Lessons From the Blair Affair

By: Joe Strupp Just as the initial Jayson Blair and Rick Bragg revelations forced many newsroom leaders to review their own ethics policies and institute new safeguards, the departure of The New York Times' two top editors, based mostly on managerial mistakes, will likely spark structural changes while reminding executives to make sure all areas of their operation are solid -- or risk their own downfall. "Editors probably need to have their finger on the pulse of the newsroom more," said Robert Leger, president of the Society of Professional Journalists and editorial page editor at the Springfield (Mo.) News-Leader. "They need to hear from all middle managers and take their advice." Said Ellen Soeteber, editor of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, "It is a good reminder that we all need a large dose of humility."

In the end, Executive Editor Howell Raines and Managing Editor Gerald Boyd had to leave The New York Times in order to allow the newspaper to repair its shattered image, according to editors and other journalistic observers who spoke with E&P late last week. But their departures had less to do with the Blair and Bragg debacles than with fixing a newsroom that many contend had lost morale since Raines and Boyd took over.

While the ethical misdeeds of Blair initially drew the attention, it was the ongoing criticism of the paper's management -- particularly Raines' failure to respond to warnings about Blair and complaints about the editor's autocratic manner -- that eventually led to his and Boyd's departure.

"These guys did not go down because of the Jayson Blair affair, they went down because the Jayson Blair affair exposed a lot of other things," said Douglas C. Clifton, editor of The Plain Dealer in Cleveland, who called their exits "unprecedented" and "a cataclysmic event." Blair, he said, was "just the pointer to other issues."

Kenneth Bunting, executive editor of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, agreed. "There were a number of managerial missteps and some smart
people with very serious blinders on," he said. "Their staff had lost confidence, and it was probably the best thing for that reason. In the end, you need the confidence of your staff." Richard Reeves, Universal Press Syndicate columnist and former Times reporter, said, "Maybe this will stop the bloodletting."

Some editors said the appointing of a committee to review the ethical problems, expected to reveal its findings next month, was too little too late. "They don't seem to realize that the public sees that as a joke," John Temple, editor and publisher of the Denver Rocky Mountain News, said about the committee. "They blamed Jayson Blair in a very defensive posture and they were unwilling to accept responsibility for their own actions."

Because of the Times' stature as the leading U.S. daily newspaper, such a shocking shake-up can't help but affect the industry as a whole, say observers. The Blair affair had already given all newspapers a black eye. "The whole incident has been a body-blow to the industry," said Peter Bhatia, executive editor of The Oregonian in Portland and president of the American Society of Newspaper Editors. For Robert Rivard, editor of the San Antonio (Texas) Express-News, the resignations are "a tragedy for everyone in the newspaper world. This touches all of us -- it is a crisis."

William L. Winter, president and executive director of the American Press Institute, went so far as to compare it to the death of a president. "In our journalistic house, the Times is the foundation," he said. "And it has really been shaken." But Bhatia pointed out, "We all understand better now that the institution and the health of the institution is more important than the [top] people."

While the appointment of former executive editor Joseph Lelyveld as interim executive editor is seen as a positive step, observers say the culture that had been fostered by Raines needs to be overhauled and an esteemed permanent replacement found. "This has got to be just the first step," said columnist Leonard Pitts, Jr. of The Miami Herald and Tribune Media Services.

Speculation about who will take over permanently so far has centered on former Times Managing Editor Bill Keller, former Times National Editor Dean Baquet (who is now managing editor at the Los Angeles Times), and Martin Baron, editor of The Boston Globe, a Times-owned paper.

Kelly McBride, who teaches media ethics at The Poynter Institute, sees reasons for optimism. "This clears the way to right the ship," she said. "But what needs to happen is an examination of their culture, the way they communicate, the demands on staff, and the way they indoctrinate younger journalists."