Smith Hempstone (February 1, 1929 – November 19, 2006) was a journalist, author, and the United States ambassador to

Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...

from 1989 to 1993. He was a vocal proponent of

democracy Democracy (from , ''dēmos'' 'people' and ''kratos'' 'rule') is a form of government in which political power is vested in the people or the population of a state. Under a minimalist definition of democracy, rulers are elected through competitiv ...

, advocating free elections for Kenya.

Early life and education

Hempstone was born February 1, 1929,

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

He attended

George Washington University The George Washington University (GW or GWU) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally-chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Originally named Columbian College, it was chartered in 1821 by ...

, and later transferred to the University of the South in Sewanee, Tennessee, where he graduated.

Career

From 1949 to 1952, he was a

U.S. Marine The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionar ...

in the

Korean War The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...

, and left the Marines with the rank of

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

. He then did radio rewrite for the

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American not-for-profit organization, not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association, and produces news reports that are dist ...

Charlotte, North Carolina Charlotte ( ) is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the county seat of Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 United ...

in 1952. He was a reporter for the ''

Louisville Times ''The Louisville Times'' was a newspaper that was published in Louisville, Kentucky. It was founded in 1884 by Walter N. Haldeman, as the afternoon counterpart to ''The Courier-Journal'', the dominant morning newspaper in Louisville and the common ...

'' in

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville is the List of cities in Kentucky, most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeastern United States, Southeast, and the list of United States cities by population, 27th-most-populous city ...

in 1953, a rewrite editor at ''

National Geographic ''National Geographic'' (formerly ''The National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as ''Nat Geo'') is an American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. The magazine was founded in 1888 as a scholarly journal, nine ...

'' in

in 1954, and then a reporter at ''

The Washington Star ''The Washington Star'', previously known as the ''Washington Star-News'' and the ''Washington'' ''Evening Star'', was a daily afternoon newspaper published in Washington, D.C., between 1852 and 1981. The Sunday edition was known as the ''Sunday ...

'' from 1955 to 1956. He was a fellow of the Institute of Current World Affairs in

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 ...

from 1956 to 1960.

Foreign correspondent

In 1961, Hempstone became a foreign correspondent for the '' Chicago Daily News'' in

, where he served until 1964, and then in

Latin America Latin America is the cultural region of the Americas where Romance languages are predominantly spoken, primarily Spanish language, Spanish and Portuguese language, Portuguese. Latin America is defined according to cultural identity, not geogr ...

in 1965. In 1966, he joined ''

'' as foreign correspondent in Latin America. From 1966 to 1969, he was ''The Star''s correspondent in Europe. He was associate editor and editorial page director of ''The Star'' from 1970 to 1975. In 1975, following a disagreement with ''The Star'' new owner Joe L. Allbritton, he left the newspaper. Beginning in 1975, he authored a syndicated twice-weekly column, "Our Times", which carried in over 90 newspapers.

The Washington Times

In 1982, Hempstone was named executive editor of the newly founded ''

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. ...

'' and, following the resignation of editor and publisher James R. Whelan in 1984, briefly served as editor of the paper before being replaced by Arnaud de Borchgrave.

U.S. ambassador to Kenya

In 1989, President

George H. W. Bush George Herbert Walker BushBefore the outcome of the 2000 United States presidential election, he was usually referred to simply as "George Bush" but became more commonly known as "George H. W. Bush", "Bush Senior," "Bush 41," and even "Bush th ...

appointed Hempstone ambassador to

at a time when the United States was beginning to pressure African countries to democratize and improve

human rights Human rights are universally recognized Morality, moral principles or Social norm, norms that establish standards of human behavior and are often protected by both Municipal law, national and international laws. These rights are considered ...

