Myra MacPherson

Myra MacPherson

Myra MacPherson (born 1934) is an American author, biographer, and journalist known for her books and articles about politics, the Vietnam War, feminism, and death and dying. Although her work has appeared in numerous publications, she had a long affiliation with The Washington Post newspaper. She was hired in 1968 by Post executive editor Ben Bradlee to write for the paper's Style section, and remained with the Post for over two decades until 1991. While there, she profiled the Watergate criminals, covered five presidential campaigns, women's rights issues and wrote a series on Vietnam veterans that led to her 1984 book Long Time Passing: Vietnam and the Haunted Generation. It was the first trade book to examine post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and, according to Vietnam expert Arnold R. Isaacs, one of the first to "break the long national silence" about the war and remains one of the most moving and important works on the Vietnam bookshelf.” Joseph Heller, Catch 22 author, wrote: “MacPherson’s book belongs with the best of the works on Vietnam.” Her 2006 biography of I.F. Stone, All Governments Lie! The Life and Times of Rebel Journalist I. F. Stone, won the 2007 Ann M. Sperber Award for media biography, and was a finalist for a 2008 PEN Center USA literary award; it was also named a best book and best biography of the year by the Boston Globe, Rocky Mountain News and BookList.com.In 2016, All Governments Lie: Truth Deception and the Spirit of I. F. Stone, a 2016 documentary featuring today's best investigative reporters was based in part on her Stone book. The documentary premiered at the International Toronto Film Festival; Oliver Stone is the executive producer and veteran journalist Fred Peabody directed the film which showed internationally. MacPherson’s latest book, The Scarlet Sisters: Sex, Suffrage and Scandal in the Gilded Age (Hachette, 2014; paperback 2015) exposes Victorian hypocrisy on sex and women through the true story of two feminist sisters who broke all the rules in 1870 and fought for rights still denied women. "MacPherson's enchanting dual biography…the epilogue "hammers home that even [today] men use women's bodies as political bargaining chips." - The Washington Post; “MacPherson brings these outrageous and inspiring women to brilliant life.” - History Book Club selection; "A lively account of the unlikely lives of the 'two most symbiotic and scandalous sisters in American History." New Yorker Website. Her first book, The Power Lovers: An Intimate Look at Politicians and Their Marriages was an instant best seller when published by Doubleday in 1975. She Came to Live Out Loud: An Inspiring Family Journey through Illness, Loss and Grief was published in 1999 and won health care hospice awards. MacPherson has also written for the New York Times, numerous national magazines, and for blogs such as Salon.com, Huffington Post and Harvard’s Nieman Watchdog blog on journalism. She has been on the advisory board of the Harvard Nieman I.F. Stone Award. She continues her interest in helping young journalists through the I.F. Stone Award project and the Molly Award, given annually in remembrance of Molly Ivins. While doing book research MacPherson has been a fellow at Rutgers University, a Ford Foundation fellow in Bellagio, Italy and a recipient of a Fulbright Grant to study in Japan.

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