What can you say about Helen Thomas? What a sad end to a career that had opened doors for a lot of women reporters.
I’m not defending her anti-Semitic remarks; far from that. She should have apologized and resigned, and she did.
But now she’s known for this latest diatribe instead of her body of work. Thomas served 67 years as a UPI White House correspondent and covered every president since John F. Kennedy. Thomas opened many doors for women journalists; she was the first woman officer of the National Press Club after it opened its doors to women members, the first woman member and president of the White House Correspondents Association and the first woman member of the Gridiron club.
She will mark her 90th birthday on Aug. 4. I can only speculate and wonder if some ailment has something to do with her erratic behavior; I’ve seen medical discussions about the effects of age on our ability to control what we say, and I’ve experienced dementia with members of my family. Regardless, it’s a shame that a shadow will hang over the rest of her life and legacy.
