Helen Thomas dies at 92

Helen Thomas, the dean of White House reporters who broke down barriers for women in journalism, died today at the age of 92.  For decades, Thomas sat on the front row at presidential press conferences and asked the first or second question.  Her pointed queries often bothered the occupants of the White House, but Thomas just said she was doing her job. "I respect the office of the presidency,” she told Ann McFeatters for a profile in Ms. magazine, “but I never worship at the shrines of our public servants. They owe us the truth.”

There are many outstanding obituaries of Thomas today; one of the best, with a gallery of old photographs, is in the Washington Post.