Michael Olesker

Editor's note: Journeys to the Heart of Baltimore, a new book by Sun columnist Michael Olesker, is the story of assimilation in a city of long-held racial and ethnic pockets. It is the story of the American mosaic as lived in Baltimore, and the struggle of those who have felt themselves with a familiar conflict: wanting the full, mainstream America, but also wanting to hold on to the beliefs, the traditions and the family histories that make each of us unique. Olesker has been a newspaper reporter and columnist for 35 years, the past 23 with The Sun. Journeys to the Heart of Baltimore ($22.

Now the Drum of War By Robert Roper Walker & Co. / 421 pages / $28 Walt Whitman (1819-1892), author of Leaves of Grass and the father of American poetry, came from a large, close-knit family. Poor and prone to strokes, heart disease and mental illness, the Whitmans were nevertheless tenacious, talented and smart. Robert Roper's book offers a family biography, which looks at Walt Whitman and his relationship with his family primarily during the Civil War. In a style reminiscent of Ken Burns, Roper focuses on Walt, his doting mother and his younger brothers, Jeff, a water engineer, and George, a Union soldier.

Michael Olesker is on vacation.

Bias is not necessarily a dirty word when it comes to writing books of history. As these three books suggest, an author's bias can make the book a better read. Tonight at Six by Michael Olesker Apprentice House, 287 pages, $26.95 For nearly 20, Michael Olesker was a television commentator for WJZ. When in the spring of 2002, his contract wasn't renewed, Olesker gathered information for Tonight at Six. Part memoir, part philippic, Olesker's engaging but biased account offers his take on television news.

A column by Michael Olesker in Tuesday's editions of The Sun said that a study by the Regional Economic Studies Institute in Towson found that Maryland's economy was the fifth most prosperous in the country. In fact, the May 1997 study said that Maryland had the fifth highest per capita income in the country.Pub Date: 2/05/98

Case for Serbia2 Thank you for the thought-provoking editorial.Anne Hege HughesBaltimoreRadio NewsI recently read Michael Olesker's column in The Sun of Aug. 2, "Less Radio News Is Bad News For Listener," and I agree.Except for a few stations, news is not a priority. Michael Olesker may not be aware of Baltimore's only all-news radio station, WERQ, 1010 on the AM dial.We have been programming CNN Headline News, Monday through Friday, 6 a.m. to 8 p.m., since last April. We also supplement CNN with local news, sports, weather and traffic reports every half hour.

* The first piece of steel superstructure was erected Aug. 16, 1990.* More than 5,000 tons of painted steel was used in construction of the new stadium.* More than 700 workers have been employed at the stadium site.* There are no columns in the new ballpark.* Oriole Park is already earning praise through imitation. Page 1C* Michael Olesker comments on Governor Schaefer's public agonizing over attending the opening day game. Page 1D

Ehrlich is right to scorn writers who show bias Hurrah for the Ehrlich administration's decision to ban state officials from speaking to Sun journalists Michael Olesker and David Nitkin ("Two Sun journalists target of a ban," Nov. 20). Both journalists are guilty of lopsided reporting, unnecessary editorializing and anti-conservative viewpoints. Mr. Olesker put his foot in his mouth when he said that he did not need to be there to "know the patent absurdity of the remark" made by the governor's communication's director, Paul E. Schurick.

Now the Drum of War By Robert Roper Walker & Co. / 421 pages / $28 Walt Whitman (1819-1892), author of Leaves of Grass and the father of American poetry, came from a large, close-knit family. Poor and prone to strokes, heart disease and mental illness, the Whitmans were nevertheless tenacious, talented and smart. Robert Roper's book offers a family biography, which looks at Walt Whitman and his relationship with his family primarily during the Civil War. In a style reminiscent of Ken Burns, Roper focuses on Walt, his doting mother and his younger brothers, Jeff, a water engineer, and George, a Union soldier.

Bias is not necessarily a dirty word when it comes to writing books of history. As these three books suggest, an author's bias can make the book a better read. Tonight at Six by Michael Olesker Apprentice House, 287 pages, $26.95 For nearly 20, Michael Olesker was a television commentator for WJZ. When in the spring of 2002, his contract wasn't renewed, Olesker gathered information for Tonight at Six. Part memoir, part philippic, Olesker's engaging but biased account offers his take on television news.

Michael Olesker, a columnist for 27 years at The Sun, resigned yesterday amid allegations that he had used sentences and paragraphs from other newspapers in some of his columns without attribution. "I made mistakes," said Olesker, clearly dejected, as he began cleaning out his desk in The Sun's newsroom. "I would never take somebody else's work and call it my own. I have always tried to serve my readers as honorably as possible. In the current climate, with so many political eyes staring at me and this newspaper, I feel it's in everyone's best interest for me to resign."

Michael Olesker is on vacation.

Unfair to portray GOP as foe of Earth I read Tom Horton's column "Environmentally friendly GOP fights political divide" (Dec. 6) and found it to be a diatribe that was neither informative nor fair. Mr. Horton writes, "The Bush administration and the Republican leadership of Congress have weakened clean-air regulation, denied global warming, defunded science, undercut the Environmental Protection Agency, attacked public land preservation and set the stage for more decades of polluting energy generation."

SO, THERE'S this candidate who's being urged to attend a meeting on the other side of his state. "You've got to get over here," an aide tells him. The candidate says he can't make it. "You don't understand," the aide says. "They're telling lies about you over here." "No," says the candidate, "you don't understand. Over here they're telling the truth about me." It was, no doubt, an unpleasant truth and, therefore, a more compelling problem for the candidate to confront. If you've done something controversial in politics, eventually you have to face it. Maybe people don't understand.

So, if Olesker calls the Department of Natural Resources to get an estimate on the kill-count from the first day of deer season, do they stiff him? I mean, if Olesker decides to take a turn on the outdoors beat, covering hunting and fishing, and he calls DNR to get a fact like that, what do you suppose happens? "Hello, DNR, Green Ridge State Forest." "Hi, Michael Olesker from The Sun here, wondering if you have the weekend deer kill ..." "Who'd you say this is?" "Michael Olesker." "Hold on ... (Whispering to someone in office)

Sun staff writers continue to publish books: Three new ones are coming on the market. Following our established practice, they are listed here in alphabetical order, without critical judgment except to record that all of us at The Sun wish the books and their authors the success they unquestionably deserve."

So, if Olesker calls the Department of Natural Resources to get an estimate on the kill-count from the first day of deer season, do they stiff him? I mean, if Olesker decides to take a turn on the outdoors beat, covering hunting and fishing, and he calls DNR to get a fact like that, what do you suppose happens? "Hello, DNR, Green Ridge State Forest." "Hi, Michael Olesker from The Sun here, wondering if you have the weekend deer kill ..." "Who'd you say this is?" "Michael Olesker." "Hold on ... (Whispering to someone in office)