Russell Baker, RIP

“Mr. Baker, talking once to college students, was asked, ‘What courses should a journalism school teach?’

 
“He replied: ‘The ideal journalism school needs only one course. Students should be required to stand outside a closed door for six hours. Then the door would open, someone would put his head around the jamb and say, “No comment.” The door would close again, and the students would be required to write 800 words against a deadline.’”

—Russell Baker (1925-2019), longtime columnist and winner of two Pulitzers and a raft of other awards, died Monday. See Robert D. McFadden’s fine tribute, “Russell Baker, Pulitzer-Winning Times Columnist and Humorist, Dies at 93,” New York Times, Jan. 22, 2019. Image: Can you imagine an office containing both Russell Baker and Art Buchwald? Walter Bennett photo.

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• Editorial Comment: And make it sing.

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“I don’t think writers are sacred, but words are. They deserve respect. If you get the right ones, in the right order, you can nudge the world a little.” —Tom Stoppard