Too Big to Fail [294]
My agent, David McCormick, did everything a good agent should do—only better. I’m also grateful to P. J. Mark, who handled the international sales of this project, and Leslie Falk. I must also thank Matthew Snyder, my film agent at Creative Artists Agency, who has been with me since 2001.
I would be remiss if I did not acknowledge my extraordinary colleagues at the Times, many of whom generously offered their editorial guidance—and, more important, emotional support—whenever I was on the verge of mental and physical exhaustion, which was more often than I’d like to admit. I’m especially grateful to Jenny Anderson, Liz Alderman, Alex Berenson, Adam Bryant, Eric Dash, Charles Duhigg, Geraldine Fabrikant, Mark Getzfred, David Gillen, Diana Henriques, David Joachim, P. J. Joshi, Kevin McKenna, Dan Niemi, Joseph Nocera, Floyd Norris, Winnie O’Kelley, Cass Peterson, Tim Race, and Louise Story. I’d also like to single out a special group of people at the Times who have become a very important part of my life: the team behind DealBook, an online financial report I started in 2001. My good friends and trusted partners, Peter Edmonston, Michael J. de la Merced, and Liza Klaussmann, are largely responsible for much of our early success. As our team has grown, it has also been a pleasure to work with Zachery Kouwe, Steven M. Davidoff, Jack Lynch, Cyrus Sanati, and Chris V. Nicholson.
I’d also like to acknowledge my friends at CNBC, especially the Squawk Box team and the old Kudlow & Cramer crew, which put me on television when I was twenty-five years old and had no business being in front of a camera.
A handful of friends from various parts of my life who supported this project and my career also deserve thanks: David Berenson, Dan Bigman, Graydon Carter, Cynthia Colonna, Alan Cowell, David Faber, David Goodman, Warren Hoge, Mark Hoffman, Ben Hordell, Joe Kernen, the Malman family, the Queen family, Carl Quintanilla, Anita Raghavan, Dan Richenthal, Becky Quick, Charlie Rose, Seth and Shari Saideman, the Schneiderman family, Alixandra Smith, Doug Stumpf, Matt and Melissa Sussberg, Jonathan Wald, the Weinberg family, Josh and Lauren Wolfe, and Michael Wolff. I’m sure I have inadvertently left out more than one person on this list, for which I apologize in advance. (I have purposely not included anyone who could possibly be confused as a source for this book.)
Perhaps my biggest thank you goes to my employer, the New York Times. I first started at the paper when I was eighteen years old, back in the spring of 1995, pretty much by accident. Stuart Elliott, the paper’s advertising columnist, whom I read religiously, was crazy enough to let me in the building. An editor, Felicity Barringer—unaware of my age—took a gamble and assigned me a story. Glenn Kramon, the business editor, was trusting enough to let me stay, and later to hire me when I graduated from college and send me to London. Larry Ingrassia, the current business editor, not only kept me around, but gave me a column—always going above and beyond to support me. And Bill Keller, the paper’s executive editor (and Joe Lelyveld before him, when I originally joined the paper) allowed—even encouraged—all of this to happen. I owe my career to these people.
I am especially thankful to Larry and Bill—as well as to managing editors John Geddes and Jill Abramson—for generously giving me the time to write this book. I must also thank two people on the other side of the “wall”: Arthur Sulzberger Jr., the paper’s publisher, and Martin Nisenholtz, senior vice president of digital operations. Both of them have not only encouraged my career in journalism but have also supported my entrepreneurial efforts to help the paper.
Finally, this