Abraham Michael "Abe" Rosenthal (May 2, 1922 – May 10, 2006) was a Canadian-born American journalist who served as ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' executive editor from 1977 to 1986. Previously he was the newspaper's metropolitan editor and managing editor. Following his tenure as executive editor, he became a columnist (1987–1999). Later, he had a column for the ''

New York Daily News The ''Daily News'' is an American newspaper based in Jersey City, New Jersey. It was founded in 1919 by Joseph Medill Patterson in New York City as the ''Illustrated Daily News''. It was the first U.S. daily printed in Tabloid (newspaper format ...

'' (1999–2004). He joined the newspaper in 1943 and remained at the Times for 56 years, to 1999. Rosenthal won a

Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prizes () are 23 annual awards given by Columbia University in New York City for achievements in the United States in "journalism, arts and letters". They were established in 1917 by the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made his fo ...

in 1960 for international reporting. As an editor at the newspaper, Rosenthal oversaw the coverage of numerous major news stories including the escalation of the United States military's involvement in the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

(1961–1975), the ''New York Times'' scoop of the

Pentagon Papers The ''Pentagon Papers'', officially titled ''Report of the Office of the Secretary of Defense Vietnam Task Force'', is a United States Department of Defense history of the United States in the Vietnam War, United States' political and militar ...

(1971), and events that were part of the

Watergate scandal The Watergate scandal was a major political scandal in the United States involving the Presidency of Richard Nixon, administration of President Richard Nixon. The scandal began in 1972 and ultimately led to Resignation of Richard Nixon, Nix ...

(1972–1974). Rosenthal was instrumental in the paper's coverage of the 1964

Kitty Genovese In the early hours of March 13, 1964, Kitty Genovese, a 28-year-old bartender, was raped and stabbed outside the apartment building where she lived in the Kew Gardens, Queens, Kew Gardens neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City, Uni ...

murder case, which established the concept of the "bystander effect", but later came to be regarded as flawed and not credible. Together with Catherine A. Fitzpatrick, he was the first Westerner to visit a Soviet

Gulag The Gulag was a system of Labor camp, forced labor camps in the Soviet Union. The word ''Gulag'' originally referred only to the division of the Chronology of Soviet secret police agencies, Soviet secret police that was in charge of runnin ...

camp in 1988. His son,

Andrew Rosenthal Andrew Mark Rosenthal (born February 25, 1956) is an American journalist and former editorial page editor of ''The New York Times''. He is the son of A. M. Rosenthal, a longtime ''New York Times'' senior executive and executive editor. While at ...

, was ''The New York Times'' editorial page editor from 2007 to 2016. His eldest son, Jonathan Rosenthal, is a retired physician who specialized in infectious diseases. His middle son, Daniel, is a retired financial executive who now owns a horse farm.

Early years

Rosenthal was born on May 2, 1922, in

Sault Ste. Marie Sault Ste. Marie may refer to: People * Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, a Native American tribe in Michigan Places * Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada ** Sault Ste. Marie (federal electoral district), a Canadian federal electora ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, Canada, to a

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

family. His father, Harry Shipiatsky, was a farmer who

immigrated Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not usual residents or where they do not possess nationality in order to settle as permanent residents. Commuters, tourists, and other short- ...

to Canada from Poland in the 1890s and changed his name to Rosenthal. He also worked as a fur trapper and trader around

Hudson Bay Hudson Bay, sometimes called Hudson's Bay (usually historically), is a large body of Saline water, saltwater in northeastern Canada with a surface area of . It is located north of Ontario, west of Quebec, northeast of Manitoba, and southeast o ...

, where he met and married Sarah Dickstein. The youngest of six children, he was still a child when his family moved to the

Bronx, New York The Bronx ( ) is the northernmost of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It shares a land border with Westchester County, New York, West ...

