Pat McGovern was the founder of the Computerworld trade newspaper and the International Data Group (IDG) computer industry consulting firm. He worked at MIT’s student newspaper, The Tech, and graduated 25 years ahead of me (Stories I had been told about Pat McGovern '59 as an undergraduate were not true; they were knocked down by former editors who were also fraternity brothers of his). We met and talked. He liked the cut of my jib.
I was then working at Computer Systems News at CMP. He offered me the job of publisher at CSN’s competitor, IDG’s Computer Business News, at a doubled salary. Only one small problem; it would have meant moving to Framingham, Mass. Five years in Boston had taught me I had no taste for New England weather; ditto my wife, a native of Los Angeles. I turned him down. He was still quite friendly the half-dozen other times our paths crossed. And thanks to his eidetic memory, I know he never forgot that I turned him down.
One other job that got away: when I moved to SF for CSN, Dave Dietz of the San Francisco Examiner (daily afternoon newspaper in SF) promised me the next opening in the business news department. Imagine my surprise when he called to say, “Sorry, management says I have to hire a woman.” The woman who got the job (I don’t remember her name, but I do remember following her with interest) had a great career. So did I, at CMP. So, even though it got away, it was a win/win. And I learned to check my privilege.
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