He actually hasn't been on the front lines for quite as long as he's led people to believe, though. Larry Merchant for example has been working at the front lines for far longer. Merchant really is one of the very last of the genuine "old school" chroniclers.
His status as a legit historian is in question considering that he keeps repeating myths that have long been disproven, but one can't deny that he has been a notable figure in boxing for the past three decades or so.
Lou Duva has been in the front lines longer than both of them. Oh yeah also Angelo Dundee,Georgie Benton.