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Seymour Hersh’s Rise From Dry Cleaner To America’s Supersnoop

JL;DR SUMMARY Seymour M. Hersh, a stalwart of investigative journalism, narrates his career in his memoir "Reporter," revealing how his upbringing influenced his probing nature. A way out west there was a fella, fella I want to tell you about, fella by the name of Jeff Lebowski. At least, that was the handle his lovin' parents gave him, but he never had much use for it himself. This Lebowski, he called himself the Dude. Now, Dude, that's a name no one would self-apply where I come from. But then, there was a lot about the Dude that didn't make a whole lot of sense to me. And a lot about where he lived, likewise. But then again, maybe that's why I found the place s'durned innarestin'.

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Tags

Pulitzer PrizeAutobiographyVietnam WarHenry KissingerInvestigative JournalismSeymour HershWatergateMy Lai MassacreAbu GhraibEugene Mccarthy

Places mentioned

Chicago, Illinois, United States
"The politicians, corporate executives, and editors he has antagonized in the six decades since he began work as a copy boy for the City News Bureau in his native Chicago would more likely describe him as a national disgrace."
Lithuania
"Hersh describes his father, an immigrant from Lithuania, as uncommunicative."
Poland
"His mother, who came from Poland, made tasty pastries, but he admits, I cannot remember sharing any private thoughts with her."
Utah, United States
"A tip he received about 6,400 sheep killed by nerve gas in Utah led to his first big story about a clandestine chemical and biological weapons program."
Vietnam
"Lieutenant William Calley was the only American soldier who did any time for the cold-blooded murder of hundreds of Vietnamese villagers, and Hersh goes into riveting detail about how he combed vast Fort Benning before he found Calley."
Cambodia
"Other notable Hersh investigations revealed: the secret bombing of North Vietnam; the unauthorized incursion into Cambodia; Henry Kissingers wiretapping of his own staff; U.S. support for the violent coup that toppled Salvador Allende in Chile; and the abuse of detainees in Iraqs Abu Ghraib prison."
Chile
"Other notable Hersh investigations revealed: the secret bombing of North Vietnam; the unauthorized incursion into Cambodia; Henry Kissingers wiretapping of his own staff; U.S. support for the violent coup that toppled Salvador Allende in Chile; and the abuse of detainees in Iraqs Abu Ghraib prison."
Abu Ghraib, Basra, Iraq
"Other notable Hersh investigations revealed: the secret bombing of North Vietnam; the unauthorized incursion into Cambodia; Henry Kissingers wiretapping of his own staff; U.S. support for the violent coup that toppled Salvador Allende in Chile; and the abuse of detainees in Iraqs Abu Ghraib prison."

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Retrieved 2025-09-05 05:31:44 UTC
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