When the Boston Globe launched its Pulitzer Prize–winning exposé of the Catholic Church sexual-abuse scandal two decades ago, Marty Baron drove the effort. He didn’t report or write the articles, but as the paper’s editor, he led a quest for excellence that inspired his investigative team. (Its work was celebrated in the film Spotlight, with Liev Schreiber playing Baron.) In 2013 Baron became the executive editor of the Washington Post. He led it to 10 Pulitzers and through the Trump presidency, adopting the slogan “Democracy dies in darkness.” He retired earlier this year.
A version of this article appeared in the July–August 2021 issue of Harvard Business Review.
