Wesley Pruden
Wesley Pruden is the former Editor in Chief of the Washington Times, a position he held from 1992 until January 2008. He was succeeded by John Solomon.
Writing in the Columbia Journalism Review, Allan Freedman described Pruden as "a native of Arkansas and the son of a Baptist preacher, Pruden has occupied one newspaper job or another (the Memphis Commercial Appeal, Dow Jones's National Observer) since his days at Little Rock High School, when he worked at the Arkansas Gazette. He's been at the Times since 1982, moving up from chief political correspondent and managing editor. His often acerbic column - 'Pruden on Politics' -- seldom pulls punches." [1]
Pruden has embraced Confederate causes with Beirich and Moser describing the Washington Times as "being the only major daily newspaper in the US to run a weekly page on about a war that ended 138 years ago".
In 1998, Beirich and Moser report Pruden spoke to the United Daughters of the Confederacy at the Manassas Battlefield Park: "I will never fail to respond to you when you call on me for help, because I believe in what you are doing to cherish and protect and preserve the heritage of our great Southern people."
"'Southerners ... hold loyalty to two countries in our hearts.' The second country is one 'baptized 137 years ago on this very field in the blood of First Manassas, a country no longer at the mercy of the vicissitudes in the tangled affairs of men, a country that lives within us, a country that will endure for as long as men and women know love. ... God bless America, God bless the Confederate States of America, and God bless you all'," Beirich and Moser wrote.[2]
External links
- Allan Freedman, "Washington's Other Paper: Is the time right for the Times?, Columbia Journalism Review, March/April 1995.
- Wesley Pruden,"Fear and Loathing on the Potomac: The Washington Times at Twenty", Heritage Lecture No 757, August 15, 2002.
- Heidi Beirich and Bob Moser, "Defending Dixie: The Washington Times has always been conservative and error-prone -- now it's helping to popularize extremist ideas", Intelligence Report, Southern Poverty Law Center, undated.
