Tonight at 9:00 PM brings the broadcast of the new documentary by Peter Jones, Inventing LA: The Chandlers and their Times.
As owners of The Los Angeles Times, the Chandlers had the most powerful tool to make or break any undertaking. Norman Chandler was not as ruthless at pursuing outside projects or agendas as Harry Chandler and Harrison Gray Otis but he put much effort into building The Times itself into a family legacy. He build The Times into a business that would support all the Chandlers, and an enterprise which he could pass on to his son Otis.
As with many great histories, the downfall of the Chandlers' Los Angeles Times was sown at the same time as its enduring success.
In his time running the paper, Norman Chandler helped launch the political career of Richard Nixon. Since the paper was staunchly Republican and had a history of anti-union campaigning, Nixon's message was a natural match. Then Norman Chandler made his son Otis the publisher for the Times and the relationship with Nixon turned sour. Many who had previously benefited from the paper and agreed with its politics were not pleased either.
Rather than the solely supportive articles that had issued from the Los Angeles Times in the past, Nixon was now receiveing a more fair and balanced treatment. Otis Chandler was transforming the mandate of the Los Angeles Times to make the paper a more reputable news source and it didn't go over well with the paper's traditional allies or with the rest of the Chandlers. However, the sales for the Los Angeles Times increased and the Chandlers made more money than ever.
The Chandlers were willing to let Otis continue because of his success but when Nixon lost his race for governor he blamed the Los Angeles Times and the Chandlers. By the time Nixon was president, the schism between him and the Chandler family had grown so wide that he asked the Secret Service to keep tabs on Otis Chandler and his family.
Listen to tape of Richard Nixon issuing orders to get back at the Chandlers:
Using a trove of archival footage, Inventing L.A.: The Chandlers and their Times tells the story of Los Angeles' first family, warts and all. Visit the Inventing LA site.:
Visit the Timeline and find out when:
The Los Angeles Times endorses Nixon for Congress
Time Magazine votes Los Angeles Times the second worst newspaper in the country
Otis Chandler is named publisher of the Times
The Los Angeles Times wins its first Pulizer
Nixon loses his bid for governor
Time Magazine votes Los Angeles Times in the top 10 newspapers in the country
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