Thomas L. Friedman, Doctor of Letters
Take a son of the Midwest, give him a broad education, bless him with an uncanny ability to write, add access to all the world’s leaders, give him a uniquely powerful platform to speak from, and what do you get? Tom Friedman. It’s been said that reading your books and columns is like talking with the guy next to you in a bar, except that this guy turns out to have spent the day with an Israeli prime minister and Saudi prince. A good columnist is first a great reporter and that you are. No one has a better eye for detail or has worn out nearly as much shoe leather. One column might grow from a meeting with a president and the next from conversation with a man on the street or in the souk. When you, with a Rolodex to die for, walk into a press center, an E.F. Hutton silence settles on the place while every ear cranes in your direction. Those who benefit from this knowledge and talent are your readers, who twice a week get further educated on issues of significance to our complex and troubled world. Even those who disagree with you (and I’m sure you hear from them) receive the gift of fresh, informed argument with which to grapple. No wonder you are, quite simply, the most influential columnist in the world.
I hereby declare you recipient of the honorary degree of Doctor of Letters, entitled to all the rights, honors, and privileges appertaining thereto.
June 5, 2005