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"From the woman who has reported on every president from Kennedy to Clinton for United Press International: a unique glimpse into the White House - and a telling record of the ever-changing relationship between the presidency and the press." "Assigned to the White House press corps in 1961, Thomas was the first woman to close a press conference with "Thank you, Mr. President," and has covered every administration since Kennedy's. Along the way, she was among the pioneers who broke down barriers against women in the national media, becoming the first female president of the White House Correspondents Association, the first female officer of the National Press Club and the first woman member, later president, of the Gridiron Club." "In this revealing memoir, which includes hundreds of anecdotes, insights, observations, and personal details, Thomas looks back at a career spent with presidents at home and abroad, on the ground and in the air. She evaluates the enormous changes that Watergate brought, including diminished press access to the Oval Office, and how they have affected every president since Nixon."--Jacket.… (more)
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If I have any criticism of this
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.
As Thomas carries you through her own story, each of the First Ladies and then each POTUS from Kennedy to Clinton this book has a bit of repetition, some parts that could have been tightened up a bit from a writer's perspective, but overall it is definitely worth reading. The disjointed layout can be a bit confusing, as her memories bounce between decades, but it also lends a conversational tone to the book. As an added benefit, this allows insight into a first lady you may never have given a second thought to, or a president you may have hated or revered unjustly. Read this book, if for nothing else than because you will gain insight and it will change the way you view the role of media in the presidency.