. Hempstone worked toward these goals by advocating for multiparty elections in Kenya in 1991, nine years after Kenyan president

Daniel arap Moi Daniel Toroitich arap Moi ( ; 2 September 1924 – 4 February 2020) was a Kenyan politician who served as the second president of Kenya from 1978 to 2002. He is the country's longest-serving president to date. Moi previously served as the thi ...

banned all parties except his own. The Moi administration derided him, saying he failed to understand that strong, unified government was necessary to keep Kenya's tribal groups from dividing the nation. Hempstone aided dissidents and befriended opponents of the Moi administration, causing the African press to describe his style as "bulldozer diplomacy." The Kenyan government isolated him and, according to Hempstone's book ''Rogue Ambassador: An African Memoir,'' twice attempted to kill him. Multi-party elections were ultimately held in Kenya in 1992, which were won by Moi with 36 percent of the vote. In 2001, former Kenyan government minister Nicholas Biwott successfully sued Hempstone in High Court Civil Suit Case No. 1273 in Kenya for suggesting in his autobiography that Biwott had been involved in the murder Robert Ouko, Kenya's minister of foreign affairs, in February 1990. Hempstone did not defend himself in the suit.

Death

On November 19, 2006, Hempstone died from complications of

diabetes Diabetes mellitus, commonly known as diabetes, is a group of common endocrine diseases characterized by sustained high blood sugar levels. Diabetes is due to either the pancreas not producing enough of the hormone insulin, or the cells of th ...

in Suburban Hospital in

Bethesda, Maryland Bethesda () is an unincorporated, census-designated place in southern Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. Located just northwest of Washington, D.C., it is a major business and government center of the Washington metropolitan region ...

Writings

*''Letters from Africa to the Institute of Current World Affairs, New York'' (1956) *''Africa, Angry Young Giant'' (1961) * ''Africa: Angry Young Giant'', Praeger, 1961 (published in England as ''The New Africa'', Faber, 1961) *''The New Africa'' (1961) *''Rebels, Mercenaries, and Dividends: The Katanga Story'' Praeger, (1962) * ''Katanga Report'', Faber, (1962) * '' A Tract of Time'' (novel), Houghton, (1966) *''In the Midst of Lions'' (novel) (1968) *''India in Focus: Six Articles'' (1964) * ''In the Midst of Lions'' (novel), Harper, (1968) * Editor, ''Illustrated History of St. Albans School'', Glastonbury Press, (1981) *''United States Foreign Policy and the China Problem'' by Morton A. Kaplan, Douglas MacArthur, Smith Hempstone (1982) *''Chosin Marine: An Autobiography'' by Bill Davis, James H. Webb, Smith Hempstone (1986) *''Rogue Ambassador: An African Memoir'' (1997) *Contributor to ''

Atlantic Monthly ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher based in Washington, D.C. It features articles on politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 1857 ...

'', ''

Reader's Digest ''Reader's Digest'' is an American general-interest family magazine, published ten times a year. Formerly based in Chappaqua, New York, it is now headquartered in midtown Manhattan. The magazine was founded in 1922 by DeWitt Wallace and his wi ...

'', ''

Saturday Evening Post ''The Saturday Evening Post'' is an American magazine published six times a year. It was published weekly from 1897 until 1963, and then every other week until 1969. From the 1920s to the 1960s, it was one of the most widely circulated and influ ...

'', '' U.S. News & World Report'', and other magazines.

Memberships

American Society of News Editors The American Society of News Editors (ASNE) was a membership organization for editing, editors, news director, producers or directors in charge of journalistic organizations or departments, Dean (education), deans or faculty at Journalism school, ...

Explorers Club The Explorers Club is an American-based international multidisciplinary professional society with the goal of promoting scientific exploration and field study. The club was founded in New York City in 1904 and has served as a meeting point for ex ...

References

Sources

External links

''Washington Post'' obituary
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hempstone, Smith 1929 births 2006 deaths 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American novelists Ambassadors of the United States to Kenya American columnists American male non-fiction writers American male novelists American newspaper editors Culver Academies alumni Journalists from Washington, D.C. Chicago Daily News people Deaths from diabetes in the United States George H. W. Bush administration personnel George Washington University alumni Harvard University alumni The Washington Times people United States Marine Corps officers United States Marine Corps personnel of the Korean War Sewanee: The University of the South alumni