Paul Welrose White (June 6, 1902 – July 9, 1955) was an American journalist and

news director A news director is an individual at a broadcast station or network or a newspaper who is in charge of the news department. In local news, the news director is typically in charge of the entire news staff, including journalists, news presenters, ...

who founded the

Columbia Broadcasting System CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...

's news division in 1933 and directed it for 13 years. His leadership spanned World War II and earned a 1945

Peabody Award The George Foster Peabody Awards (or simply Peabody Awards or the Peabodys) program, named for the American businessman and philanthropist George Peabody, honor the most powerful, enlightening, and invigorating stories in television, radio, and ...

for

CBS Radio CBS Radio was a radio broadcasting company and radio network operator owned by CBS Corporation and founded in 1928, with consolidated radio station groups owned by CBS and Westinghouse Broadcasting/Group W since the 1920s, and Infinity Broadc ...

. After his departure from CBS in 1946 he wrote a textbook on broadcast journalism, ''News on the Air'' (1947). Since 1956 the

Radio Television Digital News Association The Radio Television Digital News Association (RTDNA, pronounced the same as " rotunda"), formerly the Radio-Television News Directors Association (RTNDA), is a United States-based membership organization of radio, television, and online news dire ...

has presented the Paul White Award for lifetime achievement as its highest honor.

Biography

Paul Welrose White was born June 6, 1902, in

Pittsburg, Kansas Pittsburg is a city in Crawford County, Kansas, United States, located in southeast Kansas near the Missouri state border. It is the most populous city in Crawford County and southeast Kansas. As of the 2020 census, the population of the ci ...

, the son of Paul Welrose White and Anna (Pickard) White. His early newspaper experience included reporting for '' The Pittsburg Headlight'' in 1918 and ''

The Salina Journal ''Salina Journal'' is a daily morning newspaper based in Salina, Kansas, United States. It is delivered in north-central and north-western Kansas. Circulation is reported at 20,364 in 2019. History The ''Journal'' was founded in 1871. It was pur ...

'' in 1919, and working as a telegraph editor of '' The Kansas City Journal'' in 1920. White studied at the University of Kansas for two years (1920–21) before transferring to Columbia University. He received a Bachelor of Literature degree (1923) and a Master of Science degree (1924) from the

Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism The Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism is located in Pulitzer Hall on the university's Morningside Heights campus in New York City. Founded in 1912 by Joseph Pulitzer, Columbia Journalism School is one of the oldest journalism s ...

. While studying at Columbia he reported for ''The New York Evening Bulletin'' and was a contributor to the '' New York Sunday World''. White became a correspondent for the

United Press United Press International (UPI) is an American international news agency whose newswires, photo, news film, and audio services provided news material to thousands of newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations for most of the 20th c ...

, covering stories ranging from the sensational trials of

Ruth Snyder Ruth Brown Snyder (March 27, 1895 – January 12, 1928) was an American murderer. Her execution in the electric chair at New York's Sing Sing Prison in 1928 for the murder of her husband, Albert Snyder, was recorded in a highly publicized photogr ...

Earl Carroll Earl Carroll (September 16, 1893 – June 17, 1948) was an American theatrical producer, director, writer, songwriter and composer. Early life Carroll was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1893. He lived as an infant in the Nunnery Hill ( Fine ...

and the

Hall–Mills murder case The Hall–Mills murder case involved Edward Wheeler Hall, an Episcopal Church (United States), Episcopal priest, and Eleanor Mills, a member of his choir with whom he was having an extramarital affair, affair, both of whom were murdered on S ...

to the historic flights of

Charles Lindbergh Charles Augustus Lindbergh (February 4, 1902 – August 26, 1974) was an American aviator, military officer, author, inventor, and activist. On May 20–21, 1927, Lindbergh made the first nonstop flight from New York City to Paris, a distance o ...

Ruth Elder Ruth Elder (September 8, 1902October 9, 1977) was an aviation pioneer and actress. She carried private pilot certificate P675, and was known as the "Miss America of Aviation." She was a charter member of the Ninety-Nines. In October 1927 she too ...

and

Richard E. Byrd Richard Evelyn Byrd Jr. (October 25, 1888 – March 11, 1957) was an American naval officer and explorer. He was a recipient of the Medal of Honor, the highest honor for valor given by the United States, and was a pioneering American aviator, p ...

