Noël Bernard
Encyclopedia
Noel Bernard was a Romania
n journalist, known for being the head of the Romanian-language department of Radio Free Europe
(RFE). His mysterious death is believed by some to have been caused by Communist Romania
's secret police, the Securitate
, which is known to have previously sought his neutralization.
, Maramureş County
, to a Jewish
father and a Catholic
mother, Noel Bernard left Romania in 1940 together with his parents, settling in British Palestine. He studied mathematics at Jerusalem University, where he met his first wife, fellow student Yvette Bourla, and then in London
, where he changed his name to Bernard and became a journalist at the BBC
, working in the organization's Romanian service.
Bernard started working as the chief of the Romanian language
department of the West German
-based Radio Free Europe
in 1953, but he left in 1958 and moved to Rome
with his wife and two children. After reporting from Rome, he and his family returned to England
, where Bernard ran the London
office of Radio Press International (RPI), a radio news service that was ultimately bought out by UPI. Eight years after leaving Munich
, Bernard returned to serve as director of RFE's Romanian-language department until his death in 1981. In 1972, he married Ioana Măgură. A former newsreader for the Romanian Radio
and Television
(1964-1969), she had defected
from Communist Romania in 1970, and had started working for RFE in Munich
.
Under his leadership, the Romanian-language department of Radio Free Europe became the most popular of all the languages it broadcast. After the 1977 Bucharest earthquake
, Bernard obtained permission from the radio board to transmit around-the-clock information in Romanian. According to Arch Puddington in Broadcasting Freedom. The Cold War Triumph of Radio Free Europe and Radio Liberty, under Bernard's leadership "the Romanian section carried out a relentless polemical offensive against Ceauşescu
[...] The tone was biting, personal and sarcastic. During Bernard's editorship, the Romanian section was not infrequently cited for violation of the station’s strictures against vituperation and rhetorical excess.”
The Securitate
tried to start disputes within the Romanian-language department of RFE and to create a hostile environment against Bernard, to remove him from the head of the radio station.
Ion Mihai Pacepa
, the Romanian intelligence general who defected to the United States
, claimed that he decided to defect after Communist President
Nicolae Ceauşescu
ordered him to assassinate Bernard. In his book, Red Horizons, Pacepa claimed that Bernard was his bête noire because of his strong criticism of Ceauşescu's personality cult.
Bernard died of cancer. His wife, Ioana Măgură, moved to California
, with her children and grandchildren. In various statements for the Romanian press, she suggests that her late husband was irradiated
by the Securitate
, which had previously infiltrated the RFE's structure. She also linked Bernard's death to those of RFE journalists such as Cornel Chiriac
(who was stabbed to death in mysterious circumstances), Emil Georgescu and Vlad Georgescu
(both of whom, like Bernard and others in quick succession, died of cancer). This hypothesis appears to be supported by his Securitate file, which has attached an article from a magazine which talks about him undergoing surgery and has a note which argues that the article confirms "the measures undertaken by us are starting to have an effect".
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
n journalist, known for being the head of the Romanian-language department of Radio Free Europe
Radio Free Europe
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty is a broadcaster funded by the U.S. Congress that provides news, information, and analysis to countries in Eastern Europe, Central Asia, and the Middle East "where the free flow of information is either banned by government authorities or not fully developed"...
(RFE). His mysterious death is believed by some to have been caused by Communist Romania
Communist Romania
Communist Romania was the period in Romanian history when that country was a Soviet-aligned communist state in the Eastern Bloc, with the dominant role of Romanian Communist Party enshrined in its successive constitutions...
's secret police, the Securitate
Securitate
The Securitate was the secret police agency of Communist Romania. Previously, the Romanian secret police was called Siguranţa Statului. Founded on August 30, 1948, with help from the Soviet NKVD, the Securitate was abolished in December 1989, shortly after President Nicolae Ceaușescu was...
, which is known to have previously sought his neutralization.
Biography
Born in Sighetu MarmaţieiSighetu Marmatiei
Sighetu Marmației , formerly Sighet, is a city in Maramureş County near the Iza River, in north-western Romania. It administers five villages: Iapa, Lazu Baciului, Șugău, Valea Cufundoasă and Valea Hotarului.-Geography:...
, Maramureş County
Maramures County
Maramureș is a county of Romania, in the Maramureș region. The county seat is Baia Mare.- History :* The 10th century frontier county of Borsova was founded by Stephen I of Hungary. Since then Máramaros served as the north-eastern border of the Hungarian Kingdom until 1920, the Trianon Peace...
, to a Jewish
History of the Jews in Romania
The history of Jews in Romania concerns the Jews of Romania and of Romanian origins, from their first mention on what is nowadays Romanian territory....
father and a Catholic
Roman Catholicism in Romania
The Roman Catholic Church in Romania is a Latin Rite Christian church, part of the worldwide Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope and Curia in Rome. Its administration is centered in Bucharest, and comprises two archdioceses and four other dioceses...
mother, Noel Bernard left Romania in 1940 together with his parents, settling in British Palestine. He studied mathematics at Jerusalem University, where he met his first wife, fellow student Yvette Bourla, and then in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, where he changed his name to Bernard and became a journalist at the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
, working in the organization's Romanian service.
Bernard started working as the chief of the Romanian language
Romanian language
Romanian Romanian Romanian (or Daco-Romanian; obsolete spellings Rumanian, Roumanian; self-designation: română, limba română ("the Romanian language") or românește (lit. "in Romanian") is a Romance language spoken by around 24 to 28 million people, primarily in Romania and Moldova...
department of the West German
West Germany
West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....
