[2] Augustus "Gus" Haynes is the city desk editor for the paper and is a principled but unrefined presence in the newsroom.
He has ambitions of winning a Pulitzer prize for his paper and his fascination with the "Dickensian aspect" of stories leaves him often out-of-touch with the problems facing the city.
[5] He is interested in pursuing stories that stir emotion in the reader over those that examine the context and roots of social problems facing the city.
Whiting values his network of connections in the industry, and used his authority to prevent the paper from publishing a negative story about shortfalls in racial integration at the University of Maryland to protect his old friend Gene Robbins, the dean of journalism.
[5] He comes across as vain and lacking character strength, but he has a good sense of the bottom line and the potential of a story to draw readers.
[6] Klebanow is based on former Baltimore Sun managing editor Bill Marimow, whom series creator David Simon despises.
[8] Phelps is a smoker and often spends time on the loading dock with his colleagues Gus Haynes, Roger Twigg and Jeff Price.
[6] In the David Simon-written Homicide: Life On The Street episode "Wu's On First", Thomas J. McCarthy played a Baltimore Sun editor who has come from Philadelphia obsessed with winning Pulitzers, not unlike Whiting or Klebanow.
[15] Price misses a potential story in the zoning section of a council meeting agenda that is picked up by his editor Gus Haynes.
[6] Bill Zorzi is a veteran reporter for The Baltimore Sun facing an increased workload since the last round of buyouts.
[17] While he is still young he is savvy enough to know that a victim's background is more important than good writing in getting a murder story on the front page.
Fletcher visits Bubbles in various settings: the soup kitchen where he volunteers, an NA meeting, and while selling newspapers.
The quality and depth of Fletcher's article about Bubbles is in contrast to what David Simon says is a major theme of the season: The Sun misses the important stories about the city.
[21] Twigg has heard enough tall tales to see a newspaperman's joke coming long before the punchline and his humble attitude and wealth of police department sources often enable him to get the truth on a story.