Robert Emmett Tyrrell Jr. (born December 14, 1943) is an American

conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

magazine editor, book author and columnist. He is the founder and

editor-in-chief An editor-in-chief (EIC), also known as lead editor or chief editor, is a publication's editorial leader who has final responsibility for its operations and policies. The editor-in-chief heads all departments of the organization and is held accoun ...

of ''

The American Spectator ''The American Spectator'' is a conservative American magazine covering news and politics, edited by R. Emmett Tyrrell Jr. and published by the non-profit American Spectator Foundation. It was founded in 1967 by Tyrrell (the current editor-in ...

'' and writes with the byline "R. Emmett Tyrrell, Jr."

Background

Tyrrell was born in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, Illinois, and raised Roman Catholic. In 1961, he graduated from Fenwick High School in

Oak Park, Illinois Oak Park is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States, adjacent to Chicago. It is the List of municipalities in Illinois, 26th-most populous municipality in Illinois, with a population of 54,318 as of the 2020 census. Oak Park was first se ...

. He attended

Indiana University Bloomington Indiana University Bloomington (IU Bloomington, Indiana University, IU, IUB, or Indiana) is a public university, public research university in Bloomington, Indiana, United States. It is the flagship university, flagship campus of Indiana Univer ...

, where he was on the swim team under coach James "Doc" Counsilman.Spectator Sport; R. Emmett Tyrrell Jr.
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', July 3, 1994 While at Indiana University, he was a member of

Phi Kappa Psi Phi Kappa Psi (), commonly known as Phi Psi, is an American collegiate social fraternity that was founded at Jefferson College in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania in 1852. The fraternity has over ninety chapters at accredited four-year colleges and uni ...

, living in a chapter house where

Steve Tesich Stojan Steve Tesich ( sr-Cyrl-Latn, Стојан Стив Тешић, Stojan Stiv Tešić; September 29, 1942 – July 1, 1996) was a Serbian-American screenwriter, playwright, and novelist. He won the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay ...

resided. He also has a master's degree in American Diplomatic History.

Career

Arkansas Project

Tyrrell was one of those behind the

Arkansas Project The Arkansas Project was a series of investigative press reports, funded primarily by conservative businessman Richard Mellon Scaife, that focused on criticism of then-President Bill Clinton and his administration. Scaife spent nearly $2 million on ...

, financed by

Richard Mellon Scaife Richard Mellon Scaife (; July 3, 1932 – July 4, 2014) was an American billionaire, a principal heir to the Mellon family, Mellon banking, oil, and aluminum fortune, and the owner and publisher of the ''Pittsburgh Tribune-Review''. In 2005 ...

, to use the ''Spectator' to damage Bill Clinton’s reputation. He detailed the project's purposes and accomplishments in his 2007 book ''The Clinton Crack-Up: The Boy President's Life after the White House''.Arkansas Project Led to Turmoil and Rifts
''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

'', May 2, 1999

Forced sale

In 2000, government investigations of ''The American Spectator'' caused Tyrrell to sell the magazine to venture capitalist

George Gilder George Franklin Gilder (; born November 29, 1939) is an American investor, author, economist, and co-founder of the Discovery Institute. His 1981 book, '' Wealth and Poverty'', advanced a case for supply-side economics and capitalism during the e ...

. In 2003, Gilder, having a series of financial and legal setbacks, resold the magazine back to Tyrrell and the American Alternative Foundation, the organization under which the magazine was originally started, for a dollar. The magazine was initially called ''The Alternative''. The name of the owner was changed to the American Spectator Foundation. The magazine then moved operations back to the Washington, DC, area. Later that year, former book publisher Alfred S. Regnery became the magazine's publisher. By 2004, circulation hovered at around 50,000.

1984 media appearance

A noted political commentator, Tyrrell appeared on a 1984 episode of ''Firing Line'' with

William F. Buckley Jr. William Frank Buckley Jr. (born William Francis Buckley; November 24, 1925 – February 27, 2008) was an American conservative writer, public intellectual, political commentator and novelist. Born in New York City, Buckley spoke Spanish as his ...

