Clash: Presidents and the Press in Times of Crisis (Potomac Books, 2022)

Describe the focus of your book. 

Clash: Presidents and the Press in Times of Crisis examines the history of the shifting relationship between presidents and journalists from the founding of the United States until Joe Biden’s inauguration in 2021. The book explores the forces – technological, economic, political, and social – and the personalities that have led to the often-tumultuous current relationship between the news media and the White House. Clash focuses specifically on times of crisis during the presidencies of John Adams, Abraham Lincoln, Woodrow Wilson, Franklin Roosevelt, Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barack Obama, and Donald Trump. They are the ones who I think shed the most light on how we arrived at this point of heightened tension.  

How did you come across this subject? Why did it interest you? 

Since a young age, I have been interested in how reporters covered the presidency. My first book, Watergate’s Legacy: The Investigative Impulse, focused heavily on the Nixon administration and the fate of investigative journalism afterward. After Donald Trump was elected in 2016, I wanted to understand the historical dynamics that shaped his interactions with reporters. People frequently said his relationship with the news media was unprecedented; and, in some ways, it was, but I also wanted to analyze the ways that precedents had been established during other administrations.  

What archives or research materials did you use?  

As was true for many historians, COVID wasn’t my friend during my research time. I had all sorts of grand plans to physically visit the archives of various presidential libraries, but I only made it to one: The George W. Bush Presidential Library in Dallas, which had some fascinating material. Fortunately, a wealth of material from the presidential libraries is available digitally, and I took full advantage of those resources. My research also delved into the contents of more than 90 newspapers, magazines, television shows, radio programs, news websites, and, more recently, social media feeds. In addition, the Library of Congress, the National Archives, C-SPAN, the Vanderbilt Television Archives, the Internet Archive, the University of California at Santa Barbara’s American Presidency Project, and the University of Virginia’s Miller Center were tremendous resources. In the end, I had no shortage of material. 

How does your book relate to journalism history? How is it relevant to the present? 

Clash begins with the birth of the partisan press in the United States and uses qualitative historical research methods to study the changing dynamics of how journalists have covered the presidency for more than two centuries. I did want the book to be of interest to non-scholarly readers who care about politics, government, the media, and in particular the Trump era. So, at the risk of being accused of presentism, I drew connections between events in the past to what has happened in recent years. For example, Clash looks at the Wilson administration’s use of the Espionage Act in comparison to how it was deployed by the Obama and Trump administrations. As another example, the book describes similarities between Trump’s Twitter torrents and Franklin Roosevelt’s use of his fireside chats to avoid the gatekeepers of the Washington press corps to communicate directly to the public.  

What advice do you have for other historians that are working on or starting book projects? 

To begin, I strongly recommend carving out certain times in your week when you do nothing else except work on the book. No emails, no texts, no phone calls, no grading papers, just working on the book. With that said, I believe it’s also crucial to set aside time to take care of yourself and do the things that relax you and regenerate your energy. A book project is a marathon, and you need to pace yourself. In addition, don’t hesitate to reach out to colleagues, family members, and friends for advice and support. When I was nearing the completion of Clash, several good friends and relatives told me they were looking forward to reading it. I took them at their word and asked if they wanted to read a preliminary version of it and assist me with proofreading. They agreed and helped to polish the manuscript. In addition, History Division members Tom Mascaro and Ford Risley read all or parts of the Clash manuscript, and they offered invaluable suggestions.  

Finally, I think it’s vitally important that historians be passionate about any book project they are starting. Its subject should be something you will enjoy working on every day and dreaming about every night because it will become your constant companion. 

Clash: Presidents and the Press in Times of Crisis was a finalist for the 2023 AEJMC James A. Tankard Book Award.