Contents

Chapters in this book

1. Frontmatter i
2. Contents vii
3. Introduction ix
4. 1. The Boy from Lincoln 1
5. 2. Working for William Randolph Hearst in Omaha 19
6. 3. The Founding of PM, a “Newspaperman’s Ideal” 33
7. 4. Politics at PM: Commies and “Good Liberals” 47
8. 5. Covering World War II from Home and Abroad 59
9. 6. Getting Fired by NBC and ABC, Then Hired by CBS 80
10. 7. The Invention of CBS Views the Press 96
11. 8. Jack O’Brian: Buffalo Dock-Walloper to Broadway Drama Critic 115
12. 9. Press Criticism: From Name-calling to Nuance 119
13. 10. Jack O’Brian: Championing Decency, Fighting Soft-on-Communism Liberals 137
14. 11. The Obsession with Subversives and Communist Spies 141
15. 12. Jack O’Brian: Traveling with the Conservative, Anti-Commie Crowd 162
16. 13. The Hearsts Versus Hollenbeck 166
17. 14. Jack O’Brian: Attacking the Communist Broadcasting System 180
18. 15. Loyalty Oaths, Blacklists, and Joseph McCarthy 183
19. 16. The Walking Wounded 199
20. 17. The Sermon in the Suicide 215
21. Epilogue 227
22. Acknowledgments 233
23. Notes 239
24. Bibliography 289
25. Index 317