NEW YORK (AP) -- The New York Times said Thursday that it has appointed Pulitzer Prize-winning newsman Clark Hoyt as its new public editor.
Hoyt, 64, is a veteran journalist who spent much of his career at Knight Ridder newspapers, where his coverage of Democratic vice presidential candidate Thomas F. Eagleton during the 1972 election won a Pulitzer. He was Washington editor for the chain until its sale last year, and since June had been working as a newsroom consultant to its new owners, McClatchy Co.
Hoyt will be in the post for a fixed two-year term and take over the role of writing about the Times for the newspaper from Byron Calame, who is finishing his own two-year stint.
As the Times' public editor, Hoyt will work independently of the paper's regular editors in a job that is part media critic, part ombudsman. The paper said Hoyt will write a column critiquing the Times' journalistic practices and answer questions from readers.
"We expect him to hold us accountable to our own standards," the paper's executive editor, Bill Keller, said in a written statement.
During his tenure, Calame clashed with Times reporter Judith Miller, calling for a review of her journalistic practices, defended the paper's reporting on the CIA's "forced rendition" program, and chided the Times for failing to adequately explain to readers why it waited a year to report that the National Security Agency engaged in domestic eavesdropping without court-approved warrants.
In a staff memo, Keller thanked Calame for taking on "the most thankless job in journalism," saying he had performed a "great service" for the paper.
Over his career, Hoyt worked for The Ledger of Lakeland, Fla., the Detroit Free Press, The Miami Herald, and The Wichita Eagle-Beacon.
He shared a Pulitzer with Robert S. Boyd in 1973 for his reporting on the mental health history of Eagleton, who was George McGovern's running mate. The investigation, conducted while Hoyt was Washington correspondent for The Miami Herald, forced Eagleton from the ticket.
