William Safire

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US President George W. Bush (back) puts the freedom medal on William Safire

William Lewis Safire (born December 17, 1929 in New York , New York , † September 27, 2009 in Rockville , Maryland ) was an American publicist .

Family and youth

Coming from a Jewish family, he added -e to his family name Safir to make it easier to pronounce. In New York he attended the Bronx High School of Science for the gifted and studied four semesters at Syracuse University .

Career

From 1955 to 1960 he worked in a PR agency. In 1960 and 1968 Safire took part in the election campaigns of presidential candidate Richard Nixon , and from 1968 he was speechwriter for President Nixon and his Vice-President Spiro Agnew . His famous word sequence nattering nabobs of negativism comes from this time . His memo In Event of Moon Disaster , which he wrote for a possible disaster during the first moon landing, also became known. During his tenure as presidential advisor, he was bugged on behalf of Nixon, which Safire noted with "restrained anger".

From 1973 to 2005, Safire was a columnist for the New York Times . From 2000 he headed the Dana Foundation , which promotes neuroscientific projects. In addition to his political columns he wrote in the New York Times his etymological Sunday column On Language , German About language . Safire also wrote several novels and non-fiction books.

In 1992, Safire voted for US presidential candidate Bill Clinton , but became one of his toughest critics after the election. Hillary Clinton was often the target of his angry comments. His insulting the senator as a " congenital liar " was controversial . Clinton's press secretary at the time, Mike McCurry , said the president, had he not been hindered by his official duties, would have landed his answer straight on Safire's nose.

In 2005 Arthur Ochs Sulzberger Jr. (* 1951), editor of The New York Times , honored Safire on his retirement as a columnist: “The New York Times would be completely unimaginable without Bill Safire. His provocative and insightful comments have captivated our readers since he first graced our comments page in 1973. Reaching for the column became a crucial and enjoyable aspect of the day for our readers in the country and worldwide. It wasn't about agreeing with him. His writing style was lovely, informed, and engaging. "

politics

Safire described himself as a libertarian conservative . In terms of foreign policy, he was considered a falcon and a well-known advocate of Israel. Uri Avnery , winner of the Alternative Nobel Prize , called him a "man hypnotized by Sharon ". In his columns, Safire actively advocated the Iraq war, disseminated the statements later revealed as propaganda about weapons of mass destruction in the hands of Saddam Hussein, and supported the American warfare against Iraq . However, he criticized the US government for its handling of prisoners up to and including the torture scandal in Abu Graib .

In Germany, Safire was best known for the controversy surrounding his New York Times column entitled "Auschwitz in the Sand". In 1989 he criticized the supply of components for Libyan poison gas factories by German companies.

Awards and honors

At Syracuse University, he gave the opening talks in 1978 and 1990. From 1995 he was a member of the jury for the Pulitzer Prize. Repeatedly he was a studio guest on the NBC television show Meet the Press .

criticism

Safire's journalistic appearance was controversial. He works with allegations by loudly claiming various scandals that were never backed up by facts. "When the allegation was investigated, he simply ignored it when it collapsed with a roar," the conservative British Telegraph quoted a critic in its obituary. Writer William Greider wrote of Safire's columns in the Washington Post in 1977 : “He also expresses wicked opinions, sometimes convincing and always provocative, even when the spirit and the content do not match. Safire is like a blazing torch on display in a gray museum that attracts the attention of every beholder. ”In 2004, The Nation weekly newspaper said:“ Safire's recent work - unencumbered by research, unencumbered by editors - shows that he cares more the point is to manipulate available information rather than interpret it. "

Fonts

Safire publishes more than twenty books, including many selected volumes with his columns. Selection:

About language:

  • The Right Word in the Right Place at the Right Time: Wit and Wisdom from the Popular Language Column in the New York Times Magazine. Simon & Schuster, New York 2004, ISBN 0-7432-4244-0 .
  • No Uncertain Terms: More Writing from the Popular "On Language" Column in The New York Times Magazine. Simon & Schuster, New York 2003, ISBN 0-7432-4243-2 .

Novels:

Political non-fiction books:

  • Safire's Political Dictionary. ; Random House, New York 1968 1 , 1972 2 , 1978 3 , ISBN 0-394-50261-2 .
  • The Relations Explosion. 1963.
  • Plunging into Politics. 1964.
  • Before the Fall: An Inside View of the Pre-Watergate White House. Garden City, Doubleday, New York 1975.

As editor:

  • Lend Me Your Ears: Great Speeches in History. Norton & Company, New York / London 1997, ISBN 0-393-04005-4 .
  • Words of Wisdom: More Good Advice. Simon & Schuster, New York 1989, ISBN 0-671-67535-4 .
  • Good advice. Gramercy Books, New York 1982, ISBN 0-517-08473-2 (with Leonard Safir).

Web links

Wikisource: William Lewis Safire  - Sources and full texts (English)

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ The virtuoso and the fortune teller. ( Memento from March 4, 2016 in the Internet Archive )
  2. ^ William Safire: The Suspicious 17; ESSAY . In: The New York Times , August 9, 1973. 
  3. ^ "The New York Times without Bill Safire is all but unimaginable, Bill's provocative and insightful commentary has held our readers captive since he first graced our Op-Ed Page in 1973. Reaching for his column became a critical and enjoyable part of the day for our readers across the country and around the world. Whether you agreed with him or not was never the point, his writing is delightful, informed and engaging. "Quoted from: Safire to End Column. The New York Times, November 15, 2004, online , accessed February 20, 2012
  4. ↑ Uri Avnery: The Night After. The Easier the Victory, the Harder the Peace ( July 9, 2008 memento on the Internet Archive ); in: Counterpunch, April 10, 2003 edition
  5. ^ "His critics, however, said that Safire made loose accusations, trumpeting various" scandals "that were never borne out by the facts. "When the accusation unraveled," noted one, "he'd simply ignore the thud of his charges hitting the floor." "- William Safire. In: The Telegraph , September 28, 2009. Obituary, accessed February 20, 2012
  6. ↑ "He also expresses outrageous opinions, sometimes persuasive and always provocative, even when wit dims his meaning. Safire is a gaudy flame on display in a gray museum, so every spectator pays attention. ”In: Contemporary Literary Criticism , Volume 10, 1979; quoted here from bookrags.com  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed February 20, 2012. See also Joe Holley: Prize-winning columnist, language expert. In: Los Angeles Times, September 28, 2009, obituary, accessed February 20, 2012@1@ 2Template: Dead Link / www.bookrags.com  
  7. ^ "Safire's recent work - unburdened by factchecking, unchallenged by editors - shows he is more intent on manipulating than interpreting the available information." David Corn: The Propaganda of William Safire . The Nation, February 25, 2004
personal data
SURNAME Safire, William
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Safire, William Lewis
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American publicist
DATE OF BIRTH December 17, 1929
PLACE OF BIRTH new York
DATE OF DEATH September 27, 2009
Place of death Rockville , Maryland