Richard Bernstein (journalist)

Richard Paul Bernstein (May 5, 1944 – March 31, 2025) was an American journalist, columnist and author. He wrote the ''Letter from America'' column for the ''International Herald Tribune''. He was a book critic at ''The New York Times'' and a foreign correspondent for both ''Time'' magazine and ''The New York Times'' in Europe and Asia.

Early life and education

Richard Paul Bernstein was bornNew York Times: "The Meaning of Life" By Alexander Frater
March 25, 2001 in New York City on May 5, 1944, but grew up on a poultry farm in East Haddam, Connecticut. After graduating from Nathan Hale-Ray High School, he earned a B.A. in history from the University of Connecticut and an M.A. in History and East Asian Languages from Harvard University.Richard Bernstein website: "About Me"
retrieved February 16, 2013 In 1971, he moved to Taiwan to study Chinese.

Career

In 1973, Bernstein joined the staff of ''Time'' magazine tasked with writing about Asia. In 1979, he opened the magazine's first bureau in the People's Republic of China and served as the first Beijing bureau chief. In 1982, he accepted a position with ''The New York Times'' where he served as the United Nations Bureau Chief, Paris Bureau Chief, National Cultural Correspondent, book critic, and Berlin Bureau Chief.

Published works

Bernstein's first book, ''From the Center of the Earth: The Search for the Truth About China'' (1982), was named one of the "Notable Books of the Year 1982" by ''The New York Times'' and solidified his reputation as a China expert. ''The Coming Conflict with China'' (1997) was chosen as one of ''The New York Times'' "Notable Books of the Year 1997."

Bibliography
*''From the Center of the Earth: The Search for the Truth About China'' (1982)
*''Fragile Glory: A Portrait of France and the French'' (1990)
*''Dictatorship of Virtue: Multiculturalism and the Battle for America's Future'' (1994)
*'' The Coming Conflict with China'' (1997), with Ross. H. Munro
*''Ultimate Journey: Retracing the Path of an Ancient Buddhist Monk Who Crossed Asia in Search of Enlightenment'' (2001)
*''Out of the Blue: The Story of September 11, 2001, from Jihad to Ground Zero'' (2002)
*''The East, the West, and Sex: A History of Erotic Encounters'' (2009)
*''A Girl Named Faithful Plum: The Story of a Dancer from China and How She Achieved Her Dream'' (2012)
*''China 1945'' (2014)
*''Only in America: Al Jolson and the Jazz Singer'' (2024)

Personal life and death

Bernstein lived in the Park Slope neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York City. His wife was Zhongmei Li, a Chinese classical dancer who worked with Jia Zhoungli and whom he met at a New York film screening. She attended the Beijing Dance Academy for 7 years (1978–1984) and founded the New York-based Zhongmei Dance Company in 1992.Zhongmei Dance Company: about Zhongmei Li
retrieved February 16, 2013. They had a son.

Bernstein died from pancreatic cancer at a hospital in Manhattan, on March 31, 2025, at the age of 80.

References

External links

Biography
at Random House

Profile
at ''New York Review of Books''

Articles
at ''The New York Times''

Articles
at ''Time''


with ''Bold Type Magazine''

Interview
with Charlie Rose
*

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bernstein, Richard
1944 births
2025 deaths
Harvard Graduate School of Arts and Sciences alumni
International Herald Tribune people
American newspaper reporters and correspondents
American columnists
Jewish American journalists
The New York Times journalists
Journalists from New York City
People from East Haddam, Connecticut
Journalists from Connecticut
University of Connecticut alumni
20th-century American journalists
American male journalists
20th-century American male writers
21st-century American journalists
21st-century American male writers
21st-century American Jews
American expatriates in Taiwan
Deaths from pancreatic cancer in New York (state)
People from Park Slope