Thomas Griffith, 86; Author, Former Editor at Time, Life Magazines

Thomas Griffith, 86, a former senior staff editor and writer at Time magazine, died Saturday in New York City from head injuries suffered in a fall.

Born in Tacoma, Wash., Griffith received a degree in journalism from the University of Washington and began his career as a police reporter for the Seattle Times in 1936. He joined Time as a writer in 1943 and rose to senior staff editor in 1963.

Described as the magazine’s “house liberal” in the 1950s and early ‘60s, Griffith was known for his fair and even-handed news coverage, particularly his direction of the 1960 Kennedy-Nixon presidential campaign.

Griffith also was editor of Life magazine from 1967 until the popular weekly ceased publication in 1972, the same year he retired.

He wrote three books, “Harry and Teddy: The Turbulent Friendship of Press Lord Henry R. Luce and his Favorite Reporter, Theodore H. White,” “The Waist-High Culture” and “How True: A Skeptic’s Guide to Believing the News.”