For its first issue he found a piece that won a National Magazine Award.[2] He forced the resignation of Ronald Reagan’s chief foreign policy advisor, Richard V. Allen, at the 1980 Republican National Convention.[3] At the San Jose Mercury News in 1983–92, he investigated The Pentagon’s secret programs to dominate space. Susan Faludi began Backlash: The Undeclared War Against American Women[4] while working for Klein there. Returning in the 1990s to be Mother Jones’ editor-in-chief, Klein directed exposés of Newt Gingrich, Bob Dole, the top 400 political contributors in the U.S. and Donald Sipple, the Republicans' star image-maker. The investigative series on Speaker Gingrich led to his unprecedented public reprimand by the United States House of Representatives and a $300,000 fine.[5] Klein made Mother Jones the first general-interest magazine to place its content on the Internet.[6] In 2005, he co-produced for The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer a series on China's rising economy that won a Gerald Loeb Award.[7]
Career
Early career
Klein was born in the Hill Section of Scranton, Pennsylvania, to Dr. Harold and Helen Klein. When Klein was 12, his father died of a heart attack on the golf course; his mother's multiple sclerosis flared and she became bedridden. Klein attended Scranton Central High School and Columbia University. During his senior year at Columbia, he studied “the moral life in the process of revising itself” under Lionel Trilling, who was preparing to give the Norton lectures at Harvard the following year. Klein's first published article, “A Cuban Journal”, appeared in the Winter 1970 Columbia Forum; it critiqued his experiences cutting sugar cane with the Venceremos Brigade in Cuba.
Co-founding Mother Jones
Klein was one of the journalists who founded Mother Jones magazine in 1976, in the wake of the Vietnamese War and Watergate. For its first issue, Klein found a memoir about growing up in Beijing by Li-li Ch'en that won a National Magazine Award. In 1977, Klein became the magazine's second managing editor; Adam Hochschild had been the first. When Larry Flynt expressed an interest in distributing Mother Jones, Klein used the opportunity to do a “Born Again Porn” profile of Flynt and Hustler’s demographics, which were disclosed to be much broader than the presumed blue collar audience.[8] His article “Esalen Slides Off The Cliff” shook up that human potential retreat perched on the California coast by showing its co-founder being duped by a psychic.[9] His story predicting what might happen during the first four years of a Reagan Administration contained a co-written sidebar exposing that Reagan's chief foreign policy adviser, Richard V. Allen, had been on the payroll of Robert Vesco (then the world's largest swindler and a fugitive) at the same time that Allen was working in Nixon's White House. Allen was forced to resign from the campaign, but was appointed National Security Advisor after Reagan's landslide victory.[10] Allen resigned a second time when other personal scandals came to light.
At the San Jose Mercury News
After a stint as the editor-in-chief of San Francisco magazine, Klein founded West, the Sunday magazine of the San Jose Mercury News, in 1982. The magazine sought to penetrate Silicon Valley. A satiric look at Valley's top powerbrokers provoked ire from the newspaper's publisher, Tony Ridder, and also led to the founding of the cheeky magazine Upside.[11] Susan Faludi began her book Backlash as a series of articles for West. While editing at the Mercury-News, Klein also reported on the Pentagon's efforts, through its black budget, to dominate space. With Dan Stober, he co-wrote "The American Empire In Space: 'Star Wars' -- The Strategic Defense Initiative -- Has Become The Space Domination Initiative".[12] He also wrote a thriller called The Black Hole Affair[13] based on his reporting; the novel was first serialized in the Mercury-News.
Returning as editor-in-chief
In fall 1992, Klein returned to Mother Jones as editor-in-chief. He brought an intense focus on how money influenced Washington politics. Mother Jones began posting its magazine content on the Internet in November 1993, the first general-interest magazine to do so.[6] In the March/April 1996 issue, the magazine published the first "Mother Jones 400", a list of the largest individual donors to federal political campaigns along with reporting on what favors the donors received in exchange. On MotherJones.com (then known as the MoJo Wire) the donors were listed in a searchable database.
