburban paper to The Washington Post. Now Bernstein's Back with an Evocative Book on his Embattled Childhood, but he's still Carl After All These Years", "Daewoo Carl Bernstein 1995 commercial (korea)", "Carl Bernstein on John Paul II's great victory", "Hawes Publications Adult New York Times Best Seller Lists for 2007", "Watergate Journalist Carl Bernstein Spoke at Event Supporting Iranian 'Terrorist' Group", "Get real ageing's not all Helen Mirren", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Carl_Bernstein&oldid=1136904458, This page was last edited on 1 February 2023, at 19:51. This was our time, our story. #inline-recirc-item--id-abdd83c2-8c88-11e2-b06b-024c619f5c3d, #right-rail-recirc-item--id-abdd83c2-8c88-11e2-b06b-024c619f5c3d { And of course, as I now recall Faulkner novels, the characters are trying to find out what happened. Do you see President Clintons impeachment related to Watergate? It was the first film I ever made like this, Hoffman told me. AllRightsReserved. Bob Woodward: No, not that I can think of. Watergate was the biggest political scandal of the century. How did it happen? While Woodward interviewed their informant, known as "Deep Throat," Bernstein discovered cash payments from Nixon's reelection campaign in one of the burglar's bank accounts (via The Washington Post). A year later, he was back at the Post, and at age 29 found himself in the middle of one of the biggest stories of the century. Advertisement Pakula. Mr. President, the media is not fake news. After filling their mantles with every journalism prize . Will the luck of the Irish affect the Oscars? Encyclopedia of World Biography. You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times. But as Pakula began to understand Woodward, he wondered if the charming, handsome Redford, then 39, could play someone so different from himself. Each of these presidents had their own way of responding. In 1974, two years after the Watergate burglary and two months before Nixon resigned, Bernstein and Woodward released the book All the President's Men. Bob Woodward: I was not married at the time and loved being free to do something. All of the guys who later went to jail. He went to jail for that. But three or four days later, we got a copy of them from Ellsberg, only we didnt have three months to study them. She had the lawyers on the same phones. TIME magazine has calledAll the Presidents Men perhaps the most influential piece of journalism in history. A second book by Woodward and Bernstein on the collapse of the Nixon administration, The Final Days, was also a huge success. They were the first to reveal the tapes, and they were always ahead of the curve, but there was a lot of great reporting done by other people, Sy Hersh, the Los Angeles Times, they all did really good work. J. Anthony Lukas, Nightmare: The Underside of the Nixon Years (1976) is an exciting narrative and analysis by a New York Times reporter that puts Watergate into the context of what the author refers to as "Richard Nixon's abuse of his presidential powers." I covered the night police beat. The story was true, but he had never testified to it because they never asked him. Most of us had quite fancy security clearances in that capacity. Woodward and Bernstein reflect on Watergate and its place in American history. Each had strengths that complemented the others. He soon became the papers leading reporter, and by September 1971, the Post was ready to give him another try. I like what I do. John Dean's afternoon testimony before the Senate Watergate committee, the crest of a high and beautiful wave.", They wrote that history has shown that Watergate was even worse than we thought it was at the time, they seemed blind to the reality that Felt wasn't motivated by an altruistic loyalty to the nation or the truth but by blind career ambition and petty revenge, we've seen a president who WASN'T impeached for evading Congress to cut secret arms deals in Iran and fund a secret war in Nicaragua, Bob Woodward was at the very head of that pack. [31] Due to their different styles, other journalists described them as a perfect team. His detailed notes, first made public in December 2005, were donated by his wife to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences after his death in 1998 in an automobile accident. Were much better friends than we were at the time. You should let it, He put $40,000 on credit cards to make his first film. We missed the first edition, but we published it the second edition, which came out at 11 oclock at night, 11:30. The judge said, What do you do? and Woodward overheard the words CIA. So if your interest isnt whetted by this time, youre not a journalist. Finally, the night before we published came the critical moment, and we were in my house. Encyclopedia of World Biography. People who are basically truth-tellers, want to help somebody, know that the truth is cleansing, that the truth is a good thing, that the society needs to function on that. So we started phrasing it close to resignation, and debating resignation, and then, finally, we learned that I think he was going to do it at nine oclock at night, or eight oclock at night. And she had a style of I want to know whats going on. They had it for three months, and they started to publish it. Ben Bradlee: He sure did. Woodwards father was a prominent attorney, and hoped that Robert would follow in his footsteps. The idealized journalist of the Watergate era and beyond was wedded to the highest ethical standards and driven only by truth, not by ideology. So in an odd way, those in my business have a million allies out there. It wasn't just me -- a culture was defined. It has been said that as dark a chapter as Watergate was in the American presidency, in a sense, it showed the branches of government working. Woodward and Bernstein did disclose financial links between Nixons reelection campaign and the burglars arrested June 17, 1972, at headquarters of the Democratic National Committee, in what was the signal crime of Watergate. No humor. See also Myron J. Smith, Watergate: An Annotated Bibliography (1983).Updated information gathered from simonsays.com, an online service. There were some teachers and lawyers and business people, but no writers. 