, in which he debated with

Christopher Hitchens Christopher Eric Hitchens (13 April 1949 – 15 December 2011) was a British and American author and journalist. He was the author of Christopher Hitchens bibliography, 18 books on faith, religion, culture, politics, and literature. He was born ...

the premise that the liberal movement was a failure, as asserted in Tyrrell's book ''The Liberal Crack-up''.

Criticisms of homosexuality

Tyrrell was quoted in a 1994 article by ''New York Times'' contributor Dinitia Smith saying that homosexuals are bringing about "an end to community," and "

AIDS The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, pr ...

is lethal, but they're forever trying to magnify a sensible point out of proportion. Heterosexual cases are practically nonexistent. The latest studies show that only 2 to 3 percent of Americans are homosexuals. Kinsey was wrong in saying it was 10 percent. There are thousands of years of moral teaching suggesting homosexuality is wrong."

Personal life

In 1972, Tyrrell married first wife Judy Mathews, with whom he had three children; they divorced in 1988. In 1998, Tyrrell married Jeanne M. Hauch at Holy Rosary Church, Washington, D.C. Tyrrell is a practicing Catholic. He obtained a canonical annulment of his first marriage before his present union. He served on the Board of Selectors of the Jefferson Awards Foundation. Board
Tyrrell is the great-great-grandson of Patrick D. Tyrrell, an immigrant from

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

and a detective in the

United States Secret Service The United States Secret Service (USSS or Secret Service) is a federal law enforcement agency under the Department of Homeland Security tasked with conducting criminal investigations and providing protection to American political leaders, thei ...

in the 1870s, involved in foiling the plot to steal the body of

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was the 16th president of the United States, serving from 1861 until Assassination of Abraham Lincoln, his assassination in 1865. He led the United States through the American Civil War ...

in 1876. Family resemblances

Awards

*1975: Samuel S. Beard Award for Greatest Public Service by an Individual 35 Years or Under from the

Jefferson Awards for Public Service The Jefferson Awards Foundation was created in 1972 by the American Institute for Public Service. The Jefferson Awards are given at both local and national levels. Local winners are ordinary people who do extraordinary things without expectatio ...

*1978: Ten Outstanding Young Men in America award in History. He now serves on the Board of Selectors for Jefferson Awards.

Works

Tyrrell has written for ''

Time Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...

'', the ''

Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' (''WSJ''), also referred to simply as the ''Journal,'' is an American newspaper based in New York City. The newspaper provides extensive coverage of news, especially business and finance. It operates on a subscriptio ...

'', the ''London Spectator'', ''

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a British daily broadsheet conservative newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed in the United Kingdom and internationally. It was found ...

'', ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'', ''

'', and ''

The Washington Times ''The Washington Times'' is an American Conservatism, conservative daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It covers general interest topics with an emphasis on Politics of the United States, national politics. Its broadsheet daily edit ...

''. He was also a media fellow at the

Hoover Institution The Hoover Institution (officially The Hoover Institution on War, Revolution, and Peace and formerly The Hoover Institute and Library on War, Revolution, and Peace) is an American public policy think tank which promotes personal and economic ...

. *''Public Nuisances'' (1979) *''The Liberal Crack-Up'' (1984) *''Orthodoxy: The American Spectator's 20th Anniversary Anthology'' (1987) *''The Conservative Crack-Up'' (1992) *''Boy Clinton: The Political Biography'' (1997) *''The Impeachment of William Jefferson Clinton'' (1997) *''Madame Hillary: The Dark Road to the White House'' (2003) *''The Continuing Crisis: As Chronicled for Four Decades'' (2009) *''After the Hangover: The Conservatives Road to Recovery'' (2010) *''The Death of Liberalism'' (2011)

References

External links

*
Tyrrell on Firing Line
with

William F. Buckley, Jr. William Frank Buckley Jr. (born William Francis Buckley; November 24, 1925 – February 27, 2008) was an American conservative writer, public intellectual, political commentator and novelist. Born in New York City, Buckley spoke Spanish as his ...

and

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tyrrell, Emmett 1943 births Living people 20th-century American non-fiction writers 21st-century American non-fiction writers 20th-century American male writers 21st-century American male writers Journalists from Chicago American male journalists American magazine editors American magazine founders American political writers American Roman Catholics The American Spectator people The Washington Times people Indiana Hoosiers men's swimmers