House Speaker’s reprimand
Klein directed a series of exposés, called “Countdown to Indictment”, that dissected House Speaker Newt Gingrich's empire and its shady financing. Thanks in part to this series, the House Ethics Committee hired an outside counsel to investigate Gingrich. With the speaker in charge of the House, the Committee's final hearing was unilaterally reduced from five days to one afternoon, the Friday before the presidential inauguration. For the Pacifica radio stations, Klein co-hosted gavel-to-gavel live coverage with Amy Goodman,[14] the only media to do so. The Ethics Committee ultimately recommended that Gingrich be reprimanded and forced to pay a $300,000 fine. On January 21, 1997, the full House voted overwhelmingly to accept the committee's recommendation, the first time in its 208-year history that the House disciplined its speaker for ethical wrongdoing.[15]
Bob Dole and tobacco
In 1996, Klein published a 40-page investigative package on the tobacco industry's attempt to roll back regulation by electing as president Bob Dole. Frank Rich wrote about the Mother Jones package in The New York Times and highlighted Klein's claim that the 1996 presidential election was "The Tobacco Election".[16] Dole was subsequently forced[citation needed] by reporters to defend his support by and for the tobacco industry. He stumbled, saying nicotine was no more addictive than milk. Rather than appearing corrupt, Dole seemed out-of-touch and his image suffered.[citation needed] In the Family Guy episode "Mr. Griffin Goes to Washington", Peter meets Bob Dole, who states, "Bob Dole is a friend of the tobacco industry. Bob Dole likes your style...." then Dole repeatedly refers to himself in third person until he falls asleep.[17]
Exposing the Republicans' image-maker
In 1997 Klein accepted and fortified an investigative piece on Republican image-maker Donald Sipple, who had crafted “strong character campaigns”[This quote needs a citation] for Bob Dole, George Bush and his son George W., and Pete Wilson while trashing the personal reputations of their Democratic opponents, such as Bill Clinton, Ann Richards and Kathleen Brown.[citation needed] Sipple's attack ads mirrored the hidden past of a vindictive man who beat his first two wives. The story was originally written for George magazine by staffer Richard Blow, then rejected by George editor-in-chief John Kennedy, Jr. under intense pressure from Sipple and advice from Kennedy's sister Caroline.[18] When the exposé appeared in Mother Jones, Sipple responded with a $12.6 million defamation suit, but both ex-wives vouched for the accuracy of the article.[19] Sipple appealed all the way up to the California Supreme Court, where his suit was dismissed and Sipple was forced to pay Mother Jones’ court costs.[20] All of these exposés brought the magazine and Klein into the full glare of the talk-show circuit.[citation needed]
Controversial departure
Klein often took a critical stance towards traditional progressive positions. A special issue on spirituality [21] published during the 1997 holiday season was praised by columnists such as The Washington Post’s William Raspberry[22] and sold well, but also led to Klein’s resignation from Mother Jones because of the parent board’s displeasure.[citation needed]
Recent work
Klein subsequently taught journalism at Stanford University and started a software company. He co-produced for The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer a seven-part series on China’s economy. The series won a 2006 Gerald Loeb Award, journalism’s top award for economics and business reporting, in the Television Enterprise category.[7] With Paolo Pontoniere, Klein authored pieces about secret trade-offs made by the U.S. prior to the Iraq War and about the mysterious deaths of two European telecom engineers immediately after they discovered sophisticated bugs planted in the hubs of their telecommunications systems.
Criticism
Charles Peters, editor-in-chief of the Washington Monthly, said in The New York Times: "There has been this strong movement on the left that is trying to free themselves from the automatic clichés of the left. That is praiseworthy. But I think Jeff and all the former left is in danger of losing the passion for the downtrodden and losing touch with the people I worry most about: the working poor and the lower middle class." A San Francisco Chronicle article said Klein's editorial positions were but one side of a split between two progressive camps. “The rift at San Francisco's MoJo, a liberal standard-bearer since its founding, reflects strains within the left in general. From Washington, D.C., to Berkeley, liberals are divided over whether to adhere to 1960s-rooted values or to rethink approaches toward achieving the goals of feminism, affirmative action and other causes.”[23] Klein's criticism that liberals’ continuing support of affirmative action was eroding their moral credibility came under fire from many, including C. Eric Lincoln, Derrick Bell[24] and the anthology Multiculturalism in the United States.[25]
Personal
Klein has two children (Jacob and Jonah) from his marriage to Judith Weinstein Klein, a therapist and authority on ethnic self-esteem. She died at their home on August 9, 1996, the couple's 25th wedding anniversary.[26] A second marriage ended in divorce. He has been married to Claudia Brooks Klein since 2020.