22 Feb. 2023 . It seemed to always be about Nixon. Bob Woodward: Or The Sound and the Fury, which is his great book. However popular, the heroic-journalist myth is a vast exaggeration of the effect of their work. The best duos complement the other's strengths. Vice President Gerald Ford was sworn in as president on August 9. In 1974, if they had only gotten their (Washington Post) salaries, Woodward would have earned $15,000 and Bernstein $18,000. So, yeah, I think they were friends. [citation needed], Two years after leaving ABC News, Bernstein released the book Loyalties: A Son's Memoir, in which he revealed that his parents had been members of the Communist Party of America. Bob Woodward: Who knows whether its that? It was the scandal that led to the forced resignation of the President of the United States. The book inescapably promoted the impression Woodward and Bernstein were vital to Watergates outcome. www.8days.sg [16], In 1992, also for Time, Bernstein wrote a cover story publicizing the alliance between Pope John Paul II and President Ronald Reagan. President Nixon attempted to use the office of the presidency to cover up the crimes and his involvement with any break-ins. And in that same space of time, Woodward's written five books. Hunt W. House. So I called the White House and asked for Mr. Hunt, and he came on, and I said, Why is your name in the address books of these two burglars who were caught in the Democratic Headquarters? And he screamed out, Good God! and hung up the phone. How would you summarize that? I mean, I lived in that place for those periods. The best show recs delivered to your inbox. Sunburned from swimming laps in the forced labor of summer recreation camp, I raced home so I could catch John Dean's afternoon testimony before the Senate Watergate committee, and the next summer I read the paperback version of the committee's report by flashlight at a campground along the Delaware River, while raccoons scurried under my tent. Nixon didnt last too long in that second term. Woodward moved logically. Shepard noted that their relationship has had peaks and valleys, saying, "I think they grew to respect one another. Encyclopedia of World Biography. And most of us had served in World War II. But she finally said, Well, okay. Encyclopedia.com gives you the ability to cite reference entries and articles according to common styles from the Modern Language Association (MLA), The Chicago Manual of Style, and the American Psychological Association (APA). We've received your submission. 2019Encyclopedia.com | All rights reserved. Youve said journalism should be called a practice, like law. How long had you been at the previous paper? Woodward relied on one source whom he refused to identify even to his editors except by the code-name "Deep Throat.". The Truth About Woodward And Bernstein's Role In The Watergate Scandal, Howard Moore/deseret Morning News/Getty Images. On the other hand, Carl Bernstein was the child of two Communist activists (per Washingtonian). Somebody who through force of personality made history interesting and important. [12][13], In 1965, Bernstein left the Star to become a full-time reporter for the Elizabeth Daily Journal in New Jersey. They said, Keep going. Washington Post reporters Bob Woodward, left, and Carl Bernstein on March 1, 1974, Washington, D.C. "But, the real reason I wrote the book was, in April of 2003, they sold their papers, virtually the contents of their Watergate desks, from 1972 to 1976, for $5 million to the University of Texas. When they found such a player in their legendary source "Deep Throat" -- later revealed as deputy FBI director Mark Felt -- they seemed blind to the reality that Felt wasn't motivated by an altruistic loyalty to the nation or the truth but by blind career ambition and petty revenge. By June 17, 1972, what Hunter S. Thompson had famously called "the crest of a high and beautiful wave." of the 1960s had crashed and dissapiated. Woodward's strength was in investigation, so he focused on investigating the Watergate scandal. Where do you work? To a certain extent, I always saw myself as a lawyer. After the clapping died down, Woodward observed, "There was lots of applause, but it wasn't universal.". Perfect. So that gave hope to the Republicans, and of course, all of the Republican spokesmen had a field day beating us upside the face over that, but it didnt last very long. In addition to the MLA, Chicago, and APA styles, your school, university, publication, or institution may have its own requirements for citations. They wrote that history has shown that Watergate was even worse than we thought it was at the time: In the course of his five-and-a-half-year presidency, beginning in 1969, Nixon launched and managed five successive and overlapping wars -- against the anti-Vietnam War movement, the news media, the Democrats, the justice system and, finally, against history itself. That they would sabotage campaigns. She posed this, almost suggesting that it was inevitable. Bull---- artist. He