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American Radical by D.D. Guttenplan
100th Birthday

A Celebration of the Life of I.F. Stone
November 16, 2008
Story Chapel, Mount Auburn Cemetery

Remarks by B.J. Stone on behalf of Jeremy Stone


I'm going to read a statement from my husband, who is Izzy's elder son.

"Statement of Jeremy J. Stone on the occasion of a 100th birthday party.

"The year 2008 following the 100th birthday of I.F. Stone has been a very good one for his reputation.

"In late 2007, Myra MacPherson's biography All Governments Lie brought I.F. Stone to life again almost two decades after his death and four decades after the closing of I.F. Stone's Weekly.  Encouraged by this impending biography, the Public Affairs Press brought out the same fall a collection of essays titled The Best of I.F. Stone.

"On March 5, 2008, a website, ifstone.org, was opened, covering in great detail his writings, audios of speeches, videos of television appearances, and later, all of the 750 issues of I.F. Stone's Weekly.

"And on the same day the Nieman Foundation of Harvard University announced it would be presenting a medal in honor of I.F. Stone.

"Based in part on this rebirth, on March 12, the NYU Department of Journalism held a splendid 100th birthday party for I.F. Stone with a panel of speakers discussing his life that was filmed by CSPAN and can be found on the website ifstone.org.

"And in October the Nieman Foundation for Journalism of Harvard University presented the first I.F. Stone Medal for Journalistic Independence at the museum in Washington and followed it with the first I.F. Stone workshop on strengthening journalistic independence.

"All of this can also be found on the web" stone -- sorry, "website ifstone.org, or at the website of the Nieman Watchdog Project.

"The edge markings on this medal recite the five stages of I.F. Stone's reputation.  As he once said, he had gone from pariah to gadfly and would be considered an institution if he lived long enough.

"He did live long enough and became an icon as well.  Now today, thanks to Bob Giles at the Nieman Foundation of Harvard University, he has become a fulcrum of journalistic independence.  This medal is a living memorial for I.F. Stone.  His hard and faithful work is now being used to help journalists everywhere and journalism itself.

"I want to take this opportunity to thank Harvard University which I.F. Stone greatly loved for making this possible."


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