Quotes
"Because I'm technologically able to find a like-minded person on the other side of the globe, I'm also more interested in making friends with my next-door neighbor." -Jeff Klein, Quoteworld
“Marx did not recognize that our desire to connect with a transcendent power runs even deeper than our drive for economic satisfaction. Each of us seeks. How we honor each other's search will tell the tale of the next millennium.” -Jeffrey Klein
“Most reporters are sheep in wolves’ clothing.” -Jeffrey Klein, Gannett Foundation Calendar[This quote needs a citation]
↑ Jeffrey Klein and Dan Stober. "The American Empire In Space: 'Star Wars' -- The Strategic Defense Initiative -- Has Become The Space Domination Initiative," San Jose Mercury News, August 2, 1992
Susan Charlotte Faludi is an American feminist, journalist, and author. She won a Pulitzer Prize for Explanatory Journalism in 1991, for a report on the leveraged buyout of Safeway Stores, Inc., a report that the Pulitzer Prize committee commended for depicting the "human costs of high finance". She was also awarded the Kirkus Prize in 2016 for In the Darkroom, which was also a finalist for the 2017 Pulitzer Prize in biography.
The 1996 United States presidential election was the 53rd quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 5, 1996. Incumbent Democratic President Bill Clinton defeated former Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole, the Republican nominee, and Ross Perot, the Reform Party nominee and 1992 Independent presidential candidate.
Robert Joseph Dole was an American politician and attorney from Kansas who served in both chambers of the United States Congress, the U.S. House of Representatives in the 1960s and the United States Senate from 1969 to his resignation in 1996 to campaign for President of the United States. He was the Republican Leader of the Senate during the final 11 years of his tenure, including three non-consecutive years as Senate Majority Leader. Prior to his 27 years in the U.S. Senate, he served in the United States House of Representatives from 1961 to 1969. Dole was also the Republican presidential nominee in the 1996 election and the vice presidential nominee in the 1976 election.
Newton Leroy Gingrich is an American politician and author who served as the 50th speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 1995 to 1999. A member of the Republican Party, he was the U.S. representative for Georgia's 6th congressional district serving north Atlanta and nearby areas from 1979 until his resignation in 1999. In 2012, Gingrich unsuccessfully ran for the Republican nomination for president of the United States.
Mother Jones is a nonprofit American progressive magazine that focuses on news, commentary, and investigative journalism on topics including politics, environment, human rights, health and culture. Clara Jeffery serves as editor-in-chief of the magazine. Monika Bauerlein has been the CEO since 2015. Mother Jones was published by the Foundation for National Progress, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, until 2024, when it merged with and became published by The Center for Investigative Reporting.
The 1996 Republican National Convention convened at the San Diego Convention Center in San Diego, California, from August 12 to August 15, 1996. The convention nominated Senator Bob Dole from Kansas, for president and former Representative and secretary of Housing and Urban Development Jack Kemp, from suburban Buffalo, New York, for vice president.
Russ Rymer is an American author and freelance journalist who has contributed articles to the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, The New Yorker, National Geographic, Harper's, Smithsonian, Vogue, Los Angeles Magazine, and other publications.
Robert Henry Michel was an American Republican Party politician who was a member of the United States House of Representatives for 38 years. He represented central Illinois' 18th congressional district, and was the GOP leader in the House, serving as House Minority Leader during his last 14 years in Congress (1981–1995).