. He worked his way up to editor of

United Features Syndicate United Feature Syndicate (UFS) is a large American editorial column and comic strip newspaper syndication service based in the United States and established in 1919. Originally part of E. W. Scripps Company, it was part of United Media (along ...

. In 1929 the

began making regular radio news broadcasts — five-minute summaries taken from reports from the United Press, one of the three wire services that supplied newspapers with national and international news. In December 1930 CBS chief

William S. Paley William Samuel Paley (September 28, 1901 – October 26, 1990) was an American businessman, primarily involved in the media, and best known as the chief executive who built the Columbia Broadcasting System ( CBS) from a small radio network into ...

hired White away from United Press as CBS's news editor. Paley put the radio network's news operation at the same level as entertainment, and authorized White to interrupt programming if events warranted. Along with other networks, CBS chafed at the

breaking news Breaking news, interchangeably termed late-breaking news and also known as a special report or special coverage or news flash, is a current issue that broadcasters feel warrants the interruption of scheduled programming or current news in orde ...

embargo imposed upon radio by the wire services, which prevented them from using bulletins until they first appeared in print. CBS disregarded an embargo when it broke the story of the

Lindbergh kidnapping On March 1, 1932, Charles Augustus Lindbergh Jr. (born June 22, 1930), the 20-month-old son of aviators Charles Lindbergh and Anne Morrow Lindbergh, was abducted from his crib in the upper floor of the Lindberghs' home, Highfields (Amwell and Ho ...

in 1932, using live on-the-air reporting. Radio networks scooped print outlets with news of the 1932 presidential election. The

American Newspaper Publishers Association The News Media Alliance (formerly known as the Newspaper Association of America until 2016 In March 1933 White was named vice president and general manager in charge of news at CBS. "Paul White was building an organization that would take on an almost legendary reputation," wrote radio historian John Dunning. He organized the Columbia News Service, operating out of Studio Nine in New York, and produced three news broadcasts per day. Creating the radio news service was the suggestion of

General Mills General Mills, Inc., is an American multinational manufacturer and marketer of branded processed consumer foods sold through retail stores. Founded on the banks of the Mississippi River at Saint Anthony Falls in Minneapolis, the company orig ...

, which agreed to pay half the cost. The

Dow Jones & Company Dow Jones & Company, Inc. is an American publishing firm owned by News Corp and led by CEO Almar Latour. The company publishes ''The Wall Street Journal'', ''Barron's'', ''MarketWatch'', ''Mansion Global'', ''Financial News'' and ''Private Equ ...

ticker service was purchased, along with a subscription to an international news agency in London, the

Exchange Telegraph Exchange may refer to: Physics *Gas exchange is the movement of oxygen and carbon dioxide molecules from a region of higher concentration to a region of lower concentration. Places United States * Exchange, Indiana, an unincorporated community * ...

. Bureaus were set up in New York, Washington, D.C., Chicago and Los Angeles, and those bureau managers hired part-time correspondents to cover every U.S. city with a population of 50,000 or more. Before long White was receiving inquiries from small newspapers about whether they could transcribe CBS radio reports and use them in print; and he found a few instances of newspapers doing just that, without attribution.White, Paul W., ''News on the Air''. New York:

Harcourt, Brace and Company Harcourt () was an American publishing firm with a long history of publishing fiction and nonfiction for adults and children. The company was last based in San Diego, California, with editorial/sales/marketing/rights offices in New York City an ...

, 1947 Within the year the conventional press wanted to compromise. In December 1933 the Press-Radio Bureau was created — with another set of restrictions that were soon disregarded. "This was the last hurrah in the attempt by the press to control radio news," wrote radio historian John Dunning. "Radio had discovered its own capability." In 1935 White hired

Edward R. Murrow Edward Roscoe Murrow (born Egbert Roscoe Murrow; April 25, 1908 – April 27, 1965) was an American broadcast journalist and war correspondent. He first gained prominence during World War II with a series of live radio broadcasts from Europe f ...

, and sent him to London in 1937 to run CBS Radio's European operation. White led a staff that would come to include Charles Collingwood,

William L. Shirer William Lawrence Shirer (; February 23, 1904 – December 28, 1993) was an American journalist and war correspondent. He wrote ''The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich'', a history of Nazi Germany that has been read by many and cited in scholarly w ...