, where Rosenthal's father found work as a house painter. During the 1930s, though, tragedy hit the family when Rosenthal's father died in a job accident and four of his siblings died from various causes. According to his son, Andrew, he was a member of the Communist Party youth league briefly as a teenager in the late 1930s. Rosenthal developed the bone-marrow disease

osteomyelitis Osteomyelitis (OM) is the infectious inflammation of bone marrow. Symptoms may include pain in a specific bone with overlying redness, fever, and weakness. The feet, spine, and hips are the most commonly involved bones in adults. The cause is ...

, causing him extreme pain and forcing him to drop out of

DeWitt Clinton High School DeWitt Clinton High School is a public high school located since 1929 in the Bronx borough of New York City. Opened in 1897 in Lower Manhattan as an all-boys school, it maintained that status for 86 years before becoming co-ed in 1983. From i ...

. After several operations at the

Mayo Clinic Mayo Clinic () is a Nonprofit organization, private American Academic health science centre, academic Medical centers in the United States, medical center focused on integrated health care, healthcare, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science ...

, Rosenthal recovered enough to finish public schools in New York City and attend the

City College of New York The City College of the City University of New York (also known as the City College of New York, or simply City College or CCNY) is a Public university, public research university within the City University of New York (CUNY) system in New York ...

. At City College, Rosenthal wrote for the student newspaper, '' The Campus'',Sandra Shoiock Roff, Anthony M. Cucchiara & Barbara J. Dunlap, ''From the Free Academy to CUNY: Illustrating Public Higher Education in New York City, 1847–1997'' (Fordham University Press, 2000), p. 73. and in 1943, while still a student, became the campus correspondent for ''The New York Times''. In February 1944, he became a staff reporter there.

International reporting and Pulitzer Prize

Rosenthal was a foreign correspondent for ''The New York Times'' for much of the 1950s and early 1960s. In 1954, he was assigned to

New Delhi New Delhi (; ) is the Capital city, capital of India and a part of the Delhi, National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the Government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Parliament ...

and reported from across South Asia. His writings from there were honored by the Overseas Press Club and

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

. In 1958, ''The New York Times'' transferred him to

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

, where he reported on Poland and Eastern Europe. In 1959, Rosenthal was expelled from Poland after writing that the Polish leader,

Władysław Gomułka Władysław Gomułka (; 6 February 1905 – 1 September 1982) was a Polish Communist politician. He was the ''de facto'' leader of Polish People's Republic, post-war Poland from 1947 until 1948, and again from 1956 to 1970. Born in 1905 in ...

, was "moody and irascible" and had been "let down—by intellectuals and economists he never had any sympathy for anyway, by workers he accuses of squeezing overtime out of a normal day's work, by suspicious peasants who turn their backs on the government's plans, orders and pleas." Rosenthal's expulsion order stated that the reporter had "written very deeply and in detail about the internal situation, party and leadership matters. The Polish government cannot tolerate such probing reporting." For his reporting from Eastern Europe, Rosenthal won a

in 1960 for international reporting.

Kitty Genovese murder case

As metropolitan editor of ''The New York Times'', Rosenthal was instrumental in pushing an inaccurate account of the

murder of Kitty Genovese In the early hours of March 13, 1964, Kitty Genovese, a 28-year-old bartender, was raped and stabbed outside the apartment building where she lived in the Kew Gardens neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City, United States. Two weeks ...

on March 13, 1964. Rosenthal heard about the case over lunch with New York City Police Commissioner Michael J. Murphy. He assigned the story to reporter Martin Gansberg, who wrote an article published March 27, 1964, titled "37 Who Saw Murder Didn't Call the Police." (The article actually claimed there were 38 witnesses, but an error reduced the number by one in the headline.) The story was a sensation, prompting inquiries into what became known as the

bystander effect The bystander effect, or bystander apathy, is a social psychological theory that states that individuals are less likely to offer help to a victim in the presence of other people. The theory was first proposed in 1964 after the murder of Kitty ...

or "

Genovese syndrome The bystander effect, or bystander apathy, is a social psychological theory that states that individuals are less likely to offer help to a victim in the presence of other people. The theory was first proposed in 1964 after the murder of Kitty G ...

