More about: SEYMOUR TOPPING and
:"On The Front Lines of the Cold War - An American Correspondence's Journal for
the Chinese War to the Cuban Missile Crisis and Vietnam"
Seymour Topping has had a varied career as foreign correspondent, newspaper
editor, university professor and author. From November 1993 to July 2002 Topping
served as Administrator of the Pulitzer Prizes at Columbia University.
Concurrently, he held a chair as SanPaolo Professor of International Journalism
in the Graduate School of Journalism where he conducted seminars to prepare
reporters for work abroad in crisis areas. He inaugurated the course Covering
Ethic and Regional Conflicts. He retired from regular teaching in July 2002 to
devote more time to writing and is now SanPaolo Professor Emeritus of
International Journalism at Columbia University. In October 2004, Topping was
elected president at Columbia University of the fellowship Emeritus Professors
in Columbia (EPIC) He has continued to lecture on occasion at various
universities in the United States and in China. Prior to his career at Columbia
University, Topping was with The New York Times Company for 34 years as Chief
correspondent in Moscow for three years and Southeast Asia for three years,
foreign editor, and managing editor for ten years. He served subsequently as
Director of Editorial Development, responsible for the editorial quality of The
Times' 32 regional newspapers. In 1959, when Seymour Topping joined The Times,
he already had 13 years' experience as a foreign correspondent for The
Associated Press. He covered the Chinese Civil War for three years and was the
first correspondent to report the fall of Nanking, Chiang Kai-shek's capital, to
the Communists. In February 1950, he opened the AP bureau in Saigon and stayed
to cover the French Indochina War for two years. He then went on to posts for
the agency in London as diplomatic correspondent and Berlin as bureau chief.
Topping was born in New York on Dec. 11, 1921. During World War II, he served as
an army officer in the Pacific. He is a graduate of the University School of
Journalism, class of 1943. He received the School's Distinguished Service Award
in Journalism in 1968 and the Distinguished Alumni Award in 1993. Topping also
holds an honorary doctor of letters from Rider College, Lawrenceville, N.J. In
2002 The Center for International Journalists presented jointly to him and his
wife, Audrey, a photojournalist, author and documentary film maker, the first
annual Greenway-Winship Award for service to international journalism. In
1992-93 Topping served as president of the American Society of Newspaper
Editors. Currently, he is a member of the boards of the American committee of
the International Press Institute and the Advisory Board of the International
Center for Journalists. He is also member of the Council on Foreign Relations,
the Asia Society, and the National Committee on United States-China Relations,
and of the Century Association. Topping is the author of Journey Between Two
Chinas, published in 1972 by Harper & Row and The Peking Letter, A Novel of the
Chinese Civil War published in 1999 by PublicAffairs, and Fatal Crossroads, a
Novel of Vietnam 1945, published by EastBridge in January 2005. His most recent
book: "On The Front Lines of the Cold War - An American Correspondence's Journal
for the Chinese War to the Cuban Missile Crisis to Vietnam" 2010
In the years following World War II, the United States suffered
its most severe military and diplomatic reverses in Asia while
Mao Zedong laid the foundation for the emergence of China as a
major economic and military world power. As a correspondent for
the International News Service, the Associated Press, and later
for the New York Times, Seymour Topping documented on the
ground the tumultuous events during the Chinese Civil War, the
French Indochina War, and the American retreat from Vietnam,
Cambodia, and Laos. In this riveting narrative, Topping
chronicles his extraordinary experiences covering the East-West
struggle in Asia and Eastern Europe from 1946 into the 1980s,
taking us beyond conventional historical accounts to provide a
fresh, first-hand perspective on American triumphs and defeats
during the Cold War era.
At the close of World War II, Topping--who had served as an
infantry officer in the Pacific--reported for the International
News Service from Beijing and Mao's Yenan stronghold before
joining the Associated Press in Nanking, Chiang Kai-shek's
capital. He covered the Chinese Civil War for the next three
years, often interviewing Nationalist and Communist commanders
in combat zones. Crossing Nationalist lines, Topping was
captured by Communist guerrillas and tramped for days over
battlefields to reach the People's Liberation Army as it
advanced on Nanking. The sole correspondent on the battlefield
during the decisive Battle of the Huai-Hai, which sealed Mao's
victory, Topping later scored a world-wide exclusive as the
first journalist to report the fall of the capital.
In 1950, Topping opened the Associated Press bureau in
Saigon, becoming the first American correspondent in Vietnam. In
1951, John F. Kennedy, then a young congressman on a
fact-finding visit to Saigon, sought out Topping for a briefing.
Assignments in London and West Berlin followed, then Moscow and
Hong Kong for the New York Times. During those years
Topping reported on the Chinese intervention in the Korean
conflict, Mao's Cultural Revolution and its preceding internal
power struggle, the Chinese leader's monumental ideological
split with Nikita Khrushchev, the French Indochina War,
America's Vietnam War, and the genocides in Cambodia and
Indonesia. He stood in the Kremlin with a vodka-tilting
Khrushchev on the night the Cuban missile crisis ended and
interviewed Fidel Castro in Havana on its aftermath.
Throughout this captivating chronicle, Topping also relates
the story of his marriage to Audrey Ronning, a world-renowned
photojournalist and writer and daughter of the Canadian
ambassador to China. As the couple traveled from post to post
reporting on some of the biggest stories of the century in Asia
and Eastern Europe, they raised five daughters. In an epilogue,
Topping cites lessons to be learned from the Asia wars which
could serve as useful guides for American policymakers in
dealing with present-day conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq.
From China to Indochina, Burma to Korea and beyond, Topping
did more than report the news; he became involved in
international diplomacy, enabling him to gain extraordinary
insights.
In On the Front Lines of the Cold War, Topping shares
these insights, providing an invaluable eyewitness account of
some of the pivotal moments in modern history.<P>
About the Author
Seymour Topping retired from the New York Times in
1993. He served until 2002 as a professor of international
journalism at Columbia University and administrator of the
Pulitzer Prizes. Now professor emeritus, he lectures in the
United States and China, where he heads the International
Advisory Board of Tsinghua University. His previous books
include Journey Between Two Chinas, The Peking Letter: A
Novel of the Chinese Civil War, and Fatal Crossroads: A
Novel of Vietnam 1945.
Product Details
Hardcover: 435 pages
Publisher: Louisiana State University Press
(March 15, 2010)
Review: Former New York Times editor Seymour Topping leaves
nothing out in his memoir
By: RICHARD PYLE
Associated Press 03/22/10 5:20 AM PDT
"On the Front Lines of the Cold War: An American Correspondent's
Journal From the Chinese Civil War to the Cuban Missile Crisis and
Vietnam" (LSU, 397 pages, $39.95), by Seymour Topping: A former
editor of The New York Times sits down to write his memoir and the
title alone runs 24 words. But what else, one might ask, was a
reporter with Topping's breadth and depth of experience to do?
Topping, who retired as managing editor of the Times in 1987,
needed a lot of words for a long-awaited personal account of the 4
1/2 decades he spent holding hands with history.
As suggested by the basic title, "On the Front Lines of the Cold
War," Topping — or "Top," as he is known to longtime associates —
was a witness to some of the most crucial events of the last half of
the 20th century.
And not just a witness. At times he was so close to the events,
leaders and others in the arena, he was virtually there himself,
though conscious of the need to maintain the critical distance
between himself and those he was covering.
Indeed, Topping describes being invited to sit in on one meeting
of high-level administration officials, only to have them, at the
end, turn to him for his views.
Over the years, Topping came in direct contact with Mao Zedong,
Chiang Kai-shek, Nikita Khruschev and Fidel Castro, along with
soldiers, spies, diplomats, authors and fellow journalists.
While getting it all down for spot news dispatches, he clearly
kept posterity in mind. Judging by the detail densely packed into
397 pages, he filed stories from every exotic dateline and never
threw away a notebook.
Especially interesting is Topping's tale of being sent by his
then-employer, The Associated Press, to become the first American
correspondent based in French Indochina after World War II. Minutes
after he and his wife, Audrey, arrived in Saigon in February 1950, a
terrorist bomb exploded outside their hotel, killing and wounding
dozens of French colonial soldiers.
The following year, Topping covered the arrival of a young U.S
Congressman on a "study tour" visit. At the airport, the visitor
asked to meet with Topping and the next day, John F. Kennedy climbed
the stairs to the Toppings' small apartment, "seated himself in an
easy chair near the bamboo bar" and peppered Topping with two hours
of questions about "every aspect of the Vietnam conflict."
No one could imagine the visit would have a "profound impact" on
U.S. policy in Indochina, Topping says; that a decade later, JFK as
president would order 400 military advisers to help the shaky South
Vietnamese regime fight a communist takeover.
