458:
Burns began using the byline “Ben Burns” (instead of his birth surname
Bernstein) around 1936, because at the time he was having difficulty finding a job in the journalism field and he thought that “perhaps a non-Jewish name would change my fortunes.” Yet during his long career in black journalism,
304:
Burns's previous contacts with black people had been “practically nonexistent,” but he threw himself into his new work with gusto. “Having committed myself wholly to
Negroes' attainment of fair and equal status … I endeavored to become in every sense a 'brother' by virtue of my oneness with Negroes
543:
s publisher, John H. Johnson, was against it. Johnson would only agree to publish Wright's article if, in order to appease advertisers, Burns would write an editorial publicly denouncing the article, which he did. Later, another similar piece by Wright, solicited by Burns, was rejected by
Johnson.
387:
training in protest proved a source of continual acrimony between
Johnson and me for almost all the years I worked for him,” Burns wrote. Burns contrasted the “flame of racial militancy kindled in me” with what he characterized as Johnson's “carefully calibrated racial positivism.”
459:
he did not avoid being identified as a Jew. On one occasion, a printing salesman asked if he was “Negro or White?” Cognizant of his “dark complexion,” Burns replied: “Neither, I'm Jewish.” Commenting on his experiences of black anti-Semitism at
467:
area of
Chicago). Taken aback by the remark, Burns asked Jackson what a “kike” is supposed to look like, adding, “Do I look like a kike?” Jackson replied that he didn't know, and Burns said, “Well, I am a kike.”
463:, he noted how photographer David Jackson once returned disappointed from an assignment because a person he was to photograph was “not colored" but "a kike” from “Jewtown” (that is, the
1339:
404:, a charge Burns refuted. Leaving journalism, he entered public relations, partnering as a vice president from 1958-66 in the public relations firm of Cooper, Burns & Golin (later
287:
was tracking the couple. An FBI report dated April 17, 1941 noted: “Subjects leaving San
Francisco for Chicago to be gone several years; future activities and intentions are unknown.”
475:. His account of the trip, which included criticism of religious authorities in Israel, was not published until 1996. In his later years, he rebuked the “black anti-Semitism” of
558:
obituary, which stated that Burns “pioneered in creating and editing the first commercially successful
African American magazines and was the former editor in chief of the
1324:
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editor, a 'black newspaperman,' black in my orientation and thinking, in my concerns and outlook, in my friends and associations, black in everything but my skin color.”
1294:
519:. Johnson hardly mentions Burns in his autobiography. Burns noted that Johnson “in later years … embellished his personal success story by claiming to have edited the
544:
After Wright's death, some critics claimed Burns was in a “continuing feud” with Wright, and accused him of “skullduggery”; Burns defended his actions in his memoir.
535:, a long-time friend, over an article by Wright on “the Shame of Chicago,” about the plight of the local black community, which had been submitted for publication to
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217:. His mother divorced Alexander when Burns was a year old, and married Nathan Denison, a Chicago produce dealer. Esther Burns's parents also lived in Chicago.
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and thus had been part of a religious Jewish family in Poland, Alexander Burns had rebelled against his upbringing. “My father,” Burns recalled, “had carried
283:(San Francisco). With an income insufficient to support him, his wife and a prospective family, Burns and his wife decided it was time to move. By then, the
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508:? I don't know,” wrote one critic. “If the reader doesn't know the Black press well enough, it would be easy to accuse Burns of racial condescension.”
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who trained many Black writers in all phases of print journalism.” The documentary record he accumulated during those years, and later donated to the
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Some observers question Burns's place in black journalism. “Does Burns take too much credit for the seemingly substantial work he did on
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209:, the family lived on Chicago's Near West Side. Burns grew up in the slums of Chicago. His father was a house painter originally from
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that when it was shut down in 1933 he decided not to finish his senior year. Instead, he returned to
Chicago, enrolling in the
31:
251:, in part because of its social positions. He maintained a connection to the party until he was expelled from it in 1948.
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Burns wrote that his father “abandoned me when I was a baby, and I never knew him until I was ten years old” (
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Burns married Esther Stern on
November 28, 1937. The couple, married for over 62 years, had three children.