." Rosenthal wrote a book on the subject, and the incident became a common case study in American and British introductory psychology textbooks. Immediately after the story broke,

WNBC WNBC (channel 4) is a television station in New York City that serves as the flagship (broadcasting), flagship of the NBC network. It is owned and operated by the network's NBC Owned Television Stations division alongside Linden, New Jersey� ...

police reporter Danny Meehan discovered many inconsistencies in the article. Meehan asked ''The New York Times'' reporter Martin Gansberg why his article failed to reveal that witnesses did not feel that a murder was happening. Gansberg replied, "It would have ruined the story." Not wishing to jeopardize his career by attacking powerful ''The New York Times'' editor Abe Rosenthal, Meehan kept his findings secret and passed his notes to fellow WNBC reporter Gabe Pressman. Later, Pressman taught a journalism course in which some of his students called Rosenthal and confronted him with the evidence. Rosenthal was irate that his editorial decisions were being questioned by journalism students and angrily berated Pressman in a phone call. Decades later, researchers confirmed the serious flaws in ''The New York Times'' article. Only a dozen people saw or heard the attack, and none of them saw the entire incident. The newspaper admitted in 2016 that the witnesses did not know that a murder was taking place, assuming that two lovers or drunks were quarreling. Two people called the police, and one person went outside to Genovese and held her in her arms as she died..

Editor

In 1969, Rosenthal became

managing editor A managing editor (ME) is a senior member of a publication's management team. Typically, the managing editor reports directly to the editor-in-chief and oversees all aspects of the publication. United States In the United States, a managing edi ...

of ''The New York Times'' with overall command of the paper's news operations. During the 1970s, he directed coverage of a number of important news stories, including the

and the

Watergate The Watergate scandal was a major political scandal in the United States involving the administration of President Richard Nixon. The scandal began in 1972 and ultimately led to Nixon's resignation in 1974, in August of that year. It revol ...

scandal. Rosenthal played a decisive role in the paper's decision to publish the

in 1971. Because this secret government history of the Vietnam War was

classified information Classified information is confidential material that a government deems to be sensitive information which must be protected from unauthorized disclosure that requires special handling and dissemination controls. Access is restricted by law or ...

, publication of the papers could have led to charges of

treason Treason is the crime of attacking a state (polity), state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to Coup d'état, overthrow its government, spy ...

, lawsuits, or even jail time for paper staff. Rosenthal pushed for publishing the papers (along with ''New York Times'' reporter

Neil Sheehan Cornelius Mahoney Sheehan (October 27, 1936 – January 7, 2021) was an American journalist. As a reporter for ''The New York Times'' in 1971, Sheehan obtained the classified ''Pentagon Papers'' from Daniel Ellsberg. His series of articles reve ...

and publisher

Arthur Ochs Sulzberger Arthur Ochs Sulzberger Sr. (February 5, 1926 – September 29, 2012) was an American publisher and a businessman. Born into a prominent media and publishing family, Sulzberger became publisher of ''The New York Times'' in 1963 and chairman of t ...

). The

Nixon administration Richard Nixon's tenure as the 37th president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 1969, and ended when he resigned on August 9, 1974, in the face of almost certain impeachment and removal from office, the ...

sued to stop publication, resulting in a

US Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all Federal tribunals in the United States, U.S. federal court cases, and over Stat ...

decision, upholding the right of the press to publish items without "

prior restraint Prior restraint (also referred to as prior censorship or pre-publication censorship) is censorship imposed, usually by a government or institution, on expression, that prohibits particular instances of expression. It is in contrast to censorship ...