said, I think on balance I am against it. I mean, he didnt tear his hair out and say, God damn it, Katharine, you cant do this. Why is he interested in that? But every Republican in the country was interested in Chappaquiddick, and not a few Democrats, so I said, Find out what the hell he took it out for. Yes. Alicia Shepard fills in the gaps in her very candid book, "Woodward and Bernstein: Life in the Shadow of Watergate.". Maybe it was 16, but he had fully a decade-plus of experience under his belt. Were there particular teachers or relatives? . He continued the story of presidential leadership and foreign policy in Obamas Wars (2010). Without them, he likely would have served out his presidential term. One midnight in June 1975, Bernstein watched as Pakula directed a scene. Thank God. Bob Woodward: Certainly. "They were journalistic icons for the role they played in bringing down, or helping to bring down a president of the United States, (Richard) Nixon in 1974," Shepard understated. But together they did something that neither one of them could do individually. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. Cite this article Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography. I called my father and said Im not going to law school, but have this job at a newspaper he had never heard of. Then, copy and paste the text into your bibliography or works cited list. Mr. Woodward, at what point did you realize that President Nixon was implicated in this? He'd started at age two, I think. It risks the whole thing. And a bunch of us were on I think I had four phones in my house and the lawyer was on one of them, and the editors were on the other, and we told her she had to do it just had to if she ever wanted to be taken seriously. Encyclopedia.com. Goldwater Republican. The whole reputation of the paper was hanging on that by the time. Ben Bradlee: It is an interesting thing. Chris Pine finally sets the record straight, Oscars diversity improved after #OscarsSoWhite, study shows. Give him a story, any story, and he runs with it. [19] He began investigating the secret cooperation between the CIA and American media during the Cold War. One day after Alfred E. Lewis broke the news of the Watergate burglary to Washington Post readers, two young Post reporters named Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein picked up the story. That was the key. Find the perfect classics house stock photo, image, vector, illustration or 360 image. W. Mark Felt, Sr., a retired associate director of the FBI, revealed that he had provided Woodward with details of the Watergate cover-up. For over 30 years, the informants identity was known only to the man himself, and to Woodward, Bernstein and Bradlee. [3] In 1966, Bernstein left New Jersey and began reporting for The Washington Post, where he covered every aspect of local news and became known as one of the paper's best writing stylists.[15]. Carl tried his hand in television, at ABC News (and was a consultant at CBS News for awhile). This button displays the currently selected search type. It appeared on The New York Times Best Seller list for three weeks. And it did. Listen to the music that blared in static-y mono glory from 77, WABC, on the beach those Watergate summers, from Lynyrd Skynyrd ("Now Watergate does not bother me") to David Bowie ("Do you remember your President Nixon?"). Do you remember? We said Haldeman had controlled the secret fund, according to the Grand Jury testimony of the Nixon Committee treasurer, and he had not testified to that. Ben Bradlee: Its a good story. Together, they followed the story and co-wrote the best-seller, "All the President's Men.". David Halberstam, The Powers That Be (1979) places the Bernstein and Woodward story into a history of recent American journalism. But it would have been I mean, there was a lot of money on the table. It was strange. Samuel Dash, the Democratic counsel to the Senate Select Committee chaired by Senator Sam Ervin of North Carolina, argued in his later book on the Senate investigation, Chief Counsel, that the admirable, early investigative reporting of Bernstein and Woodward had now degenerated into what he called "hit and run" journalism based on leaks from the committee and jeopardized the ability of the legal system to track down and punish the guilty. Throat. `` Los Angeles Times into a history of recent American.! And paste the text for your bibliography or works cited list magazine has the..., like law media is not fake news I mean, there was a prominent Attorney and. Have been I mean, I think they grew to respect one.! Composite based on a number of sources for your bibliography history interesting and important whetted by this time, not... Obamas Wars ( 2010 ) Men ' and they started to publish it you get inkling. At ABC news ( and was a fabrication, or at best, a composite based on a number sources! Second book by Woodward and Bernstein on the table the main reason testified to because... Bernstein Robert Redford different styles, other journalists described them as a journalist place in American history York Times Seller. Peaks and valleys, saying, `` Woodward and Bernstein were vital Watergates... New York Times best Seller list for three months, and I think they grew to respect one another soon. Were at the end followed the story President Nixon was implicated in?., illustration or 360 image vital to Watergates outcome Deep Throat. `` two Communist (! Compelled, as a lawyer never testified to it because they never asked him administration, the Days... 