Editor's note: "Integrity & Trust: Lessons From Watergate and Today" is a Deseret News event featuring legendary journalist Bob Woodward and Elder D. Todd Christofferson of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Famous journalist Bob Woodward will speak at an event in Washington, D.C., next week, focused on integrity and trust.
The event, hosted by the Deseret News, will feature Woodward talking about his time as a Washington Post reporter, his current work covering President Donald Trump, and his thoughts on gaining trust in today’s political climate.
We put together some quick facts on Woodward to help you learn more about him.
Quick facts: Woodward is currently an associate editor for The Washington Post.
- He has won two Pulitzer Prizes. The first came in 1973 after breaking the Watergate scandal with colleague Carl Bernstein. The second came in 2003 as a lead reporter after the 9/11 attacks.
- He has authored or coauthored 18 books.
The beginning: Woodward was born in Geneva, Illinois, on March 26, 1943. His full name was Robert Upshur Woodward. His parents' names were Jane and Alfred Woodward, according to Biography.com.
- Woodward attended Yale University, where he graduated with an undergraduate degree in 1965. He majored in history and English literature.
- He joined the U.S. Navy for the Naval Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) while in college and served for five years after he graduated from school.
- Once he returned to the United States, he reached out to The Washington Post for a two-week unpaid internship. None of his stories were printed. But the Post recommended he work at the Montgomery County Sentinel in Maryland. He left the job for a spot at The Washington Post within a year, according to Biography.com.
Before Watergate: When Woodward first worked at the Post, he covered the police beat for nine months.
Watergate: It was at The Washington Post where Woodward saw his career blossom, becoming the legend of journalism he is today.
- Along with Bernstein, Woodward was tipped off to a burglary at the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate complex in Washington, D.C. The two reporters eventually connected the robbery to President Richard Nixon’s administration.
- The Watergate coverage led to The Washington Post receiving the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service. Bernstein and Woodward later published a book called “All the President’s Men,” which was later adapted into a feature film starring Robert Redford and Dustin Hoffman.
After Watergate: Woodward became the assistant managing editor of the Post in 1979. After he assumed the position, he started to write a number of exposes on personalities from John Belushi to former U.S. Vice President Dan Quayle.
9/11: Woodward continued to report vigorously for the Post after the Watergate scandal. He provided in-depth coverage of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. The Washington Post later received a Pulitzer Prize for national reporting.
Recent: Woodward wrote a pair of books on President Barack Obama and his administration. One of the books, called “Obama’s Wars,” focuses on the Afghanistan war. The other, “The Price of Politics,” reveals insight into the struggle between Obama and Congress over fiscal policy.
Most recently: Woodward has been thrust back into the spotlight with his coverage of the Trump administration. His 2018 book, “Fear: Trump in the White House,”sold 1.1 million copies in the first week, CNBC reports. It had the highest first-week sales for Simon & Schuster in the company’s 94-year history.