Charles Lane (journalist)
Encyclopedia
Charles "Chuck" Lane is an American journalist
and editor
who is a staff writer for The Washington Post
. His articles are concerned chiefly with the activities and cases of the Supreme Court of the United States
and judicial system. He was the lead editor of The New Republic
from 1997 to 1999. In 2008 he published The Day Freedom Died, about the Colfax massacre of 1873
in Louisiana
and its political repercussions during Reconstruction, including the resulting Supreme Court case, United States v. Cruikshank
.
in 1983. As a Knight Fellow, he earned a Master of Studies in Law from Yale
in 1997.
and served as its Berlin
bureau chief. He received a citation for excellence from the Overseas Press Club
for his coverage of the former Yugoslavia
and contributed to the book Crimes of War: What the Public Should Know, edited by Roy Gutman
and David Rieff
. He has appeared as a commentator on PBS's The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer
and NPR
's The Diane Rehm Show
.
From 1997 to 1999 Lane was lead editor of The New Republic. In 1998 a scandal arose when fabricated reporting by Stephen Glass was discovered. Lane fired Glass and accepted responsibility for printing Glass's articles.
Since 2000, Lane has been covering the Supreme Court
for the Washington Post. He also teaches a course in journalism (about fraud) at Georgetown University
in Washington, DC. Lane taught a similar course at Princeton University
in the spring of 2008.
From 2003 to 2004 Lane was a Media Fellow of the Japan Society and U.S. Japan Foundation
. He is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations
.
In 2006, he was one of four finalists for the director position of the School of Media and Public Affairs at George Washington University
; Lee Huebner was chosen. Charles Lane was Bosch Fellow in Public Policy at the American Academy in Berlin
, Germany, for Spring 2009.
In 2011, Lane wrote that he hoped that Democratic Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords
, who was unable to speak as a result of having been shot in the head a few weeks earlier, would speak out against union workers in Wisconsin if she "could speak normally". Lane's statement was criticized by some as exploitative and insensitive.
(which he believes is unconstitutional). He has written pieces supporting Glenn Beck
and Sarah Palin
. Lane is a regular contributor to Bret Baier
's "Special Report" on Fox News Channel
.
Chuck was a competitor on "Jeopardy" and came in third (last) place. He won a set of china.
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
and editor
Editing
Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, visual, audible, and film media used to convey information through the processes of correction, condensation, organization, and other modifications performed with an intention of producing a correct, consistent, accurate, and complete...
who is a staff writer for The Washington Post
The Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
. His articles are concerned chiefly with the activities and cases of the Supreme Court of the United States
Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...
and judicial system. He was the lead editor of The New Republic
The New Republic
The magazine has also published two articles concerning income inequality, largely criticizing conservative economists for their attempts to deny the existence or negative effect increasing income inequality is having on the United States...
from 1997 to 1999. In 2008 he published The Day Freedom Died, about the Colfax massacre of 1873
Colfax massacre
The Colfax massacre or Colfax Riot occurred on Easter Sunday, April 13, 1873, in Colfax, Louisiana, the seat of Grant Parish, during Reconstruction, when white militia attacked freedmen at the Colfax courthouse...
in Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
and its political repercussions during Reconstruction, including the resulting Supreme Court case, United States v. Cruikshank
United States v. Cruikshank
United States v. Cruikshank, 92 U.S. 542 was an important United States Supreme Court decision in United States constitutional law, one of the earliest to deal with the application of the Bill of Rights to state governments following the adoption of the Fourteenth Amendment.-Background:On Easter...
.
Early life and education
Charles Lane earned his bachelor's degree from Harvard UniversityHarvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
in 1983. As a Knight Fellow, he earned a Master of Studies in Law from Yale
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
in 1997.
Career
Lane is a former foreign correspondent for NewsweekNewsweek
Newsweek is an American weekly news magazine published in New York City. It is distributed throughout the United States and internationally. It is the second-largest news weekly magazine in the U.S., having trailed Time in circulation and advertising revenue for most of its existence...
and served as its Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
bureau chief. He received a citation for excellence from the Overseas Press Club
Overseas Press Club
The Overseas Press Club of America was founded in 1939 in New York City by a group of foreign correspondents. The wire service reporter Carol Weld was a founding member...
for his coverage of the former Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....
and contributed to the book Crimes of War: What the Public Should Know, edited by Roy Gutman
Roy Gutman
Roy Gutman is an American journalist and author.In 1966, Gutman graduated from Haverford College with a major in History. In 1968, Gutman graduated from the London School of Economics with a masters degree in International Relations.Roy Gutman joined Newsday in January 1982 and served for eight...
and David Rieff
David Rieff
David Rieff is an American polemicist and pundit. His books have focused on issues of immigration, international conflict, and humanitarianism...
