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Boston Globe "Big Dig" records

 Unprocessed — Multiple Containers
Identifier: Z16-076

Content Description

The collection documents the Boston Globe's reporting of the Central Artery/Tunnel Project, known as the "Big Dig", from approximately 1991-2008. The majority of the collection includes the records of Sean Murphy, Investigative Reporter for the Boston Globe from 1987 to the present. Also present are records from Tom Palmer, Real Estate and Development Reporter of the Boston Globe from 1976 to 2008 and a small amount from Charles Sennott, reporter for the Boston Globe from 1986 to 2008. The records include architectural and engineering plans, articles, correspondence, interviews, notes, and newspaper clippings. Audiovisual components include interviews on audio cassette tapes and documentaries on VHS. The collection is unprocessed. The Boston Globe was founded in 1872 by Charles H. Taylor,. The Boston Globe was privately held until 1973, when it went public as Affiliated Publications. In 1993 it was bought by The New York Times Company. The Boston Globe has been awarded 23 Pulitzer Prizes since 1966. The Boston Globe covered the Central Artery/Tunnel Project, colloquially known as the "Big Dig" for over thirty years detailing the progress, costs, and corruption involved. The Big Dig, rerouted the Central Artery into the Thomas P. O'Neill Jr. Tunnel. The project also included the construction of the Ted Williams Tunnel, the Zakim Bridge, and the Rose Kennedy Greenway The official planning phase started in 1982; the construction work was done between 1991 and 2006. Sean Murphy joined the Boston Globe in 1987 after working for the Associated Press, The Evening News of Salem, and the Gloucester Daily Times. Murphy reported at the Boston Globe on Big Dig mismanagement as well as government corruption and police brutality. From 1996 to 1998, he served as city editor of the Boston Globe. Mr. Murphy currently teaches journalism at Suffolk University in Boston, Mass. Tom Palmer worked at the Boston Globe for 32 years as both a reporter and an editor. At the time of the Big Dig, Palmer was a reporter focused on transportation before moving to real estate and development in 2002. Charles Sennott, the founder and current director of the GroundTruth Project, served first as a special-projects reporter at the Boston Globe and then as the Boston Globe’s Middle East Bureau Chief based in Jerusalem from 1997 to 2001 and as Europe Bureau Chief based in London from 2001 to 2005. Accessioned 2016 Jun 30. Experienced processor, medium priority. 105/6-10

Restrictions Apply

No

Use Restrictions

Requests for permission to publish material from this collection should be discussed with the University Archivist.

Dates

  • Creation: 1976-2008

Extent

114 cubic feet (114 cubic feet in 44 record center cartons and 35 Banker boxes.)