Donald L. Barlett
Encyclopedia
Donald L. Barlett is an American
investigative journalist and author who collaborated with James B. Steele. According to The Washington Journalism Review (Magazine)
they were a better investigative reporting team than even Bob Woodward
and Carl Bernstein
. Together they have won two Pulitzer Prizes, two National Magazine Awards and six George Polk Awards. In addition, they have been recognized by their peers with awards from Investigative Reporters and Editors
on five separate occasions. They are known for their reporting technique of delving deep into documents and then, after what could be a long investigative period, interviewing the necessary sources. The duo has been working together for over 40 years and is frequently referred to as Barlett and Steele.
, Pennsylvania
. After attending Pennsylvania State University
, he served three years as a special agent with the US Army Counter Intelligence Corps
until 1956, when he began his journalistic career as a reporter for the Reading (Pennsylvania) Times. Nine years later he become an investigative journalist for The Plain Dealer, and later took similar jobs with The Chicago Daily News and The Philadelphia Inquirer
, where he was to join his collaborator James B. Steele. In 1997, Barlett and Steele became an editors-at-large for Time
. In 2006, they moved to Vanity Fair
as contributing editors. Over the years, Barlett and Steele wrote on such diverse topics as crime, housing, nuclear waste, tax loopholes, the decline of the middle class's standard of living, Howard Hughes
, the role of big money in politics, oil prices, immigration and health care.
Barlett and Steele won two Pulitzers and were recognized for their contributions to American journalism for their work while at The Philadelphia Inquirer. In 1972, during one of their earliest collaborations for The Inquirer, Barlett and Steele pioneered the use of computers for the analysis of data on violent crimes. Barlett and Steele won their first Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting in 1975 for a series called "Auditing the Internal Revenue Service" published by The Inquirer. They won their second Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting in 1989 at the Inquirer for their coverage of temporary tax breaks embedded in the Tax Reform Act of 1986. Their 1991 Inquirer series America: What Went Wrong? was named by the New York University
department of journalism as 51st on its list of the 100 best pieces of journalism of the 20th century. Rewritten as a book it became a No. 1 New York Times bestseller. It is one of seven books Barlett and Steele have published, five of which were written while at the The Inquirer.
After 26 years as a team for The Inquirer, Barlett and Steele left to pursue investigative reporting at Time. It was while they were at Time that the investigative reporting team won their two National Magazine Awards, as well at their record breaking 6th George Polk Award, although this time for excellence in magazine journalism.
After leaving Time over monetary issues, Barlett and Steele were hired by Vanity Fair
to be contributing editors on the understanding that they would contribute two articles in their signature long-form style each year. In 2007, Barlett and Steele, while still working for Vanity Fair, were featured in the PBS documentary series, Exposé: America's Investigative Reports
, in an episode entitled "Friends In High Places," which was about government contracts. When asked on the program how they have managed to work for so many years together, Barlett said, "We're both very boring. Who else reads the tax codes?" Their life-long passion for documents have fueled their career and led to important and award winning journalism.
Barlett is married and has a son as well as a stepson.
. As career investigative journalists, Barlett and Steele have become well known for their teamwork, "documents state of mind," consistent accuracy, "replicability" for revealing their sources, and ability to make their work relevant to ordinary people, such as in "America: What Went Wrong?". Their employers, especially Gene Roberts
at The Inquirer, provided them with the opportunity to spend a long period of time reviewing documents in pursuit of journalism with depth and gave them the space to publish their work in lengthy articles in newspapers and magazines.
About Barlett and Steele, fellow investigative reporter Bob Woodward said, "They're an institution. They have kind of perfected a method of doing their work, and I have the highest regard for it. Systematic, comprehensive - they take a long time, and they don't mind saying what their conclusions are."
Both Pulitzer Prize Awards illustrate the auditing function of investigative journalism, whereby the press as "The Fourth Estate" watches over government. In 1975, they audited the Internal Revenue Service
. In 1989, they acted as watchdogs over the House Ways and Means Committee Chair Dan Rostenkowski
and the insertion by Democrats and Republicans of temporary tax breaks in the Tax Reform Act of 1986
that favored business and saved millions.
