Seymour Hersh facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Seymour Hersh
Hersh in 2009
Born	Seymour Myron Hersh (1937-04-08) April 8, 1937 (age 88) Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Other names	Sy Hersh
Alma mater	University of Chicago (BA)
Occupation	Journalist, writer
Spouse(s)	Elizabeth Sarah Klein ​ (m. 1964)​
Children	3
Awards	George Polk Award (1969, 1973, 1974, 1981, 2004) Pulitzer Prize (1970) National Book Critics Circle Award (1983) National Magazine Award (2004, 2005)

Seymour Myron Hersh (born April 8, 1937) is an American investigative journalist and writer. He became well-known in 1969 for revealing the My Lai massacre during the Vietnam War. For this important work, he received the 1970 Pulitzer Prize for International Reporting.

During the 1970s, Hersh reported on the Watergate scandal for The New York Times. He also uncovered secret U.S. bombings in Cambodia and the Central Intelligence Agency's (CIA) domestic spying programs. In 2004, he exposed the abuse of prisoners at Abu Ghraib in Iraq for The New Yorker. Hersh has won many awards for his journalism, including five George Polk Awards. He has also written 11 books.

In recent years, some of Hersh's reports have caused debate. For example, in 2013, he suggested that Syrian rebel groups, not the government, used sarin gas in an attack. In 2015, he offered a different story about how Osama bin Laden was killed. In 2023, he claimed the U.S. and Norway sabotaged the Nord Stream pipelines. Hersh often uses anonymous sources in his stories, which has led to some criticism.

Early Life and Education

Hersh was born in Chicago, Illinois, on April 8, 1937. His parents were Jewish immigrants from Lithuania and Poland. As a teenager, he helped run his family's dry cleaning shop.

He graduated from Hyde Park Academy High School in 1954. He then studied history at the University of Chicago, graduating in 1958. He briefly attended law school but left after his first year.

Journalism Career

Hersh began his journalism career in 1959 at the City News Bureau of Chicago. He started as a copyboy and later became a crime reporter. After serving in the Army Reserve, he launched a small weekly newspaper in 1961. He then worked for United Press International (UPI) and the Associated Press (AP).

In 1965, he moved to Washington, D.C., to report on the Pentagon for the AP. There, he learned from famous investigative journalist I. F. Stone. Hersh started developing his own investigative style, often talking to high-ranking officers in informal settings. He reported on the growing U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War.

In 1967, Hersh joined the AP's first special investigative unit. He later became a freelancer after his editors changed a story he wrote. He wrote articles about the government's secret chemical and biological weapons programs. This research became his first book, Chemical and Biological Warfare: America's Hidden Arsenal (1968). His reporting helped lead to the U.S. ending its biological weapons program in 1969.

My Lai Massacre Investigation

In 1969, Hersh reported on the My Lai massacre. This was an event where U.S. soldiers killed hundreds of unarmed Vietnamese civilians on March 16, 1968. He received a tip about a soldier being charged with killing civilians.

Hersh traveled to interview Lieutenant William Calley, the soldier charged. His first article about the massacre was published in 35 newspapers on November 13, 1969. At first, the reaction was quiet.

Other reporters then found out that the Army's investigation started because of a letter from Ronald Ridenhour, a Vietnam veteran. Hersh interviewed Ridenhour and other soldiers. They revealed that many more people had been killed than first thought. On November 20, Hersh's second article was published internationally. On the same day, shocking photos of the massacre by Army photographer Ronald L. Haeberle were published. This caused widespread anger.

Hersh continued to interview witnesses. His reports helped bring the massacre to national attention. The White House acknowledged the event, and the Army started an official investigation.

Hersh's reporting made him famous and increased opposition to the war. For his work on My Lai, he won the 1970 Pulitzer Prize for International Reporting and other awards. He later wrote a book about the massacre, My Lai 4: A Report on the Massacre and Its Aftermath (1970).

