NEW YORK Former Washington Post Ombudsman Geneva Overholser criticized her former newspaper, saying it should either sever its ties with Bob Woodward or require the legendary Watergate scribe to work solely for the paper, not pen his best-selling books on the side.
"It isn't an arrangement that can really work at the Post," said Overholser, who served as ombudsman from 1995 to 1998 and later as a Post columnist for three years. "If I were editor, I would say, 'Bob, you've got to pick.'"
Overholser's comments come one week after Woodward revealed that he had testified before special prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald about a confidential conversation he had in 2003 with a White House aide about Valerie Plame's identity as a CIA analyst. He also disclosed that he had kept that conversation from Post editors for more than two years, revealing it to Executive Editor Leonard Downie Jr., just last month.
Overholser, who also served as editor of the Des Moines Register from 1988 to 1995, holds an endowed chair at the Washington bureau of the University of Missouri School of Journalism. While she praised Downie as an editor with great strengths, she also said his response to the Woodward situation -- allowing the writer's dual roles to continue, but with a demand for more communication on outside projects -- does not go far enough.
"I don't think he is acknowledging the degree to which this poses a problem for the Post," Overholser said. "To have Woodward operate this way."
Downie, who has been editor since 1991, countered Overholser's comments, saying, "I totally disagree with that. For 30 years, the arrangement has worked." Reminding her how Woodward's involvement with the Post has helped the paper break numerous stories over the years, Downie said such criticisms of the situation might stem from a lack of knowledge about the paper's internal operations. "I think it is hard for people to understand, which is understandable," he said.
The former ombudsman also revealed that Downie's actions did not surprise her, claiming he often protected Woodward in the past. "I didn't find that he had much enthusiasm for any criticism of Bob Woodward," Overholser recalled about her time at the paper. She also cited several instances when she was ombudsman in which she publicly criticized the paper's use of anonymous sourcing, and at least one time when she spoke out against the paper putting a lead story on Page One about a Woodward book excerpt.
"One of the things that distressed me was the proliferation of anonymous sources at the Post," she said. "I wrote about it frequently. I think Woodward had a role in that."
As for Overholser's accusations, Downie said, "I think I'm actually known for listening to criticism, especially about me." Then he added, "I don't remember her ever giving me that advice when she was ombudsman."
Woodward could not be reached for comment. On Larry King's CNN show on Monday night he called Downie "the best newspaperman in America."
Joe Strupp (jstrupp@editorandpublisher.com) is a senior editor at E&P.
