John Sack
Encyclopedia
John Sack was an American
literary journalist and war correspondent
. He was the only journalist to cover each American war over half a century.
. His work appeared in such periodicals as Harper's, The Atlantic, Esquire
and The New Yorker
. He was a war correspondent
in Korea
, Vietnam
, Iraq
, Afghanistan
and the former Yugoslavia
.
A correspondent and later a bureau chief for CBS News
in Spain, he authored ten books, including the controversial title, An Eye for an Eye: The Untold Story of Jewish Revenge Against Germans in 1945
. The book caused an uproar because Sack reported that, at the end of World War II
, a number of Jewish Holocaust survivors, ran some Polish-Communist concentration camps and prisons, where they allegedly tortured and killed German and Polish civilians, including women and children.
, according to his New York Times obituary. He was survived by a sister, Lois Edelstein.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
literary journalist and war correspondent
War correspondent
A war correspondent is a journalist who covers stories firsthand from a war zone. In the 19th century they were also called Special Correspondents.-Methods:...
. He was the only journalist to cover each American war over half a century.
Biography
Sack was born to a Jewish family in New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. His work appeared in such periodicals as Harper's, The Atlantic, Esquire
Esquire (magazine)
Esquire is a men's magazine, published in the U.S. by the Hearst Corporation. Founded in 1932, it flourished during the Great Depression under the guidance of founder and editor Arnold Gingrich.-History:...
and The New Yorker
The New Yorker
The New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons and poetry published by Condé Nast...
. He was a war correspondent
War correspondent
A war correspondent is a journalist who covers stories firsthand from a war zone. In the 19th century they were also called Special Correspondents.-Methods:...
in Korea
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
, Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
, Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
, Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
and the former Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....
.
A correspondent and later a bureau chief for CBS News
CBS News
CBS News is the news division of American television and radio network CBS. The current chairman is Jeff Fager who is also the executive producer of 60 Minutes, while the current president of CBS News is David Rhodes. CBS News' flagship program is the CBS Evening News, hosted by the network's main...
in Spain, he authored ten books, including the controversial title, An Eye for an Eye: The Untold Story of Jewish Revenge Against Germans in 1945
An Eye for an Eye: The Untold Story of Jewish Revenge Against Germans in 1945
An Eye for an Eye: The Untold Story of Jewish Revenge Against Germans in 1945 is a book by John Sack, arguing that some Jews in Eastern Europe took revenge on their former captors while overseeing over 1,000 concentration camps in Poland for German civilians...
. The book caused an uproar because Sack reported that, at the end of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, a number of Jewish Holocaust survivors, ran some Polish-Communist concentration camps and prisons, where they allegedly tortured and killed German and Polish civilians, including women and children.
Death
He died on March 27, 2004, three days after his 74th birthday, from prostate cancer in San Francisco, CaliforniaSan Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
, according to his New York Times obituary. He was survived by a sister, Lois Edelstein.
Publications
- 1959: Report from Practically NowhereReport from Practically NowhereReport from Practically Nowhere is a 1959 humorous travelogue by American journalist John Sack, illustrated by Shel Silverstein. The book consists of thirteen profiles of microstates, principalities, autonomous areas, and other places visited by the author:...
- 1971: Lieutenant Calley: his own story; [as told to] John Sack. New York: Viking Press
- 1971: Body count: Lieutenant Calley's storyWilliam CalleyWilliam Laws Calley is a convicted American war criminal and a former U.S. Army officer found guilty of murder for his role in the My Lai Massacre on March 16, 1968, during the Vietnam War.-Early life:...
; as told to John Sack. London: Hutchinson, 1971
- 1971: Body count: Lieutenant Calley's story
- 1982: Fingerprint. New York: Random House ISBN 0 394 501 97 7
- 1993: An Eye for an EyeAn Eye for an Eye: The Untold Story of Jewish Revenge Against Germans in 1945An Eye for an Eye: The Untold Story of Jewish Revenge Against Germans in 1945 is a book by John Sack, arguing that some Jews in Eastern Europe took revenge on their former captors while overseeing over 1,000 concentration camps in Poland for German civilians...
. New York, NY: BasicBooks (about Lola Potok Ackerfeld Blatt) - 1995: Company C: the real war in Iraq. New York: William Morrow; ISBN 0 688 112 81 1
External links
- Official website
- "John Sack, 74, Correspondent Who Reported From Battlefields" by Christopher Lehmann-Haupt, The New York Times, March 31, 2004
- Obituary in Esquire