Mulcahy, a fellow Silurian, worked at the Post’s notorious gossip column Page Six from 1978 to 1985, including three years as editor, before launching a similar feature in New York Newsday, writing for the New Yorker and The New York Times and publishing three previous books.
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Silurians Press Club
Celebrating Excellence in Journalism Since 1924
Maggie Haberman: Why Calling the 2024 Election is Tough
By David A. Andelman
On October 16, Maggie Haberman really didn’t know who was going to win the election on November 5. That’s just a bit frightening, and at the same time a bit energizing. Because if she doesn’t know, who would?
There was one particular takeaway from the remarkable Silurian luncheon where The New York Times leading Trumpwatcher sat down with veteran Silurian and Times reporter, columnist, and foreign correspondent Clyde Haberman (that’s right, her dad). With 19 days to go, “both sides think Trump would win”….or maybe not:

“I have no idea who is going to win. I think if the race was today based on anecdotal evidence and talking to both campaigns, both teams think Trump would win. But there are 19 days left and I just don't know.”
Mob murders. Crooked politicos. Sex scandals.
The misdeeds of the boldface names...
The New York Post has covered them all and wrapped them up in pithy prose and memorable headlines. And let’s not forget the right-wing influence of Rupert Murdoch, who bought the paper—the country’s oldest continuously published daily—in 1977.
Our Nov. 20 program
is a delicious deep dive into
Paper of Wreckage: An Oral History of The New York Post, 1976-2024 by
Susan Mulcahy and
Frank DiGiacomo. Many Silurians and other high-profile journalists are Post alumni, including past-president Joe Berger and board member Myron Rushetzky.
DiGiacomo freelanced at Page Six in the 1980s and became an editor there from 1991 to 1993. He has worked as writer or editor for Vanity Fair, Hollywood Reporter and the Daily News. He is now an executive editor at Billboard.
They will be interviewed by Silurian Sheryl McCarthy, who interviews authors and others on her weekly talk show, “One to One,” on CUNY-TV. She is currently a Distinguished Lecturer in journalism at Queens College of the City University of New York. She has never worked at the New York Post.
Some 20% of Adults Get Their News From
Social Media
Influencers —
Pew Poll
Entitled "America's New Influences, the in-depth study by the Pew Research Center shows that about one-in-five Americans – including a much higher share of adults under 30 (37%) – say they regularly get news from influencers on social media.
A survey of 10,658 Americans, conducted in summer 2024, also showed that slightly more news influencers explicitly identify as Republican, conservative or pro-Donald Trump (27%) than Democratic, liberal or pro-Kamala Harris (21%).
Institute for Nonprofit News Warns Draft Law is "Threat to Free Speech"
The Institute for Nonprofit News, an non-partisan umbrella group that helps support 475 independent nonprofit news outlets, warned that a proposed law poses dangers to free speech and a free press.
The INN warned the H.R. 9495, "would enable the Treasury Secretary to, unilaterally and without adequate due process, revoke the tax-exempt status of any nonprofit organization the secretary deems as providing support to terrorism."
Because of loosely defined terms, the INN said, "there is concern the bill could be used to target nonprofits, news outlets or universities that are critical of an incumbent administration."
Top Jersey Newspapers End Print Editions
The Star-Ledger, New Jerey's largest newspaper, will stop publishing its print edition. The Jersey Journal will shut down entirely after 157 years. The Montville production facility will close in February 2025.
Advance Local, which owns NJ Advance Media and NJ.com, also announced it's ending print editions of The Times of Trenton and South Jersey Times, and the weekly Hunterdon County Democrat.
Online newspapers for The Star-Ledger, The Times of Trenton and South Jersey Times will continue seven days a week for subscribers.
Recent Guests/Speakers
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Barry on Breslin!
ButtonBy Mel Laytner
Dan Barry remembers his father tossing the newspaper at him every morning with the same command: “Read Breslin.”
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Nick Kristof, recipient of Silurians 2024 Peter Kihss Award
ButtonNick Kristof, New York Times columnist and 2024 Peter Kihss Award recipient, headlined our Silurians’ luncheon Wednesday, May 15.
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Times Exec Editor Joe Kahn Fears Erosion of Journalistic Values
ButtonBy Mel Laytner
New York Times Executive Editor Joe Kahn believes higher education is failing to teach students to appreciate “vigorous debate from rival sides”—and that’s making hiring staff more challenging.
Aileen Jacobson
Aileen Jacobson Elected President, Fran Carpentier First Vice President
By Ben Patrusky
Aileen Jacobson, who covered the arts and personal finance for three decades at Newsday and has freelanced for the New York Times and other publications for the past 16 years, was elected the 74th president of the Silurians Press Club, heading the 2024 – 2025 slate of officers and board of governors.
For the past two years, in her role as Vice President, Jacobson served as editor of the Silurian News. Assuming the editorship is Fran Carpentier, a 30-year veteran of health and lifestyle journalism, the newly elected First Vice President. Rounding out the officer roster are Carol Lawson, who continues as Secretary, and Karen Bedrosian-Richardson, who remains as Treasurer.
Jacobson succeeds Joseph Berger, who during his two-year tenure as president presided over monthly lunches that featured an outstanding array of speakers. They included: Paul Steiger, founding editor of ProPublica, together with editor-in-chief Steve Engelberg; best-selling New Yorker writer Ken Auletta; Jelani Cobb, Dean of the Columbia School of Journalism; longtime Newsday investigative reporter and author Tom Maier; Brooke Kroeger, author of “Undaunted: How Women Changed American Journalism”; New York Times White house correspondent Maggie Haberman; Joe Kahn, executive editor of the New York Times; and most recently, New York Times columnist, Nicholas Kristof, winner of the 2024 Peter Khiss Award.
A graduate of Harvard and the Columbia School of Journalism, Jacobson began covering the arts and other topics in the early 1970s as a staff writer for the Washington Post’s Sunday magazine. In 1974, Jacobson joined Newsday, where she remained until 2008, reporting on news, arts, books and magazines, reviewing theater, and writing about personal finance. She is the author of “Women in Charge: Dilemmas of Women in Authority” and co-author of “The Consumer Reports Money Book.”
Fran Carpentier spent most of her career as senior editor at Parade, the national Sunday newspaper, which during her tenure was distributed to 35 million homes every week, reaching more than 70 million readers coast to coast. Carpentier conceived, edited and wrote articles for Parade on a wide range of topics, including health, personal finance and food, often working in collaboration with such notable contributors as Gloria Steinem, Gail Sheehy and Bill Moyers. She also served as web producer and editor-at-large for the health, lifestyle and food channels at Parade.com.
Two longstanding governors — Myron Kandel and Allan Dodds Frank – both former presidents, twice in Kandel’s case – are stepping down from the board. To honor them for their invaluable contributions, and to continue to benefit from their keen knowledge and wise counsel, the board deemed fit to elect them board members emeriti. In their emeritus capacity, each is welcome to join in all board deliberations as they wish, sans vote. Emeritus status was also conferred upon another former president, Mort Scheinman, in acknowledgment of his many years of exceptional board service
Fran Carpentier