" on the part of the government. Columnist Wesley Pruden said about Rosenthal's editorial policy:

Political views

Rosenthal supported the 2003 invasion of Iraq and suggested that the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

should give

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

Libya Libya, officially the State of Libya, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya border, the east, Sudan to Libya–Sudan border, the southeast, Chad to Chad–L ...

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

, and

Sudan Sudan, officially the Republic of the Sudan, is a country in Northeast Africa. It borders the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, Libya to the northwest, Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the east, Eritrea and Ethiopi ...

ultimatum An ; ; : ultimata or ultimatums) is a demand whose fulfillment is requested in a specified period of time and which is backed up by a coercion, threat to be followed through in case of noncompliance (open loop). An ultimatum is generally the ...

and order the countries to deliver documents and information related to

weapons of mass destruction A weapon of mass destruction (WMD) is a Biological agent, biological, chemical weapon, chemical, Radiological weapon, radiological, nuclear weapon, nuclear, or any other weapon that can kill or significantly harm many people or cause great dam ...

and terrorist organizations. Otherwise, "in the three days the terrorists were considering the American ultimatum, the residents of the countries would be urged 24 hours a day by the U.S. to flee the capital and major cities, because they would be bombed to the ground beginning the fourth day." Rosenthal was also criticized for being extremely

homophobic Homophobia encompasses a range of negative attitudes and feelings toward homosexuality or people who identify or are perceived as being lesbian, Gay men, gay or bisexual. It has been defined as contempt, prejudice, aversion, hatred, or ant ...

, with his views affecting how the ''New York Times'' covered issues regarding gay people including the early years of the

AIDS The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, pr ...

epidemic."Larry Gross: Abe Rosenthal's Reign of Homophobia at The New York Times"
by

Larry Gross Larry Gross (born 1953) is an American screenwriter, and producer. He is a visiting professor of film and new media at New York University Abu Dhabi. Best known for his collaborations with Walter Hill, his credits include ''48 Hrs.'' (1982), ''S ...

, Truthdig, May 17, 2006, accessed March 12, 2025. According to former ''Times'' journalist

Charles Kaiser Charles Kaiser is an American author and journalist best known for his nonfiction books ''1968 in America'' (1988), ''The Gay Metropolis'' (1997), and ''The Cost of Courage'' (2015). A former reporter for ''The New York Times'', ''The Wall Stree ...

, "Everyone below Rosenthal (at the ''New York Times'') spent all of their time trying to figure out what to do to cater to his prejudices. One of these widely perceived prejudices was Abe’s homophobia. So editors throughout the paper would keep stories concerning gays out of the paper." One result of this is that the Times "initially 'ignored' the AIDS epidemic." http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/press_box/2006/05/am_rosenthal_19222006.html A.M. Rosenthal (1922-2006): Ugly genius"by Jack Shafer< Slate, May 11, 2006.

Later career

Rosenthal had a weekly column at the ''

'' following his run as a columnist at the ''Times'' until 2004.

Death

Rosenthal died in Manhattan on May 10, 2006, eight days after his 84th birthday. He is interred in

Westchester Hills Cemetery The Westchester Hills Cemetery is at 400 Saw Mill River Road in Hastings-on-Hudson, Westchester County, New York, approximately north of New York City. It is a Jewish cemetery, and many well-known entertainers and performers are interred there ...

Hastings-on-Hudson Hastings-on-Hudson is a village in Westchester County located in the southwestern part of the town of Greenburgh in the state of New York, United States. It is a suburb of New York City, located approximately north of midtown Manhattan, and i ...

, New York. His epitaph inscribed on his grave marker ("He kept the paper straight") was chosen to memorialize his efforts at ''The New York Times'' to deliver unbiased news.

Titles at ''The New York Times''

*1943-1945—General assignment reporter: New York. *1945-1954—Reporter:

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

. *1954-1967—Foreign correspondent:

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

Nepal Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...

