Hendrik Hertzberg

Hendrik Hertzberg
Name	Hendrik Hertzberg
Birth date	1943-05-11
Birth place	New York City, United States
Occupation	Journalist, editor, speechwriter, political commentator
Employer	The New Yorker, The Atlantic Monthly, The Washington Post, Time, The New Republic
Credits	Staff writer, editor, speechwriter

Hendrik Hertzberg

Hendrik Hertzberg is an American journalist, editor, speechwriter, and political commentator known for long association with The New Yorker and for service in the administration of President Jimmy Carter. He has written on American politics, presidential campaigns, civil rights, and constitutional issues for publications including The New Yorker, The Atlantic Monthly, The Washington Post, Time, and The New Republic. His work connects to debates involving figures and institutions such as Franklin D. Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson, Richard Nixon, and contemporary leaders across Democratic Party and Republican Party politics.

Early life and education

Born in New York City, Hertzberg attended Harvard College where he engaged with campus publications and political debate alongside contemporaries associated with The Harvard Crimson, National Review, and The New Republic. He graduated into a period shaped by the Civil Rights Movement, the Cold War, and the Vietnam War, contexts that influenced many journalists of his generation including writers at Time and editors at The New Yorker. His early associations linked him to networks centered on Columbia University journalism programs, alumni of Stuyvesant High School and circles that included future staffers for administrations like Kennedy and Johnson.

Career at The New Yorker

Hertzberg joined The New Yorker in the 1970s, becoming a prominent staff writer and later editor connected to editors such as William Shawn, Robert Gottlieb, and Ross-era traditions. At The New Yorker, he contributed to coverage that intersected with reporting on the Watergate scandal, profiles of figures like Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, and later commentary on Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama. His pieces often engaged with institutions such as the United States Supreme Court, debates over the First Amendment, and analyses of presidential doctrines traced to Theodore Roosevelt and FDR. He edited and wrote pieces that appeared alongside work by colleagues like Joseph Mitchell, A.J. Liebling, David Remnick, Adam Gopnik, and Susan Sontag.

Political commentary and writing

Hertzberg’s political commentary has appeared in outlets including The Atlantic Monthly, The Washington Post, Time, and The New Republic, and he has commented on elections involving 1968, 1972, 1980, 1992, 2008, and 2016. He has written about civil-rights themes connected to figures such as Martin Luther King Jr., Thurgood Marshall, Rosa Parks, and institutions like NAACP and landmark cases from the Brown v. Board of Education era. His commentary often referenced constitutional debates involving the United States Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and presidents’ use of executive power tied to episodes such as the Iran–Contra affair and the War on Terror. He has been a frequent presence on panels and programs alongside commentators from PBS, CNN, MSNBC, and NPR.

Speechwriting and political involvement

Hertzberg served as a speechwriter for President Jimmy Carter and worked within networks that included staff from the White House and the United States Department of State. His speechwriting connected him to themes addressed by earlier presidential speechwriters for Franklin D. Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy, and contemporaries such as William Safire and Peggy Noonan. He advised on rhetoric in contexts overlapping with diplomatic episodes like the Camp David Accords and policy debates over relations with Soviet Union, China, and allies in NATO. His political involvement linked him to campaign cycles and to public intellectual debates alongside figures such as Noam Chomsky, Paul Krugman, Fareed Zakaria, and Christopher Hitchens.

Awards and honors

Hertzberg has received recognition from journalistic and civic institutions including awards associated with organizations like the National Magazine Awards, the Pulitzer Prize circle of attention, and honors from associations concerned with freedom of the press and civic discourse that include groups such as the Society of Professional Journalists and Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. His writing has been cited in compilations and anthologies alongside work by George Orwell, Hunter S. Thompson, Truman Capote, and Joan Didion. He has been invited to lecture at institutions including Harvard University, Yale University, Columbia University, Princeton University, and Stanford University.

Personal life and views

Hertzberg’s views reflect engagement with progressive currents associated with the Democratic Party while critiquing elements of both major parties, and he has written on issues connecting to civil liberties advocates like ACLU and policy debates involving think tanks such as Brookings Institution and American Enterprise Institute. He has participated in public discussions alongside journalists and intellectuals including Walter Lippmann-era commentators, contemporary hosts at The New Yorker Radio Hour, and panelists from The Atlantic. Hertzberg’s personal affiliations and commentary place him within New York media circles and civic organizations tied to institutions such as City University of New York and cultural venues like the New York Public Library.

Category:American journalists Category:Living people Category:1943 births