(Originally Published 1973, Paperback Edition 374 pages)
Well, that certainly sucked the romance out of covering the candidates
running for president. However, when Mr. Crouse's book caused me to
laugh on the second page with his dark observation, I knew this classic
work was going to be good and it definitely was. The 1972 campaign
between President Nixon and Senator McGovern seems eons away from
today's 24-hour news cycles. Mr. Crouse's work was published in 1973. It
was a time of chain smoking, hardcore drinking, long-haired reporters
who used manual typewriters, wrote for morning AND evening newspapers,
cell phones didn't exist, they had HUGE budgets and staff, needed to
take into consideration The Fairness Doctrine, and sexist attitudes were
very much the norm. Other aspects of news gathering are still with us
today such as the pack mentality of journalist who are cocooned with
other reporters in covering candidates for long months.
Mr. Crouse covers such areas as the boredom and frustration of being part of the White House press corps under the Nixon Adminsitration, the chaos of Senator McGovern's campaign, and the different business cultures working as a reporter for either newspapers, magazines or television. Many of the high-profile reporters were and still are today an egotistical lot inclined towards jealousy of other reporters receiving preferential treatment or fame. Though Mr. Crouse describes the McGovern campaign as essentially a bunch of chickens with their heads cut off, he shows a clear dislike of Nixon's staff especially the press secretary Ron Ziegler. Our nation had a choice between a candidate who likely would've been in over his head as president or a president who had the morals of... well... Richard Nixon.
The reporters highlighted were well known in the seventies. While many have faded into obscurity, others such as Theodore White, David Broder, Robert Novack, and Hunter S. Thompson went on to larger fame. Mr. Crouse's no-holds-barred description of being a reporter is well worth reading 'The Boys on the Bus.' In a few short years, the news-gathering industry was going to be revolutionized by Ted Turner's CNN of 24-hour shallow coverage and inane punditry. It is a highly entertaining work and had the unintentional benefit of allowing me to play "He's Dead. She's Dead. He's Dead. He's Dead..."
Mr. Crouse covers such areas as the boredom and frustration of being part of the White House press corps under the Nixon Adminsitration, the chaos of Senator McGovern's campaign, and the different business cultures working as a reporter for either newspapers, magazines or television. Many of the high-profile reporters were and still are today an egotistical lot inclined towards jealousy of other reporters receiving preferential treatment or fame. Though Mr. Crouse describes the McGovern campaign as essentially a bunch of chickens with their heads cut off, he shows a clear dislike of Nixon's staff especially the press secretary Ron Ziegler. Our nation had a choice between a candidate who likely would've been in over his head as president or a president who had the morals of... well... Richard Nixon.
The reporters highlighted were well known in the seventies. While many have faded into obscurity, others such as Theodore White, David Broder, Robert Novack, and Hunter S. Thompson went on to larger fame. Mr. Crouse's no-holds-barred description of being a reporter is well worth reading 'The Boys on the Bus.' In a few short years, the news-gathering industry was going to be revolutionized by Ted Turner's CNN of 24-hour shallow coverage and inane punditry. It is a highly entertaining work and had the unintentional benefit of allowing me to play "He's Dead. She's Dead. He's Dead. He's Dead..."
(Meyers - A few years ago, I started writing, under the pseudonym Franklin the Mouse, short reviews at Amazon's web site. This is my most recent review #379)
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