Reporting for The New York Times

In 1972, Hersh joined The New York Times. He helped cover the Watergate scandal, which involved a break-in at the Democratic National Committee headquarters. His articles revealed that secret payments were still being made to the burglars. This shifted the focus to the cover-up of the crime.

Hersh also exposed Operation Menu, the secret U.S. bombing of neutral Cambodia in 1969–1970. He revealed that the Air Force had flown thousands of secret raids. His reporting led to public admissions from government officials about the bombings.

In 1974, Hersh revealed Operation CHAOS. This was a huge CIA program that illegally spied on anti-war groups and American citizens. He reported that files were kept on thousands of Americans. This exposure led to investigations and reforms within the CIA.

Hersh left The New York Times in 1979 to write books.

Investigative Books

Hersh's 1983 book, The Price of Power: Kissinger in the Nixon White House, was a best-seller. It won the National Book Critics Circle Award. The book looked closely at the career of Henry Kissinger, a powerful government official.

In 1986, Hersh wrote The Target Is Destroyed. This book examined the 1983 shootdown of a Korean Air Lines plane by the Soviet Union. He reported that the U.S. knew quickly that the Soviets thought they had shot down a military plane.

His 1991 book, The Samson Option, explored Israel's nuclear weapon program. He claimed Israel developed nuclear weapons with indirect help from the U.S.

Hersh's 1997 book, The Dark Side of Camelot, was about the political life of John F. Kennedy. This book caused some debate due to claims based on documents that were later found to be fake.

In 1998, he published Against All Enemies: Gulf War Syndrome: The War Between America's Ailing Veterans and Their Government. This book discussed Gulf War syndrome, a mysterious illness affecting many veterans.

Later Investigations

Starting in 1993, Hersh became a regular writer for The New Yorker magazine. He wrote about Pakistan's nuclear weapons program and other topics. In 2000, he wrote a long article about the Battle of Rumaila, an alleged massacre of Iraqi troops during the Gulf War.

After the September 11 attacks, Hersh focused on U.S. policy in the Middle East. He reported on intelligence failures before 9/11 and on the Bush administration's "war on terror".

Iraq and Abu Ghraib

After the 2003 invasion of Iraq, Hersh questioned the Bush administration's claims about Iraq's weapons of mass destruction.

On April 30, 2004, Hersh published the first of three articles in The New Yorker about the abuse of prisoners at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq. The story, called "Torture at Abu Ghraib", included shocking photos of the abuse. He had obtained a secret report from an Army investigation that detailed the abuses.

Hersh claimed that military intelligence teams, including CIA officers, directed the abuse. He also suggested that the abuse came from a top-secret program approved by Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld. The Pentagon denied these claims.

The scandal grew, and Hersh received national and international attention. He won multiple awards for his reporting on Abu Ghraib. He later published a book, Chain of Command: The Road from 9/11 to Abu Ghraib, based on his articles.

Iran and Syria

Hersh also wrote many articles about U.S. policy towards Iran and Syria. In 2005, he reported that the U.S. was planning covert missions in Iran. He also wrote about the possibility of the U.S. using nuclear weapons on Iran's nuclear sites, a plan that was later resisted by military leaders.

In 2013, Hersh published an article in the London Review of Books about the Ghouta chemical attack in Syria. He suggested that the Obama administration had ignored intelligence that indicated Syrian rebel groups might have been responsible for the attack, not the Syrian government. This article was controversial.

In 2014, he wrote another article claiming that the attack was a false flag operation by a rebel group with help from the Turkish government. These claims were disputed by other experts.

In 2017, Hersh wrote an article about the Khan Shaykhun chemical attack in Syria. He claimed it was not a sarin attack but a conventional bombing that hit a building with chemicals inside. This claim was also widely criticized and contradicted by international investigations.

Killing of Osama bin Laden

In 2013, Hersh stated that the official U.S. story about the 2011 raid that killed Osama bin Laden was "one big lie."

In May 2015, he published a long article in the London Review of Books with an alternative account. The official story said bin Laden was found through a courier and Pakistan did not know about the raid. Hersh reported that bin Laden had been held by Pakistan's intelligence agency since 2006. He claimed that top Pakistani military officials knew about the operation and that bin Laden was assassinated.