Barlett and Steele are acknowledged as having had an impact on business investigative journalism throughout their four-decade career, and the Donald W. Reynolds National Center for Business Journalism established an annual award in their name in 2007.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
investigative journalist and author who collaborated with James B. Steele. According to The Washington Journalism Review (Magazine)
American Journalism Review
The American Journalism Review is a U.S. magazine covering topics in journalism. It is published six times a year by the Philip Merrill College of Journalism at the University of Maryland, College Park. The AJR has been owned since the late 1980s by a foundation of the university...
they were a better investigative reporting team than even Bob Woodward
Bob Woodward
Robert Upshur Woodward is an American investigative journalist and non-fiction author. He has worked for The Washington Post since 1971 as a reporter, and is currently an associate editor of the Post....
and Carl Bernstein
Carl Bernstein
Carl Bernstein is an American investigative journalist who, at The Washington Post, teamed up with Bob Woodward; the two did the majority of the most important news reporting on the Watergate scandal. These scandals led to numerous government investigations, the indictment of a vast number of...
. Together they have won two Pulitzer Prizes, two National Magazine Awards and six George Polk Awards. In addition, they have been recognized by their peers with awards from Investigative Reporters and Editors
Investigative Reporters and Editors
Investigative Reporters and Editors, Inc. is a nonprofit organization that focuses on the quality of investigative reporting. Formed in 1975, it presents the IRE Awards and holds conferences and training classes for journalists. Its headquarters is in Columbia, Missouri, at the University of...
on five separate occasions. They are known for their reporting technique of delving deep into documents and then, after what could be a long investigative period, interviewing the necessary sources. The duo has been working together for over 40 years and is frequently referred to as Barlett and Steele.
Life
Barlett was raised in JohnstownJohnstown, Pennsylvania
Johnstown is a city in Cambria County, Pennsylvania, United States, west-southwest of Altoona, Pennsylvania and east of Pittsburgh. The population was 20,978 at the 2010 census. It is the principal city of the Johnstown, Pennsylvania, Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includes Cambria County...
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
. After attending Pennsylvania State University
Pennsylvania State University
The Pennsylvania State University, commonly referred to as Penn State or PSU, is a public research university with campuses and facilities throughout the state of Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1855, the university has a threefold mission of teaching, research, and public service...
, he served three years as a special agent with the US Army Counter Intelligence Corps
Counter Intelligence Corps
The Counter Intelligence Corps was a World War II and early Cold War intelligence agency within the United States Army. Its role was taken over by the U.S. Army Intelligence Corps in 1961 and, in 1967, by the U.S. Army Intelligence Agency...
until 1956, when he began his journalistic career as a reporter for the Reading (Pennsylvania) Times. Nine years later he become an investigative journalist for The Plain Dealer, and later took similar jobs with The Chicago Daily News and The Philadelphia Inquirer
The Philadelphia Inquirer
The Philadelphia Inquirer is a morning daily newspaper that serves the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, metropolitan area of the United States. The newspaper was founded by John R. Walker and John Norvell in June 1829 as The Pennsylvania Inquirer and is the third-oldest surviving daily newspaper in the...
, where he was to join his collaborator James B. Steele. In 1997, Barlett and Steele became an editors-at-large for Time
Time (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
. In 2006, they moved to Vanity Fair
Vanity Fair (magazine)
Vanity Fair is a magazine of pop culture, fashion, and current affairs published by Condé Nast. The present Vanity Fair has been published since 1983 and there have been editions for four European countries as well as the U.S. edition. This revived the title which had ceased publication in 1935...
as contributing editors. Over the years, Barlett and Steele wrote on such diverse topics as crime, housing, nuclear waste, tax loopholes, the decline of the middle class's standard of living, Howard Hughes
Howard Hughes
Howard Robard Hughes, Jr. was an American business magnate, investor, aviator, engineer, film producer, director, and philanthropist. He was one of the wealthiest people in the world...
, the role of big money in politics, oil prices, immigration and health care.
Barlett and Steele won two Pulitzers and were recognized for their contributions to American journalism for their work while at The Philadelphia Inquirer. In 1972, during one of their earliest collaborations for The Inquirer, Barlett and Steele pioneered the use of computers for the analysis of data on violent crimes. Barlett and Steele won their first Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting in 1975 for a series called "Auditing the Internal Revenue Service" published by The Inquirer. They won their second Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting in 1989 at the Inquirer for their coverage of temporary tax breaks embedded in the Tax Reform Act of 1986. Their 1991 Inquirer series America: What Went Wrong? was named by the New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
department of journalism as 51st on its list of the 100 best pieces of journalism of the 20th century. Rewritten as a book it became a No. 1 New York Times bestseller. It is one of seven books Barlett and Steele have published, five of which were written while at the The Inquirer.
