I've just learned that Ken Bacon has lost his battle with cancer. Most will remember Ken as the affable, erudite, bow-tied Pentagon spokesman during the Clinton administration. His former press colleagues at the Wall Street Journal will remember him as one of the best reporters in the business. Those who worked with him at Refugees International will remember him as a man who decided to forego more of the same in politics and journalism and turn his life towards making a difference, which he certainly did.
I worked for Ken Bacon at the Pentagon as his deputy, and I will remember him as one of the finest men I ever met and the best boss I ever had. Working with the press in any government department is a crazy business, but at the Pentagon, you also have a very large bureaucracy, issues of life and death and war and peace, and a staff consisting of some of the finest men and women, civilian and military, you could ever hope to meet.
Every one of us respected and loved Ken Bacon. He wasn't just unflappable -- he was funny, humane and smart to boot. He took the most complicated and emotionally-charged issues and made sure that what he told the world about them was honest, direct and factual. Every summer, he and his wonderful wife Darcy would return from their New England vacations with blueberries in every conceivable form -- fresh berries, pies, muffins -- which meant that every post-Labor Day start for all of the staff was a great start.
Above all, he loved and respected America's men and women in uniform, particularly the younger folks for whom he went out of his way to mentor and recommend for future jobs.
I will most remember Ken for the dignity and leadership he showed during the hell our office went through as the Monica Lewinsky-Linda Tripp scandal unfolded. A crisis and scandal not of our making and unbeknownst to us until it was trumpeted across the press and around the world, Ken Bacon helped the rest of us through days and months of mud-splattering and witch hunts which affected all of us, military and civilian, in the Pentagon press office.
During this summer of untimely deaths, this is the one that hits me the hardest and hurts my heart the most. All who knew Ken Bacon will feel the same.
