"I got a million of 'em."
Posted on 06/24/2003 8:10:20 PM PDT by DPB101
Open Letter to revoke Duranty's Pulizer on behalf of Gareth Jones
To The Pulitzer Prize Committee,
Columbia University,
709 Journalism Building,
2950 Broadway
New York, NY, USA, 10027.
An open letter to the committee deliberating on the revocation of the 1932 Pulitzer Prize for Correspondence from Walter Duranty.
Dear Sirs,
Re. Duranty & Gareth Richard
Vaughan Jones (1905 -1935)
This is a personal plea to revoke the 1932 Pulitzer Prize from the infamous journalist, Walter Duranty, who libelously damned the truthful reporting of my uncle, Gareth Jones.
On March 31st 1933, Gareth Jones, a young Welsh journalist, returning from an investigative tour of Soviet Ukraine, who then dared to publicly expose the severity of 1933 Soviet famine, was the prime recipient of Walter Duranty’s villainous New York Times diatribe, ‘Russians Hungry but not Starving’. By vaunting his then esteemed journalistic reputation through the integrity of The New York Times to defame Gareth Jones, Duranty brutally portrayed Jones of being both a scaremonger and a liar. Duranty further stated, “There is no actual starvation or death from starvation, but there is widespread mortality from disease due to malnutrition”.
Duranty’s article was in immediate response Gareth Jones’ press report from Berlin on March 29th 1933; and in attendance was Hubert. R. Knickerbocker (the 1931 Pulitzer Prize winner for his analysis and reporting of the Soviet Five-Year Plan), who firmly believed Jones’ famine revelations, elucidated through his cable despatch of the same day to The New York Evening Post:
“…Because of his position, because of his reputation for reliability and impartiality and because he is the only first-hand observer who has visited the Russian countryside since it was officially closed to foreigners, is bound to receive widespread attention in official England as well as among the public of the country”.
Gareth Jones had just returned from his third visit to the Soviet Union, and on this occasion had undertaken a 40-mile walk through villages in the countryside of Ukraine where he spoke to the peasants, and slept in their cottages.
Details of his Berlin press report were published in many American and British newspapers including The Manchester Guardian, in which Malcolm Muggeridge’s three unsigned murderous-starvation articles (dated March 25th, 27th and 28th 1933) had just been printed. Unfortunately, at that time these reports went entirely unnoticed, as they stood without credence. Nevertheless, during April 1933, Jones wrote at least 20 famine-related articles that were published in several newspapers, including the Welsh Western Mail and The Daily Express of London. Later articles by Gareth Jones on the crisis were published in Britain and in the American press, including the Boston Sunday Advertiser and The Washington Herald. He then embarked on an extensive lecture tour entitled, The Enigma of Bolshevik Russia, in Britain and Ireland, and subsequently, in 1934, across the USA. It is therefore without doubt that he did more than any Western journalist to broadcast the plight of the peasants in the Soviet Union.
Eugene Lyons in his 1937 book, Assignment in Utopia, described how the foreign press corps in Moscow was assembled by the Soviet Press Censor, Oumansky, to conspire as to how they could repudiate Gareth Jones’ Berlin report, especially since they were being inundated with enquiries from their home news desks about his revelations. Duranty then took it upon himself to deny there was a terrible famine situation in Russia, and, following this, his notorious article was published in The New York Times condemning Gareth Jones for falsifying the news. Lyons wrote, “Poor Gareth Jones must have been the most surprised human being alive when the facts he so painstakingly garnered from our mouths were snowed under by our denials.”
Added to this insult of Jones by the foreign correspondents in Moscow, the Soviet Commissar for Foreign Affairs, Maxim Litvinov sent a special cable via their London Embassy to David Lloyd George banning Gareth Jones (who was a former adviser on foreign affairs to the ex-Prime Minister) from ever returning to the Soviet Union, and accusing him of espionage. This was an utter disappointment to Jones, as he had spent his whole academic career in Cambridge University studying the history and literature as well as the language of Russia, in which he was fluent. It had always been his particular wish to visit Ukraine where his mother had spent three years in her youth, employed as a tutor in the 1890s.
