The New York Times published the note below at the end of a strange story about the reburial of Richard III. I revered to Times journalists as a young journalist. Unlike many in my generation who came into journalism because of Woodward and Bernstein, Harrison Salisbury was my initial inspiration. Then, John F. Burns became a hero because, like Salisbury, he would go anywhere, cover any story. He seemed to always get to the scene way before any journalist of his day and cover the story longer and better than anyone. The Times says Burns is retiring and becoming a freelancer. He was the finest one. The attached story is a classic.
“With this article, John F. Burns concludes a distinguished career spanning 40 years with The New York Times, 39 of them with the international desk. Beginning with South Africa in 1976, Mr. Burns reported from 10 foreign bureaus and was chief of the Baghdad bureau during the American invasion and occupation of Iraq. Along the way, he wrote more than 3,300 articles and collected two Pulitzer Prizes for International Reporting, one in Afghanistan and the other in Bosnia. His portrait of a cellist playing on Sarajevo’s main pedestrian concourse while artillery shells exploded nearby is considered a classic of modern journalism. He will continue to contribute to the international and sports desks, among others.”