Topping's writing conveys a passion for his craft, but his
scrupulous concern for the minutiae of events might intimidate
readers looking for a fast, exciting read. Even so, the book is a
feast for students of history who want to know not just how things
turned out, but also how it actually happened.
Born in the Bronx section of New York and seasoned as an infantry
officer in World War II, Topping joined the Hearst-owned
International News Service in China, jumped to the steadier AP
there, and ultimately wound up as managing editor of The New York
Times.
After his final departure from the Times in 1993, he taught
journalism at Columbia University and served as its administrator of
the Pulitzer Prizes.
There's plenty here for students of journalism history, including
courtly accounts of the executive suite and newsroom intrigues for
which the Times is noted, and such memorable controversies as
Timesman Harrison Salisbury's disputed reports from Hanoi in late
1966 and the Pentagon Papers in 1971 — both of which happened on
Topping's watch as foreign editor.
At the end, Topping summarizes the failure of American policy not
only in Vietnam but also, in his view, just about everywhere.
This gloomy record is one of "flawed government handling of
national security issues" by successive administrations from Harry
Truman to George W. Bush, he writes.
But he wraps it all up with a hopeful prediction: that today's
financially beleaguered newspapers will meet the challenges of the
digital age "if they retain the courage and quality of journalism"
that made organizations such as the Times, The Washington Post
Review: Former New York Times editor Seymour Topping leaves
nothing out in his memoir
By: RICHARD PYLE
Associated Press 03/22/10 5:20 AM PDT
"On the Front Lines of the Cold War: An American Correspondent's
Journal From the Chinese Civil War to the Cuban Missile Crisis and
Vietnam" (LSU, 397 pages, $39.95), by Seymour Topping: A former
editor of The New York Times sits down to write his memoir and the
title alone runs 24 words. But what else, one might ask, was a
reporter with Topping's breadth and depth of experience to do?
Topping, who retired as managing editor of the Times in 1987,
needed a lot of words for a long-awaited personal account of the 4
1/2 decades he spent holding hands with history.
As suggested by the basic title, "On the Front Lines of the Cold
War," Topping — or "Top," as he is known to longtime associates —
was a witness to some of the most crucial events of the last half of
the 20th century.
And not just a witness. At times he was so close to the events,
leaders and others in the arena, he was virtually there himself,
though conscious of the need to maintain the critical distance
between himself and those he was covering.
Indeed, Topping describes being invited to sit in on one meeting
of high-level administration officials, only to have them, at the
end, turn to him for his views.
Over the years, Topping came in direct contact with Mao Zedong,
Chiang Kai-shek, Nikita Khruschev and Fidel Castro, along with
soldiers, spies, diplomats, authors and fellow journalists.
While getting it all down for spot news dispatches, he clearly
kept posterity in mind. Judging by the detail densely packed into
397 pages, he filed stories from every exotic dateline and never
threw away a notebook.
Especially interesting is Topping's tale of being sent by his
then-employer, The Associated Press, to become the first American
correspondent based in French Indochina after World War II. Minutes
after he and his wife, Audrey, arrived in Saigon in February 1950, a
terrorist bomb exploded outside their hotel, killing and wounding
dozens of French colonial soldiers.
The following year, Topping covered the arrival of a young U.S
Congressman on a "study tour" visit. At the airport, the visitor
asked to meet with Topping and the next day, John F. Kennedy climbed
the stairs to the Toppings' small apartment, "seated himself in an
easy chair near the bamboo bar" and peppered Topping with two hours
of questions about "every aspect of the Vietnam conflict."
No one could imagine the visit would have a "profound impact" on
U.S. policy in Indochina, Topping says; that a decade later, JFK as
president would order 400 military advisers to help the shaky South
Vietnamese regime fight a communist takeover.
Topping's writing conveys a passion for his craft, but his
scrupulous concern for the minutiae of events might intimidate
readers looking for a fast, exciting read. Even so, the book is a
feast for students of history who want to know not just how things
turned out, but also how it actually happened.
Born in the Bronx section of New York and seasoned as an infantry
officer in World War II, Topping joined the Hearst-owned
International News Service in China, jumped to the steadier AP
there, and ultimately wound up as managing editor of The New York
Times.
After his final departure from the Times in 1993, he taught
journalism at Columbia University and served as its administrator of
the Pulitzer Prizes.
There's plenty here for students of journalism history, including
courtly accounts of the executive suite and newsroom intrigues for
which the Times is noted, and such memorable controversies as
Timesman Harrison Salisbury's disputed reports from Hanoi in late
1966 and the Pentagon Papers in 1971 — both of which happened on
Topping's watch as foreign editor.
At the end, Topping summarizes the failure of American policy not
only in Vietnam but also, in his view, just about everywhere.
This gloomy record is one of "flawed government handling of
national security issues" by successive administrations from Harry
Truman to George W. Bush, he writes.
But he wraps it all up with a hopeful prediction: that today's
financially beleaguered newspapers will meet the challenges of the
digital age "if they retain the courage and quality of journalism"
that made organizations such as the Times, The Washington Post
Review: Former New York Times editor Seymour Topping leaves
nothing out in his memoir
By: RICHARD PYLE
Associated Press 03/22/10 5:20 AM PDT
"On the Front Lines of the Cold War: An American Correspondent's
Journal From the Chinese Civil War to the Cuban Missile Crisis and
Vietnam" (LSU, 397 pages, $39.95), by Seymour Topping: A former
editor of The New York Times sits down to write his memoir and the
title alone runs 24 words. But what else, one might ask, was a
reporter with Topping's breadth and depth of experience to do?
Topping, who retired as managing editor of the Times in 1987,
needed a lot of words for a long-awaited personal account of the 4
1/2 decades he spent holding hands with history.
As suggested by the basic title, "On the Front Lines of the Cold
War," Topping — or "Top," as he is known to longtime associates —
was a witness to some of the most crucial events of the last half of
the 20th century.
And not just a witness. At times he was so close to the events,
leaders and others in the arena, he was virtually there himself,
though conscious of the need to maintain the critical distance
between himself and those he was covering.
Indeed, Topping describes being invited to sit in on one meeting
of high-level administration officials, only to have them, at the
end, turn to him for his views.
Over the years, Topping came in direct contact with Mao Zedong,
Chiang Kai-shek, Nikita Khruschev and Fidel Castro, along with
soldiers, spies, diplomats, authors and fellow journalists.
While getting it all down for spot news dispatches, he clearly
kept posterity in mind. Judging by the detail densely packed into
397 pages, he filed stories from every exotic dateline and never
threw away a notebook.
Especially interesting is Topping's tale of being sent by his
then-employer, The Associated Press, to become the first American
correspondent based in French Indochina after World War II. Minutes
after he and his wife, Audrey, arrived in Saigon in February 1950, a
terrorist bomb exploded outside their hotel, killing and wounding
dozens of French colonial soldiers.
The following year, Topping covered the arrival of a young U.S
Congressman on a "study tour" visit. At the airport, the visitor
asked to meet with Topping and the next day, John F. Kennedy climbed
the stairs to the Toppings' small apartment, "seated himself in an
easy chair near the bamboo bar" and peppered Topping with two hours
of questions about "every aspect of the Vietnam conflict."
No one could imagine the visit would have a "profound impact" on
U.S. policy in Indochina, Topping says; that a decade later, JFK as
president would order 400 military advisers to help the shaky South
Vietnamese regime fight a communist takeover.
Topping's writing conveys a passion for his craft, but his
scrupulous concern for the minutiae of events might intimidate
readers looking for a fast, exciting read. Even so, the book is a
feast for students of history who want to know not just how things
turned out, but also how it actually happened.
Born in the Bronx section of New York and seasoned as an infantry
officer in World War II, Topping joined the Hearst-owned
International News Service in China, jumped to the steadier AP
there, and ultimately wound up as managing editor of The New York
Times.
After his final departure from the Times in 1993, he taught
journalism at Columbia University and served as its administrator of
the Pulitzer Prizes.
There's plenty here for students of journalism history, including
courtly accounts of the executive suite and newsroom intrigues for
which the Times is noted, and such memorable controversies as
Timesman Harrison Salisbury's disputed reports from Hanoi in late
1966 and the Pentagon Papers in 1971 — both of which happened on
Topping's watch as foreign editor.
At the end, Topping summarizes the failure of American policy not
only in Vietnam but also, in his view, just about everywhere.
This gloomy record is one of "flawed government handling of
national security issues" by successive administrations from Harry
Truman to George W. Bush, he writes.
