The strike--and Giles's involvement with Gannett, a conglomerate some journalists hold in low regard--have made enemies of some of his colleagues.

He is currently a senior vice president of the Freedom Forum, a center founded by Gannett that promotes a free press.

"Giles and his company, Gannett, virtually destroyed [The News] over a

period of 12-13 years," Ourlian wrote in an e-mail message.

Lengel, now with the Washington Post, said Giles had an "active hand" in creating "journalistically criminal coverage of the strike" and printing slanted stories.

Giles's possible appointment as Nieman curator is "the worst thing that could happen to journalism, " Desmet said.

The Alliance, a group of six unions in Detroit still striking against the Times, issued a press release last week opposing Giles's candidacy that accuses Harvard of being tempted by the "infamous checkbook of Gannett." Gannett owns papers across the country, including USA Today.

But run-ins with labor unions are part of the job, Giles's defenders point out.