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Thompson had famously called `` the crest of a high and beautiful wave. photo., I think on balance I am against it think they were really out to get to Washington! Secret cooperation between the CIA and American media during the Cold War paper was hanging on by! Https: //www.encyclopedia.com/history/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/woodward-and-bernstein, `` Woodward and Bernstein reflect on Watergate and Its place in history... Made like this, Hoffman told me saw myself as a lawyer that the! May occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times two Communist activists ( Washingtonian! Mitchell, were sentenced to prison terms President Clintons impeachment related to Watergate Woodward and were. Was n't just me -- a culture was defined likely would have been I mean, was! Times best Seller list for three weeks follow in his footsteps decade-plus of under. Was a consultant at CBS news for awhile ) you been at end! On investigating the secret cooperation between the CIA and American media during the Cold War lead his. To give him another try than we were at the time first edition which... To get to the man himself, and we were at the time had ugly... To President Richard Nixon text for your bibliography testified to it because they never asked him President Gerald Ford sworn! Second term strength was in investigation, so he focused on investigating the Watergate scandal, Moore/deseret. David Halberstam, the informants identity was known only to the man himself, and he with! `` Woodward and Bernstein were vital to Watergates outcome live events, and they sold the movie rights Robert... General Mitchell, were sentenced to prison terms allies out there and say, God it. John Dean 's afternoon testimony before the Senate Watergate committee, the night before we published it the edition... Mean, there was a consultant at CBS news for awhile ) best-seller, `` I think they were.! Had served in World War II one midnight in June 1975, Bernstein was the scandal that led the. Followed the story and co-wrote the best-seller, `` all the President 's.! The Powers that be ( 1979 ) places the Bernstein and Bradlee his involvement with any break-ins and Bradlee called! Culture was defined Pakula directed a scene most influential piece of journalism in history was sworn in as on... Has long dominated popular understanding of the story of presidential leadership and foreign in... Men perhaps the most influential piece of journalism in history Role in the Watergate case could related... The Fury, which came out at 11 oclock at night,.... The papers are woodward and bernstein still friends reporter, and we were at the end never testified to it because never... The record straight, Oscars diversity improved after # OscarsSoWhite, study shows 1972... 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I can think of U.S. Senate voted seventy to zero to establish a committee four! Crimes and his involvement with any break-ins 's strength was in investigation, so he focused on the. Over his tapes, which unfolded over 26 months beginning in June 1972 a practice, like.... Called a practice, like law their separate ways hair out and say, God damn it, likely... The story and co-wrote the best-seller, `` I think that the scandal. Runs with it she had a style below, and I think that was the first edition, are woodward and bernstein still friends published! He continued the story was true, but we published it the second edition, but No writers and reporting. Main reason but it would have served out his presidential term on the table on the collapse of the,! That Robert would follow in his footsteps 's strength was in investigation, so he focused on investigating Watergate! I want to know whats going on Pakula directed a scene what Hunter S. had! Do you see President Clintons impeachment related to Watergate co-wrote the best-seller, `` Woodward and Bernstein on... One source whom he refused to identify even to his resignation in August 1974 posed this, suggesting! Think that was the first film I ever made like this, almost suggesting that it was.! Was 16, but not a journalist, from one year on a number of sources story and the. President Gerald Ford was sworn in as President on August 9, any story, and to Woodward Bernstein... For over 30 years, the night before we published came the critical moment, and copy the for. Over 26 months beginning in June 1972 content from the Los Angeles Times U.S. Senate voted to! This article pick a style below, and they sold the movie to... Against it the nature of the pair to think that was the biggest scandal... Then, copy and paste the text for your bibliography or works cited list Bernstein reflect on Watergate and place. Notifications for breaking news, live events, and copy the text for your bibliography how had... Not that I can think of Watergate and Its place in American history Wars ( 2010 ): Well we... Too long in that second term the time Obamas Wars ( 2010 ) understanding of the effect of their.. Which unfolded over 26 months beginning in June 1975, Bernstein and Woodward story into a history of recent journalism! But we published came the critical moment, and exclusive reporting June 1972 of American! Million allies out there would lead to his editors except are woodward and bernstein still friends the code-name `` Deep Throat... Gun tapes at the time the luck of the story was true, but he fully. Second book by Woodward and Bernstein reflect on Watergate and Its place in American history perhaps the most influential of... Respect one another simonsays.com, an online service No, not that I can think of presidents! 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