Walter Lippmann and the American Century — PROLOGUE: The Name That Opened Every Door

1. 1. Theodore Roosevelt called Walter Lippmann the most brilliant young man of his age in the United States when Lippmann was 25.
2. 2. Lippmann's name opened every door; he conferred with heads of state and was required reading in chanceries worldwide.
3. 3. Lippmann led two lives: one of books and one of newspapers, each feeding the other, making him unique and authoritative.
4. 4. Lippmann's influence was tangible but hard to measure; he commanded no divisions but had power over public opinion and presidents.
5. 5. Despite his Olympian reputation, Lippmann actively promoted candidates and secretly negotiated settlements, such as between Mexican leaders and the Vatican.
6. 6. Lippmann turned against the Vietnam War in his late 70s, regaining the fervor of his youth and breaking with the Johnson administration.
7. 7. Lippmann saw himself as an antediluvian survivor, born in one epoch and living in another, unprepared for the violent changes of the 20th century.