BY DAN
KENNEDY
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Tuesday, July 15, 2003
Baron's stock soars.
Boston Globe editor Marty Baron is staying put, he tells
his own paper's Mark
Jurkowitz and the Boston
Herald's Greg
Gatlin. Baron's statement
should put an end to speculation that he'll be brought to New York to
serve as managing editor under newly
named executive editor Bill Keller.
But Baron's stock is clearly at an
all-time high. He and Los Angeles Times managing editor Dean
Baquet were the only two outsiders who were seriously mentioned as
possible successors to Howell Raines, who resigned in the aftermath
of the Jayson Blair scandal. (Not that they were true outsiders,
having both worked as editors at the NY Times.)
Both Jurkowitz and Gatlin quote
Baron as saying all the right things about Keller. But the reverse is
also true. In 2001, shortly after Baron had been named editor of the
Globe, Keller
told me that he had become
a Baron fan during Baron's stint in New York.
Saying he had recommended Baron
"enthusiastically" both to Globe publisher Richard Gilman and
Times Company chairman Arthur Sulizberger Jr., Keller commented:
"He's an editor of terrific judgment and integrity. I'm partial to
editors who tell you what they think without nursing some political
agenda, and Marty did that while he was here."
Yesterday's announcement marks
quite a reversal of fortune for Keller, who was passed over in favor
of Raines two years ago. To be sure, Keller had carved out a great
job for himself, writing both a column for the op-ed page and long
pieces for the Times Magazine. But there's no doubt he wanted
the top job.
He could have dealt himself out of
the running several years ago when, during his stint as Times
managing editor under Joseph Lelyveld, he was asked whether he would
ever consider taking the editor's position at the Globe. He
said no. Months later, when Globe editor Matt Storin retired,
the spot went to Baron instead.
Now, not only is Keller right where
he wants to be, but Baron is in an ideal position: editing the
Globe, publicly identified as a hot property, and with someone
with whom he has a good relationship running the
Times.
posted at 9:58 AM |
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MEDIA LOG ARCHIVES
Dan Kennedy is senior writer and media critic for the Boston Phoenix.