But he wraps it all up with a hopeful prediction: that today's
financially beleaguered newspapers will meet the challenges of the
digital age "if they retain the courage and quality of journalism"
that made organizations such as the Times, The Washington Post
Review: Former New York Times editor Seymour Topping leaves
nothing out in his memoir
By: RICHARD PYLE
Associated Press 03/22/10 5:20 AM PDT
"On the Front Lines of the Cold War: An American Correspondent's
Journal From the Chinese Civil War to the Cuban Missile Crisis and
Vietnam" (LSU, 397 pages, $39.95), by Seymour Topping: A former
editor of The New York Times sits down to write his memoir and the
title alone runs 24 words. But what else, one might ask, was a
reporter with Topping's breadth and depth of experience to do?
Topping, who retired as managing editor of the Times in 1987,
needed a lot of words for a long-awaited personal account of the 4
1/2 decades he spent holding hands with history.
As suggested by the basic title, "On the Front Lines of the Cold
War," Topping — or "Top," as he is known to longtime associates —
was a witness to some of the most crucial events of the last half of
the 20th century.
And not just a witness. At times he was so close to the events,
leaders and others in the arena, he was virtually there himself,
though conscious of the need to maintain the critical distance
between himself and those he was covering.
Indeed, Topping describes being invited to sit in on one meeting
of high-level administration officials, only to have them, at the
end, turn to him for his views.
Over the years, Topping came in direct contact with Mao Zedong,
Chiang Kai-shek, Nikita Khruschev and Fidel Castro, along with
soldiers, spies, diplomats, authors and fellow journalists.
While getting it all down for spot news dispatches, he clearly
kept posterity in mind. Judging by the detail densely packed into
397 pages, he filed stories from every exotic dateline and never
threw away a notebook.
Especially interesting is Topping's tale of being sent by his
then-employer, The Associated Press, to become the first American
correspondent based in French Indochina after World War II. Minutes
after he and his wife, Audrey, arrived in Saigon in February 1950, a
terrorist bomb exploded outside their hotel, killing and wounding
dozens of French colonial soldiers.
The following year, Topping covered the arrival of a young U.S
Congressman on a "study tour" visit. At the airport, the visitor
asked to meet with Topping and the next day, John F. Kennedy climbed
the stairs to the Toppings' small apartment, "seated himself in an
easy chair near the bamboo bar" and peppered Topping with two hours
of questions about "every aspect of the Vietnam conflict."
No one could imagine the visit would have a "profound impact" on
U.S. policy in Indochina, Topping says; that a decade later, JFK as
president would order 400 military advisers to help the shaky South
Vietnamese regime fight a communist takeover.
Topping's writing conveys a passion for his craft, but his
scrupulous concern for the minutiae of events might intimidate
readers looking for a fast, exciting read. Even so, the book is a
feast for students of history who want to know not just how things
turned out, but also how it actually happened.
Born in the Bronx section of New York and seasoned as an infantry
officer in World War II, Topping joined the Hearst-owned
International News Service in China, jumped to the steadier AP
there, and ultimately wound up as managing editor of The New York
Times.
After his final departure from the Times in 1993, he taught
journalism at Columbia University and served as its administrator of
the Pulitzer Prizes.
There's plenty here for students of journalism history, including
courtly accounts of the executive suite and newsroom intrigues for
which the Times is noted, and such memorable controversies as
Timesman Harrison Salisbury's disputed reports from Hanoi in late
1966 and the Pentagon Papers in 1971 — both of which happened on
Topping's watch as foreign editor.
At the end, Topping summarizes the failure of American policy not
only in Vietnam but also, in his view, just about everywhere.
This gloomy record is one of "flawed government handling of
national security issues" by successive administrations from Harry
Truman to George W. Bush, he writes.
But he wraps it all up with a hopeful prediction: that today's
financially beleaguered newspapers will meet the challenges of the
digital age "if they retain the courage and quality of journalism"
that made organizations such as the Times, The Washington Post
Review: Former New York Times editor Seymour Topping leaves
nothing out in his memoir
By: RICHARD PYLE
Associated Press 03/22/10 5:20 AM PDT
"On the Front Lines of the Cold War: An American Correspondent's
Journal From the Chinese Civil War to the Cuban Missile Crisis and
Vietnam" (LSU, 397 pages, $39.95), by Seymour Topping: A former
editor of The New York Times sits down to write his memoir and the
title alone runs 24 words. But what else, one might ask, was a
reporter with Topping's breadth and depth of experience to do?
Topping, who retired as managing editor of the Times in 1987,
needed a lot of words for a long-awaited personal account of the 4
1/2 decades he spent holding hands with history.
As suggested by the basic title, "On the Front Lines of the Cold
War," Topping — or "Top," as he is known to longtime associates —
was a witness to some of the most crucial events of the last half of
the 20th century.
And not just a witness. At times he was so close to the events,
leaders and others in the arena, he was virtually there himself,
though conscious of the need to maintain the critical distance
between himself and those he was covering.
Indeed, Topping describes being invited to sit in on one meeting
of high-level administration officials, only to have them, at the
end, turn to him for his views.
Over the years, Topping came in direct contact with Mao Zedong,
Chiang Kai-shek, Nikita Khruschev and Fidel Castro, along with
soldiers, spies, diplomats, authors and fellow journalists.
While getting it all down for spot news dispatches, he clearly
kept posterity in mind. Judging by the detail densely packed into
397 pages, he filed stories from every exotic dateline and never
threw away a notebook.
Especially interesting is Topping's tale of being sent by his
then-employer, The Associated Press, to become the first American
correspondent based in French Indochina after World War II. Minutes
after he and his wife, Audrey, arrived in Saigon in February 1950, a
terrorist bomb exploded outside their hotel, killing and wounding
dozens of French colonial soldiers.
The following year, Topping covered the arrival of a young U.S
Congressman on a "study tour" visit. At the airport, the visitor
asked to meet with Topping and the next day, John F. Kennedy climbed
the stairs to the Toppings' small apartment, "seated himself in an
easy chair near the bamboo bar" and peppered Topping with two hours
of questions about "every aspect of the Vietnam conflict."
No one could imagine the visit would have a "profound impact" on
U.S. policy in Indochina, Topping says; that a decade later, JFK as
president would order 400 military advisers to help the shaky South
Vietnamese regime fight a communist takeover.
Topping's writing conveys a passion for his craft, but his
scrupulous concern for the minutiae of events might intimidate
readers looking for a fast, exciting read. Even so, the book is a
feast for students of history who want to know not just how things
turned out, but also how it actually happened.
Born in the Bronx section of New York and seasoned as an infantry
officer in World War II, Topping joined the Hearst-owned
International News Service in China, jumped to the steadier AP
there, and ultimately wound up as managing editor of The New York
Times.
After his final departure from the Times in 1993, he taught
journalism at Columbia University and served as its administrator of
the Pulitzer Prizes.
There's plenty here for students of journalism history, including
courtly accounts of the executive suite and newsroom intrigues for
which the Times is noted, and such memorable controversies as
Timesman Harrison Salisbury's disputed reports from Hanoi in late
1966 and the Pentagon Papers in 1971 — both of which happened on
Topping's watch as foreign editor.
At the end, Topping summarizes the failure of American policy not
only in Vietnam but also, in his view, just about everywhere.
This gloomy record is one of "flawed government handling of
national security issues" by successive administrations from Harry
Truman to George W. Bush, he writes.
But he wraps it all up with a hopeful prediction: that today's
financially beleaguered newspapers will meet the challenges of the
digital age "if they retain the courage and quality of journalism"
that made organizations such as the Times, The Washington Post
Review: Former New York Times editor Seymour Topping leaves
nothing out in his memoir
By: RICHARD PYLE
Associated Press 03/22/10 5:20 AM PDT
"On the Front Lines of the Cold War: An American Correspondent's
Journal From the Chinese Civil War to the Cuban Missile Crisis and
Vietnam" (LSU, 397 pages, $39.95), by Seymour Topping: A former
editor of The New York Times sits down to write his memoir and the
title alone runs 24 words. But what else, one might ask, was a
reporter with Topping's breadth and depth of experience to do?
Topping, who retired as managing editor of the Times in 1987,
needed a lot of words for a long-awaited personal account of the 4
1/2 decades he spent holding hands with history.
As suggested by the basic title, "On the Front Lines of the Cold
War," Topping — or "Top," as he is known to longtime associates —
was a witness to some of the most crucial events of the last half of
the 20th century.
And not just a witness. At times he was so close to the events,
leaders and others in the arena, he was virtually there himself,
though conscious of the need to maintain the critical distance
between himself and those he was covering.
Indeed, Topping describes being invited to sit in on one meeting
of high-level administration officials, only to have them, at the
end, turn to him for his views.