Eric Sevareid Arnold Eric Sevareid (November 26, 1912 – July 9, 1992) was an American author and CBS news journalist from 1939 to 1977. He was one of a group of elite war correspondents who were hired by CBS newsman Edward R. Murrow and nicknamed " Murrow's ...

,Dan Rather Accepting the Paul White Award

Conference & Exhibition, September 20, 1997. Retrieved 2014-05-25.

Bill Downs William Randall Downs, Jr. (August 17, 1914 – May 3, 1978) was an American broadcast journalist and war correspondent. He worked for CBS News from 1942 to 1962 and for ABC News beginning in 1963. He was one of the original members of the te ...

John Charles Daly John Charles Patrick Croghan Daly (February 20, 1914 – February 24, 1991) was an American journalist, host, radio and television personality, ABC News executive, TV anchor, and game show, game show host, best known for his work on the CBS panel ...

Joseph C. Harsch Joseph C. Harsch (May 25, 1905 – June 3, 1998) was an American newspaper, radio, and television journalist. He spent more than sixty years writing for the ''Christian Science Monitor'' and at the time of his departure from his stationing i ...

Cecil Brown,

Elmer Davis Elmer Holmes Davis (January 13, 1890 – May 18, 1958) was an American news reporter, author, the Director of the United States Office of War Information during World War II and a Peabody Award recipient. Early life and career Davis was born ...

Quincy Howe Quincy Howe (August 17, 1900 – February 17, 1977) was an American journalist, best known for his CBS radio broadcasts during World War II. Biography Born in Boston, Massachusetts, he was the son of Mark Anthony De Wolfe Howe, sister of ...

H. V. Kaltenborn Hans von Kaltenborn (July 9, 1878June 14, 1965), generally known as H. V. Kaltenborn, was an American radio commentator. He was heard regularly on the radio for over 30 years, beginning with CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened ...

and

Robert Trout Robert Trout (born Robert Albert Blondheim; October 15, 1909 – November 14, 2000) was an American broadcast news reporter who worked on radio before and during World War II for CBS News. He was regarded by some as the "Iron Man of Radio" for ...

. "CBS was getting its ducks in a row for the biggest news story in history, World War II", wrote radio historian John Dunning. As early as 1940, White embarked upon a collaboration with

Edmund Chester Edmund Albert Chester, Sr. - (June 22, 1897 – October 14, 1973) - was a senior Vice President and executive at the CBS radio and television networks during the 1940s. As Director of Latin American Relations he collaborated with the Department ...

under the direct supervision of William S. Paley in the establishment of CBS' "La Cadena de las Americas" (Network of the Americas), in an effort to offset the proliferation of Nazi propaganda throughout South America during World War II. In the process, he assumed a central role in the establishment of a new broadcast division within CBS consisting of sixty four stations which distributed vital news, music and cultural programming in support of

Pan-Americanism Pan-Americanism is a movement that seeks to create, encourage, and organize relationships, associations and cooperation among the states of the Americas, through diplomatic, political, economic, and social means. History Following the indepen ...

for the government's

Office of the Coordinator of Inter-American Affairs The Office of the Coordinator of Inter-American Affairs, later known as the Office for Inter-American Affairs, was a United States agency promoting inter-American cooperation (Pan-Americanism) during the 1940s, especially in commercial and econ ...

chaired by

Nelson Rockefeller Nelson Aldrich Rockefeller (July 8, 1908 – January 26, 1979), sometimes referred to by his nickname Rocky, was an American businessman and politician who served as the 41st vice president of the United States from 1974 to 1977. A member of t ...

. White and CBS received a 1945

for Outstanding Reporting of the News. He left CBS in May 1946 to write a textbook, ''News on the Air'' (1947), and for health reasons he moved to San Diego, California, in 1947. He accepted the position of associate editor of '' The San Diego Journal'' and became news director of KFMB radio and

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...

in 1950. He covered the

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

and Democratic National Conventions in Chicago for CBS in 1952. White died at his home in San Diego July 9, 1955, after a long illness.

