A documentary about former Inquirer editor Eugene Roberts is nearing its fund-raising goal and production completion
As editor for 18 years, Eugene Roberts led the Philadelphia Inquirer to 17 Pulitzers. A documentary is under production to recognize his vast contributions to journalism.
Journalism nostalgia, deep passion for a newspaper industry icon, and President Trump's antagonism toward the press have helped propel a Kickstarter campaign close to its goal of raising $150,000 to fund a documentary on Eugene Roberts, former editor of the Philadelphia Inquirer.
A former New York Times reporter and editor, Roberts led the Inquirer from 1972 to 1990, during which the paper won 17 Pulitzers, journalism's highest prize. The North Carolina native went on to teach journalism at the University of Maryland.
The documentary, entitled The Newspaperman, is a four-year project by filmmakers David Layton and Mike Nicholson. The Kickstarter funds, they said, will enable them to "craft the many hours of archival footage and interviews into a compelling film" and to shoot the final interviews for its completion. Its release is expected in 2018.
With a deadline of noon on May 3, the campaign for The Newspaperman had raised $106,456 from 525 backers as of noon Wednesday. More details and a donation link can be found at bit.ly/thenewspaperman.