In Times Past
A Portrait Fit for a Publisher
Arthur Ochs Sulzberger Jr. steered The Times during an era of great change. His likeness now hangs at the organization’s headquarters.
By David W. Dunlap
David W. Dunlap
I am a retired New York Times reporter who is now the curator of a small museum in The Times’s headquarters dedicated to telling the story of The Times since 1851.
What I Cover
As curator of the Museum at The Times, I write In Times Past, a short column that appears every other week about artifacts and documents of interest from the newspaper’s history. Most objects have been donated by Times journalists, on their own initiative or in response to a request from me. Recent acquisitions include a Times reporter’s train ticket from Beijing to Wuhan in January 2020, at the outset of the pandemic; zip-tie handcuffs that were used by Minnesota State Patrol officers to detain a Times reporter covering a demonstration in April 2021; and a camera lens that was destroyed on Jan. 6, 2021, when Capitol rioters attacked a Times photographer.
My Background
History has always been my passion. As a reporter for The Times from 1981 to 2017, much of my coverage focused on the historical landmarks of New York City. Shortly before my retirement, I began organizing an in-house museum dedicated to passing on The Times’s long heritage and deeply held values to current and future employees.
Journalistic Ethics
Since Times journalists are committed to upholding the standards of integrity outlined in our Ethical Journalism Handbook, it was an easy choice to make ethics a main theme in the museum. Artifacts and documents illustrate the lengths to which Times journalists go to uncover the truth (including putting their lives on the line), how The Times has resisted efforts by powerful forces to distort the truth, and — as an object lesson — instances in which The Times has violated or overlooked its own ethical standards.
Contact Me
I’m sorry to say that the Museum at The Times is not open to the public, but I am happy to answer questions about my column.
Email: dunlap@nytimes.com
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CreditTony Cenicola/The New York Times 
CreditTony Cenicola/The New York Times 
CreditTony Cenicola for The New York Times 
CreditTony Cenicola/The New York Times 
CreditTony Cenicola/The New York Times
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