Mary Lou Forbes
Encyclopedia
Mary Lou "Ludie" Forbes was an American
journalist and commentator who spent six decades at the Washington Evening Star
and The Washington Times
, serving as the commentary editor of the Times until weeks before her death. She won the 1959 Pulitzer Prize
at the Washington Evening Star for her local reporting of Virginia
's school integration crisis in the wake of the 1954 Supreme Court of the United States
decision in Brown v. Board of Education
.
Mary Lou Forbes née Werner was born in Alexandria, Virginia
and raised by her widowed mother. She graduated from George Washington High School (later one of the constituent schools of T. C. Williams High School
) and briefly attended the University of Maryland, College Park
, where she majored in math but was forced to drop out due to financial considerations. Werner had applied for a position at the Washington Evening Star because it was located in Washington, D.C.
, along a bus route that ran to her home in Alexandria. She had seen a newspaper ad for an accounting position, but accepted a position as a copy girl after finding out that the spot she had wanted was already filled. She served as a mentor to reporters such as Carl Bernstein
, whom she met when he began at the Star as a copy boy.
In 1959, she covered the "massive resistance
" program of opposition to school integration that had been undertaken by U.S. Senator Harry F. Byrd
and followed by Governor of Virginia
James Lindsay Almond, Jr.
, who had proclaimed in his 1958 inaugural address that "integration anywhere means destruction everywhere". Under the constant pressure of meeting deadlines at an afternoon paper that published five editions daily, Werner reported on a rapidly progressing story over the course of a year, compiling information from late-breaking court actions and other events and synthesizing them into a coherent story. Werner described how "Ninety percent of my stuff would be dictated, right off the top of my head."
She was named as the commentary page editor at the Times in 1984, two years after it was established, where she helped foster the career of conservative commentator and pundit Cal Thomas
, whose columns first appeared in the paper in the mid-1980s.
from breast cancer
. She had been diagnosed with the disease several weeks before her death.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
journalist and commentator who spent six decades at the Washington Evening Star
Washington Star
The Washington Star, previously known as the Washington Star-News and the Washington Evening Star, was a daily afternoon newspaper published in Washington, D.C. between 1852 and 1981. For most of that time, it was the city's newspaper of record, and the longtime home to columnist Mary McGrory and...
and The Washington Times
The Washington Times
The Washington Times is a daily broadsheet newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States. It was founded in 1982 by Unification Church founder Sun Myung Moon, and until 2010 was owned by News World Communications, an international media conglomerate associated with the...
, serving as the commentary editor of the Times until weeks before her death. She won the 1959 Pulitzer Prize
1959 Pulitzer Prize
-Journalism awards:*Public Service:** The Utica Observer-Dispatch and the Utica Daily Press, for their successful campaign against corruption, gambling and vice in their home city and the achievement of sweeping civic reforms in the face of political pressure and threats of violence...
at the Washington Evening Star for her local reporting of Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
's school integration crisis in the wake of the 1954 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...
decision in Brown v. Board of Education
Brown v. Board of Education
Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, 347 U.S. 483 , was a landmark decision of the United States Supreme Court that declared state laws establishing separate public schools for black and white students unconstitutional. The decision overturned the Plessy v. Ferguson decision of 1896 which...
.
Mary Lou Forbes née Werner was born in Alexandria, Virginia
Alexandria, Virginia
Alexandria is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of 2009, the city had a total population of 139,966. Located along the Western bank of the Potomac River, Alexandria is approximately six miles south of downtown Washington, D.C.Like the rest of northern Virginia, as well as...
and raised by her widowed mother. She graduated from George Washington High School (later one of the constituent schools of T. C. Williams High School
T. C. Williams High School
T. C. Williams High School is a public high school in Alexandria, Virginia, named after former superintendent Thomas Chambliss Williams of Alexandria City Public Schools who served from the mid-1930s to the mid-1960s...
) and briefly attended the University of Maryland, College Park
University of Maryland, College Park
The University of Maryland, College Park is a top-ranked public research university located in the city of College Park in Prince George's County, Maryland, just outside Washington, D.C...
, where she majored in math but was forced to drop out due to financial considerations. Werner had applied for a position at the Washington Evening Star because it was located in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, along a bus route that ran to her home in Alexandria. She had seen a newspaper ad for an accounting position, but accepted a position as a copy girl after finding out that the spot she had wanted was already filled. She served as a mentor to reporters such as Carl Bernstein
Carl Bernstein
Carl Bernstein is an American investigative journalist who, at The Washington Post, teamed up with Bob Woodward; the two did the majority of the most important news reporting on the Watergate scandal. These scandals led to numerous government investigations, the indictment of a vast number of...
, whom she met when he began at the Star as a copy boy.
In 1959, she covered the "massive resistance
Massive resistance
Massive resistance was a policy declared by U.S. Senator Harry F. Byrd, Sr. on February 24, 1956, to unite other white politicians and leaders in Virginia in a campaign of new state laws and policies to prevent public school desegregation after the Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court decision...
" program of opposition to school integration that had been undertaken by U.S. Senator Harry F. Byrd
Harry F. Byrd
Harry Flood Byrd, Sr. of Berryville in Clarke County, Virginia, was an American newspaper publisher, farmer and politician. He was a descendant of one of the First Families of Virginia...
and followed by Governor of Virginia
Governor of Virginia
The governor of Virginia serves as the chief executive of the Commonwealth of Virginia for a four-year term. The position is currently held by Republican Bob McDonnell, who was inaugurated on January 16, 2010, as the 71st governor of Virginia....
James Lindsay Almond, Jr.
James Lindsay Almond, Jr.
James Lindsay Almond, Jr. was a United States federal judge and politician. He served as the 58th Governor of Virginia from 1958 until 1962.-Early life:...
, who had proclaimed in his 1958 inaugural address that "integration anywhere means destruction everywhere". Under the constant pressure of meeting deadlines at an afternoon paper that published five editions daily, Werner reported on a rapidly progressing story over the course of a year, compiling information from late-breaking court actions and other events and synthesizing them into a coherent story. Werner described how "Ninety percent of my stuff would be dictated, right off the top of my head."
She was named as the commentary page editor at the Times in 1984, two years after it was established, where she helped foster the career of conservative commentator and pundit Cal Thomas
Cal Thomas
John Calvin "Cal" Thomas is an American conservative syndicated columnist, pundit, author and radio commentator.-Life and career:...
, whose columns first appeared in the paper in the mid-1980s.
Death
Forbes died, aged 83, on Saturday,June 27, 2009, at Inova Alexandria Hospital in Alexandria, VirginiaAlexandria, Virginia
Alexandria is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of 2009, the city had a total population of 139,966. Located along the Western bank of the Potomac River, Alexandria is approximately six miles south of downtown Washington, D.C.Like the rest of northern Virginia, as well as...
from breast cancer
Breast cancer
Breast cancer is cancer originating from breast tissue, most commonly from the inner lining of milk ducts or the lobules that supply the ducts with milk. Cancers originating from ducts are known as ductal carcinomas; those originating from lobules are known as lobular carcinomas...
. She had been diagnosed with the disease several weeks before her death.