From Reporting Sleuth to Pioneer in Media Accountability: The Career of the New York World's Isaac D. White

Abstract

This article discusses the career of New York World's Isaac D. White (1864–1943), a leading police reporter in the closing years of the 19th century and the first news ombudsman as director of the Bureau of Accuracy and Fair Play. Using ingenuity and wide access to police evidence, White solved cases that the police department could not, reaching the pinnacle of his career in tracking down the perpetrator of a Wall Street bombing incident in 1891 by tracing a button found on the bomber's pants. After retiring from reporting in 1910, White became a leading expert in libel law, despite having no formal legal training. In addition, he headed the Bureau of Accuracy and Fair Play for nearly 18 years until the World was sold and absorbed into the New York Telegram in 1931. In his later work as the first news ombudsman, White became a strong advocate for improved factual accuracy and the need to separate opinion from news reporting.