Over the years, Topping came in direct contact with Mao Zedong,
Chiang Kai-shek, Nikita Khruschev and Fidel Castro, along with
soldiers, spies, diplomats, authors and fellow journalists.
While getting it all down for spot news dispatches, he clearly
kept posterity in mind. Judging by the detail densely packed into
397 pages, he filed stories from every exotic dateline and never
threw away a notebook.
Especially interesting is Topping's tale of being sent by his
then-employer, The Associated Press, to become the first American
correspondent based in French Indochina after World War II. Minutes
after he and his wife, Audrey, arrived in Saigon in February 1950, a
terrorist bomb exploded outside their hotel, killing and wounding
dozens of French colonial soldiers.
The following year, Topping covered the arrival of a young U.S
Congressman on a "study tour" visit. At the airport, the visitor
asked to meet with Topping and the next day, John F. Kennedy climbed
the stairs to the Toppings' small apartment, "seated himself in an
easy chair near the bamboo bar" and peppered Topping with two hours
of questions about "every aspect of the Vietnam conflict."
No one could imagine the visit would have a "profound impact" on
U.S. policy in Indochina, Topping says; that a decade later, JFK as
president would order 400 military advisers to help the shaky South
Vietnamese regime fight a communist takeover.
Topping's writing conveys a passion for his craft, but his
scrupulous concern for the minutiae of events might intimidate
readers looking for a fast, exciting read. Even so, the book is a
feast for students of history who want to know not just how things
turned out, but also how it actually happened.
Born in the Bronx section of New York and seasoned as an infantry
officer in World War II, Topping joined the Hearst-owned
International News Service in China, jumped to the steadier AP
there, and ultimately wound up as managing editor of The New York
Times.
After his final departure from the Times in 1993, he taught
journalism at Columbia University and served as its administrator of
the Pulitzer Prizes.
There's plenty here for students of journalism history, including
courtly accounts of the executive suite and newsroom intrigues for
which the Times is noted, and such memorable controversies as
Timesman Harrison Salisbury's disputed reports from Hanoi in late
1966 and the Pentagon Papers in 1971 — both of which happened on
Topping's watch as foreign editor.
At the end, Topping summarizes the failure of American policy not
only in Vietnam but also, in his view, just about everywhere.
This gloomy record is one of "flawed government handling of
national security issues" by successive administrations from Harry
Truman to George W. Bush, he writes.
But he wraps it all up with a hopeful prediction: that today's
financially beleaguered newspapers will meet the challenges of the
digital age "if they retain the courage and quality of journalism"
that made organizations such as the Times, The Washington Post
Review: Former New York Times editor Seymour Topping leaves
nothing out in his memoir
By: RICHARD PYLE
Associated Press 03/22/10 5:20 AM PDT
"On the Front Lines of the Cold War: An American Correspondent's
Journal From the Chinese Civil War to the Cuban Missile Crisis and
Vietnam" (LSU, 397 pages, $39.95), by Seymour Topping: A former
editor of The New York Times sits down to write his memoir and the
title alone runs 24 words. But what else, one might ask, was a
reporter with Topping's breadth and depth of experience to do?
Topping, who retired as managing editor of the Times in 1987,
needed a lot of words for a long-awaited personal account of the 4
1/2 decades he spent holding hands with history.
As suggested by the basic title, "On the Front Lines of the Cold
War," Topping — or "Top," as he is known to longtime associates —
was a witness to some of the most crucial events of the last half of
the 20th century.
And not just a witness. At times he was so close to the events,
leaders and others in the arena, he was virtually there himself,
though conscious of the need to maintain the critical distance
between himself and those he was covering.
Indeed, Topping describes being invited to sit in on one meeting
of high-level administration officials, only to have them, at the
end, turn to him for his views.
Over the years, Topping came in direct contact with Mao Zedong,
Chiang Kai-shek, Nikita Khruschev and Fidel Castro, along with
soldiers, spies, diplomats, authors and fellow journalists.
While getting it all down for spot news dispatches, he clearly
kept posterity in mind. Judging by the detail densely packed into
397 pages, he filed stories from every exotic dateline and never
threw away a notebook.
Especially interesting is Topping's tale of being sent by his
then-employer, The Associated Press, to become the first American
correspondent based in French Indochina after World War II. Minutes
after he and his wife, Audrey, arrived in Saigon in February 1950, a
terrorist bomb exploded outside their hotel, killing and wounding
dozens of French colonial soldiers.
The following year, Topping covered the arrival of a young U.S
Congressman on a "study tour" visit. At the airport, the visitor
asked to meet with Topping and the next day, John F. Kennedy climbed
the stairs to the Toppings' small apartment, "seated himself in an
easy chair near the bamboo bar" and peppered Topping with two hours
of questions about "every aspect of the Vietnam conflict."
No one could imagine the visit would have a "profound impact" on
U.S. policy in Indochina, Topping says; that a decade later, JFK as
president would order 400 military advisers to help the shaky South
Vietnamese regime fight a communist takeover.
Topping's writing conveys a passion for his craft, but his
scrupulous concern for the minutiae of events might intimidate
readers looking for a fast, exciting read. Even so, the book is a
feast for students of history who want to know not just how things
turned out, but also how it actually happened.
Born in the Bronx section of New York and seasoned as an infantry
officer in World War II, Topping joined the Hearst-owned
International News Service in China, jumped to the steadier AP
there, and ultimately wound up as managing editor of The New York
Times.
After his final departure from the Times in 1993, he taught
journalism at Columbia University and served as its administrator of
the Pulitzer Prizes.
There's plenty here for students of journalism history, including
courtly accounts of the executive suite and newsroom intrigues for
which the Times is noted, and such memorable controversies as
Timesman Harrison Salisbury's disputed reports from Hanoi in late
1966 and the Pentagon Papers in 1971 — both of which happened on
Topping's watch as foreign editor.
At the end, Topping summarizes the failure of American policy not
only in Vietnam but also, in his view, just about everywhere.
This gloomy record is one of "flawed government handling of
national security issues" by successive administrations from Harry
Truman to George W. Bush, he writes.
But he wraps it all up with a hopeful prediction: that today's
financially beleaguered newspapers will meet the challenges of the
digital age "if they retain the courage and quality of journalism"
that made organizations such as the Times, The Washington Post
Review: Former New York Times editor Seymour Topping leaves
nothing out in his memoir
By: RICHARD PYLE
Associated Press 03/22/10 5:20 AM PDT
"On the Front Lines of the Cold War: An American Correspondent's
Journal From the Chinese Civil War to the Cuban Missile Crisis and
Vietnam" (LSU, 397 pages, $39.95), by Seymour Topping: A former
editor of The New York Times sits down to write his memoir and the
title alone runs 24 words. But what else, one might ask, was a
reporter with Topping's breadth and depth of experience to do?
Topping, who retired as managing editor of the Times in 1987,
needed a lot of words for a long-awaited personal account of the 4
1/2 decades he spent holding hands with history.
As suggested by the basic title, "On the Front Lines of the Cold
War," Topping — or "Top," as he is known to longtime associates —
was a witness to some of the most crucial events of the last half of
the 20th century.
And not just a witness. At times he was so close to the events,
leaders and others in the arena, he was virtually there himself,
though conscious of the need to maintain the critical distance
between himself and those he was covering.
Indeed, Topping describes being invited to sit in on one meeting
of high-level administration officials, only to have them, at the
end, turn to him for his views.
Over the years, Topping came in direct contact with Mao Zedong,
Chiang Kai-shek, Nikita Khruschev and Fidel Castro, along with
soldiers, spies, diplomats, authors and fellow journalists.
While getting it all down for spot news dispatches, he clearly
kept posterity in mind. Judging by the detail densely packed into
397 pages, he filed stories from every exotic dateline and never
threw away a notebook.
Especially interesting is Topping's tale of being sent by his
then-employer, The Associated Press, to become the first American
correspondent based in French Indochina after World War II. Minutes
after he and his wife, Audrey, arrived in Saigon in February 1950, a
terrorist bomb exploded outside their hotel, killing and wounding
dozens of French colonial soldiers.
The following year, Topping covered the arrival of a young U.S
Congressman on a "study tour" visit. At the airport, the visitor
asked to meet with Topping and the next day, John F. Kennedy climbed
the stairs to the Toppings' small apartment, "seated himself in an
easy chair near the bamboo bar" and peppered Topping with two hours
of questions about "every aspect of the Vietnam conflict."
No one could imagine the visit would have a "profound impact" on
U.S. policy in Indochina, Topping says; that a decade later, JFK as
president would order 400 military advisers to help the shaky South
Vietnamese regime fight a communist takeover.
