William L. Laurence
William L. Laurence was born on March 7, 1888. See ranking, bio blurb, and everyone else born that day.
About William L. Laurence
William Leonard Laurence (born Leib Wolf Siew, March 7, 1888 – March 19, 1977) was an American science journalist best known for his work at The New York Times. Born in the Russian Empire, he won two Pulitzer Prizes. As the official historian of the Manhattan Project, he was the only journalist to witness the Trinity test and the atomic bombing of Nagasaki. He is credited with coining the term "Atomic Age," which became popular in the 1950s. He dismissed the destructive effects of radiation sickness as Japanese propaganda in The New York Times. Even though he had seen the effects first-hand, he moonlighted for the War Department's press office, and United States military officials instructed him to do so in order to discredit earlier reports by independent journalist Wilfred Burchett, the first Western reporter on-site after the bombings.