Edwin O. Guthman (August 11, 1919 – August 31, 2008) was an American journalist and university professor. While at the ''Seattle Times'', he won the paper's first

Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting This Pulitzer Prize has been awarded since 1942 for a distinguished example of reporting on national affairs in the United States. In its first six years (1942–1947), it was called the Pulitzer Prize for Telegraphic Reporting – National. Li ...

in 1950. Guthman was third on

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...

's " Enemies List."

Biography

Guthman was born in

Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest region ...

, graduating from the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW, simply Washington, or informally U-Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1861, Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast; it was established in Seatt ...

in 1941."Edwin O. Guthman, '41"
''Columns'' (University of Washington alumni magazine), December 2008, p. 53. He entered the Army in 1942. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, he served as an infantry regiment reconnaissance platoon leader in both

North Africa North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...

and

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

. In 1946, he was discharged as a captain. During his tour, he was awarded the

Silver Star The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against an e ...

and

Purple Heart The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the President to those wounded or killed while serving, on or after 5 April 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, ...

. He was a reporter for the '' Seattle Star'' (1941–1947), and ''

The Seattle Times ''The Seattle Times'' is a daily newspaper serving Seattle, Washington, United States. It was founded in 1891 and has been owned by the Blethen family since 1896. ''The Seattle Times'' has the largest circulation of any newspaper in Washington ...

'' (1947–1961). While at the ''Seattle Times'', he won the paper's first

in 1950. His articles provided evidence that the Washington State Un-American Activities Committee suppressed evidence that cleared University of Washington professor

Melvin Rader Melvin Miller Rader (1903 – 14 June 1981) was a writer and professor of philosophy at the University of Washington and a civil rights advocate. He taught ethics, aesthetics and political philosophy. In the late 1940s, he was accused of being ...

of false charges of being a

Communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, ...

.USC Annenberg School profile. In 1961, he was tapped by Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy to be his press secretary. He later served in a similar position for one year when Kennedy became U.S. Senator from

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

in 1965. As a result of his work with Kennedy, he was third on

Nixon's Enemies List "Nixon's Enemies List" is the informal name of what started as a list of President of the United States Richard Nixon's major political opponents compiled by Charles Colson, written by George T. Bell (assistant to Colson, special counsel to ...

. He was the national editor for the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the ...

'' from 1965 to 1977 and then the editorial page editor for ''

The Philadelphia Inquirer ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'' is a daily newspaper headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The newspaper's circulation is the largest in both the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the Delaware Valley metropolitan region of Southeastern Pen ...

'' (1977–1987). He was a senior lecturer at the USC Annenberg School for Communication at the

University of Southern California , mottoeng = "Let whoever earns the palm bear it" , religious_affiliation = Nonsectarian—historically Methodist , established = , accreditation = WSCUC , type = Private research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $8.1 ...

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

, where he had been a professor since 1987. He retired in 2007.

Personal life

Guthman died August 31, 2008 at his home in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...

, at the age of 89. He suffered from

amyloidosis Amyloidosis is a group of diseases in which abnormal proteins, known as amyloid fibrils, build up in tissue. There are several non-specific and vague signs and symptoms associated with amyloidosis. These include fatigue, peripheral edema, weig ...

, a rare disease that attacks the internal organs. He was of

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

descent and was interred at

Hillside Memorial Park The Hillside Memorial Park and Mortuary is a Jewish cemetery located at 6001 West Centinela Avenue, in Culver City, California. Many Jews from the entertainment industry are buried here. The cemetery is known for Al Jolson's elaborate tomb (desi ...

. He was survived by his four children: Les Guthman, Edwin H. Guthman, Gary Guthman, and Diane Guthman.

Notes

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Guthman, Ed 1919 births 2008 deaths Jewish American journalists American newspaper editors Educators from Seattle Military personnel from Seattle Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting winners United States Army personnel of World War II United States Army officers Recipients of the Silver Star Nixon's Enemies List Deaths from amyloidosis University of Washington alumni 20th-century American journalists American male journalists Jewish American military personnel