New Delhi: Pulitzer Prize winner and investigative journalist Bob Woodward is out with a memoir, an account of Washington’s deepest secrets. The title of the book says it all: Secrets: A Reporter’s Memoir.
With more than 55 years at The Washington Post, Woodward has exposed some of the biggest political scandals in American history. From breaking the Watergate scandal to uncovering the inner workings of President Richard Nixon’s administration, his reporting has played a crucial role in American politics.
Woodward also kept the identity of Deep Throat secret for decades, until W. Mark Felt, the FBI’s second-in-command during the early 1970s, revealed himself in Vanity Fair in 2005. Deep Throat was the pseudonym given to Felt, who secretly helped Woodward during the Watergate investigation.
Now, the 83-year-old reporter is set to pull back the curtain on the sources who helped him uncover Washington’s secrets. His memoir draws on notes, memos, transcripts and other documents he has collected over the years.
The 592-page book will be published by Simon & Schuster on 24 November.
“He names a parade of Washington insiders who leaked him classified information and other highly sensitive details about pivotal moments in recent history,” The Washington Post wrote.
From Watergate to a hospital bedside confession
Many of Woodward’s sources are now dead, he told The Washington Post, while others have permitted him to identify them.
The memoir goes beyond the Watergate investigation, revisiting some of his other landmark reporting. One episode recounts how he made his way into the room of then-CIA director William J. Casey at Georgetown University Hospital in 1987.
During the visit, Woodward secured what he described as a “bedside confession” from the intelligence chief about the diversion of profits from arms sales, a key element of the Iran-Contra scandal.
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A lesson in cultivating sources
Woodward’s memoir also offers lessons for journalists, both those beginning their careers and those who have spent decades in the profession. He reflects on how he cultivated sources over the years and how those relationships helped him break major stories.
According to The Washington Post, Woodward had methodically cultivated members of Casey’s security detail as sources for years. That groundwork paid off when he arrived at the hospital uninvited.
Instead of turning him away, one of the guards greeted him warmly: “Hi, Bob.” The security team then allowed him to speak with Casey.
The episode illustrates a central element of Woodward’s reporting: building relationships over time can open doors that might otherwise remain firmly shut.
(Edited by Maryam Hassan)