Long before Wikileaks and social media, the journalist Drew Pearson exposed to public view information that public officials tried to keep hidden. A self-professed "keyhole peeper", Pearson devoted himself to revealing what politicians were doing behind closed doors. From 1932 to 1969, his daily "Washington Merry-Go-Round" column and weekly radio and TV commentary broke secrets, revealed classified information, and passed along rumors based on sources high and low in the federal government, while intelligence agents searched fruitlessly for his sources. For forty years, this syndicated columnist and radio and television commentator called public officials to account and forced them to confront the facts. Pearson's daily column, published in more than 600 newspapers, and his weekly radio and television commentaries led to the censure of two US senators, sent four members of the House to prison, and undermined numerous political careers. Every president from Franklin Roosevelt to Richard Nixon--and a quorum of Congress--called him a liar. Pearson was sued for libel more than any other journalist, in the end winning all but one of the cases. Breaking secrets was the heartbeat of Pearson's column. His ability to reveal classified information, even during wartime, motivated foreign and domestic intelligence agents to pursue him. He played cat and mouse with the investigators who shadowed him, tapped his phone, read his mail, and planted agents among his friends. Yet they rarely learned his sources. The FBI found it so fruitless to track down leaks to the columnist that it advised agencies to simply do a better job of keeping their files secret. Drawing on Pearson's extensive correspondence, diaries, and oral histories, The Columnist reveals the mystery behind Pearson's leaks and the accuracy of his most controversial revelations.

Prizes

Winner of Finalist, 2022 Sperber Book Prize, Fordham University.

Now, at long last, Donald A. Ritchie has given us a definitive, balanced biography of Pearson. * Jon Marshall, American Journalism *
An entertaining and mostly admiring life of the legendary columnist. * Kirkus *
Donald Ritchie's deeply research biography of crusading columnist Drew Pearson resurrects one of the most important investigative journalists of the twentieth century. It is a fascinating tale of back room intrigue in the corridors of power in Washington, D.C., with lessons that resonate today. This important contribution to political and journalistic history is essential for understanding how politics and the press worked in post-war America. * Mark Feldstein, author of Poisoning the Press: Richard Nixon, Jack Anderson, and the Rise of Washington's Scandal Culture *
This is two brilliant biographies in one -- of the shrewdest, most swashbuckling journalists of the mid-Twentieth Century, and of the era and nation that spawned him. It's a must-read for anyone who cares about the Fourth Estate, about American democracy, and about history made readable and relevant. * Larry Tye, author of Demagogue: The Life and Long Shadow of Senator Joe McCarthy *
Ritchie has written a first-rate biography, one that is fair-minded, engagingly written, insightful, and grounded in Pearson's Papers and, of course, his column. The Columnist reveals much about the adversarial relationship between presidents and the press and about the lengths governments will go to protect secrecy. Readers will learn that Truman -- not Nixon (as some might expect) -- ordered an FBI probe of Pearson's sources...The Columnist deserves a wide audience. * Dean J. Kotlowski, European Journal of American Studies *

Donald A. Ritchie is Historian Emeritus of the US Senate. At the Senate he conducted an oral history program and edited for publication the transcripts of the previously closed hearings of Senator Joseph McCarthy. A former president of the Oral History Association, he also served on the council of the American Historical Association and as a delegate to the American Council of Learned Societies. His books include Press Gallery: Congress and the Washington Correspondents, Doing Oral History, American Journalists: Getting the Story; Reporting from Washington: The History of the Washington Press Corps; Electing FDR: The New Deal Election of 1932 , and The U.S. Congress: A Very Short Introduction.