After 26 years as a team for The Inquirer, Barlett and Steele left to pursue investigative reporting at Time. It was while they were at Time that the investigative reporting team won their two National Magazine Awards, as well at their record breaking 6th George Polk Award, although this time for excellence in magazine journalism.
After leaving Time over monetary issues, Barlett and Steele were hired by Vanity Fair
Vanity Fair (magazine)
Vanity Fair is a magazine of pop culture, fashion, and current affairs published by Condé Nast. The present Vanity Fair has been published since 1983 and there have been editions for four European countries as well as the U.S. edition. This revived the title which had ceased publication in 1935...
to be contributing editors on the understanding that they would contribute two articles in their signature long-form style each year. In 2007, Barlett and Steele, while still working for Vanity Fair, were featured in the PBS documentary series, Exposé: America's Investigative Reports
EXPOSÉ: America's Investigative Reports
Exposé: America's Investigative Reports is a half-hour PBS documentary series that details some of the most revealing investigative journalism in America. Tentatively titled Airtime during development, Thirteen/WNET and the Center for Investigative Reporting launched AIR: America's Investigative...
, in an episode entitled "Friends In High Places," which was about government contracts. When asked on the program how they have managed to work for so many years together, Barlett said, "We're both very boring. Who else reads the tax codes?" Their life-long passion for documents have fueled their career and led to important and award winning journalism.
Barlett is married and has a son as well as a stepson.
Impact
Barlett and Steele are used as examples in investigative reporting textbooks as a model of technique and excellence in journalismJournalism
Journalism is the practice of investigation and reporting of events, issues and trends to a broad audience in a timely fashion. Though there are many variations of journalism, the ideal is to inform the intended audience. Along with covering organizations and institutions such as government and...
. As career investigative journalists, Barlett and Steele have become well known for their teamwork, "documents state of mind," consistent accuracy, "replicability" for revealing their sources, and ability to make their work relevant to ordinary people, such as in "America: What Went Wrong?". Their employers, especially Gene Roberts
Gene Roberts
Gene Roberts may refer to:* Gene Roberts , American editor and professor of journalism* Gene Roberts , former NFL running back...
at The Inquirer, provided them with the opportunity to spend a long period of time reviewing documents in pursuit of journalism with depth and gave them the space to publish their work in lengthy articles in newspapers and magazines.
About Barlett and Steele, fellow investigative reporter Bob Woodward said, "They're an institution. They have kind of perfected a method of doing their work, and I have the highest regard for it. Systematic, comprehensive - they take a long time, and they don't mind saying what their conclusions are."
Both Pulitzer Prize Awards illustrate the auditing function of investigative journalism, whereby the press as "The Fourth Estate" watches over government. In 1975, they audited the Internal Revenue Service
Internal Revenue Service
The Internal Revenue Service is the revenue service of the United States federal government. The agency is a bureau of the Department of the Treasury, and is under the immediate direction of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue...
. In 1989, they acted as watchdogs over the House Ways and Means Committee Chair Dan Rostenkowski
Dan Rostenkowski
Daniel David "Dan" Rostenkowski was a United States Representative from Illinois, serving from 1959 to 1995. Raised in a blue-collar neighborhood on the Northwest Side of Chicago, Rostenkowski rose to become one of the most powerful legislators in Washington. He was a member of the Democratic Party...
and the insertion by Democrats and Republicans of temporary tax breaks in the Tax Reform Act of 1986
Tax Reform Act of 1986
The U.S. Congress passed the Tax Reform Act of 1986 to simplify the income tax code, broaden the tax base and eliminate many tax shelters and other preferences...
that favored business and saved millions.
Barlett and Steele are acknowledged as having had an impact on business investigative journalism throughout their four-decade career, and the Donald W. Reynolds National Center for Business Journalism established an annual award in their name in 2007.
Books
Newspaper articles
"America: What Went Wrong?"
"America: Who Stole the Dream?"
Magazine articles
External links
- Don Barlett and Jim Steele's website
- Barlett & Steele Awards for Investigative Business Journalism
- Terry Gross's interview about gambling on reservations with Barlett & Steele on NPR's Fresh Air (16 December 2002)
- Terry Gross's interview "The Big Business of Health Care" with Barlett & Steele on NPR's Fresh Air (06 October 2004)
- Exposé:"Friends in High Places" on PBS (July 2007)
- Liberadio(!) Interview with Don Barlett (12 February 2007)