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157:(August 25, 1913 – January 29, 2000) was an American pioneering editor of black publications (including the
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in 1943, Burns became, during the ensuing decades, the only Jewish editor-in-chief of a black daily (the
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was the second-largest circulation weekly black newspaper in the United States (circulation: 155,074).
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427:(1968–77). Burns retired from journalism and public relations in 1977, and immediately traveled to
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consists of 46 archival boxes of material (approximately 135 linear feet) donated by Burns to the
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In 1973, Burns and his wife visited his parents' birthplaces in Poland, as well as the death camp
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editorial stated in reference to the Burns papers, “it is a collection that demands to be seen.”
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in values and customs, interests and concerns, reactions and resolutions,” he wrote. “I became a
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Burns obtained work at the three
Communist newspapers in the United States: in 1937 at the
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447:'s doctrine to the ultimate in his belief that 'religion was the cyanide rather than the
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Back in Chicago, a political connection led Burns in July 1942 to apply for a job at the
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181:) and a public relations executive in Chicago. He was a “top executive editor” for the
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1066:, August 4, 1962, p. 7; other sources give the dates as 1966-67, ex. Allyson Hobbs,
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in 1954. Johnson stated that Burns allowed too many sensational stories to get into
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416:. In the following year, to earn a living he edited five non-black monthlies.
869:, Chicago: Marquis Who's Who, n.d., 42nd edition, 1982-1983, vol. I, p. 460.
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Burns spent his teen years in New York's West Side, graduating in 1930 from
326:(serving as editor from 1942–54); the founding (and only Jewish) editor of
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was the largest circulation monthly black magazine (379,000), followed by
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who became so well known as a “black newspaperman” – even though he was
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Burns wrote that he “single-handedly” put together the first issue of
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Editorial, “An African American History Month tribute to Ben Burns,”
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who had “been in a synagogue but a half-dozen times as a sightseer.”
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parents, Alexander and Frieda Bernstein. At the time of his birth at
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1016:“Ben Burns, 86, White Editor Who Made Mark In Black Journalism,”
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In 1922, its monthly circulation was reportedly 100,000 copies (
243:, in part because of its reputed opposition to the emergence of
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Burns was born Benjamin Bernstein in Chicago in 1913 to Polish
189:– that he was invited to submit his biography for inclusion in
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1182:, Westport, CT: Greenwood Publishing Group, 2008, pp. 61-62.
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A page of the report is reproduced as the frontispiece to
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20th century Jewish American editor of Black publications
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Negro Year Book: A Review of Events Affecting Negro Life
451:.' And so I was brought up.” Burns was a self-described
320:, converted to a daily in 1956); the founding editor of
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Medill Northwestern University, updated September 2010.
653:, Jackson: University Press of Mississippi, 1996, p. 3.
633:, 1952, New York: Wm. H. Wise & Co., Inc., p. 44.
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journalism program, from which he graduated in 1934.
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650:Nitty Gritty: A White Editor in Black Journalism
596:Nitty Gritty: A White Editor in Black Journalism
531:During the 1950s, Burns had a disagreement with
1340:James Monroe High School (New York City) alumni
683:“Guide to the Ben Burns Collection, 1939-1999,”
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539:. Burns wanted to publish the article, but
1130:Jennifer Brody, “White Jew, Black media,”
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729:Ben Burns, “An Atheist at Auschwitz,”
697:Letter, Ben Burns, “Excellent piece,”
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358:(1955–58, 1968–77) and the editor of
228:, where he so enjoyed working on the
7:
1345:20th-century American businesspeople
1252:Vivian G. Harsh Research Collection
1360:20th-century American male writers
1330:Medill School of Journalism alumni
515:, which he states was the idea of
408:). In 1957, he obtained work from
332:(1945–54); the founding editor of
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1350:20th-century American journalists
1222:"Hall of Achievement: Ben Burns,"
629:Jessie Parkhurst Guzman, editor,
573:In 1997, Burns was named to the
1244:Ben Burns Collection, 1939-1999
1180:The Richard Wright Encyclopedia
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1375:American anti-racism activists
352:(founded 1950), the editor of
1:
1070:Chicago Public Library, 2006.
