Edward Hunter (journalist)
Edward Hunter (July 2, 1902 – June 24, 1978)[1][2] was an American writer, journalist, propagandist, and intelligence agent who was noted for his anticommunist writing. He was a recognized authority on psychological warfare.[3] Both contemporary psychologists and later historians would criticize the accuracy and basis of his reports on brainwashing, but the concept nevertheless became influential in the Cold War-era United States.
Early life
Hunter was born in New York on July 2, 1902.[4]
Journalism
Hunter began his career as a newspaperman and
From 1926 to 1928, Hunter worked for the Hankow Herald newspaper in
He went on to work at several newspapers and periodicals, including The Newark Ledger, The New Orleans Item, and in his home state,
In January 1964 he began publication of the Tactics newsletter under the auspices of Anti-Communism Liaison, Inc.[6] Hunter served as chairman of the organization and editor of the newsletter until 1978.[6]
Critical reception
Historian Julia Lovell has criticized Hunter's reporting as "outlandish" and sensational. By 1956, US government psychologists largely concluded after examining files of Korean War POWs that brainwashing as described by Hunter did not exist, but the impact of his reporting was significant, and helped shaped public consciousness about the threat of Communism for decades.[7] Lovell argues that Hunter created "an image of all-powerful Chinese 'brainwashing' ... [that] supposed an ideological unified Maoist front stretching from China to Korea and Malaya", but declassified US documents show a much more complicated and contested picture of Chinese influence and international aspirations in Asia.[8]
Intelligence work
Hunter provided testimony to Senator Keating stating that he joined the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) about the time of Pearl Harbor and served for the life of the organization.[9]
After the war he "helped close up shop" and continued his intelligence work under various other agencies such as SSU, the Strategic Services Unit of the
Psychological warfare
Hunter is widely acknowledged as having coined the term
A year later, Hunter's magnum opus Brain-Washing in Red China: The Calculated Destruction of Men's Minds was published, warning of a vast
Congressional testimony
In March 1958, Hunter testified before the
He saw no difference between the various communist countries and warned that both Yugoslavia and China were as bent on communist world domination as was the Soviet Union.[10]
Later life
He died in
Works
Books
- Brain-Washing in Red China: The Calculated Destruction of Men's Minds. New York: Vanguard Press (1951).
- Revised edition (1971).
- APA PsycNet.
- Expanded edition published as Brainwashing: From Pavlov to Powers (1962).
- The Story of Mary Liu. New York: LCCN 57-5919.
- The Black Book on Red China: The Continuing Revolt. New York: The Bookmailer(1958).
- The Past Present: A Year in Afghanistan. London: Hodder & Stoughton (1959).
- In Many Voices: Our Fabulous Foreign-Language Press. Norman Park, GA: Norman College (1960). "These pages present a cross-section of the foreign-language newspapers in the United States."
- Brainwashing: From Pavlov to Powers. New York: The Bookmailer(1962).
- Expanded edition of Brainwashing: The Story of Men Who Defied It (1956).
- The Bookmailer(1966).
Articles
- "Heresy in Japan." The Nation (May 9, 1928), pp. 549–550.
- "Hate Made to Order." (Jul. 1937).
- "The France and Germany of Asia." Esquire (Apr. 1938), pp. 46–47, 181–184. Full issue.
- "Streamlined Atrocities." Coronet Magazine (Jun. 1938), pp. 3–8.
- "The Isms Are After Me." Harpers Monthly (Jul. 1938), pp. 218–220.
- "Enemies at Democracy's Table." Esquire, vol. 10, no. 4(59) (Oct. 1938), pp. 36-37, 143-145.
- American Mercury(Dec. 1943), pp. 692–695.
- "Can We Make Use of Hirohito?" The Nation (Mar. 4, 1944), pp. 278–279.
- "Can We Make Use of the Japanese Emperor?" New Republic (Mar. 4, 1944), pp. 278–279.
- "'Brain-Washing' Tactics Force Chinese Into Ranks of Communist Party." Miami News(Sep. 24, 1950), p. 2A.
- American Mercury(Apr. 1952), pp. 39–48.
- American Mercury(May 1952), pp. 44–54.
- American Mercury(Sep. 1952), pp. 40–51.
- American Mercury. (Dec. 1952), pp. 37–42.
- American Mercury. (Jan. 1958), pp. 117–122.
- American Mercury(Sep. 1958), pp. 29–35.
- "We're Asking for It in Panama." National Review (Mar. 14, 1959), pp. 583–584.
- "Murray Kempton: Unkempt." American Opinion, vol. 5, no. 10 (Nov. 1962), pp. 1-9.
- "McNamara as Sec. of Disarmament: U.S. Defense Secondary." Tactics, vol. 3, no. 5 (May 20, 1966). 8-page supplement. Full issue.
- "Why He Was Planted in Treasury: Sonnenfeldt Case Explained." Tactics, vol. 10, no. 11 (Nov. 20, 1973), pp. 8–9. JSTOR community.28147164.
Pamphlets
- The France and Germany of Asia (1938). Chicago: Esquire-Coronet, Inc.
Testimony
- Government Printing Office.
Further reading
- Chapman, Frances E. (Jan. 2013). "Implanted Choice: Is there Room for a Modern Criminal Defense of Brainwashing?" Criminal Law Bulletin, vol. 49, no. 6. pp. 1379–1458.
- Marks, John D. (1979). "Brainwashing" (Chapter 8). In: The Search for the 'Manchurian Candidate': The CIA and Mind Control. New York: Times Books.
- Pick, Daniel (2022). Brainwashed, A New History of Thought Control. ISBN 978-1781257890.
- Seed, David (2004). Brainwashing: The Fictions of Mind Control: A Study of Novels and Films. Ohio: ISBN 0873384628.
References
- ^ a b Hunter, Edward. "Personal History Statement." Central Intelligence Agency. — via Internet Archive.
- ^ New York Times. p. 28. Archived from the original.
- ^ Staff writer (26 Jun. 1978). "People in the News—Deaths" (obituary). Ottawa Journal. p. 26.
- ^ a b "Hunter, Edward." Virginia, U.S. Death Records, 1912-2014. Richmond, VA: Virginia Department of Health.
- American Mercury. pp. 29-35.
- ^ OCLC 1776716.
- OCLC 1078879585.
- ^ Lovell, [1], p. 107.
- OCLC 993125285.
- ^ Government Printing Office.
- Hidden Persuaders. Archived from the original.
- .
- ^ Miami News. p. 2A.
- ^ ISBN 978-0340921036.
- JSTOR 41342501.
- ^ "Hunter, Edward." Social Security Death Index, 1935-2014. Washington D.C.: Social Security Administration.
External links
- HUNTER, Edward (CIA file) at Internet Archive
- Works by Edward Hunter at The Online Books Page
- Edward Hunter Papers, 1922-1960 at Wisconsin Historical Society
- The Hunter Collection at the Association of Research Libraries
- Political Communications and Mass Education in China in the Early Years of the People's Republic. Hunter's collection of Chinese propaganda (leaflets and comic books), digitized by the Center for Research Libraries.