Fallout : the Hiroshima cover-up and the reporter who revealed it to the world

Title:

Author:

Summary:

"New York Times bestselling author Lesley M.M. Blume reveals how one courageous American reporter uncovered one of the deadliest cover-ups of the 20th century—the true effects of the atom bomb—potentially saving millions of lives. Just days after the United States decimated Hiroshima and Nagasaki with nuclear bombs, the Japanese surrendered unconditionally. But even before the surrender, the US government and military had begun a secret propaganda and information suppression campaign to hide the devastating nature of these experimental weapons. The cover-up intensified as Occupation forces closed the atomic cities to Allied reporters, preventing leaks about the horrific long-term effects of radiation which would kill thousands during the months after the blast. For nearly a year the cover-up worked—until New Yorker journalist John Hersey got into Hiroshima and managed to report the truth to the world. As Hersey and his editors prepared his article for publication, they kept the story secret—even from most of their New Yorker colleagues. When the magazine published “Hiroshima” in August 1946, it became an instant global sensation, and inspired pervasive horror about the hellish new threat that America had unleashed. Since 1945, no nuclear weapons have ever been deployed in war partly because Hersey alerted the world to their true, devastating impact. This knowledge has remained among the greatest deterrents to using them since the end of World War II. Released on the 75th anniversary of the Hiroshima bombing, Fallout is an engrossing detective story, as well as an important piece of hidden history that shows how one heroic scoop saved—and can still save—the world."-- Provided by publisher.

Edition:

First Simon & Schuster hardcover edition.

Contents:

The picture does not tell the whole story -- Scoop the world -- MacArthur's closed kingdom -- Six survivors -- Some events at Hiroshima -- Detonation -- Aftermath.

Physical Description:

ix, 276 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm

Personal Subject:

Hersey, John, 1914-1993.

Subject Term:

World War, 1939-1945 -- Japan.

Atomic bomb victims -- Japan -- Hiroshima-shi.

Journalists -- Biography.

Atomic bomb -- History -- 20th century.

Geographic Term:

Hiroshima-shi (Japan) -- History -- Bombardment, 1945.

Publisher:

Simon & Schuster,

Publication Date:

2020

ISBN:

9781982128517

Publication Information:

New York : Simon & Schuster, 2020.

Call Number:

940.54 BLUME

Holds: Copies:

Available:*

Item Barcode	Collection	Call Number	Status	Item Holds
33607003473900	Adult Nonfiction	940.54 BLUME	Searching... Unknown	Searching... Unavailable

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Summary

A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK OF 2020

New York Times bestselling author Lesley M.M. Blume reveals how one courageous American reporter uncovered one of the deadliest cover-ups of the 20th century--the true effects of the atom bomb--potentially saving millions of lives.

Just days after the United States decimated Hiroshima and Nagasaki with nuclear bombs, the Japanese surrendered unconditionally. But even before the surrender, the US government and military had begun a secret propaganda and information suppression campaign to hide the devastating nature of these experimental weapons. The cover-up intensified as Occupation forces closed the atomic cities to Allied reporters, preventing leaks about the horrific long-term effects of radiation which would kill thousands during the months after the blast. For nearly a year the cover-up worked--until New Yorker journalist John Hersey got into Hiroshima and managed to report the truth to the world.

As Hersey and his editors prepared his article for publication, they kept the story secret--even from most of their New Yorker colleagues. When the magazine published "Hiroshima" in August 1946, it became an instant global sensation, and inspired pervasive horror about the hellish new threat that America had unleashed. Since 1945, no nuclear weapons have ever been deployed in war partly because Hersey alerted the world to their true, devastating impact. This knowledge has remained among the greatest deterrents to using them since the end of World War II.

Released on the 75th anniversary of the Hiroshima bombing, Fallout is an engrossing detective story, as well as an important piece of hidden history that shows how one heroic scoop saved--and can still save--the world.

Author Notes

Lesley M.M. Blume is a Los Angeles-based journalist, author, and biographer. Her work has appeared in Vanity Fair , The New York Times , The Wall Street Journal , and The Paris Review , among many other publications. Her last nonfiction book, Everybody Behaves Badly , was a New York Times bestseller.

Reviews (2)

Publisher's Weekly Review

Journalist Blume (Everybody Behaves Badly) delivers a thrilling behind-the-scenes account of John Hersey's seminal 1946 report on the atomic bombing of Hiroshima. In the months after Japan's surrender, Hersey hatched a plan with New Yorker managing editor William Shawn to go into Hiroshima as a "Trojan horse reporter" and describe the bomb's impact from the victims' point of view. Blume balances her narrative between Hersey's journalistic process and Shawn's editorial decision-making, which culminated in convincing New Yorker founder Harold Ross to devote the entire Aug. 29, 1946, issue to the story. She also documents the dramatic impact of Hersey's report, which was eventually published as a book, on the public perception of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings, and its continued resonance in the debate over nuclear arms. Hersey, she notes, devoted all the proceeds from the work to the American Red Cross and didn't return to Japan for 40 years. Blume builds tension by expertly interweaving scenes at the New Yorker offices (where Ross and Shawn kept most staffers in the dark right up until publication), with Hersey's journey into Japan and his search for survivors, and vividly captures a pre-television era when evidence of the nuclear fallout was suppressed by the U.S. government. This enthralling, fine-grained chronicle reveals what it takes to cut through "dangerously anesthetizing" statistics and speak truth to power. (Aug.)Correction: An earlier version of this review incorrectly referred to William Shawn as Wallace Shawn.

Library Journal Review

In 1946, just one year after the devastating atomic bomb explosion over the Japanese city of Hiroshima, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist John Hersey wrote a series of articles on Hiroshima for The New Yorker. His thorough reporting featured interviews with survivors of the devastation, giving a detailed description of the fallout to the American public--Hersey's work countered information provided by the U.S. government about injuries sustained by Japanese citizens. The articles were later turned into a book, Hiroshima, also published in 1946. Here, best-selling author Blume (Everyone Behaves Badly) provides the backstory of how Hersey was able to gain access to the story, even after several other journalists had already visited Hiroshima. Hersey used little deception to obtain his interviews and even had the completed article approved by Leslie Groves, who oversaw the Manhattan Project. This is a straightforward account, including credible sources, though no original research was completed by Blume. VERDICT The publication date coincides with the 75th anniversary of the bombing of Hiroshima. While Blume doesn't shed new insight, readers looking for an overview of World War II or background on Hersey's Hiroshima will find this to be of interest. [See Prepub Alert, 2/4/20.]--Jason L. Steagall, Arapahoe Libs., Centennial, Colorado

Introduction	p. 1
Chapter 1 The Picture Does Not Tell the Whole Story	p. 15
Chapter 2 Scoop the World	p. 35
Chapter 3 MacArthur's Closed Kingdom	p. 53
Chapter 4 Six Survivors	p. 71
Chapter 5 Some Events at Hiroshima	p. 97
Chapter 6 Detonation	p. 125
Chapter 7 Aftermath	p. 143
Epilogue	p. 175
Acknowledgments	p. 185
Notes	p. 193
Index	p. 259

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Bound With These Titles

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Summary

Summary

Author Notes

Reviews (2)

Publisher's Weekly Review

Library Journal Review

Table of Contents