Topping's writing conveys a passion for his craft, but his
scrupulous concern for the minutiae of events might intimidate
readers looking for a fast, exciting read. Even so, the book is a
feast for students of history who want to know not just how things
turned out, but also how it actually happened.
Born in the Bronx section of New York and seasoned as an infantry
officer in World War II, Topping joined the Hearst-owned
International News Service in China, jumped to the steadier AP
there, and ultimately wound up as managing editor of The New York
Times.
After his final departure from the Times in 1993, he taught
journalism at Columbia University and served as its administrator of
the Pulitzer Prizes.
There's plenty here for students of journalism history, including
courtly accounts of the executive suite and newsroom intrigues for
which the Times is noted, and such memorable controversies as
Timesman Harrison Salisbury's disputed reports from Hanoi in late
1966 and the Pentagon Papers in 1971 — both of which happened on
Topping's watch as foreign editor.
At the end, Topping summarizes the failure of American policy not
only in Vietnam but also, in his view, just about everywhere.
This gloomy record is one of "flawed government handling of
national security issues" by successive administrations from Harry
Truman to George W. Bush, he writes.
But he wraps it all up with a hopeful prediction: that today's
financially beleaguered newspapers will meet the challenges of the
digital age "if they retain the courage and quality of journalism"
that made organizations such as the Times, The Washington Post
Review: Former New York Times editor Seymour Topping leaves
nothing out in his memoir
By: RICHARD PYLE
Associated Press 03/22/10 5:20 AM PDT
"On the Front Lines of the Cold War: An American Correspondent's
Journal From the Chinese Civil War to the Cuban Missile Crisis and
Vietnam" (LSU, 397 pages, $39.95), by Seymour Topping: A former
editor of The New York Times sits down to write his memoir and the
title alone runs 24 words. But what else, one might ask, was a
reporter with Topping's breadth and depth of experience to do?
Topping, who retired as managing editor of the Times in 1987,
needed a lot of words for a long-awaited personal account of the 4
1/2 decades he spent holding hands with history.
As suggested by the basic title, "On the Front Lines of the Cold
War," Topping — or "Top," as he is known to longtime associates —
was a witness to some of the most crucial events of the last half of
the 20th century.
And not just a witness. At times he was so close to the events,
leaders and others in the arena, he was virtually there himself,
though conscious of the need to maintain the critical distance
between himself and those he was covering.
Indeed, Topping describes being invited to sit in on one meeting
of high-level administration officials, only to have them, at the
end, turn to him for his views.
Over the years, Topping came in direct contact with Mao Zedong,
Chiang Kai-shek, Nikita Khruschev and Fidel Castro, along with
soldiers, spies, diplomats, authors and fellow journalists.
While getting it all down for spot news dispatches, he clearly
kept posterity in mind. Judging by the detail densely packed into
397 pages, he filed stories from every exotic dateline and never
threw away a notebook.
Especially interesting is Topping's tale of being sent by his
then-employer, The Associated Press, to become the first American
correspondent based in French Indochina after World War II. Minutes
after he and his wife, Audrey, arrived in Saigon in February 1950, a
terrorist bomb exploded outside their hotel, killing and wounding
dozens of French colonial soldiers.
The following year, Topping covered the arrival of a young U.S
Congressman on a "study tour" visit. At the airport, the visitor
asked to meet with Topping and the next day, John F. Kennedy climbed
the stairs to the Toppings' small apartment, "seated himself in an
easy chair near the bamboo bar" and peppered Topping with two hours
of questions about "every aspect of the Vietnam conflict."
No one could imagine the visit would have a "profound impact" on
U.S. policy in Indochina, Topping says; that a decade later, JFK as
president would order 400 military advisers to help the shaky South
Vietnamese regime fight a communist takeover.
Topping's writing conveys a passion for his craft, but his
scrupulous concern for the minutiae of events might intimidate
readers looking for a fast, exciting read. Even so, the book is a
feast for students of history who want to know not just how things
turned out, but also how it actually happened.
Born in the Bronx section of New York and seasoned as an infantry
officer in World War II, Topping joined the Hearst-owned
International News Service in China, jumped to the steadier AP
there, and ultimately wound up as managing editor of The New York
Times.
After his final departure from the Times in 1993, he taught
journalism at Columbia University and served as its administrator of
the Pulitzer Prizes.
There's plenty here for students of journalism history, including
courtly accounts of the executive suite and newsroom intrigues for
which the Times is noted, and such memorable controversies as
Timesman Harrison Salisbury's disputed reports from Hanoi in late
1966 and the Pentagon Papers in 1971 — both of which happened on
Topping's watch as foreign editor.
At the end, Topping summarizes the failure of American policy not
only in Vietnam but also, in his view, just about everywhere.
This gloomy record is one of "flawed government handling of
national security issues" by successive administrations from Harry
Truman to George W. Bush, he writes.
But he wraps it all up with a hopeful prediction: that today's
financially beleaguered newspapers will meet the challenges of the
digital age "if they retain the courage and quality of journalism"
that made organizations such as the Times, The Washington Post
Review: Former New York Times editor Seymour Topping leaves
nothing out in his memoir
By: RICHARD PYLE
Associated Press 03/22/10 5:20 AM PDT
"On the Front Lines of the Cold War: An American Correspondent's
Journal From the Chinese Civil War to the Cuban Missile Crisis and
Vietnam" (LSU, 397 pages, $39.95), by Seymour Topping: A former
editor of The New York Times sits down to write his memoir and the
title alone runs 24 words. But what else, one might ask, was a
reporter with Topping's breadth and depth of experience to do?
Topping, who retired as managing editor of the Times in 1987,
needed a lot of words for a long-awaited personal account of the 4
1/2 decades he spent holding hands with history.
As suggested by the basic title, "On the Front Lines of the Cold
War," Topping — or "Top," as he is known to longtime associates —
was a witness to some of the most crucial events of the last half of
the 20th century.
And not just a witness. At times he was so close to the events,
leaders and others in the arena, he was virtually there himself,
though conscious of the need to maintain the critical distance
between himself and those he was covering.
Indeed, Topping describes being invited to sit in on one meeting
of high-level administration officials, only to have them, at the
end, turn to him for his views.
Over the years, Topping came in direct contact with Mao Zedong,
Chiang Kai-shek, Nikita Khruschev and Fidel Castro, along with
soldiers, spies, diplomats, authors and fellow journalists.
While getting it all down for spot news dispatches, he clearly
kept posterity in mind. Judging by the detail densely packed into
397 pages, he filed stories from every exotic dateline and never
threw away a notebook.
Especially interesting is Topping's tale of being sent by his
then-employer, The Associated Press, to become the first American
correspondent based in French Indochina after World War II. Minutes
after he and his wife, Audrey, arrived in Saigon in February 1950, a
terrorist bomb exploded outside their hotel, killing and wounding
dozens of French colonial soldiers.
The following year, Topping covered the arrival of a young U.S
Congressman on a "study tour" visit. At the airport, the visitor
asked to meet with Topping and the next day, John F. Kennedy climbed
the stairs to the Toppings' small apartment, "seated himself in an
easy chair near the bamboo bar" and peppered Topping with two hours
of questions about "every aspect of the Vietnam conflict."
No one could imagine the visit would have a "profound impact" on
U.S. policy in Indochina, Topping says; that a decade later, JFK as
president would order 400 military advisers to help the shaky South
Vietnamese regime fight a communist takeover.
Topping's writing conveys a passion for his craft, but his
scrupulous concern for the minutiae of events might intimidate
readers looking for a fast, exciting read. Even so, the book is a
feast for students of history who want to know not just how things
turned out, but also how it actually happened.
Born in the Bronx section of New York and seasoned as an infantry
officer in World War II, Topping joined the Hearst-owned
International News Service in China, jumped to the steadier AP
there, and ultimately wound up as managing editor of The New York
Times.
After his final departure from the Times in 1993, he taught
journalism at Columbia University and served as its administrator of
the Pulitzer Prizes.
There's plenty here for students of journalism history, including
courtly accounts of the executive suite and newsroom intrigues for
which the Times is noted, and such memorable controversies as
Timesman Harrison Salisbury's disputed reports from Hanoi in late
1966 and the Pentagon Papers in 1971 — both of which happened on
Topping's watch as foreign editor.
At the end, Topping summarizes the failure of American policy not
only in Vietnam but also, in his view, just about everywhere.
This gloomy record is one of "flawed government handling of
national security issues" by successive administrations from Harry
Truman to George W. Bush, he writes.
