Personal History summary

If Graham’s mother had been an overly dominant presence in her early life, her father had been largely absent. Occupied by his own work, Eugene Meyer had little time for his children.

That changed when Graham went to the University of Chicago to study history in 1936. Over the following two years, she grew much closer to her father as the result of their regular correspondence.

At the end of her five-year stint in San Francisco, Graham decided to return home to Chicago.

But that didn’t mean start from scratch.

The war was an eventful period in Graham’s life. She met her husband Phil and, soon after, had two children. That meant change. She now took on a more domestic role while her husband’s career took precedence.

Phil Graham followed in his wife’s footsteps and joined the Post in 1946.

In December 1962, Graham discovered that her husband had been having an affair, and decided that their marriage was over. But before the couple could proceed with their divorce, tragedy struck: Phil committed suicide in August 1963.

Graham’s life was turned on its head.

Graham was now a major personality in the world of news and communication; her life was about to get a whole lot more exciting. She not only had a job she loved, but an opportunity to travel the world.

One of her first major trips came in 1965. Traveling with Osborn Elliott, the editor of Newsweek, Graham headed to Japan. It was a memorable visit. By the time she set out for her next destination, she had become the first Western woman to be granted an audience with the Emperor of Japan.

Graham loved the Washington Post. But it wasn’t a blind love. Like her friends and colleagues who increasingly criticized the paper’s old-fashioned and conservative approach, she could see that the paper needed a shake-up.

It was 1969. Society was changing and so were people’s ideas – it was time for an overhaul.

By 1969, Graham had put her stamp on the Post in her dual role as president and publisher. But despite that, she still felt unable to act with the authority these titles supposedly gave her.

In fact, she was deeply insecure.

On June 17, 1972, a car crashed its way into the living room of a house in which a couple were having sex on a couch. On any other day, that might have been the most scandalous event to make it into the news. But another, much larger scandal was afoot that summer.

The Washington Post had begun investigating a dubious break-in that had taken place in the paper’s own backyard.

Weaknesses can also be strengths. Graham’s lack of authority and her reliance on the opinions of those around her might have undercut her leadership skills, but they had an important side effect – she was a great listener who knew how to take sound advice.

A good example of this is Graham’s relationship with one of her newspaper’s most important financial advisors after the Watergate scandal.