Hersh's article was heavily criticized by other reporters. They questioned his sources and pointed out inconsistencies. However, some details, like a Pakistani intelligence officer tipping off the CIA, were later supported by other journalists.

Nord Stream Pipeline Sabotage

On February 8, 2023, Hersh published an article claiming that the sabotage of the Nord Stream pipelines in September 2022 was carried out by the U.S. with help from Norway. He said U.S. Navy divers planted explosives during a NATO exercise.

This self-published report relied on one anonymous source. Hersh suggested the motive was to reduce Russia's economic influence in Europe. The report gained a lot of attention in independent and European media. However, some of its claims were questioned by experts using publicly available data. For example, ship tracking data did not fully support the movements of the alleged Norwegian ship.

In March 2023, other news reports suggested a "pro-Ukrainian group" might have been responsible for the attack. Hersh then claimed this was a false story created by the CIA.

In October 2024, a Swiss newspaper reported new information from a Danish harbor master. He claimed to have seen a fleet of U.S. Navy ships with inactive transponders near the sabotage site days before the explosions. This new information has led to more questions about who was responsible.

Use of Anonymous Sources

Hersh is well-known for using anonymous sources in his reporting. His biographer described this as his "trademark." While working at the Pentagon, he developed many secret sources within the military.

His use of unnamed sources has sometimes led to criticism. Some critics have accused him of having a bias. However, Hersh has stated that he gets his stories from people with integrity, regardless of their politics.

His articles for The New Yorker were reviewed by an editor and fact-checkers. The editor stated that he knew the identity of all of Hersh's sources. Hersh has defended his use of anonymous sources, saying they are necessary in intelligence reporting because sources take risks.

However, his later reporting, especially outside of The New Yorker, has faced more criticism for relying on fewer sources or single anonymous sources. Hersh has said that he relies on people who have their own reasons for sharing information, and that this can attract people who believe in conspiracy theories.

Personal Life

Hersh married Elizabeth Sarah Klein, a doctor, in 1964. They have three children.

Awards and Honors

Hersh has received many awards for his journalism:

• 1969: George Polk Special Award and Worth Bingham Prize for Investigative Journalism, for reporting on the My Lai massacre
• 1970: Pulitzer Prize for International Reporting and Sigma Delta Chi Distinguished Service Award, for reporting on the My Lai massacre
• 1973: George Polk Award for Investigative Reporting and Scripps-Howard Public Service Award, for reporting on Operation Menu
• 1974: George Polk Award for National Reporting, for reporting on Operation CHAOS
• 1975: Hillman Prize for Newspaper Reporting, for reporting on Operation CHAOS
• 1981: George Polk Award for National Reporting (with Jeff Gerth and Philip Taubman) and Sigma Delta Chi Award, for reporting on arms sales to Libya
• 1983: National Book Critics Circle Award for Nonfiction, Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Biography, and Investigative Reporters & Editors Award, for The Price of Power: Kissinger in the Nixon White House
• 1984: Hillman Prize for Book Reporting, for The Price of Power: Kissinger in the Nixon White House
• 1992: Investigative Reporters & Editors Award, for The Samson Option: Israel's Nuclear Arsenal and American Foreign Policy
• 2004: National Magazine Award for Public Interest, George Polk Award for Magazine Reporting, Overseas Press Club Joe and Laurie Dine Award, National Press Foundation Kiplinger Distinguished Contributions to Journalism Award, Letelier-Moffitt Human Rights Award, and LennonOno Grant for Peace, for reporting on the prisoner abuse at Abu Ghraib; George Orwell Award for both stories
• 2005: National Magazine Award for Public Interest, for reporting on the prisoner abuse at Abu Ghraib; Ridenhour Courage Prize
• 2009: International Center for Journalists Founders Award for Excellence in Journalism
• 2017: Sam Adams Award

See also

In Spanish: Seymour Hersh para niños