To return to Walter Duranty, The New York Times published Gareth Jones’ letter of reply on May 13th 1933, in which he stood by his original statement:
“Everywhere I went in the Russian villages I heard the cry; “There is no bread, we are dying,” and that there was famine in the Soviet Union, menacing the lives of millions of people.
…My evidence was based on conversations with peasants who had migrated into the towns from various parts of Russia. Peasants from the richest [most fertile] parts of Russia were coming into the towns for bread. Their story of the deaths in their villages from starvation, of the death of the greater part of their cattle and horses and each conversation corroborated the previous one…I talked with hundreds of peasants who were not the “kulaks” - those mythical scapegoats for the hunger in Russia - but ordinary peasants. I talked with them alone in Russian and jotted down their conversations, which were an unanswerable indictment of Soviet agricultural policy. The peasants said emphatically that the famine was worse than in 1921 and that fellow-villagers were dying.”
He ended his letter stingingly: “May I in conclusion congratulate the Soviet Foreign Office on its skill in concealing the true situation in the U.S.S.R.? Moscow is not Russia, and the sight of well-fed people there tends to hide the real Russia.”
Meanwhile, in another letter, to the Editor of the Soviet-sympathetic Manchester Guardian, which was published on the 8th May 1933, he stated:
“I hope that fellow-Liberals who boil at any injustices in Germany or Italy or Poland will just express one word of sympathy with the millions of peasants who are the victims of persecution and famine in the Soviet Union.”
Gareth Jones truthful and independent reporting of the Soviet Union covered the last three years of Stalin’s Five-Year Plan. He knew the Soviet Union well, and had first visited the country in 1930. He wrote his first three articles in the London Times in October 1930, entitled the Two Russias, and in April 1931, wrote five more articles for The Western Mail (Cardiff) describing the predicament of the Soviet peasants. He visited the Soviet Union again in 1931 with Jack Heinz II, who wrote an anonymous book based on Gareth Jones’ diaries entitled Experiences in Russia – 1931: A Diary which describes in detail the suffering of the Soviet peasants in Russia and Ukraine. Gareth Jones later wrote a second series of articles in the London Times in October 1931, recalling his particular impressions of the terrible treatment of the kulaks. Further articles in anticipation of massive starvation during the coming winter were printed in The Western Mail (Cardiff) in October 1932 entitled “Will There be Soup?” Today, the fact that Jones was writing about the Soviet Union during these years has almost been completely forgotten.
Despite his treatment by the pro-Soviet propagandists the courageous Gareth Jones never wavered from his quest to expose the horrendous truth of the famine, despite the onslaught of his antagonists. From Berlin in late March 1933, he wrote a personal letter to his former employer, David Lloyd George stating: “The situation is so grave, so much worse than in 1921 that I am amazed at your admiration for Stalin.”
Gareth Jones’ honest reporting on the Soviet Union probably had a direct bearing on his tragic death two years later. In the spring of 1935, having interviewed eminent Japanese politicians and generals, who were influencing world events in the Far East, Gareth Jones went ‘In Search of News’[i] in the northern reaches of China with the express ambition of ‘seeing what the Japanese were up to’ in their newly colonised province of Manchukuo. Sadly, he never reached his ultimate destination, as he was captured by bandits, held for a ransom of 100,000 Mexican dollars, and then murdered after 16 days in captivity. These bandits had been controlled and coerced by the Japanese military, which was holding their families to ransom.
The Japanese were well aware that Gareth Jones would return to the Occident and expose to the world their ambitions of territorial expansion throughout the Far East in the same fearless manner as he previously uncovered the Soviet famine in 1933.
Due to his untimely death Gareth Jones appears to have been forgotten by so many today, except in Ukraine, where he is called the ‘Unsung Hero’.
In conclusion, I would like to reiterate that the Pulitzer Prize should be revoked from Walter Duranty, not just for his falsification of Stalin’s ruthless execution of the Five-Year Plan of Collectivisation, but also for his complete disregard for journalistic integrity. Through abusing his position of authority as The New York Times’ reporter in the Soviet Union, he villainously and publicly denigrated the truthful articles of my uncle, and ashamedly did so, whilst being fully aware of the on-going famine.
Indeed, if you were seeking a means of restoring the international prestige of the Pulitzer Prize, then you ought to consider bestowing the award posthumously to Gareth Jones for his valiant and truthful international exposure of the Soviet genocide-famine of 1933, and in doing so help commemorate all the defenceless victims of Stalin’s inhumanity.