964:, vol. 24, June 1922, p. 74).
191:Who's Who in Colored America
1300:Jewish American journalists
1280:Businesspeople from Chicago
1258:Works by or about Ben Burns
1136:, August 30, 1996, pp. 7-8.
703:, September 13, 1996, p. 4.
583:Medill School of Journalism
342:”); the founding editor of
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273:(New York), in 1938 at the
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1365:20th-century American Jews
1335:New York University alumni
1154:, January 18, 1997, p. B1.
398:Johnson Publishing Company
183:Johnson Publishing Company
1355:American male journalists
1285:Journalists from Illinois
1212:, February 3, 2000, p. 9.
1197:, February 3, 2000, p. 5.
548:Recognition and influence
396:Burns was fired from the
348:(1950–54), the editor of
277:(Chicago) and in 1940 at
213:. His mother was born in
28:
1227:October 4, 2012, at the
479:and was critical of the
364:(1956–58). In 1952, the
222:James Monroe High School
735:, April 19, 1996, p. 7.
603:The Best of Negro Humor
579:Northwestern University
435:Relationship to Judaism
239:In 1935, he joined the
234:Northwestern University
93:Northwestern University
1290:American print editors
1248:Chicago Public Library
686:Chicago Public Library
609:and Ben Burns; intro.
564:Chicago Public Library
421:Chicago Daily Defender
318:Chicago Daily Defender
241:Young Communist League
207:Michael Reese Hospital
160:Chicago Daily Defender
1085:, June 4, 1977, p. 7.
312:After a stint in the
866:Who's Who in America
449:opiate of the people
314:U.S. Merchant Marine
275:Midwest Daily Record
1133:Chicago Jewish Star
1056:“Names New Editor
1023:, February 2, 2000.
732:Chicago Jewish Star
700:Chicago Jewish Star
607:John Harold Johnson
575:Hall of Achievement
226:New York University
1082:Tri-State Defender
1063:Tri-State Defender
291:Black publications
42:Benjamin Bernstein
1320:American atheists
863:“Burns, Ben,” in
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605:, edited by
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513:Negro Digest
512:
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502:Negro Digest
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418:
406:Golin Harris
401:
395:
392:Later career
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323:Negro Digest
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270:Daily Worker
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245:Adolf Hitler
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178:Negro Digest
176:
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127:Esther Stern
68:(2000-01-29)
1310:2000 deaths
1305:1913 births
1079:Bill Lane,
647:Ben Burns,
485:Arthur Butz
376:(200,000).
81:Nationality
1274:Categories
961:The Crisis
618:References
414:McDonald's
263:Beginnings
197:Early life
48:1913-08-25
1109:, p. 136.
1047:, p. 195.
1035:, p. 208.
1000:, p. 101.
937:, p. 166.
881:, p. 211.
845:, p. 143.
772:, p. 119.
748:, p. 38).
473:Auschwitz
155:Ben Burns
117:1937–1977
109:executive
23:Ben Burns
1264:catalog)
1262:WorldCat
1225:Archived
1097:, p. 63.
988:, p. 90.
910:, p. 29.
898:, p. 36.
833:, p. 55.
760:, p. 57.
715:, p. 38.
665:, p. 50.
568:Defender
410:Ray Kroc
385:Defender
307:Defender
145:Children
84:American
688:, 2006.
453:atheist
339:Playboy
139:
131:
613:(1945)
599:(1996)
541:Ebony'
521:Digest
496:Legacy
429:Africa
215:Warsaw
203:Jewish
187:Jewish
122:Spouse
103:Editor
589:Works
537:Ebony
506:Ebony
461:Ebony
425:Sepia
402:Ebony
370:Ebony
355:Sepia
329:Ebony
166:Ebony
133:(
129:
504:and
445:Marx
361:Guns
334:Duke
211:Łódź
175:and
63:Died
38:Born
1060:,”
581:'s
577:at
523:.”
483:of
345:Jet
285:FBI
247:'s
172:Jet
1276::
1250:,
1159:^
1141:^
1005:^
927:^
886:^
850:^
720:^
670:^
638:^
585:.
487:.
193:.
169:,
163:,
135:m.
821:.
148:3
50:)
46:(
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