Feature Articles

David Halberstam, 1934-2007
by Joseph Face, Account Processor

Former New York Times journalist and versatile author David Halberstam, 73, died as the result of a car crash on April 23, 2007. Deep-voiced and square-jawed, his profile matched his capacity as a writer of integrity: His honest, often blunt characterization of the Vietnam War won him a Pulitzer Prize in 1964.

A graduate of Harvard University in 1955, Halberstam wrote early and often about the political and cultural aspects of American society: He began his career writing for the West Point Daily Times Leader and the Nashville-based Tennessean—his coverage included the civil rights movement—before joining the New York Times in the mid-sixties. It was during this period that his work as a purveyor of the truth caught people's attention; he was never afraid of challenging authorities: His novel The Best and the Brightest, a look at the minds behind the failed Vietnam War policies, convinced readers of the great impossibility of winning the conflict.

Halberstam's interests were varied, and his stories, often drawing on tender emotions, reflect this: One of his last novels, The Teammates: a Portrait of a Friendship, chronicled a final journey for three friends and former teammates of baseball legend Ted Williams as he lay dying in Florida. Other subjects included: Michael Jordan, 9/11 firefighters, the 1950's, and an exposé on the political aspect of news reporting.

David's firm adherence to unabashed narrative, through his reporting and his twenty books, puts him in line with a tradition of straightforward journalists such as Edgar R. Murrow, Walter Cronkite, and Upton Sinclair. His legacy will remain that of a man who gained the trust of a nation by telling them what they might not want to hear, simply because they needed to know.

"He was spellbinding. He was just an outstanding man." - Johnny Pesky

Below is a list of titles by David Halberstam. For your convenience, this list is also available in a MS Excel spreadsheet. click here.

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