Collision of Power

Trump, Bezos, and the Washington Post

By: Martin Baron

Narrated by: Liev Schreiber

Length: 16 hrs and 32 mins

Publisher's summary

This program features a prologue and epilogue read by the author.

A monumental work of nonfiction that gives a first-row seat to the epic power struggle between politics, money, media, and tech—for fans of Maggie Haberman's Confidence Man and Jane Mayer's Dark Money.

Marty Baron took charge of The Washington Post newsroom in 2013, after nearly a dozen years leading The Boston Globe. Just seven months into his new job, Baron received explosive news: Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, would buy the Post, marking a sudden end to control by the venerated family that had presided over the paper for 80 years. Just over two years later, Donald Trump won the presidency.

Now, the capital’s newspaper, owned by one of the world’s richest men, was tasked with reporting on a president who had campaigned against the press as the “lowest form of humanity.” Pressures on Baron and his colleagues were immense and unrelenting, having to meet the demands of their new owner while contending with a president who waged a war of unprecedented vitriol and vengeance against the media.

In the face of Trump’s unceasing attacks, Baron steadfastly managed the Post’s newsroom. Their groundbreaking and award-winning coverage included stories about Trump’s purported charitable giving, misconduct by the Secret Service, and Roy Moore’s troubling sexual history. At the same time, Baron managed a restive staff during a period of rapidly changing societal dynamics around gender and race.

In Collision of Power, Baron recounts this with the tenacity of a reporter and the sure hand of an experienced editor. The result is elegant and revelatory—an urgent exploration of the nature of power in the 21st century.

A Macmillan Audio production from Flatiron Books.

©2023 Martin Baron (P)2023 Macmillan Audio

Critic reviews

“Few editors in American history have been as influential as Marty Baron, and so when he has thoughts to share, the rest of us should listen. This is an illuminating and important book about journalism and democracy.”—Jon Meacham

"Engrossing. . . . Candid. . . . Baron chronicles nearly a decade of history marked by sensitive, controversial stories. . . . Impassioned."—Kirkus

Captivating

Captivating and frightening account of why the free press is the secret sauce that keeps our democracy going. I’m so thankful for Martin Baron and all the other ethical journalists in our country. ♥️

An Excellent Reminder Of Why We Need Journalists

Marty Baron is a legend, and one can only hope to have a managing editor (or News Director for broadcast news) like him. His honest approach in recounting the successes and failures of his tenure at the Post and some of their handling of stories is a gripping insight into what it means to be a journalist. The ethical, moral, personal and sometimes legal struggle when reporting complicated stories. Truly a fantastic read/listen—almost a must for any journalist.

One of the best and most enjoyable books I’ve read

So grateful to Martin Baron for this insightful account of The Washington Post. His clear writting shines new light on Bezos, Trump and the country. He makes a spirited defense of a free press. One of the best and most enjoyable books I’ve read.

A love letter to newsroom editing and journalism… and maybe also to Jeff Bezos

I’m one of those legions that got the post digitally during the Trump years. It was a comfort and I viewed Baron as something like the incarnate ghost of Ben Bradley, risen again to defend us from a remedial Nixon. This story is so much more intricate and intriguing. Though always understated, you can sense the author’s struggle, intellectually and morally, to rise to every moment (Trump, me too, rising violence and union woes), often with mixed results, but always with seeming honesty, even in his failure. It fascinating revisiting that time (as opposed to traumatic) because Baron had such great seats. Bezos is probably too complicated a subject for the author in the scope rendered by the book, which comes off as kid gloves at worst avoiding outright sycophancy. A great listen. Great narrator.

Journalism under siege

This book provided a great in-depth review of recent events under Trump. The WP under Baron has kept the public aware of facts and truths needed to preserve our democracy. The challenges are many and Bazos, luckily, has provided the unfettered resources to keep WP’s great journalism alive. This is a well-recommended read.

Most important book …

Brilliant assessment of the crisis now faced by American democracy. Candid, clear and gripping tale.

An Inspiration

We Americans are in dark times and Marty Baron helped me to understand that it’s even darker than I thought. His descriptions of how WP reporters are treated when they come into contact with trumpies made me sick. The free press has been relentlessly attacked by trump for nine years now and it has had an effect.
This book is very well-written and the narration by Liev Schreiber (who played Baron in “Spotlight”) is perfect.

Overall, a scary but necessary warning from someone at the heart of American journalism and politics for 40 years.

Must-Read for Every Journalist and Every American

Martin Baron pulls back the curtain on The Washington Post newsroom during the time he was editor. He reports with candor and objectivity on all sorts of topics, including Donald Trump, Jeff Bezos and the role of social media. He describes the thorny ethical questions he faced on a daily basis. He holds others to account but even more so he holds himself to account. Anyone who has ever wondered what goes on in newsrooms will get an accurate picture from this book. This should be required reading in all journalism ethics classes.

Important and Enlightening Work

Just finished Mr. Baron’s book and I highly recommend it to anyone who cares about this country. I don’t make proclamations like that often. Also just read, “The Times,” by Adam Nagourney. The changes in journalism that both of these editors experienced are riveting.

Insightful and engrossing

Who cares if Baron may be dour and taciturn, as others describe him? He is also brilliant and has written an important historical and analytical work. One of the
best books of 2023, hands down.