Washington Post’s Bob Woodward talks Watergate, Trump and inflation in Fresno
One of the leading reporters that investigated the Watergate scandal paid a visit to Fresno.
Bob Woodward — associate editor of the Washington Post best known for his investigative coverage of former President Richard Nixon and his involvement in the Watergate scandal alongside Carl Bernstein — spoke to a large crowd about his life’s work at the William Saroyan Theatre in downtown Fresno on Wednesday.
Woodward, in conversation with Jim Boren, former executive editor of The Fresno Bee and current executive director of the Institute for Media and Public Trust at Fresno State, gave a detailed account of his five-decade career with The Washington Post as well as his perspectives on the state of investigative journalism today.
The two-time Pulitzer Prize winner said it’s “nonsensical” and “irresponsible” for small to medium-sized newspapers not to continue investing time and resources into deep investigations. He credited his editors at The Washington Post for giving him the time, space, and trust to pursue the Watergate story. He added that he was “thankful” The Post’s billionaire current owner, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, “cares about the mission.”
In addition to his investigative work on the Watergate scandal, Woodward recounted his experience covering the Afghanistan war, the 2003 Iraq invasion, and, most recently, his numerous interviews with former president Donald Trump for his 2022 book, The Trump Tapes.
On the eve of Wednesday’s conversation, which was hosted by the San Joaquin Valley Town Hall, Woodward met with Fresno State journalism students.
Photo of my @Fresno_State #journalism students and legendary journalist @realBobWoodward. He’s speaking today to San Joaquin Valley Town Hall in Fresno. The students had quality time with Woodward and asked several questions and learned reporting tips from the master. pic.twitter.com/zXnjYSyruj
— Jim Boren (@jboren4507) March 29, 2023
Based on his conversations with the students, Woodward said Wednesday that some of the most pressing issues that need coverage are the Ukraine war —which he called a “contained” world war— climate change, long COVID, the next pandemic, and inflation.
Families are in crisis due to inflation, he said, and “politicians need to understand the agony people are going through.”
Boren pointed out that the country is also in a political crisis of polarization. Another challenge, Boren said, the media is seeing low rates of trust in recent years.
When asked what journalism can do to build more trust with the public, Woodward said the key is to “do good reporting.”
