Shame on Bob Woodward and A Pox on Access Journalists

Famed journalist Bob Woodward yet again decides to withold critical information ahead of an election and in turn jeopardizes our democracy purely for the sake of access, wealth, and book sales.

(Credit: Associated Press)

You might know investigative journalist Bob Woodward as Robert Redford from the classic 1976 movie All The President’s Men. Redford portrayed the Washington Post reporter who, along with his colleague Carl Bernstein, helped break the Watergate scandal and bring down Richard Nixon’s presidency. 

Woodward is a Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter. He’s the man who talked to “Deep Throat.” He’s a best-selling author of over 20 books. He has the ear of Presidents and political leaders who give him exclusive interviews and scoops. This man is an international legend in the field of journalism.

He’s also a selfish prick who represents the absolute worst of the incestuous media-political ecosystem where access to power and personal wealth trumps loyalty and fidelity to the country and national security. You might be taken aback by my harsh criticism of such an august, renowned, establishment personality, but then again you probably haven’t paid attention to his latest “scoops” that were unveiled ahead of the publication of yet another book destined to be a best-seller. 

Woodward informs us that Donald Trump, as a private citizen, spoke with Vladimir Putin seven times after leaving office. This is the same man Trump adulated throughout his presidency and whose government actively interfered in the 2016 campaign to help Trump defeat Clinton. Trump has been a personal errand boy for Putin often echoing all of his talking points, such as criticizing NATO as being “obsolete” and telling Russia to do “whatever the hell they want” to NATO member countries. Trump told Republicans to block military aid to Ukraine, because America First or something. Trump is also facing 37 criminal charges relating to an indictment over his mishandling of sensitive documents and efforts to hide records and impede an investigation. What did he tell Putin during those seven conversations? Was our national security compromised? What was promised as a quid pro quo if he were to win? How is this not a violation of the Logan Act?

These are important questions that should be asked and answered by a twice-impeached criminal convict who might be re-elected as President in one month. It would have been lovely if we had this information a few months ago so people could make an informed decision before early voting, but hey, books had to be sold!

The most infuriating “scoop” that wasn’t revealed to the public but instead was safely nestled in the book to sell more copies is Woodward’s nugget that Trump sent Covid-19 testing equipment to Putin for his personal use during the early days of the pandemic. This was when Americans were dying and health care professionals were in desperate need of medical supplies and masks which were lacking due to the Trump Administration’s reckless delay to invoke the Defense Production Act. Let’s never forget that Trump knew how deadly Covid was but decided to lie to the public and downplayed the threat because he was afraid it would hurt his re-election chances. How do we know that? Thanks to Bob Woodward who has Trump confessing it on tape. Just like now, Woodward decided to withhold this critical information during a once-in-a-lifetime pandemic in order to use it as a sexy headline for his then-book, which became a bestseller. Thousands of copies were sold as over 500,000 Americans died during the Trump Administration.

I refuse to applaud a journalist who decided to sit on such important scoops that could have better informed the public in advance and potentially even saved lives just so he could sell books. This was a deliberate choice by Woodward, as it is with other access, establishment journalists who love Trump’s chaos and bigotry because the sensationalism sells and gets eyeballs. Sure, our democracy might be in the toilet, women will lose their freedoms, journalists will be harassed, and marginalized Americans will be vilified with hateful conspiracies, but imagine the juicy 6-figure TV contract and NYT bestselling books? Imagine the huge advance! I mean, that’s too good of a deal to pass up, right?

I’ve shared this story before, but it’s worth re-telling. A CNN personality in the green room told me that even though Trump is a danger to POC communities, he’s good for getting them on the air more. Another White House reporter bemoaned Biden’s victory in 2020 because he had better “access” with the Trump Administration. In 2016, former CBS CEO Les Moonves said Trump “may not be good for America, but it’s damn good for CBS.” Well, tell that to the Americans who died due to right-wing disinformation during Covid. Tell that to Republican voters in Florida right now who are believing conspiracy theories to their own detriment because their elected officials have politicized a Category 6 Hurricane. 

I know nothing I will write will change Woodward’s immense fortunes and the inevitable ascent of his book to the best-seller list. But as the rest of this nutty town celebrates him, I will respectfully decline and make sure my money goes to supporting journalists who actually are biased in favor of protecting our democracy and freedoms instead of lining their own pockets and gaining “access.”