Ken Silverstein is an American journalist who worked for the Los Angeles Times as an investigative reporter, for The Associated Press in Brazil, and has written for Mother Jones, Washington Monthly, The Nation, Slate, and Salon and Harper's Magazine.
Backlash: The Undeclared War Against American Women is a 1991 book by Susan Faludi, in which the author presents evidence demonstrating the existence of a media-driven "backlash" against the feminist advances of the 1970s in the United States.
Aram Bakshian Jr. was an American political aide and speechwriter. He began his career working for Congressman Bill Brock (1966–70), then became a special assistant and speechwriter for Republican National Committee (RNC) Chairman Senator Bob Dole (1971). He joined the speechwriting staff of President Richard Nixon and, later, of President Ford (1972–75). He then became a senior consultant to Treasury Secretary William E. Simon (1976–77). Following his government service, Aram went on the lecture circuit as well as becoming a senior fellow at Harvard Kennedy School at Harvard University before being brought back for White House service.
From January 14 to June 14, 1988, Republican voters chose their nominee for president in the 1988 United States presidential election. Incumbent Vice President George H. W. Bush was selected as the nominee through a series of primary elections and caucuses culminating in the 1988 Republican National Convention held from August 15 to August 18, 1988, in New Orleans, Louisiana.
From January 29 to June 4, 1996, voters of the Republican Party chose its nominee for president in the 1996 United States presidential election. Senator Bob Dole of Kansas, the former Senate majority leader, was selected as the nominee through a series of primary elections and caucuses culminating in the 1996 Republican National Convention held from August 12 to 15, 1996, in San Diego, California. Dole resigned from the Senate in June 1996 once he became the presumptive nominee to concentrate on his presidential campaign. He chose Jack Kemp as his running mate.
The 1994 United States elections were held on November 8, 1994. The elections occurred in the middle of Democratic President Bill Clinton's first term in office, and elected the members of 104th United States Congress. The elections have been described as the "Republican Revolution" because the Republican Party captured unified control of Congress for the first time since 1952. Republicans picked up eight seats in the Senate and won a net of 54 seats in the House of Representatives. Republicans also picked up a net of ten governorships and took control of many state legislative chambers. This is the first midterm election since 1946 in which the Republicans ended unified Democratic control of Congress in a midterm election under a Democratic president.
Callista Louise Gingrich is an American businesswoman, author, documentary film producer and former diplomat who served as United States Ambassador to the Holy See from 2017 to 2021. She currently serves as President and Chief Executive Officer of Gingrich 360, a multimedia production and consulting company based in Arlington, Virginia and is married to former House Speaker and 2012 Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich.
San Jose Mercury News West Magazine, also referred to as West and West Magazine, was a Sunday magazine published by San Jose Mercury News from 1982 to c. 1997. West Magazine received numerous awards and was recognized both for its articles and investigative journalism, as well as its art design.
Ken was a short-lived illustrated magazine first issued on April 7, 1938. It was a controversial, political, large format magazine with full page photo spreads, published every two weeks on Thursdays. It contained both articles and stories.
Since 1980, the Republican Party of the United States has held debates between candidates for the Republican nomination in presidential elections during the primary election season. Unlike debates between party-nominated candidates, which have been organized by the bi-partisan Commission on Presidential Debates since 1988, debates between candidates for party nomination are organized by mass media outlets.
John Dwyer Heubusch is an American political and private-sector executive and author, best known for his current work directing the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute in Simi Valley, California, overseeing the legacy of the 40th President of the United States. The Reagan Foundation funds the permanent Reagan Museum and the activities of the Reagan Presidential Library, including presidential primary debates, a speaker's program featuring world leaders and national political figures and youth education, as well as the Reagan Institute located in Washington, D.C. Heubusch manages an organization with assets of $400 million and an endowment that has grown to over $250 million.
The 1996 presidential campaign of Bob Dole began when Republican Senator and Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole formally announced his candidacy for Republican Party nomination in 1995. After beating other candidates in the primaries, he became the Republican nominee, with his opponent being Democratic incumbent President Bill Clinton in the 1996 presidential election. Dole conceded defeat in the race in a telephone call to Clinton on November 5, 1996.
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