Seymour Hersh

Seymour Hersh was born in Chicago to Yiddish-speaking Lithuanian immigrants. He graduated from the University of Chicago in 1958 with a degree in history, then worked briefly as a lawyer before turning to journalism. He joined the City News Bureau of Chicago and later the Associated Press, covering the Pentagon and Capitol Hill. In 1969, while freelancing, he obtained the story of the My Lai massacre, in which U.S. soldiers killed hundreds of unarmed Vietnamese civilians. His reporting, published by the Dispatch News Service, forced the military to investigate and led to the conviction of Lieutenant William Calley. The exposé earned Hersh the 1970 Pulitzer Prize and established his reputation as a relentless investigative reporter.

Hersh's career is marked by a series of high-impact investigations. In 1974, he reported on CIA domestic spying, leading to the Church Committee hearings. In the 1980s, he covered the Iran-Contra affair and the U.S. arming of Iraq. In 2004, his New Yorker article on Abu Ghraib, based on the Taguba report, exposed systematic abuse by U.S. military police, prompting global outrage and congressional hearings. He also wrote extensively on the Bush administration's flawed intelligence leading to the Iraq War. His books, including The Price of Power (1983) on Henry Kissinger and Chain of Command (2004), have been both praised and criticized for their aggressive sourcing and conclusions.

In his later career, Hersh has continued to publish in outlets like the London Review of Books, often with controversial claims. In 2015, he alleged that the U.S. Navy SEAL raid that killed Osama bin Laden was a false-flag operation, a claim widely disputed by officials and journalists. In 2023, he reported that the Nord Stream pipeline explosions were a U.S. covert operation, which was denied by the U.S. government and met with skepticism from other reporters. These stories have led to debates about his sourcing and reliability, though he maintains a loyal following. His memoir, Reporter (2018), offers insights into his methods and the evolution of investigative journalism.

Beyond his famous exposés, Hersh's career includes lesser-known episodes. He was a key figure in exposing the CIA's domestic spying, but he also reported on the 1973 Yom Kippur War, revealing Israeli nuclear capabilities. He wrote a biography of John F. Kennedy's assassin, Lee Harvey Oswald, in The Dark Side of Camelot (1997), which was criticized for its speculative nature. Hersh also worked as a press secretary for Senator Eugene McCarthy's 1968 presidential campaign, a brief political interlude. He has been a vocal critic of the military-industrial complex, and his papers are archived at the University of Texas at Austin. His influence extends to a new generation of investigative journalists who cite his tenacity and willingness to challenge power.

My Lai massacre

The mass killing of unarmed South Vietnamese civilians by U.S. troops in 1968.

Abu Ghraib

A prison in Iraq where U.S. military personnel committed acts of torture and abuse in 2003-2004.

Taguba report

An official U.S. Army report on detainee abuse at Abu Ghraib, authored by Major General Antonio Taguba.