Helen Thomas (1) (1920–2013)
Author of Front Row at the White House : My Life and Times
For other authors named Helen Thomas, see the disambiguation page.
About the Author
Helen Thomas is the dean of the White House press corps
Image credit: Wikimedia commons
Works by Helen Thomas
Watchdogs of Democracy?: The Waning Washington Press Corps and How It Has Failed the Public (2006) 175 copies, 7 reviews
Thanks for the Memories, Mr. President : Wit and Wisdom from the Front Row at the White House (2002) 163 copies, 4 reviews
Associated Works
The Woman Who Wouldn't Talk: Why I Refused to Testify Against the Clintons and What I Learned in Jail (2003) — Introduction — 59 copies, 2 reviews
One Can Make a Difference: Original stories by the Dali Lama, Paul McCartney, Willie Nelson, Dennis Kucinch, Russel Simmons, Bridgitte Bardot, Martina ... Dozens of Other… (2008) — Contributor — 29 copies, 1 review
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Legal name
- Thomas, Helen Amelia
- Birthdate
- 1920-08-04
- Date of death
- 2013-07-20
- Gender
- female
- Education
- Wayne State University (BA|English|1942)
- Occupations
- journalist
columnist - Organizations
- United Press International
King Features Syndicate
Falls Church News-Press
National Press Club (United States) - Awards and honors
- William Allen White Award (1986)
CAIR Lifetime Achievement Award (2010) - Relationships
- Cornell, Douglas (spouse)
- Short biography
- Helen Thomas was familiar to millions of Americans as the senior White House correspondent, beginning in the Kennedy Administration, ending all presidential press conferences by saying "Thank you, Mr. President" until her retirement in 2010. She was born in Winchester, Kentucky, to an immigrant family from Lebanon, and raised in Detroit, Michigan. She decided to become a journalist while in high school. She graduated from Wayne State University in 1942 with a bachelor's degree in English and moved to Washington, D.C. Her first journalism job was as a copygirl for the Washington Daily News. Eight months later, she joined her co-workers in a strike and was fired. She joined United Press in 1943, and worked for it and its successor United Press International (UPI) for a total of 57 years, rising to White House bureau manager. She became a columnist for Hearst Newspapers in 2000, writing on national affairs and the White House. She covered the administrations of 11 presidents and was the first female member and president of the White House Correspondents' Association. She wrote six books, including Dateline: White House (1975) and Thanks for the Memories, Mr. President: Wit and Wisdom from the Front Row at the White House (2003).
- Nationality
- USA
- Birthplace
- Winchester, Kentucky, USA
- Places of residence
- Detroit, Michigan, USA
Washington, D.C., USA - Place of death
- Washington, D.C., USA
- Associated Place (for map)
- USA
Members
Reviews
While this book reads as a collection of anecdotes, what anecdotes they are! As White House correspondent for UPI, Helen Thomas has covered every President (and First Lady) since JFK. Now a syndicated columnist for the Hearst newspapers, she still doesn't mince words.
If I have any criticism of this book, though, it is that she tries too hard to find something nice to say about every President. You can see her straining at times. But I did find her discussions of how the different show more administrations related to the press very revealing. The press, in my view and hers, is critical to keeping our politicians honest.
In the last chapter, she says, ". . . I didn't get into this business to be loved; I'd rather be respected for being fair. I wanted to break down that wall of secrecy we see so much in government. Without a doubt, the perpetrators and guardians of that secrecy are the presidents themselves. Too often those in government have lied to reporters, and in doing so, they have lied to the American people. In the Kennedy era, Pentagon press officer Arthur Sylvester, a former newsman, said the government has the right to lie in times of nuclear danger. The same thesis has been argued by some of his successors. We saw it in the Vietnam War, the invasion of Grenada and the Persian Gulf War. I believe the lie dishonors those who fight in those wars. There may be time when all cannot be told. Then, I say, silence is better than deliberate lies."
I agree. show less
If I have any criticism of this book, though, it is that she tries too hard to find something nice to say about every President. You can see her straining at times. But I did find her discussions of how the different show more administrations related to the press very revealing. The press, in my view and hers, is critical to keeping our politicians honest.
