Albert E. Burke (1919–1999) was a Yale University professor and a pioneer of public educational television. Burke was an early

environmentalist An environmentalist is a person who is concerned with and/or advocates for the protection of the environment. An environmentalist can be considered a supporter of the goals of the environmental movement, "a political and ethical movement that se ...

, advocating for stewardship of the environment in the 1950s. He rose to national fame as an early media personality on radio and television, and as an author and in-demand public speaker.

Education

Burke received his B.A. and M.A. in

Earth Science Earth science or geoscience includes all fields of natural science related to the planet Earth. This is a branch of science dealing with the physical, chemical, and biological complex constitutions and synergistic linkages of Earth's four spheres ...

from UCLA. He completed graduate work at Harvard in 1951. Burke held a doctorate in International Relations from the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...

."Dr. Albert Burke to Lecture Friday at Bates College"
''Lewiston News,'' April 3, 1964. His dissertation was "A political economic survey of Soviet Central Asia" (1959).Worldcat Entry for Dr. Albert E. Burke
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Publications

Burke published ''Enough Good Men: A Way of Thinking'' in 1962. He also authored "Certain Aspects of Soviet Agriculture" in ''Russian Research at Harvard'' by C. Kluckhohn (1949).

Yale

Burke came to Yale in 1952 after graduate work at both UCLA and Harvard."NEWS FROM GEOGRAPHIC CENTERS." The Professional Geographer, 4: 15–25. Burke initially taught the basic geography course and courses on Russia, where he had lived for two years. Burke was Director of Graduate Studies in Conservation and Resource Use at Yale (1951-1957)."Industrial Clubs Plan conference"
''The Norwalk Hour,'' February 25, 1967

Television

Burke was a pioneer of educational television. When the new medium of television became available, Burke thought to bring his classes to the public through the television as a way to increase education. Burke began his television career in Connecticut, then developed a long relationship with NBC. His first show, "

This is Your World This may refer to: * ''This'', the singular proximal demonstrative pronoun Places * This, or ''Thinis'', an ancient city in Upper Egypt * This, Ardennes, a commune in France People with the surname * Hervé This, French culinary chemist Arts, ...

," appeared in 1951 on local station WNHC in New Haven, Ct. He was one of several professors involved in educational programming supported by a collaborative initiative between the

Educational Television and Radio Center National Educational Television (NET) was an American educational broadcast television network owned by the Ford Foundation and later co-owned by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. It operated from May 16, 1954 to October 4, 1970, and w ...

(ETRC) and the National Broadcasting Company (NBC) in 1957, when he hosted "Geography for Decision" while he was serving at the American Institute of Resource Economics.Day, James. The Vanishing Vision: The Inside Story of Public Television. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1995.
Chapter 4, note 4. Burke also became Educational Broadcasting consultant for NBC in 1957."Albert Burke will Speak to Palmettos"
in ''Daytona Beach Sunday News-Journal,'' Jan. 17, 1965. In 1958, his next show "Survival" was underwritten by NBC. "Geography for Decision" and "Survival" were both filmed at NBC's New York studios. In 1960, his next series "A Way of Thinking" was produced by Ted Yates for Metropolitan Broadcasting. In 1961, he was nominated for two New York Emmys, for "Most Outstanding Interview or Discussion Program" for "A Way of Thinking" and "Most Outstanding Performer" for that series.1960-1961 New York Area Awards (5th Annual), Presented May 13, 1961
Burke came to national prominence with his series "Probe--with Dr. Albert Burke.""Dr. Burke to Junk 'Probe' Title"
in ''Pittsburgh Press,'' Oct. 26, 1964. In 1960, Jack Gould of ''The New York Times'' called Burke "AN icexciting new voice -- provocative, sensible and challenging.""A Provocative New Commentator; Dr. Albert Burke of Yale on Channel 5 Offers Hour's Analysis of Cuban Revolution"
''The New York Times'', Nov. 2, 1960.

Personal background

The son of Russian immigrants, Samuel Edwards Burkenblit and Helen Hamburg, Burke was born Albert Burkenblit, but he shortened his last name to Burke. His father, Samuel, was born Nov. 15, 1890, and married his wife Helen on February 10, 1918."Who's Who in Engineering," John. W. Leonard Corporation, 1959 Originally from Rostov-Don, Sam was a structural engineer who worked as an architect and engineer for the Allen & Garcia Company in Chicago building industrial sites and bridges. They had two children, Albert and Marshall. Dr. Albert E. Burke's wife, Ruth C. Burke, was a research scientist at Yale. They also had two children, a son and a daughter. Dr. Burke lived in several countries, including Russia, China, Germany, Czechoslovakia, and Latin America. He also lived in Latin America and had spent time with Native American tribes. He spoke a wide range of languages, including French, German, Russian, Spanish, Italian, and Bulgarian.

References

External links

The Burke Center

Complete Download of Burke's ''Enough Good Men''
* *
Probe : scripts for a series of television shows

Sound recording

* ttp://www.worldcat.org/title/political-economic-survey-of-soviet-central-asia/oclc/032373097 Dissertation: A political economic survey of Soviet Central Asia {{DEFAULTSORT:Burke, Albert American television personalities Male television personalities American environmentalists 1919 births 1999 deaths Harvard University alumni University of California, Los Angeles alumni University of Pennsylvania alumni Yale University faculty