Yours faithfully,
Dr. Margaret Siriol Colley (niece).
Nigel Linsan Colley (great nephew).
To discover the truthful reporting at the time of the First Five-Year Plan, many of Gareth Jones’ newspaper articles can be read on his commemorative website at: www.colley.co.uk/garethjones/
A detailed account surrounding his murder may be read the book written by his niece Dr. Margaret Siriol Colley entitled Gareth Jones: A Manchukuo Incident.
[i] In Search of News. 1936. A commemorative compendium of Gareth Jones’ articles republished by The Western Mail, Cardiff, with proceeds still being awarded annually through a travelling scholarship by The University of Wales.
What's a Pulitzer worth on the Open Market these days?
Revoke Walter Duranty's 1932 Pulitzer Prize' - International Protest Campaign
If the New York Times had any sense, it would return the prize
The maddest and most criminal of tyrantsIn Nick Clarke's biography of Cook, Gareth Jones is standing next to Alistair Cooke in a team photograph of the 1929 Cambridge University Granta Society.Alistair Cooke : Letter from America
Monday, 23 June, 2003. . .1933 was the first year of Stalin's triumph in enforcing his collectivist plan. In shorter words - in that year 4.2 million Ukrainians starved to death, another 1.7 millions were driven away to outdoor threadbare camps and left for the perishing winter to kill them off.
No Western reporter that I've heard about managed to get a word about the Ukraine through to his/her paper . . .
Progressive liberal people in both Britain and America were reluctant to believe that he'd ever executed anybody except genuine, dangerous party plotters. . .
Congress investigated Herbert Matthews and the New York Times influence with pro-Castro forces in the State Department but not much, that I know of, came of it. Some of the testimony is below. How the Times and others promoted Fidel is unbelievable but true:
COMMUNIST THREAT TO THE UNITED STATES
THROUGH THE CARIBBEAN
COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY
UNITED STATES SENATE
EIGHTY-SIXTH CONGRESS
SECOND SESSION
PART 9
AUGUST 27, 30, 1960
There are other interesting items on the links you provided...wonderful 'rainy day' reading.
Not many but there are some. Pics of people being loaded into cattle cars by the CHEKA are here:
Yup...little commie termites in every branch of government undoing what the people we elect do. For those who haven't seen it, here is the New York Times' 1957 love letter to Fidel Castro (Sunday, page 1):
"I got a million of 'em."
You might want to think about emailing this letter to Andrew Sullivan's blog. He's got a wide readership and a longstanding interest in Duranty's ill-gotten Pulitzer.
Gareth was fearless. He reported on the rise of Nazism as well as Japanese militarism and the atrocities in the USSR.
The Hysteria of Goering by Gareth Jones, 1934
Army Versus Industrialists. Conflict in Japan by Gareth Jones - 31 July 1935
The Japanese and Soviets may have cooperated to murder Gareth Jones. While in Tokyo, Gareth stayed with Günter Stein (who had let the Soviet spy Richard Sorge radio from his apartment). Oddly enough, there is now renewed interest in Sorge in Japan:
Daily Yomiuri On-Line : New evidence debunking Sorge mythThe unbearable weight of history By MARK SCHILLING Japan Times
June 17, 2003Spy Sorge Rating: * * * (out of 5) Director: Masahiro Shinoda Running time: 182 minutes Language: Japanese, English Currently showing
When I interviewed Masahiro Shinoda 12 years ago, after the release of his award-winning "Shonen Jidai (Childhood Days)," I asked him about his next project. "I want to make a film about Richard Sorge, the famous spy who was active in Japan in the 1930s and 1940s," he said. "It's an idea I've had for the past 20 years. I think exploring the mind of a spy like Sorge is the best way to understand the political situation of Japan at that time and answer the question of why we went to war with America."
Here we are in 2003 and "Spy Sorge" is finally in the theaters. Made at a cost of 2 billion yen, the film is Shinoda's "Gangs of New York," a project that he meditated on for decades, spent the earth on and considers to be the capstone of his career.