In the last chapter, she says, ". . . I didn't get into this business to be loved; I'd rather be respected for being fair. I wanted to break down that wall of secrecy we see so much in government. Without a doubt, the perpetrators and guardians of that secrecy are the presidents themselves. Too often those in government have lied to reporters, and in doing so, they have lied to the American people. In the Kennedy era, Pentagon press officer Arthur Sylvester, a former newsman, said the government has the right to lie in times of nuclear danger. The same thesis has been argued by some of his successors. We saw it in the Vietnam War, the invasion of Grenada and the Persian Gulf War. I believe the lie dishonors those who fight in those wars. There may be time when all cannot be told. Then, I say, silence is better than deliberate lies."
I agree. show less
Watchdogs of Democracy?: The Waning Washington Press Corps and How It Has Failed the Public by Helen Thomas
Watchdogs of Democracy? The Waning Washington Press Corps and How It Failed the Public, by Helen Thomas (pp 206). This Thomas’ book was published in 2006, it remains on point about shortcomings of the Washington Press Corps and news providers generally. Thomas is at her best telling stories about her White House days; extolling the virtues of reporters over the years, including many fine women; castigating those who compromised their objectivity for a variety of reasons (let alone being show more outright deceptive); discussing the role and history of newspapers and other media sources; and lamenting the proliferation of supposed news sources that are little more than purveyors of bias and opinion. The book suffers when she is self-congratulatory for many of her successes or her access to the powerful, but luckily that is quite limited. Oddly, in two chapters that cover the business of news—the lamentable need to make money, and a detailed explanation of the FCC regulatory authority and legal aspects of confidential sources and privilege—-the writing loses Helen’s voice, as if they were written by others. That may be partly true, in that she thanks her agent, a lawyer, for contributing to chapters about the First Amendment and the need for federal shield laws. Regardless, this very readable book about the essential but imperiled role of journalism in American society is insightful, educational, and alarming. It’s especially worth reading because of how we are inundated by information and opinion, little of which constitutes factual news. show less
Front Row at the White House by Helen Thomas
4 stars
I so enjoyed this book. I picked it up on cassette at my library when I was scanning the shelves for something that would fit the history tag. Before the end of the tapes, I ordered a used copy so I could read it and soak in the details. This memoir of Thomas’ years as a White House reporter and correspondent was published in 1999 and covers spresidencies through the Clinton years. It is full of fascinating personal insights about the show more history of the past century. I was especially interested in her take on the changing role of women in the press and the descriptions of traveling with the president on Air Force One. I intend to read Thank You, Mr. President and then her more recent book Watch Dogs of Democracy? to try and get the complete picture of this woman’s life work. show less
4 stars
I so enjoyed this book. I picked it up on cassette at my library when I was scanning the shelves for something that would fit the history tag. Before the end of the tapes, I ordered a used copy so I could read it and soak in the details. This memoir of Thomas’ years as a White House reporter and correspondent was published in 1999 and covers spresidencies through the Clinton years. It is full of fascinating personal insights about the show more history of the past century. I was especially interested in her take on the changing role of women in the press and the descriptions of traveling with the president on Air Force One. I intend to read Thank You, Mr. President and then her more recent book Watch Dogs of Democracy? to try and get the complete picture of this woman’s life work. show less
Watchdogs of Democracy?: The Waning Washington Press Corps and How It Has Failed the Public by Helen Thomas
I gave it two stars, but it is mostly because the book is a little on the dry side. It has some interesting things, but it can also bog down at times depending on the chapter. Her dislike of bloggers is very evident, which certainly did not make me like her any better; while debatable whether bloggers should be treated as journalists (some probably should), in her despise of them she comes across as someone who is just not with the times, which is kind of ironic given she is making an show more argument for reporters to keep up.
Her points about the press being pretty much complacent and lapdogs is significant, and it should cause concern for people. Clearly, the press has failed the public when it comes to covering the news in an objective and fair way. For history buffs, this is a pretty good book on the history of the press in the U.S. in the 20th century. So, overall, not bad, but not great either. show less
Her points about the press being pretty much complacent and lapdogs is significant, and it should cause concern for people. Clearly, the press has failed the public when it comes to covering the news in an objective and fair way. For history buffs, this is a pretty good book on the history of the press in the U.S. in the 20th century. So, overall, not bad, but not great either. show less
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Statistics
- Works
- 6
- Also by
- 3
- Members
- 829
- Popularity
- #30,791
- Rating
- 3.4
- Reviews
- 19
- ISBNs
- 113
- Languages
- 1