. He has appeared as a commentator on PBS's The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer
The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer
PBS NewsHour is an evening television news program broadcast weeknights on the Public Broadcasting Service in the United States. The show is produced by MacNeil/Lehrer Productions, a company co-owned by former anchors Jim Lehrer and Robert MacNeil, and Liberty Media, which owns a 65% stake in the...
and NPR
NPR
NPR, formerly National Public Radio, is a privately and publicly funded non-profit membership media organization that serves as a national syndicator to a network of 900 public radio stations in the United States. NPR was created in 1970, following congressional passage of the Public Broadcasting...
's The Diane Rehm Show
The Diane Rehm Show
The Diane Rehm Show is a National Public Radio call-in show based in the United States. In October, 2007, The Diane Rehm Show was named to Audience Research Analysis’ list of the top ten most powerful national programs in public radio – the only talk show on the list...
.
From 1997 to 1999 Lane was lead editor of The New Republic. In 1998 a scandal arose when fabricated reporting by Stephen Glass was discovered. Lane fired Glass and accepted responsibility for printing Glass's articles.
Since 2000, Lane has been covering the Supreme Court
Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...
for the Washington Post. He also teaches a course in journalism (about fraud) at Georgetown University
Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a private, Jesuit, research university whose main campus is in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic university in the United States...
in Washington, DC. Lane taught a similar course at Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
in the spring of 2008.
From 2003 to 2004 Lane was a Media Fellow of the Japan Society and U.S. Japan Foundation
Nippon Foundation
is a private, non-profit grant-making organization. It was established in 1962 by Ryoichi Sasakawa, the late statesman and businessman who, following World War II, was accused, albeit not convicted, of class A war crimes...
. He is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations
Council on Foreign Relations
The Council on Foreign Relations is an American nonprofit nonpartisan membership organization, publisher, and think tank specializing in U.S. foreign policy and international affairs...
.
In 2006, he was one of four finalists for the director position of the School of Media and Public Affairs at George Washington University
George Washington University
The George Washington University is a private, coeducational comprehensive university located in Washington, D.C. in the United States...
; Lee Huebner was chosen. Charles Lane was Bosch Fellow in Public Policy at the American Academy in Berlin
American Academy in Berlin
The American Academy in Berlin is a research and cultural institution in Berlin whose stated mission is to foster a greater understanding and dialogue between the people of the United States and the people of Germany.The American Academy was founded in September 1994 by a group of prominent...
, Germany, for Spring 2009.
In 2011, Lane wrote that he hoped that Democratic Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords
Gabrielle Giffords
Gabrielle Dee "Gabby" Giffords is an American politician. A Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives, she has represented since 2007. She is the third woman in Arizona's history to be elected to the U.S. Congress...
, who was unable to speak as a result of having been shot in the head a few weeks earlier, would speak out against union workers in Wisconsin if she "could speak normally". Lane's statement was criticized by some as exploitative and insensitive.
Political stances
Lane often writes from a conservative or neoconservative political stance. He opposes minimum wage laws, public employee unions, the manufacture of electric cars, and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care ActPatient Protection and Affordable Care Act
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is a United States federal statute signed into law by President Barack Obama on March 23, 2010. The law is the principal health care reform legislation of the 111th United States Congress...
(which he believes is unconstitutional). He has written pieces supporting Glenn Beck
Glenn Beck
Glenn Edward Lee Beck is an American conservative radio host, vlogger, author, entrepreneur, political commentator and former television host. He hosts the Glenn Beck Program, a nationally syndicated talk-radio show that airs throughout the United States on Premiere Radio Networks...
and Sarah Palin
Sarah Palin
Sarah Louise Palin is an American politician, commentator and author. As the Republican Party nominee for Vice President in the 2008 presidential election, she was the first Alaskan on the national ticket of a major party and first Republican woman nominated for the vice-presidency.She was...
. Lane is a regular contributor to Bret Baier
Bret Baier
Bret Baier is an American journalist and the host of Special Report with Bret Baier on Fox News Channel. He previously worked as the network's Chief White House Correspondent and Pentagon correspondent.-Career:...
's "Special Report" on Fox News Channel
Fox News Channel
Fox News Channel , often called Fox News, is a cable and satellite television news channel owned by the Fox Entertainment Group, a subsidiary of News Corporation...
.
Popular culture
- The 1998 journalism scandal at The New Republic was portrayed in the 2003 film Shattered Glass. Lane was portrayed by actor Peter SarsgaardPeter SarsgaardJohn Peter Sarsgaard is an American film and stage actor. He landed his first feature role in the movie Dead Man Walking in 1995. He then appeared in the 1998 independent films Another Day in Paradise and Desert Blue. That same year, Sarsgaard received a substantial role in The Man in the Iron...
.
External links
- Marshall Poe, "Interview with Charles Lane", New Books in History, 7 Aug 2008
Chuck was a competitor on "Jeopardy" and came in third (last) place. He won a set of china.