And like "Gangs of New York" it is a work of audacity, ambition . . .continued
They showed graphic black and white images of people in mass graves and people starving. They said 10 million people died as a result of it. (That's more people than Hitler killed. You never hear anyone talk about this. It's nice to see it get some coverage.)
The Time's excuse for him(Duranty) was something like "the award was given in 1931 and the famine struck in 1932 and '33" so he should get to keep it, blah blah blah. Don't you just luv how they used the term "famine struck"? It makes it sound like it was caused by locusts or drought or something, and not DONE DELIBERATELY- what weasle words. I guess it's no big surprise coming from the N.Y. Times
Duranty should be have his Pulitzer taken away. He lied. He helped cover up these crimes. If you changed the name from Stalin to Hitler, there wouldn't even be a "debate" about weather the award should be taken away. It would be.
The Pulitzer Prize should be given to Gareth Jones. He was telling the truth, and risked everything in trying to do so. This seems like a no-brainer to me. What are they "debating " about?
Very interesting reading, thank you. I hope this gets resolved in favor of Jones, it's just too bad the Times has been allowed to go on with their lying for so long, at the expense of a person who truly deserves honor and recognition.
Are you (or anyone else) familiar with the book Angels in Stalin's Paradise: Western Reporters in Soviet Russia, 1917-1937; A Case Study of Louis Fischer and Walter Duranty?(James W. Crowl, Washington, D.C.: The University of America Press, 1981.)
Ran across it while researching Duranty.
No, but I will check it out, if I can. Actually , the report on Fox was the first time I'd heard about NY Times reporter Duranty, or that he lied. I have heard about the famine caused by Stalin, but not in very much detail(like I said, no one ever talks about it). I never knew anything of Gareth Jones-until reading your article. If you wouldn't mind , could you let us know, if you hear anything about how this turns outi.e.-Post it or Freepmail? This is all very interesting to me . I would love to know how it turns out. Hopefully Fox will stay with this story too and give an update if anything comes up. Thanks again for posting this. I love Historical stories, and it does seem that Gareth Jones has been treated unjustly. It needs to be set right.
Isn't this just the damndest thing? I am glad I have lived long enough to see this issue re-surface.
In I Write As I Please (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1935), Duranty said:
"Looking backward over the fourteen years I have spent in Russia, I cannot escape the conclusion that this period has been a heroic chapter in the life of Humanity."
"(Duranty had ) a fearless driver named Grisha and a screeching horn that was undistinguishable from that used by the G.R.U. For many, the sight of Duranty's Buick plunging through the streets with Grisha's hand against the horn was a terrifying experience. Duranty delighted in making such forays at dusk when the police made their raids . . ."
The New York Times is truly a disgusting piece of work.
This letter is awesome!
Now to see if someone picks it up. Know any blogs which might be interested (I've sent it to Sullivan)?
Arthur Sulzberger Jr. has stated the worst mistake his paper ever made was not alerting people to the plight of Jews in Europe before and during WWII. Gareth Jones did. Perhaps that, brought to his attention, might make him reconsider his refusal to return Duranty's Pulitzer.
From one of many articles Jones wrote on the threat of Nazism (written 4 days before the Reichstag fire)
THE WESTERN MAIL AND SOUTH WALES NEWS,Biography of Jones:
February 28th, 1933
A WELSHMAN LOOKS AT EUROPE (x)
WITH HITLER ACROSS GERMANY
By GARETH JONES
In Hitler’s Aeroplane,
Three o’clock
Thursday Afternoon,
February 23, 1933.If this aeroplane should crash then the whole history of Europe would be changed. For a few feet away sits Adolf Hitler, Chancellor of Germany and leader of the most volcanic nationalist awakening which the world has seen.
Six thousand feet beneath us, hidden by a sea of rolling white clouds, is the land which he has roused to a frenzy. We are rushing along at a speed of 142 miles per hour from Berlin to Frankfurt-on-Main, where Hitler is to begin his lightning election campaign.
The occupants of the aeroplane are, indeed, a mass of human dynamite . . .continued
I bought the Times now and then while traveling. Went cold turkey one Sunday when, after spending five bucks, I was treated to a food section which began.."In America, bread does not taste like bread, butter does not taste like butter, cheese does not taste like cheese..."
Decided I simply didn't need to pay to read my country and my heritage trashed over and over.
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