Unable to land a job at The Baltimore Sun, he instead attended the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism where he received a master's degree one year later in 1972.

[3] Cramer worked as a journalist at several publications, including The Philadelphia Inquirer, The Baltimore Sun, Esquire Magazine, and Rolling Stone.

[4] His final published book was How Israel Lost: The Four Questions, about the ways in which the Israeli occupation has corrupted the country's original vision.

He co-wrote and narrated a film about Joe DiMaggio, The Hero's Life, produced by long-time collaborator Mark Zwonitzer, based on Cramer's book.

Richard Ben Cramer died at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore of complications from lung cancer on January 7, 2013, at age 62.