Adam Clymer
Encyclopedia
Adam Clymer is an American
journalist
.
from 1977 until July, 2003, and served as its national political correspondent for the 1980 presidential election, polling editor from 1983 to 1990, political editor for George H. W. Bush
's presidential campaign in 1988, and chief Washington correspondent from 1999 through 2003.
Clymer covered the 2000 presidential campaign
for the Times and wrote several articles that were considered unfavorable by the Bush
campaign.
Clymer may be best known for an incident on September 4, 2000, when Bush and running mate Dick Cheney
appeared at a campaign event at Naperville, Illinois
. While on stage before the event, Bush said to Cheney, "There's Adam Clymer, major league asshole from the New York Times." Cheney responded, "Oh yeah, he is, big time." The remarks were picked up by a live microphone, causing a minor campaign controversy. Bush later publicly stated "I regret that a private comment I made to the vice presidential candidate made it through the public airways. I regret everybody heard what I said."
While he never apologized for the comment itself, Bush made an attempt to smooth it over, making light of it at the next Washington Press Club Foundation Dinner by referring to Adam Clymer as a "major league ass...et." For his part, Clymer noted that Bush sent him a nice letter of condolences when his mother died in 2001.
In 2004, Clymer became a visiting scholar at the Annenberg Public Policy Center
at the University of Pennsylvania
, where he served as Political Director for the National Annenberg Election Survey.
In 1981, Clymer co-authored Reagan: The Man, the President with fellow New York Times journalists Hedrick Smith, Leonard Silk, Robert Lindsey, and Richard Burt. In 1999, he wrote Edward M. Kennedy: A Biography.
(née Lowenton) and Kinsey Clymer, Clymer attended Harvard College
, receiving an A.B. in 1958. Clymer's journalism career began when he was in high school; he wrote for the school newspaper and collected sports scores for The New York Times
. He did post-graduate work at the University of Cape Town
, South Africa
. In 1960, he joined The Virginian-Pilot
in Norfolk
, a job which he followed up with work at The Baltimore Sun
and the New York Daily News
.
Clymer has been married since 1961 to his wife, Ann. They had one daughter, Jane Emily Clymer, who was killed at the age of 18 by a drunken driver in September, 1985. The Clymers established a memorial scholarship at the University of Vermont
in her name.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
.
Career
He was with The New York TimesThe New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
from 1977 until July, 2003, and served as its national political correspondent for the 1980 presidential election, polling editor from 1983 to 1990, political editor for George H. W. Bush
George H. W. Bush
George Herbert Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 41st President of the United States . He had previously served as the 43rd Vice President of the United States , a congressman, an ambassador, and Director of Central Intelligence.Bush was born in Milton, Massachusetts, to...
's presidential campaign in 1988, and chief Washington correspondent from 1999 through 2003.
Clymer covered the 2000 presidential campaign
George W. Bush presidential campaign, 2000
This article is about the 2000 presidential campaign of George W. Bush, winner of the 2000 presidential election and re-elected in the 2004 election.See George W. Bush for a detailed biography and information about his presidency, and George W...
for the Times and wrote several articles that were considered unfavorable by the Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
campaign.
Clymer may be best known for an incident on September 4, 2000, when Bush and running mate Dick Cheney
Dick Cheney
Richard Bruce "Dick" Cheney served as the 46th Vice President of the United States , under George W. Bush....
appeared at a campaign event at Naperville, Illinois
Naperville, Illinois
Naperville is a city in DuPage and Will Counties in Illinois in the United States, voted the second best place to live in the United States by Money Magazine in 2006. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 141,853. It is the fifth largest city in the state, behind Chicago,...
. While on stage before the event, Bush said to Cheney, "There's Adam Clymer, major league asshole from the New York Times." Cheney responded, "Oh yeah, he is, big time." The remarks were picked up by a live microphone, causing a minor campaign controversy. Bush later publicly stated "I regret that a private comment I made to the vice presidential candidate made it through the public airways. I regret everybody heard what I said."
While he never apologized for the comment itself, Bush made an attempt to smooth it over, making light of it at the next Washington Press Club Foundation Dinner by referring to Adam Clymer as a "major league ass...et." For his part, Clymer noted that Bush sent him a nice letter of condolences when his mother died in 2001.
In 2004, Clymer became a visiting scholar at the Annenberg Public Policy Center
Annenberg Public Policy Center
The Annenberg Public Policy Center is a center for the study of public policy at the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania. It has offices in Washington, D.C...
at the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
, where he served as Political Director for the National Annenberg Election Survey.
In 1981, Clymer co-authored Reagan: The Man, the President with fellow New York Times journalists Hedrick Smith, Leonard Silk, Robert Lindsey, and Richard Burt. In 1999, he wrote Edward M. Kennedy: A Biography.
Personal life
Born to children's book author Eleanor ClymerEleanor Clymer
Eleanor Clymer, born Eleanor Lowenton , was a writer of children's books, best known for The Trolley Car Family . She graduated from the University of Wisconsin–Madison in 1928 with a degree in English...