-based Radio Free Europe
Radio Free Europe
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty is a broadcaster funded by the U.S. Congress that provides news, information, and analysis to countries in Eastern Europe, Central Asia, and the Middle East "where the free flow of information is either banned by government authorities or not fully developed"...
in 1953, but he left in 1958 and moved to Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
with his wife and two children. After reporting from Rome, he and his family returned to England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, where Bernard ran the London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
office of Radio Press International (RPI), a radio news service that was ultimately bought out by UPI. Eight years after leaving Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
, Bernard returned to serve as director of RFE's Romanian-language department until his death in 1981. In 1972, he married Ioana Măgură. A former newsreader for the Romanian Radio
Romanian Radio Broadcasting Company
The Romanian Radio Broadcasting Company , informally referred to as Radio Romania , is the public radio broadcaster in Romania. It operates four national radio channels, and, under the Radio România Regional umbrella, eleven regional radio stations. The four national radio channels are: Radio...
and Television
Romanian television
Romanian television may refer to:* Communications media in Romania* Televiziunea Română, TVR, the national television network* List of Romanian language television channels...
(1964-1969), she had defected
Defection
In politics, a defector is a person who gives up allegiance to one state or political entity in exchange for allegiance to another. More broadly, it involves abandoning a person, cause or doctrine to whom or to which one is bound by some tie, as of allegiance or duty.This term is also applied,...
from Communist Romania in 1970, and had started working for RFE in Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
.
Under his leadership, the Romanian-language department of Radio Free Europe became the most popular of all the languages it broadcast. After the 1977 Bucharest earthquake
1977 Bucharest Earthquake
The 1977 Vrancea Earthquake occurred on Friday, 4 March 1977, 21:20 local time and was felt throughout the Balkans. It had a magnitude of 7.2 with an epicenter in Vrancea at a depth of ....
, Bernard obtained permission from the radio board to transmit around-the-clock information in Romanian. According to Arch Puddington in Broadcasting Freedom. The Cold War Triumph of Radio Free Europe and Radio Liberty, under Bernard's leadership "the Romanian section carried out a relentless polemical offensive against Ceauşescu
Nicolae Ceausescu
Nicolae Ceaușescu was a Romanian Communist politician. He was General Secretary of the Romanian Communist Party from 1965 to 1989, and as such was the country's second and last Communist leader...
[...] The tone was biting, personal and sarcastic. During Bernard's editorship, the Romanian section was not infrequently cited for violation of the station’s strictures against vituperation and rhetorical excess.”
The Securitate
Securitate
The Securitate was the secret police agency of Communist Romania. Previously, the Romanian secret police was called Siguranţa Statului. Founded on August 30, 1948, with help from the Soviet NKVD, the Securitate was abolished in December 1989, shortly after President Nicolae Ceaușescu was...
tried to start disputes within the Romanian-language department of RFE and to create a hostile environment against Bernard, to remove him from the head of the radio station.
Ion Mihai Pacepa
Ion Mihai Pacepa
Ion Mihai Pacepa is the highest-ranking intelligence official ever to have defected from the former Eastern Bloc. He is now a United States citizen, a writer, and a columnist....
, the Romanian intelligence general who defected to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, claimed that he decided to defect after Communist President
President of Romania
The President of Romania is the head of state of Romania. The President is directly elected by a two-round system for a five-year term . An individual may serve two terms...
Nicolae Ceauşescu
Nicolae Ceausescu
Nicolae Ceaușescu was a Romanian Communist politician. He was General Secretary of the Romanian Communist Party from 1965 to 1989, and as such was the country's second and last Communist leader...
ordered him to assassinate Bernard. In his book, Red Horizons, Pacepa claimed that Bernard was his bête noire because of his strong criticism of Ceauşescu's personality cult.
Bernard died of cancer. His wife, Ioana Măgură, moved to California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, with her children and grandchildren. In various statements for the Romanian press, she suggests that her late husband was irradiated
Irradiation
Irradiation is the process by which an object is exposed to radiation. The exposure can originate from various sources, including natural sources. Most frequently the term refers to ionizing radiation, and to a level of radiation that will serve a specific purpose, rather than radiation exposure to...
by the Securitate
Securitate
The Securitate was the secret police agency of Communist Romania. Previously, the Romanian secret police was called Siguranţa Statului. Founded on August 30, 1948, with help from the Soviet NKVD, the Securitate was abolished in December 1989, shortly after President Nicolae Ceaușescu was...
, which had previously infiltrated the RFE's structure. She also linked Bernard's death to those of RFE journalists such as Cornel Chiriac
Cornel Chiriac
Cornel Chiriac was a Romanian journalist, radio producer, record producer, journalist and jazz drummer.-Early life:...
(who was stabbed to death in mysterious circumstances), Emil Georgescu and Vlad Georgescu
Vlad Georgescu
Vlad Georgescu , Romanian historian, was the director of the Romanian-language department of Radio Free Europe between 1983 and 1988.-Biography:...
(both of whom, like Bernard and others in quick succession, died of cancer). This hypothesis appears to be supported by his Securitate file, which has attached an article from a magazine which talks about him undergoing surgery and has a note which argues that the article confirms "the measures undertaken by us are starting to have an effect".
Further reading
- Ioana Măgură Bernard, Directorul postului nostru de radio, Editura Curtea VecheEditura Curtea VecheEditura Curtea Veche is a Romanian publishing house with a tradition in editing works of Romanian literature. After the Romanian Revolution of 1989, Curtea Veche started editing more foreign books, such as BBC reports or The Complete Idiot's Guide to....-External links:...
, 2007. ISBN 978-973-669-442-4