Nina Burleigh
Encyclopedia
Nina Burleigh is an American writer and journalist. She is the author of five books, including Mirage: Napoleon's Scientists and the Unveiling of Egypt (2007), about the scholars who accompanied Napoleon's invasion of Egypt in 1798; Unholy Business (2008), about a Biblical archaeological forgery case; and The Fatal Gift of Beauty (2011), about the overturned conviction of American student Amanda Knox
, who was tried in Italy in 2009 for the murder of Meredith Kercher
.
Burleigh is an adjunct professor of journalism at Columbia University
, a contributing editor to Elle
, and an occasional blogger at The Huffington Post
. She has also been a staff writer at People
magazine in New York. She has contributed to numerous magazines and newspapers, including Time
magazine, where among other things she served as White House correspondent, and reported from the West Bank, focusing on women's issues, The New York Times
, The New Yorker
, and The Washington Post
, as well as websites such as TomPaine.com
, AlterNet
and Salon.com
.
, Burleigh described noticing that, while aboard Air Force One
during her time as a White House correspondent for Time magazine, President Bill Clinton
found her attractive. That same year, Howard Kurtz
of The Washington Post reported her as saying of Clinton: "I'd be happy to give him [oral sex] just to thank him for keeping abortion
legal." Referring to the comment in a 2007 piece for The Huffington Post, Burleigh wrote, "I said it (back in 1998, but a good quote has eternal life) because I thought it was high time for someone to tweak the white, middle-aged beltway gang taking Clinton to task for sexual harassment. These men had neither the personal experience nor the credentials to know sexual harassment when they saw it, nor to give a good goddamn about it if they did. The insidious use of sexual harassment laws to bring down a president for his pro-female politics was the context in which I spoke."
Amanda Knox
Amanda Marie Knox is an American woman who was accused of the murder of Meredith Kercher in Perugia, Umbria, Italy. She served 4 years of a 26-year sentence before the murder conviction was overturned on October 3, 2011. Raffaele Sollecito, Knox's boyfriend at the time of the murder, was also...
, who was tried in Italy in 2009 for the murder of Meredith Kercher
Murder of Meredith Kercher
The murder of Meredith Kercher occurred in Perugia, Italy, on 1 November 2007. Kercher, aged 21 at the time of her death, was a British university exchange student from Coulsdon, south London. She was found dead on the floor of her bedroom with stab wounds to the throat...
.
Burleigh is an adjunct professor of journalism at Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
, a contributing editor to Elle
Elle (magazine)
Elle is a worldwide magazine of French origin that focuses on women's fashion, beauty, health, and entertainment. Elle is also the world's largest fashion magazine. It was founded by Pierre Lazareff and his wife Hélène Gordon in 1945. The title, in French, means "she".-History:Elle was founded in...
, and an occasional blogger at The Huffington Post
The Huffington Post
The Huffington Post is an American news website and content-aggregating blog founded by Arianna Huffington, Kenneth Lerer, and Jonah Peretti, featuring liberal minded columnists and various news sources. The site offers coverage of politics, theology, media, business, entertainment, living, style,...
. She has also been a staff writer at People
People (magazine)
In 1998, the magazine introduced a version targeted at teens called Teen People. However, on July 27, 2006, the company announced it would shut down publication of Teen People immediately. The last issue to be released was scheduled for September 2006. Subscribers to this magazine received...
magazine in New York. She has contributed to numerous magazines and newspapers, including Time
Time (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
magazine, where among other things she served as White House correspondent, and reported from the West Bank, focusing on women's issues, The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, 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...
, and The Washington Post
The Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
, as well as websites such as TomPaine.com
TomPaine.com
TomPaine.com is a website with news and opinion on United States politics from a liberal perspective, named after the political writer Thomas Paine. It features a mixture of original articles and links to articles on other websites....
, AlterNet
AlterNet
AlterNet, a project of the non-profit Independent Media Institute, is a progressive/liberal activist news service. Launched in 1998, AlterNet now claims a readership of over 3 million visitors per month .AlterNet publishes original content as well as journalism from a wide variety of other sources...
and Salon.com
Salon.com
Salon.com, part of Salon Media Group , often just called Salon, is an online liberal magazine, with content updated each weekday. Salon was founded by David Talbot and launched on November 20, 1995. It was the internet's first online-only commercial publication. The magazine focuses on U.S...
.
Books
- A Very Private Woman: The Life and Unsolved Murder of Mary Meyer (1998): about Mary Pinchot MeyerMary Pinchot MeyerMary Eno Pinchot Meyer was an American socialite, painter, former wife of Central Intelligence Agency official Cord Meyer and intimate friend of United States president John F. Kennedy, who was often noted for her desirable physique and social skills...
- The Stranger and the Statesman (2003): a biography of James SmithsonJames SmithsonJames Smithson, FRS, M.A. was a British mineralogist and chemist noted for having left a bequest in his will to the United States of America, to create "an establishment for the increase and diffusion of knowledge among men" to be called the Smithsonian Institution.-Biography:Not much is known...
- Mirage: Napoleon's Scientists and the Unveiling of Egypt (2007): about Napoleon's invasion of Egypt. Selected by The New York TimesThe New York TimesThe New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
as an editors' choice and by Delta Kappa Gamma Society International for the 2008 Educator's Award. - Unholy Business: A True Tale of Faith, Greed and Forgery in the Holy Land (2008): about James OssuaryJames OssuaryThe James Ossuary is a 2,000-year old chalk box that was used for containing the bones of the dead. The Aramaic inscription: Ya'akov bar-Yosef akhui diYeshua is cut into one side of the box...
. Burleigh has lectured on Unholy Business at the Oriental Institute, ChicagoOriental Institute, ChicagoThe Oriental Institute , established in 1919, is the University of Chicago's archeology museum and research center for ancient Near Eastern studies.- History and purpose:James Henry Breasted built up the collection of the Haskell Oriental Museum...
. - The Fatal Gift of Beauty: The Trials of Amanda Knox (August 2011)
Comment about Bill Clinton
In a 1998 essay for MirabellaMirabella
Mirabella was a women's magazine published from 1989 to 2000. It was created by and named for Grace Mirabella, a former Vogue editor in chief....
, Burleigh described noticing that, while aboard Air Force One
Air Force One
Air Force One is the official air traffic control call sign of any United States Air Force aircraft carrying the President of the United States. In common parlance the term refers to those Air Force aircraft whose primary mission is to transport the president; however, any U.S. Air Force aircraft...
during her time as a White House correspondent for Time magazine, President Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
found her attractive. That same year, Howard Kurtz
Howard Kurtz
Howard "Howie" Alan Kurtz is an American journalist and author with a special focus on the media. He is host of CNN's Reliable Sources program, and Washington bureau chief for The Daily Beast. He is the former media writer for The Washington Post. He has written five books about the media...
of The Washington Post reported her as saying of Clinton: "I'd be happy to give him [oral sex] just to thank him for keeping abortion
Abortion
Abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to viability. An abortion can occur spontaneously, in which case it is usually called a miscarriage, or it can be purposely induced...
legal." Referring to the comment in a 2007 piece for The Huffington Post, Burleigh wrote, "I said it (back in 1998, but a good quote has eternal life) because I thought it was high time for someone to tweak the white, middle-aged beltway gang taking Clinton to task for sexual harassment. These men had neither the personal experience nor the credentials to know sexual harassment when they saw it, nor to give a good goddamn about it if they did. The insidious use of sexual harassment laws to bring down a president for his pro-female politics was the context in which I spoke."