But he wraps it all up with a hopeful prediction: that today's
financially beleaguered newspapers will meet the challenges of the
digital age "if they retain the courage and quality of journalism"
that made organizations such as the Times, The Washington Post
Review: Former New York Times editor Seymour Topping leaves
nothing out in his memoir
By: RICHARD PYLE
Associated Press 03/22/10 5:20 AM PDT
"On the Front Lines of the Cold War: An American Correspondent's
Journal From the Chinese Civil War to the Cuban Missile Crisis and
Vietnam" (LSU, 397 pages, $39.95), by Seymour Topping: A former
editor of The New York Times sits down to write his memoir and the
title alone runs 24 words. But what else, one might ask, was a
reporter with Topping's breadth and depth of experience to do?
Topping, who retired as managing editor of the Times in 1987,
needed a lot of words for a long-awaited personal account of the 4
1/2 decades he spent holding hands with history.
As suggested by the basic title, "On the Front Lines of the Cold
War," Topping — or "Top," as he is known to longtime associates —
was a witness to some of the most crucial events of the last half of
the 20th century.
And not just a witness. At times he was so close to the events,
leaders and others in the arena, he was virtually there himself,
though conscious of the need to maintain the critical distance
between himself and those he was covering.
Indeed, Topping describes being invited to sit in on one meeting
of high-level administration officials, only to have them, at the
end, turn to him for his views.
Over the years, Topping came in direct contact with Mao Zedong,
Chiang Kai-shek, Nikita Khruschev and Fidel Castro, along with
soldiers, spies, diplomats, authors and fellow journalists.
While getting it all down for spot news dispatches, he clearly
kept posterity in mind. Judging by the detail densely packed into
397 pages, he filed stories from every exotic dateline and never
threw away a notebook.
Especially interesting is Topping's tale of being sent by his
then-employer, The Associated Press, to become the first American
correspondent based in French Indochina after World War II. Minutes
after he and his wife, Audrey, arrived in Saigon in February 1950, a
terrorist bomb exploded outside their hotel, killing and wounding
dozens of French colonial soldiers.
The following year, Topping covered the arrival of a young U.S
Congressman on a "study tour" visit. At the airport, the visitor
asked to meet with Topping and the next day, John F. Kennedy climbed
the stairs to the Toppings' small apartment, "seated himself in an
easy chair near the bamboo bar" and peppered Topping with two hours
of questions about "every aspect of the Vietnam conflict."
No one could imagine the visit would have a "profound impact" on
U.S. policy in Indochina, Topping says; that a decade later, JFK as
president would order 400 military advisers to help the shaky South
Vietnamese regime fight a communist takeover.
Topping's writing conveys a passion for his craft, but his
scrupulous concern for the minutiae of events might intimidate
readers looking for a fast, exciting read. Even so, the book is a
feast for students of history who want to know not just how things
turned out, but also how it actually happened.
Born in the Bronx section of New York and seasoned as an infantry
officer in World War II, Topping joined the Hearst-owned
International News Service in China, jumped to the steadier AP
there, and ultimately wound up as managing editor of The New York
Times.
After his final departure from the Times in 1993, he taught
journalism at Columbia University and served as its administrator of
the Pulitzer Prizes.
There's plenty here for students of journalism history, including
courtly accounts of the executive suite and newsroom intrigues for
which the Times is noted, and such memorable controversies as
Timesman Harrison Salisbury's disputed reports from Hanoi in late
1966 and the Pentagon Papers in 1971 — both of which happened on
Topping's watch as foreign editor.
At the end, Topping summarizes the failure of American policy not
only in Vietnam but also, in his view, just about everywhere.
This gloomy record is one of "flawed government handling of
national security issues" by successive administrations from Harry
Truman to George W. Bush, he writes.
But he wraps it all up with a hopeful prediction: that today's
financially beleaguered newspapers will meet the challenges of the
digital age "if they retain the courage and quality of journalism"
that made organizations such as the Times, The Washington Post
Review: Former New York Times editor Seymour Topping leaves
nothing out in his memoir
By: RICHARD PYLE
Associated Press 03/22/10 5:20 AM PDT
"On the Front Lines of the Cold War: An American Correspondent's
Journal From the Chinese Civil War to the Cuban Missile Crisis and
Vietnam" (LSU, 397 pages, $39.95), by Seymour Topping: A former
editor of The New York Times sits down to write his memoir and the
title alone runs 24 words. But what else, one might ask, was a
reporter with Topping's breadth and depth of experience to do?
Topping, who retired as managing editor of the Times in 1987,
needed a lot of words for a long-awaited personal account of the 4
1/2 decades he spent holding hands with history.
As suggested by the basic title, "On the Front Lines of the Cold
War," Topping — or "Top," as he is known to longtime associates —
was a witness to some of the most crucial events of the last half of
the 20th century.
And not just a witness. At times he was so close to the events,
leaders and others in the arena, he was virtually there himself,
though conscious of the need to maintain the critical distance
between himself and those he was covering.
Indeed, Topping describes being invited to sit in on one meeting
of high-level administration officials, only to have them, at the
end, turn to him for his views.
Over the years, Topping came in direct contact with Mao Zedong,
Chiang Kai-shek, Nikita Khruschev and Fidel Castro, along with
soldiers, spies, diplomats, authors and fellow journalists.
While getting it all down for spot news dispatches, he clearly
kept posterity in mind. Judging by the detail densely packed into
397 pages, he filed stories from every exotic dateline and never
threw away a notebook.
Especially interesting is Topping's tale of being sent by his
then-employer, The Associated Press, to become the first American
correspondent based in French Indochina after World War II. Minutes
after he and his wife, Audrey, arrived in Saigon in February 1950, a
terrorist bomb exploded outside their hotel, killing and wounding
dozens of French colonial soldiers.
The following year, Topping covered the arrival of a young U.S
Congressman on a "study tour" visit. At the airport, the visitor
asked to meet with Topping and the next day, John F. Kennedy climbed
the stairs to the Toppings' small apartment, "seated himself in an
easy chair near the bamboo bar" and peppered Topping with two hours
of questions about "every aspect of the Vietnam conflict."
No one could imagine the visit would have a "profound impact" on
U.S. policy in Indochina, Topping says; that a decade later, JFK as
president would order 400 military advisers to help the shaky South
Vietnamese regime fight a communist takeover.
Topping's writing conveys a passion for his craft, but his
scrupulous concern for the minutiae of events might intimidate
readers looking for a fast, exciting read. Even so, the book is a
feast for students of history who want to know not just how things
turned out, but also how it actually happened.
Born in the Bronx section of New York and seasoned as an infantry
officer in World War II, Topping joined the Hearst-owned
International News Service in China, jumped to the steadier AP
there, and ultimately wound up as managing editor of The New York
Times.
After his final departure from the Times in 1993, he taught
journalism at Columbia University and served as its administrator of
the Pulitzer Prizes.
There's plenty here for students of journalism history, including
courtly accounts of the executive suite and newsroom intrigues for
which the Times is noted, and such memorable controversies as
Timesman Harrison Salisbury's disputed reports from Hanoi in late
1966 and the Pentagon Papers in 1971 — both of which happened on
Topping's watch as foreign editor.
At the end, Topping summarizes the failure of American policy not
only in Vietnam but also, in his view, just about everywhere.
This gloomy record is one of "flawed government handling of
national security issues" by successive administrations from Harry
Truman to George W. Bush, he writes.
But he wraps it all up with a hopeful prediction: that today's
financially beleaguered newspapers will meet the challenges of the
digital age "if they retain the courage and quality of journalism"
that made organizations such as the Times, The Washington Post
Review: Former New York Times editor Seymour Topping leaves
nothing out in his memoir
By: RICHARD PYLE
Associated Press 03/22/10 5:20 AM PDT
"On the Front Lines of the Cold War: An American Correspondent's
Journal From the Chinese Civil War to the Cuban Missile Crisis and
Vietnam" (LSU, 397 pages, $39.95), by Seymour Topping: A former
editor of The New York Times sits down to write his memoir and the
title alone runs 24 words. But what else, one might ask, was a
reporter with Topping's breadth and depth of experience to do?
Topping, who retired as managing editor of the Times in 1987,
needed a lot of words for a long-awaited personal account of the 4
1/2 decades he spent holding hands with history.
As suggested by the basic title, "On the Front Lines of the Cold
War," Topping — or "Top," as he is known to longtime associates —
was a witness to some of the most crucial events of the last half of
the 20th century.
And not just a witness. At times he was so close to the events,
leaders and others in the arena, he was virtually there himself,
though conscious of the need to maintain the critical distance
between himself and those he was covering.
Indeed, Topping describes being invited to sit in on one meeting
of high-level administration officials, only to have them, at the
end, turn to him for his views.
