jenkins's 1983 cover story about supreme court justice harry blackmun, based on numerous interviews spanning many months, was his first assignment for the times magazine. blackmun's blunt assessments of his colleagues and the court were unprecedented for a sitting justice, and they garnered headlines nationwide. two years later, justice william rehnquist sat for similar interviews. jenkins's cover story in the times magazine, entitled “the partisan,” revealed new information about rehnquist's conservative past and brought unwelcome attention to the justice, who vowed never again to cooperate in such an endeavor. eleven years later, rehnquist wrote to jack rosenthal, the editor of the times magazine: “you are correct that i did give an interview to john jenkins for the article which appeared in your magazine in 1985; it may have been in part the impression that article made on me that led me to decide not to grant any such interviews in the future."