Helen Thomas still inspires at 87
Agnes Radomski
Issue date: 11/6/07 Section: News
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During her speech Thomas gave her insight on every president she covered as a UPI correspondent.
"All well intentioned but something happens on the way to the forum," Thomas said. From JFK to George W. Bush she provided audience members with a more personal side of the presidents
Born in Winchester, Ky., and raised in Detroit, Mich., East Western High School is where the veteran journalist discovered her passion.
"I saw my byline in the high school paper, my ego swelled," Thomas, 87, said. "Working for the school paper, I loved the ambiance, the sense of freedom. Everything rides on you as a reporter. Independence, I love that. Once I started working for the school paper, I thought, this is the great life."
And Thomas went on to pursue that "great life" by divulging herself in the world of political journalism.
After graduating from Wayne State University, she started her first job in journalism working as a copy girl for the Washington Daily News. She then joined United Press International in 1943.
For her first 12 years as a UPI correspondent, she was able to cover many federal agencies including the justice department.
Starting in 1960, Thomas began covering John F. Kennedy as a UPI correspondent and it was during this time she became famous for her tagline, "Thank you Mr. President."
She spent 57 years as White House Bureau Chief and correspondent for UPI.
She also traveled around the world with several presidents including Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, George H.W Bush, Bill Clinton, and George W. Bush. Thomas was the only female journalist to travel with President Richard Nixon on his trip to China in 1976.
Since JFK, Thomas has been known to sit front row and center at presidential press conferences and ask tough questions.
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