Over the years, Topping came in direct contact with Mao Zedong,
Chiang Kai-shek, Nikita Khruschev and Fidel Castro, along with
soldiers, spies, diplomats, authors and fellow journalists.
While getting it all down for spot news dispatches, he clearly
kept posterity in mind. Judging by the detail densely packed into
397 pages, he filed stories from every exotic dateline and never
threw away a notebook.
Especially interesting is Topping's tale of being sent by his
then-employer, The Associated Press, to become the first American
correspondent based in French Indochina after World War II. Minutes
after he and his wife, Audrey, arrived in Saigon in February 1950, a
terrorist bomb exploded outside their hotel, killing and wounding
dozens of French colonial soldiers.
The following year, Topping covered the arrival of a young U.S
Congressman on a "study tour" visit. At the airport, the visitor
asked to meet with Topping and the next day, John F. Kennedy climbed
the stairs to the Toppings' small apartment, "seated himself in an
easy chair near the bamboo bar" and peppered Topping with two hours
of questions about "every aspect of the Vietnam conflict."
No one could imagine the visit would have a "profound impact" on
U.S. policy in Indochina, Topping says; that a decade later, JFK as
president would order 400 military advisers to help the shaky South
Vietnamese regime fight a communist takeover.
Topping's writing conveys a passion for his craft, but his
scrupulous concern for the minutiae of events might intimidate
readers looking for a fast, exciting read. Even so, the book is a
feast for students of history who want to know not just how things
turned out, but also how it actually happened.
Born in the Bronx section of New York and seasoned as an infantry
officer in World War II, Topping joined the Hearst-owned
International News Service in China, jumped to the steadier AP
there, and ultimately wound up as managing editor of The New York
Times.
After his final departure from the Times in 1993, he taught
journalism at Columbia University and served as its administrator of
the Pulitzer Prizes.
There's plenty here for students of journalism history, including
courtly accounts of the executive suite and newsroom intrigues for
which the Times is noted, and such memorable controversies as
Timesman Harrison Salisbury's disputed reports from Hanoi in late
1966 and the Pentagon Papers in 1971 — both of which happened on
Topping's watch as foreign editor.
At the end, Topping summarizes the failure of American policy not
only in Vietnam but also, in his view, just about everywhere.
This gloomy record is one of "flawed government handling of
national security issues" by successive administrations from Harry
Truman to George W. Bush, he writes.
But he wraps it all up with a hopeful prediction: that today's
financially beleaguered newspapers will meet the challenges of the
digital age "if they retain the courage and quality of journalism"
that made organizations such as the Times, The Washington Post
Review: Former New York Times editor Seymour Topping leaves
nothing out in his memoir
By: RICHARD PYLE
Associated Press 03/22/10 5:20 AM PDT
"On the Front Lines of the Cold War: An American Correspondent's
Journal From the Chinese Civil War to the Cuban Missile Crisis and
Vietnam" (LSU, 397 pages, $39.95), by Seymour Topping: A former
editor of The New York Times sits down to write his memoir and the
title alone runs 24 words. But what else, one might ask, was a
reporter with Topping's breadth and depth of experience to do?
Topping, who retired as managing editor of the Times in 1987,
needed a lot of words for a long-awaited personal account of the 4
1/2 decades he spent holding hands with history.
As suggested by the basic title, "On the Front Lines of the Cold
War," Topping — or "Top," as he is known to longtime associates —
was a witness to some of the most crucial events of the last half of
the 20th century.
And not just a witness. At times he was so close to the events,
leaders and others in the arena, he was virtually there himself,
though conscious of the need to maintain the critical distance
between himself and those he was covering.
Indeed, Topping describes being invited to sit in on one meeting
of high-level administration officials, only to have them, at the
end, turn to him for his views.
Over the years, Topping came in direct contact with Mao Zedong,
Chiang Kai-shek, Nikita Khruschev and Fidel Castro, along with
soldiers, spies, diplomats, authors and fellow journalists.
While getting it all down for spot news dispatches, he clearly
kept posterity in mind. Judging by the detail densely packed into
397 pages, he filed stories from every exotic dateline and never
threw away a notebook.
Especially interesting is Topping's tale of being sent by his
then-employer, The Associated Press, to become the first American
correspondent based in French Indochina after World War II. Minutes
after he and his wife, Audrey, arrived in Saigon in February 1950, a
terrorist bomb exploded outside their hotel, killing and wounding
dozens of French colonial soldiers.
The following year, Topping covered the arrival of a young U.S
Congressman on a "study tour" visit. At the airport, the visitor
asked to meet with Topping and the next day, John F. Kennedy climbed
the stairs to the Toppings' small apartment, "seated himself in an
easy chair near the bamboo bar" and peppered Topping with two hours
of questions about "every aspect of the Vietnam conflict."
No one could imagine the visit would have a "profound impact" on
U.S. policy in Indochina, Topping says; that a decade later, JFK as
president would order 400 military advisers to help the shaky South
Vietnamese regime fight a communist takeover.
Topping's writing conveys a passion for his craft, but his
scrupulous concern for the minutiae of events might intimidate
readers looking for a fast, exciting read. Even so, the book is a
feast for students of history who want to know not just how things
turned out, but also how it actually happened.
Born in the Bronx section of New York and seasoned as an infantry
officer in World War II, Topping joined the Hearst-owned
International News Service in China, jumped to the steadier AP
there, and ultimately wound up as managing editor of The New York
Times.
After his final departure from the Times in 1993, he taught
journalism at Columbia University and served as its administrator of
the Pulitzer Prizes.
There's plenty here for students of journalism history, including
courtly accounts of the executive suite and newsroom intrigues for
which the Times is noted, and such memorable controversies as
Timesman Harrison Salisbury's disputed reports from Hanoi in late
1966 and the Pentagon Papers in 1971 — both of which happened on
Topping's watch as foreign editor.
At the end, Topping summarizes the failure of American policy not
only in Vietnam but also, in his view, just about everywhere.
This gloomy record is one of "flawed government handling of
national security issues" by successive administrations from Harry
Truman to George W. Bush, he writes.
But he wraps it all up with a hopeful prediction: that today's
financially beleaguered newspapers will meet the challenges of the
digital age "if they retain the courage and quality of journalism"
that made organizations such as the Times, The Washington Post
Review: Former New York Times editor Seymour Topping leaves
nothing out in his memoir
By: RICHARD PYLE
Associated Press 03/22/10 5:20 AM PDT
"On the Front Lines of the Cold War: An American Correspondent's
Journal From the Chinese Civil War to the Cuban Missile Crisis and
Vietnam" (LSU, 397 pages, $39.95), by Seymour Topping: A former
editor of The New York Times sits down to write his memoir and the
title alone runs 24 words. But what else, one might ask, was a
reporter with Topping's breadth and depth of experience to do?
Topping, who retired as managing editor of the Times in 1987,
needed a lot of words for a long-awaited personal account of the 4
1/2 decades he spent holding hands with history.
As suggested by the basic title, "On the Front Lines of the Cold
War," Topping — or "Top," as he is known to longtime associates —
was a witness to some of the most crucial events of the last half of
the 20th century.
And not just a witness. At times he was so close to the events,
leaders and others in the arena, he was virtually there himself,
though conscious of the need to maintain the critical distance
between himself and those he was covering.
Indeed, Topping describes being invited to sit in on one meeting
of high-level administration officials, only to have them, at the
end, turn to him for his views.
Over the years, Topping came in direct contact with Mao Zedong,
Chiang Kai-shek, Nikita Khruschev and Fidel Castro, along with
soldiers, spies, diplomats, authors and fellow journalists.
While getting it all down for spot news dispatches, he clearly
kept posterity in mind. Judging by the detail densely packed into
397 pages, he filed stories from every exotic dateline and never
threw away a notebook.
Especially interesting is Topping's tale of being sent by his
then-employer, The Associated Press, to become the first American
correspondent based in French Indochina after World War II. Minutes
after he and his wife, Audrey, arrived in Saigon in February 1950, a
terrorist bomb exploded outside their hotel, killing and wounding
dozens of French colonial soldiers.
The following year, Topping covered the arrival of a young U.S
Congressman on a "study tour" visit. At the airport, the visitor
asked to meet with Topping and the next day, John F. Kennedy climbed
the stairs to the Toppings' small apartment, "seated himself in an
easy chair near the bamboo bar" and peppered Topping with two hours
of questions about "every aspect of the Vietnam conflict."
No one could imagine the visit would have a "profound impact" on
U.S. policy in Indochina, Topping says; that a decade later, JFK as
president would order 400 military advisers to help the shaky South
Vietnamese regime fight a communist takeover.
