Pauline Frederick Reporting - by Marilyn S Greenwald (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

Pauline Frederick Reporting is the biography of the life and career of the first woman to become a network news correspondent. After no less an authority than Edward R. Murrow told her there was no place for her in broadcasting, Pauline Frederick (1908-90) cracked the good old boys' club through determination and years of hard work, eventually becoming a trusted voice to millions of television viewers.

During Frederick's nearly fifty years as a journalist, she interviewed a young Fidel Castro, covered the Nuremberg trials, interpreted diplomatic actions at the United Nations, and was the first woman to moderate a presidential debate. The life of this pivotal figure in American journalism provides an inside perspective on the growth and political maneuverings of television networks as well as Frederick's relationships with iconic NBC broadcast figures David Brinkley, Chet Huntley, and others.

Although Frederick repeatedly insisted that she would trade her career, glamorous as it was, to have a family, a series of romances ended in heartache when she did indeed choose her work over love. At the age of sixty-one, however, she married and attained the family life she had always wanted. Her story is one for all modern women striving to balance career and family.

Review Quotes

"Pauline Frederick will forever be linked to the United Nations, a bold experiment for peace that she covered and loved; it assured her place in history as the first woman reporting news for a network broadcast. She didn't think of herself as a pioneer, just someone who was doing a job that she loved, and that meant persevering despite condescending attitudes d women prevalent at the time and that still echo today. Author Greenwald has given us a compelling biography of a woman and an era."--Eleanor Clift, political analyst for the Daily Beast and author of Founding Sisters and the 19th Amendment

-- (6/6/2014 12:00:00 AM)

"A fascinating read from start to finish following a true trailblazer of journalism as she covers a world in the dangerous depths of the Cold War."--Martin Savidge, anchor and correspondent for CNN

-- (6/6/2014 12:00:00 AM)

"A must-read for journalism, women's studies, and political science students, as well as for those interested in the history of the UN and the Cold War."--Library Journal-- (1/1/2015 12:00:00 AM)

"Marilyn Greenwald has written an insightful and compelling book about a fascinating woman. The story of Pauline Frederick demonstrates the daily battles women faced in an industry that refused to take them seriously. Long before better-known celebrities such as Barbara Walters and Diane Sawyer arrived on the scene, Frederick laid the groundwork with trustworthy, steady reporting on foreign affairs. Like Frederick herself, Greenwald's narrative is deeply human--a richly contextualized, refreshingly readable story of perseverance and idealism in America's Cold War years."--Tracy Lucht, author of Sylvia Porter: America's Original Personal Finance Columnist-- (8/20/2014 12:00:00 AM)

About the Author

MARILYN S. GREENWALD is a professor of journalism at the E. W. Scripps School of Journalism, Ohio University. She is the coauthor of The Big Chill: Investigative Reporting in the Current Media Environment and the award-winning book A Woman of the Times: Journalism, Feminism, and the Career of Charlotte Curtis. MARLENE SANDERS, a three-time Emmy Award winner, is a correspondent, producer, writer, and former news executive who broke barriers for women throughout her career.