''News on the Air''

Published in 1947, White's book ''News on the Air'' was still used as a textbook at the time of his death in 1955. Reviewing the book in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'',

Jack Gould John Ludlow Gould (February 5, 1914 – May 24, 1993) was an American journalist and critic, who wrote commentary about television. Early life and education Gould was born in New York City into a socially prominent family and attended the Loomi ...

wrote, "The name Paul W. White probably is not familiar to most radio listeners, but for thirteen years he had a direct and influential hand in regard to the news and opinion which they heard on the air. … Under Mr. White's administration, in fact, the CBS newsroom gained a reputation as the most competent and alert in radio." White's book argues that radio's chief value in journalism was its clear and informal presentation of news, in contrast to the cumbersome style employed by many newspapers. "Paul White was a teacher as well as a working pro," said

Dan Rather Daniel Irvin Rather Jr. (; born October 31, 1931) is an American journalist, commentator, and former national evening news anchor. Rather began his career in Texas, becoming a national name after his reporting saved thousands of lives during Hurr ...

, recipient of the Paul White Award in 1997. "He taught Murrow and the

Murrow Boys The Murrow Boys, or Murrow's Boys, were the CBS radio broadcast journalists most closely associated with Edward R. Murrow during his time at the network, most notably in the years before and during World War II. Murrow recruited a number of newsm ...

, and he taught at Columbia University from 1939 to 1946. And it's worth noting that Paul White didn't merely ''practice'' high standards — he put them in a book, where he hoped that the young — students and professionals — would find them and learn from them. And so he wrote ''News on the Air''. For a long time it was ''the'' definitive textbook on broadcast journalism. It influenced three generations of radio and television reporters, including the present generation — and specifically including this reporter, who devoured the book in college."

Legacy

Since 1956 the

has presented the Paul White Award for lifetime achievement as its highest honor. Recipients include

Christiane Amanpour Christiane Maria Heideh AmanpourStated on ''Finding Your Roots'', 22 January 2019 (; fa, کریستیان امان‌پور, Kristiane Amānpur; born 12 January 1958) is a British-Iranian journalist and television host. Amanpour is the Chief ...

Tom Brokaw Thomas John Brokaw (; born February 6, 1940) is an American retired network television journalist and author. He first served as the co-anchor of ''The Today Show'' from 1976 to 1981 with Jane Pauley, then as the anchor and managing editor of '' ...

Pauline Frederick Pauline Frederick (born Pauline Beatrice Libbey, August 12, 1883 – September 19, 1938) was an American stage and film actress. Early life Frederick was born Pauline Beatrice Libbey (later changed to Libby) in Boston in 1883 (some sources stat ...

Charles Gibson Charles deWolf Gibson (born March 9, 1943) is an American broadcast television anchor, journalist and podcaster. Gibson was a host of ''Good Morning America'' from 1987 to 1998 and again from 1999 to 2006, and the anchor of ''World News with Char ...

Charles Kuralt Charles Bishop Kuralt (September 10, 1934 – July 4, 1997) was an American television, newspaper and radio journalist and author. He is most widely known for his long career with CBS, first for his "On the Road" segments on '' The CBS Eveni ...

Tim Russert Timothy John Russert (May 7, 1950 – June 13, 2008) was an American television journalist and lawyer who appeared for more than 16 years as the longest-serving moderator of NBC's ''Meet the Press''. He was a senior vice president at NBC News, Wa ...

Bob Schieffer Bob Lloyd Schieffer (born February 25, 1937) is an American television journalist. He is known for his moderation of presidential debates, where he has been praised for his capability. Schieffer is one of the few journalists to have covered all f ...

Chris Wallace Christopher Wallace (born October 12, 1947) is an American broadcast journalist. He is known for his tough and wide-ranging interviews, for which he is often compared to his father, ''60 Minutes'' journalist Mike Wallace. Over his 50-year care ...

and Lesley Stahl.

References

External links

1944 Radio News
at the Internet Archive, with CBS coverage including Paul White's questions for Charles Shaw in London on D-Day (June 6, 1944)
''What's My Line''
(October 5, 1952) at the

Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...

Former colleague

mentions Paul White to contestant John Butler, mayor of San Diego (9:53) {{DEFAULTSORT:White, Paul American male journalists American radio directors American reporters and correspondents Peabody Award winners 1955 deaths 1902 births People from Pittsburg, Kansas CBS News people CBS Radio Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism alumni 20th-century American non-fiction writers Presidents of CBS News 20th-century American male writers

Biography

''News on the Air''

Legacy

See also

References

External links