Topping's writing conveys a passion for his craft, but his
scrupulous concern for the minutiae of events might intimidate
readers looking for a fast, exciting read. Even so, the book is a
feast for students of history who want to know not just how things
turned out, but also how it actually happened.
Born in the Bronx section of New York and seasoned as an infantry
officer in World War II, Topping joined the Hearst-owned
International News Service in China, jumped to the steadier AP
there, and ultimately wound up as managing editor of The New York
Times.
After his final departure from the Times in 1993, he taught
journalism at Columbia University and served as its administrator of
the Pulitzer Prizes.
There's plenty here for students of journalism history, including
courtly accounts of the executive suite and newsroom intrigues for
which the Times is noted, and such memorable controversies as
Timesman Harrison Salisbury's disputed reports from Hanoi in late
1966 and the Pentagon Papers in 1971 — both of which happened on
Topping's watch as foreign editor.
At the end, Topping summarizes the failure of American policy not
only in Vietnam but also, in his view, just about everywhere.
This gloomy record is one of "flawed government handling of
national security issues" by successive administrations from Harry
Truman to George W. Bush, he writes.
But he wraps it all up with a hopeful prediction: that today's
financially beleaguered newspapers will meet the challenges of the
digital age "if they retain the courage and quality of journalism"
that made organizations such as the Times, The Washington Post
Review: Former New York Times editor Seymour Topping leaves
nothing out in his memoir
By: RICHARD PYLE
Associated Press 03/22/10 5:20 AM PDT
"On the Front Lines of the Cold War: An American Correspondent's
Journal From the Chinese Civil War to the Cuban Missile Crisis and
Vietnam" (LSU, 397 pages, $39.95), by Seymour Topping: A former
editor of The New York Times sits down to write his memoir and the
title alone runs 24 words. But what else, one might ask, was a
reporter with Topping's breadth and depth of experience to do?
Topping, who retired as managing editor of the Times in 1987,
needed a lot of words for a long-awaited personal account of the 4
1/2 decades he spent holding hands with history.
As suggested by the basic title, "On the Front Lines of the Cold
War," Topping — or "Top," as he is known to longtime associates —
was a witness to some of the most crucial events of the last half of
the 20th century.
And not just a witness. At times he was so close to the events,
leaders and others in the arena, he was virtually there himself,
though conscious of the need to maintain the critical distance
between himself and those he was covering.
Indeed, Topping describes being invited to sit in on one meeting
of high-level administration officials, only to have them, at the
end, turn to him for his views.
Over the years, Topping came in direct contact with Mao Zedong,
Chiang Kai-shek, Nikita Khruschev and Fidel Castro, along with
soldiers, spies, diplomats, authors and fellow journalists.
While getting it all down for spot news dispatches, he clearly
kept posterity in mind. Judging by the detail densely packed into
397 pages, he filed stories from every exotic dateline and never
threw away a notebook.
Especially interesting is Topping's tale of being sent by his
then-employer, The Associated Press, to become the first American
correspondent based in French Indochina after World War II. Minutes
after he and his wife, Audrey, arrived in Saigon in February 1950, a
terrorist bomb exploded outside their hotel, killing and wounding
dozens of French colonial soldiers.
The following year, Topping covered the arrival of a young U.S
Congressman on a "study tour" visit. At the airport, the visitor
asked to meet with Topping and the next day, John F. Kennedy climbed
the stairs to the Toppings' small apartment, "seated himself in an
easy chair near the bamboo bar" and peppered Topping with two hours
of questions about "every aspect of the Vietnam conflict."
No one could imagine the visit would have a "profound impact" on
U.S. policy in Indochina, Topping says; that a decade later, JFK as
president would order 400 military advisers to help the shaky South
Vietnamese regime fight a communist takeover.
Topping's writing conveys a passion for his craft, but his
scrupulous concern for the minutiae of events might intimidate
readers looking for a fast, exciting read. Even so, the book is a
feast for students of history who want to know not just how things
turned out, but also how it actually happened.
Born in the Bronx section of New York and seasoned as an infantry
officer in World War II, Topping joined the Hearst-owned
International News Service in China, jumped to the steadier AP
there, and ultimately wound up as managing editor of The New York
Times.
After his final departure from the Times in 1993, he taught
journalism at Columbia University and served as its administrator of
the Pulitzer Prizes.
There's plenty here for students of journalism history, including
courtly accounts of the executive suite and newsroom intrigues for
which the Times is noted, and such memorable controversies as
Timesman Harrison Salisbury's disputed reports from Hanoi in late
1966 and the Pentagon Papers in 1971 — both of which happened on
Topping's watch as foreign editor.
At the end, Topping summarizes the failure of American policy not
only in Vietnam but also, in his view, just about everywhere.
This gloomy record is one of "flawed government handling of
national security issues" by successive administrations from Harry
Truman to George W. Bush, he writes.
But he wraps it all up with a hopeful prediction: that today's
financially beleaguered newspapers will meet the challenges of the
digital age "if they retain the courage and quality of journalism"
that made organizations such as the Times, The Washington Post
Review: Former New York Times editor Seymour Topping leaves
nothing out in his memoir
By: RICHARD PYLE
Associated Press 03/22/10 5:20 AM PDT
"On the Front Lines of the Cold War: An American Correspondent's
Journal From the Chinese Civil War to the Cuban Missile Crisis and
Vietnam" (LSU, 397 pages, $39.95), by Seymour Topping: A former
editor of The New York Times sits down to write his memoir and the
title alone runs 24 words. But what else, one might ask, was a
reporter with Topping's breadth and depth of experience to do?
Topping, who retired as managing editor of the Times in 1987,
needed a lot of words for a long-awaited personal account of the 4
1/2 decades he spent holding hands with history.
As suggested by the basic title, "On the Front Lines of the Cold
War," Topping — or "Top," as he is known to longtime associates —
was a witness to some of the most crucial events of the last half of
the 20th century.
And not just a witness. At times he was so close to the events,
leaders and others in the arena, he was virtually there himself,
though conscious of the need to maintain the critical distance
between himself and those he was covering.
Indeed, Topping describes being invited to sit in on one meeting
of high-level administration officials, only to have them, at the
end, turn to him for his views.
Over the years, Topping came in direct contact with Mao Zedong,
Chiang Kai-shek, Nikita Khruschev and Fidel Castro, along with
soldiers, spies, diplomats, authors and fellow journalists.
While getting it all down for spot news dispatches, he clearly
kept posterity in mind. Judging by the detail densely packed into
397 pages, he filed stories from every exotic dateline and never
threw away a notebook.
Especially interesting is Topping's tale of being sent by his
then-employer, The Associated Press, to become the first American
correspondent based in French Indochina after World War II. Minutes
after he and his wife, Audrey, arrived in Saigon in February 1950, a
terrorist bomb exploded outside their hotel, killing and wounding
dozens of French colonial soldiers.
The following year, Topping covered the arrival of a young U.S
Congressman on a "study tour" visit. At the airport, the visitor
asked to meet with Topping and the next day, John F. Kennedy climbed
the stairs to the Toppings' small apartment, "seated himself in an
easy chair near the bamboo bar" and peppered Topping with two hours
of questions about "every aspect of the Vietnam conflict."
No one could imagine the visit would have a "profound impact" on
U.S. policy in Indochina, Topping says; that a decade later, JFK as
president would order 400 military advisers to help the shaky South
Vietnamese regime fight a communist takeover.
Topping's writing conveys a passion for his craft, but his
scrupulous concern for the minutiae of events might intimidate
readers looking for a fast, exciting read. Even so, the book is a
feast for students of history who want to know not just how things
turned out, but also how it actually happened.
Born in the Bronx section of New York and seasoned as an infantry
officer in World War II, Topping joined the Hearst-owned
International News Service in China, jumped to the steadier AP
there, and ultimately wound up as managing editor of The New York
Times.
After his final departure from the Times in 1993, he taught
journalism at Columbia University and served as its administrator of
the Pulitzer Prizes.
There's plenty here for students of journalism history, including
courtly accounts of the executive suite and newsroom intrigues for
which the Times is noted, and such memorable controversies as
Timesman Harrison Salisbury's disputed reports from Hanoi in late
1966 and the Pentagon Papers in 1971 — both of which happened on
Topping's watch as foreign editor.
At the end, Topping summarizes the failure of American policy not
only in Vietnam but also, in his view, just about everywhere.
This gloomy record is one of "flawed government handling of
national security issues" by successive administrations from Harry
Truman to George W. Bush, he writes.
But he wraps it all up with a hopeful prediction: that today's
financially beleaguered newspapers will meet the challenges of the
digital age "if they retain the courage and quality of journalism"
that made organizations such as the Times, The Washington Post