(née Lowenton) and Kinsey Clymer, Clymer attended Harvard College
Harvard College
Harvard College, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is one of two schools within Harvard University granting undergraduate degrees...
, receiving an A.B. in 1958. Clymer's journalism career began when he was in high school; he wrote for the school newspaper and collected sports scores for The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
. He did post-graduate work at the University of Cape Town
University of Cape Town
The University of Cape Town is a public research university located in Cape Town in the Western Cape province of South Africa. UCT was founded in 1829 as the South African College, and is the oldest university in South Africa and the second oldest extant university in Africa.-History:The roots of...
, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
. In 1960, he joined The Virginian-Pilot
The Virginian-Pilot
The Virginian-Pilot is a daily newspaper based in Norfolk, Virginia, and serving the Hampton Roads metropolitan area, southeastern Virginia, the Eastern Shore of Virginia, and northeastern North Carolina. The flagship property of Landmark Media Enterprises, The Pilot is Virginia's largest daily...
in Norfolk
Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 242,803 as of the 2010 Census, it is Virginia's second-largest city behind neighboring Virginia Beach....
, a job which he followed up with work at The Baltimore Sun
The Baltimore Sun
The Baltimore Sun is the U.S. state of Maryland’s largest general circulation daily newspaper and provides coverage of local and regional news, events, issues, people, and industries....
and the New York Daily News
New York Daily News
The Daily News of New York City is the fourth most widely circulated daily newspaper in the United States with a daily circulation of 605,677, as of November 1, 2011....
.
Clymer has been married since 1961 to his wife, Ann. They had one daughter, Jane Emily Clymer, who was killed at the age of 18 by a drunken driver in September, 1985. The Clymers established a memorial scholarship at the University of Vermont
University of Vermont
The University of Vermont comprises seven undergraduate schools, an honors college, a graduate college, and a college of medicine. The Honors College does not offer its own degrees; students in the Honors College concurrently enroll in one of the university's seven undergraduate colleges or...
in her name.
Awards
- Everett McKinley Dirksen Award for Distinguished Reporting of Congress, 1993
- The Washington MonthlyThe Washington MonthlyThe Washington Monthly is a bimonthly nonprofit magazine of United States politics and government that is based in Washington, D.C.The magazine's founder is Charles Peters, who started the magazine in 1969 and continues to write the "Tilting at Windmills" column in each issue. Paul Glastris, former...
's Monthly Journalism Award, 2003, for his January 3, 2003 Times article, Government Openness at Issue as Bush Holds On to Records - Carey McWilliams Award honoring a major journalistic contribution to our understanding of politics, American Political Science AssociationAmerican Political Science AssociationThe American Political Science Association is a professional association of political science students and scholars in the United States. Founded in 1903, it publishes three academic journals...
, 2003
Books
- Smith, Hedrick, et al. (1981). Reagan: The Man, the President. Pergamon Pr. ISBN 0-08-027916-3.
- Clymer, Adam (1986). NEW YORK TIMES IN REVIEW 1987. Three Rivers Press. ISBN 0-8129-1632-8.
- Clymer, Adam (2000). Edward M. Kennedy: A Biography. Perennial (HarperCollins). ISBN 0-06-095787-5.
- Clymer, Adam (2003). Journalism, security and the public interest: Best practices for reporting in unpredictable times. Aspen Institute, Communications and Society Program. ISBN 0-89843-387-8.
- Clymer, Adam (2008). "Drawing the Line at the Big Ditch". University of Kansas Press.
External links
- Biography from the University of VermontUniversity of VermontThe University of Vermont comprises seven undergraduate schools, an honors college, a graduate college, and a college of medicine. The Honors College does not offer its own degrees; students in the Honors College concurrently enroll in one of the university's seven undergraduate colleges or...
, on the occasion of his commencement address and honorary degree in 2005 - Interview with Adam Clymer about the notorious "asshole" comment with CNNCNNCable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
's Reliable Sources, September 9, 2000 - A "major league asshole", Salon.comSalon.comSalon.com, part of Salon Media Group , often just called Salon, is an online liberal magazine, with content updated each weekday. Salon was founded by David Talbot and launched on November 20, 1995. It was the internet's first online-only commercial publication. The magazine focuses on U.S...
, 4 September 2000 - Cartoon on Bush's obscenity, 3 September 2000
- Opinion piece in National ReviewNational ReviewNational Review is a biweekly magazine founded by the late author William F. Buckley, Jr., in 1955 and based in New York City. It describes itself as "America's most widely read and influential magazine and web site for conservative news, commentary, and opinion."Although the print version of the...
by Tim Graham, 5 September 2000 - Better Campaign Reporting: A View From the Major Leagues, Clymer's address in 2002 at Wesleyan UniversityWesleyan UniversityWesleyan University is a private liberal arts college founded in 1831 and located in Middletown, Connecticut. According to the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, Wesleyan is the only Baccalaureate College in the nation that emphasizes undergraduate instruction in the arts and...
- National Annenberg Election Survey