Seymour Hersh

Seymour Myron Hersh, born on April 8, 1937, is an American investigative journalist and political writer. He became well-known in 1969 for uncovering important events during the Vietnam War. For this work, he won the 1970 Pulitzer Prize for International Reporting.

During the 1970s, Hersh wrote about the Watergate scandal for The New York Times. He also reported on the secret U.S. bombing of Cambodia and the Central Intelligence Agency's activities. In 2004, he wrote about events at a prison in Iraq for _The New Yorker.

Hersh has received many awards for his work, including five George Polk Awards and two National Magazine Awards. He has written eleven books.

In later years, Hersh reported on several controversial events. In 2013, he talked about events during the Syrian Civil War. In 2015, he gave a different explanation about a raid in Pakistan. In 2023, he made a claim about pipelines.

Hersh is known for talking to anonymous sources.

Early life and education

Seymour Hersh was born in Chicago, Illinois on April 8, 1937. His parents, Isador and Dorothy, were Yiddish-speaking Jews who moved to the U.S. from Lithuania and Poland in the 1920s. As a teenager, Seymour helped in the family’s dry cleaning shop on the South Side. He finished Hyde Park High School in 1954, then went to the University of Illinois Chicago and later the University of Chicago, where he earned a history degree in 1958. He sold Xerox machines before joining the University of Chicago Law School in 1959, but he left after his first year because of low grades.

Newspaper career

After a short time working at a drugstore, Seymour Hersh started his journalism career in 1959 at the City News Bureau of Chicago. He first helped with news and later reported on crimes. In 1960, he joined the Army reservists and spent three months in basic training. After he came back to Chicago, he began a small weekly newspaper in a town called Evergreen Park in 1961. He then moved to Pierre, South Dakota in 1962 to work as a reporter for United Press International. He covered the state legislature and wrote about the Oglala Sioux.

In 1963, Hersh returned to Chicago to work for the Associated Press. He was later sent to Washington, D.C., to report on the Pentagon. There, he was inspired by investigative journalist I. F. Stone and began his own style of finding stories. In 1966, he reported on the growing U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War.

In 1969, Hersh became well-known for reporting on the My Lai massacre, where U.S. soldiers harmed many unarmed Vietnamese people. His reporting on this event changed how the media covered the war and earned him the Pulitzer Prize in 1970. He later joined The New York Times and reported on big stories such as the Watergate scandal and secret U.S. bombings in Cambodia. His work continued to uncover important issues, including government secrets and hidden operations.

Investigative books: 1980s and 1990s

In 1983, Seymour Hersh published The Price of Power: Kissinger in the Nixon White House. This book took four years to finish. It included over 1,000 interviews and won the National Book Critics Circle Award for Nonfiction. The book talked about important events, like the bombing of Cambodia and U.S. actions in Chile.

Hersh also wrote about other big events. In one book, he discussed how the Soviet Union shot down a Korean airplane in 1983. In another, he looked at Israel's nuclear weapons. His 1997 book, The Dark Side of Camelot, focused on President John F. Kennedy. In 1998, Hersh wrote about health problems faced by soldiers who served in the Gulf War.

Later investigations

In 1993, Hersh began writing for The New Yorker, a famous magazine. He wrote about many important events. One story said that Pakistan had developed nuclear weapons with help from leaders in the United States.

In May 2000, Hersh wrote about a fight during the Gulf War. He talked about soldiers under a leader named Barry McCaffrey.

After the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, Hersh wrote about U.S. actions in the Middle East.

In 2003, after the U.S. invasion of Iraq, Hersh wrote about claims that Saddam Hussein had special weapons. He said these claims were not true.

In April 2004, Hersh wrote about bad things that happened to people in a prison called Abu Ghraib in Iraq. His stories caused a lot of discussion.

In 2005, Hersh wrote about secret U.S. actions during an election in Iraq. He said the U.S. worked behind the scenes to help a leader named Ayad Allawi.

Hersh also wrote about the U.S. and its plans regarding Iran.

In stories about Syria, Hersh discussed chemical attacks and who might be responsible. He also wrote about the killing of a man named Osama bin Laden in 2011.

Finally, Hersh wrote about an event in 2022 where pipelines under the sea, called Nord Stream, were damaged. He talked about who might have been responsible.

Other statements

Speeches

In a 2005 interview with New York magazine, Seymour Hersh talked about how he speaks differently than he writes. He said that in speeches he sometimes changes details to protect people, but he never changes what he writes.

In 2004, during a speech, Hersh mentioned rumors about problems at a prison but later said he had not been clear. In later speeches, he talked about what some military leaders thought, but some people said this was not true.

In 2017, Hersh talked about a theory about someone sharing information before they died, but he said this was just gossip and he was still learning more.

In his 2018 book, Hersh mentioned hearing about a private matter involving a former president’s family but decided not to write about it.

Use of anonymous sources

Seymour Hersh was famous for talking to people who did not want their names used in his reports. This helped him share important news, but some people were upset because they thought it was not fair to keep the names secret.

His work often had information from important places like the White House and government offices. Some critics said he was biased, but Hersh felt it was more important to tell the truth, even if it meant hiding his sources. Editors at The New Yorker checked his work to make sure the facts were correct. Later, some of his stories were criticized for using information that was not fully checked.

Personal life

Seymour Hersh has a twin brother named Alan Hersh. Alan is a physicist who lives in Calabasas, California. Seymour also had two older sisters who were twins.

In 1964, Seymour married Elizabeth Sarah Klein. They have three children named Matthew, Melissa, and Joshua.

Awards and honors

Seymour Hersh received many awards for his work as a journalist. In 1970, he won the Pulitzer Prize for his reports about an event during the Vietnam War. Throughout his career, he earned many other prizes, including several George Polk Awards, National Magazine Awards, and other honors for investigating important stories. His work covered many topics, including government secrets and stories about leaders.

Publications

Seymour Hersh wrote many books and articles about history and politics. His books talked about secret wars, big events, and leaders. He also wrote articles for famous magazines and newspapers, sharing what he found with readers everywhere.