All the President's Men Author: | Language: English | ISBN:
B0098ER8IG | Format: PDF
All the President's Men Description
In the most devastating political detective story of the 20th century, two Washington Post reporters, whose brilliant, Pulitzer Prize-winning investigation smashed the Watergate scandal wide open, tell the behind-the-scenes drama the way it really happened.
Beginning with the story of a simple burglary at Democratic headquarters and then continuing with headline after headline, Bernstein and Woodward kept the tale of conspiracy and the trail of dirty tricks coming - delivering the stunning revelations and pieces in the Watergate puzzle that brought about Nixon's scandalous downfall. Their explosive reports won a Pulitzer Prize for The Washington Post and toppled the president. This is the book that changed America.
- Audible Audio Edition
- Listening Length: 12 hours and 56 minutes
- Program Type: Audiobook
- Version: Unabridged
- Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
- Audible.com Release Date: September 10, 2012
- Whispersync for Voice: Ready
- Language: English
- ASIN: B0098ER8IG
I am not an American, and I often find that I come short when discussing political history with my American friends. Therefore, I am always looking for books that can fill gaps in my knowledge. "All the President's men" is such a book.
The beginning of this book contains a "Cast of Characters", a detailed description of persons and their involvement in the case. If you are a like me, you make sure to dog-ear this page for your reference, as you work your way through the flurry of different names and places. Fear not, the struggle of keeping track of everyone involved is worth it!
This book provides us with two distinct "different" story-lines. First, a fascinating description of investigative journalism. We learn how newspapers work, the fights over cover-page stories, the importance of getting your name under the story line, and arguments and discussions in the editor's office. I particularly came to admire the owner of the Washington Post, Cathrine Graham, for her tremendous courage during this period. The newspaper received threats, directed to specific people, as well as with regards to possible lawsuits. The case could have brought the paper down and destroyed it completely. Second, the very detailed and interesting guide to the collapse of Richard Nixon, the 37th President of the United States.
The Watergate Scandal started innocently enough, with a simple break-in in the Democratic headquarters in the Watergate Hotel. The "Washington Post" had Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward covering the case. The two inexperienced reporters would soon see that the more they kept digging, the more obscure and unbelievable the story got. In the end, they had a list of people involved including the top level of government, the US intelligence community and ultimately, the White House itself.
Time has not dulled the impact of "All the President's Men". It's been thirty years, now, since the thwarted break-in at the Watergate. Most of the higher-ups in President Nixon's administration have passed away, and subsequent generations reared on Iran-Contra and Whitewater may not even remember what the fuss was about. But from the very first page of this book, history becomes life and events rush forward to the inevitable conclusion that still seems impossible today.
Woodward and Bernstein's reporting is the major thrust of the first half of "President's". We watch both reporters work late into the night, interviewing reluctant and/or anonymous witnesses in an attempt to find out just why the Watergate burglars had connections with the White House, and how far up the political chain of command those men were connected. Along the way, mistakes are made and a reputations are wrongfully derailed. But the story -- the crimes and the subsequent cover-ups may have indeed been directed by the President of the United States himself! -- takes on a life of its own, and Woodward and Bernstein become witness to the defining story of an era.
Much of "All the President's Men" has passed into legend, especially the unrevealed identity of Woodward's executive branch contact known only as "Deep Throat". The Watergate players to this day still debate just who Deep Throat was -- John Dean seems to publish a book on the subject every five years. Time has proven most of the accusations correct -- for an interesting exercise, try comparing Woodward's and Bernstein's discoveries with the corresponding daily entries in "The Haldeman Diaries").
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