Covering Gorbachev: AP remembers his wit, wisdom, warmth

The Associated Press

When Mikhail Gorbachev died at age 91, Associated Press journalists began sharing their “Gorby” stories from the collapse of the Soviet Union and its aftermath. There was his temper: AP correspondent Brian Friedman remembers Gorbachev knocking a tape recorder out of his hand, remarking “This we don’t need” when asked a question he didn’t want to answer. But there was also plenty of warmth, especially in his later years, combined with opinions freely shared about Russia’s fate after he left power as the last Soviet leader. Gorbachev was a man who changed the world, and the AP was there.