Ceylon Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; , fossilized , also known as Papua or historically ) is the List of islands by area, world's second-largest island, with an area of . Located in Melanesia in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is ...

Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

and

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. *1963-1967—Metropolitan editor. *1967-1968—Assistant managing editor. *1968-1969—Associate managing editor. *1970-1977—Managing editor. *1977-January 1, 1988—Executive editor. *1988-1999—Columnist.

Awards and honors

for International Reporting (1960) *The

Elijah Parish Lovejoy Elijah Parish Lovejoy (November 9, 1802 – November 7, 1837) was an American Presbyterianism, Presbyterian minister (Christianity), minister, journalist, Editing, newspaper editor, and Abolitionism in the United States, abolitionist. After his ...

Award *An honorary

Doctor of Laws A Doctor of Laws (LL.D.) is a doctoral degree in legal studies. The abbreviation LL.D. stands for ''Legum Doctor'', with the double “L” in the abbreviation referring to the early practice in the University of Cambridge to teach both canon law ...

degree from

Colby College Colby College is a private liberal arts college in Waterville, Maine, United States. Founded in 1813 as the Maine Literary and Theological Institution, it was renamed Waterville College in 1821. The donations of Christian philanthropist Gardner ...

*The

Light of Truth Award The Light of Truth Award is a human rights award which is presented nearly annually by the International Campaign for Tibet (ICT), an NGO aiming for the promotion of democracy and human rights for the Tibetan people. The award is presented since ...

(1994) *The Guardian of Zion Award (1999) *The

Presidential Medal of Freedom The Presidential Medal of Freedom is the highest civilian award of the United States, alongside the Congressional Gold Medal. It is an award bestowed by decision of the president of the United States to "any person recommended to the President ...

(2002)

References

External links

Obituaries

"A. M. Rosenthal, Editor of The Times, Dies at 84"
''

'', May 11, 2006 and video (4:48 min.)
Obituary by Charles Kaiser
former NY Times reporter
"A.M. Rosenthal, who reshaped the Times, dies in NYC"

CBC CBC may refer to: Media * Cadena Baja California or Grupo Cadena, a radio and television broadcaster in Mexico * Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Canada's radio and television public broadcaster ** CBC Television ** CBC Radio One ** CBC Music ** ...

, May 11, 2006
"Just the circus, and no elephants"
''

Washington Times ''The Washington Times'' is an American conservative daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It covers general interest topics with an emphasis on national politics. Its broadsheet daily edition is distributed throughout Washington, D. ...

'', editorial with Rosenthal anecdotes
"A.M. Rosenthal (1922–2006). Ugly genius"
''

Slate Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous, metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade, regional metamorphism. It is the finest-grained foliated metamorphic ro ...

'', May 11, 2006

Books by Rosenthal and Arthur Gelb

*'' One More Victim: The Life and Death of a Jewish Nazi.'' New York: The New American Library, 1967. Rosenthal, A.M. & Gelb, Arthur. *''Thirty-Eight Witnesses: The Kitty Genovese Case.'' University of California Press. .

Books about Rosenthal and/or ''The New York Times''

* '' The Kingdom and the Power'', by Gay Talese, 1969, 2007-reprint, Random House Trade Paperbacks, ; * ''Fit To Print: A. M. Rosenthal and His Times'', by Joseph C. Goulden, 1988, Lyle Stuart, 403 pp. ; * '' My Times'', by John Corry, Putnam, 1994, ; * ''My Times: A Memoir of Dissent'', by John L. Hess, Seven Stories Press, 2003 ; * ''City Room'', by

Arthur Gelb Arthur Gelb (February 3, 1924 – May 20, 2014) was an American editor, author and executive and was the managing editor of ''The New York Times'' from 1986 to 1989. Early life and education Gelb was born to two Jewish immigrants from what was ...

, Putnam Adult, 2003, ;

Rosenthal articles

"How the U.S. Can Win the War"
September 14, 2001

September 28, 2001