Gelb discusses his career at the New York Times with David Harris. Starting as a copy boy in 1944, he was present for many stories, starting with the dropping of atomic bombs in Japan. He calls his story on anti-tuberculosis drugs as his biggest story ever. He speaks fondly of Officer Frank Serpico and the Times' involvement in fighting police corruption in New York City. He also details expanding the Times from a two-section paper into a four-section paper. He feels bad papers need to fail; if a paper is in danger, it needs to concentrate on improving its product, not just cutting costs. He believes it is the duty of the publisher to keep the paper strong. In regards to the Jayson Blair scandal, Gelb is critical of how the Times handled the journalist. Gelb believes a newsroom needs to be a benevolent dictatorship, as opposed to a participatory democracy, or else the paper would never get out. Now retired from the paper, mentoring students at the New York Times College Scholarship Program became the reason he wrote his memoirs.