Lehigh University announced that Marty Baron ’76 MBA’76 H’14 will become Lehigh’s second President’s Distinguished Fellow beginning in the spring 2027 semester.
As the President’s Distinguished Fellow, Baron will engage with Lehigh students, faculty and the broader university community through a variety of forums, including a public talk and panel, class visits and a discussion with Lehigh University’s student newspaper The Brown and White, where Baron served as editor-in-chief when he was a student.
A frequent speaker over the years, Baron spoke most recently on Lehigh’s campus in December 2024 as part of Compelling Perspectives, which that year explored the role of media in contemporary society.
President Joseph J. Helble ’82 said: “Marty Baron’s distinguished career is such a great example of the importance of journalism and its process of questioning, investigating and navigating complexity to seek and uncover truth. Students across all of Lehigh’s colleges and fields of study will benefit from Marty’s perspective and experience, and we are fortunate to have him share both with our community.”
“My four years at Lehigh as a student were a formative experience, providing me with invaluable preparation for a long career in journalism,” Baron said. “I was honored to be invited back to campus by President Helble, and I look forward to sharing with students what I’ve learned over the last 50 years about a profession that presents both enormous opportunities and seemingly limitless challenges.”
Baron retired as the executive editor of The Washington Post in February 2021 after more than eight years leading its newsroom. He is the author of “Collision of Power: Trump, Bezos, and The Washington Post,” published in 2023. Baron has returned to campus numerous times, including to celebrate The Brown and White’s 125th anniversary and for a screening of the Academy Award-winning movie “Spotlight,” based on The Boston Globe investigation he launched as editor into the cover-up of sexual abuse within the Catholic Church. The investigation earned the paper a 2003 Pulitzer Prize for public service.
Newsrooms under Baron’s leadership won 18 Pulitzer Prizes, including one at The Miami Herald, six at The Boston Globe and 11 at The Washington Post. In 2025, Baron was named a recipient of the International Press Institute-International Media Support World Press Freedom Hero award. In May 2026, GBH, Boston’s public media organization, announced Baron as the recipient of its inaugural GBH Impact Award, recognizing his contributions to journalism and the public good.
Baron also held senior editorial positions at The New York Times and The Los Angeles Times. At the Los Angeles Times, he served as business editor, assistant managing editor and editor of the newspaper’s Orange County edition. At The New York Times, he became associate managing editor responsible for nighttime news operations. He served as executive editor of The Miami Herald and editor of The Boston Globe before joining The Washington Post as executive editor in 2013.
In 2014, Baron delivered the address at Lehigh’s 146th Commencement and received an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree. Born and raised in Tampa, Baron graduated from Lehigh with both bachelor of arts and MBA degrees. He became editor-in-chief of The Brown and White during his junior year and went on to start his career at The Miami Herald after graduating in 1976.
The President’s Distinguished Fellowship, established in 2025, underscores Lehigh University’s dedication to preparing students for the complexities of a rapidly changing world. By inviting leaders like Baron to share their expertise, the university continues to serve as a hub for meaningful dialogue on timely and critical issues for society.
