Edwin Leland James (June 25, 1890 – December 3, 1951) was an American

journalist A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalism ...

and war correspondent who covered

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and served as the chief European correspondent for ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' after the war. He worked as the paper's

managing editor A managing editor (ME) is a senior member of a publication's management team. Typically, the managing editor reports directly to the editor-in-chief and oversees all aspects of the publication. United States In the United States, a managing edito ...

from 1932 until his death, during which time he continued to cover international affairs. James was born in

Irvington, Virginia Irvington is a town on the Rappahannock River in Lancaster County, Virginia, United States. The population was 432 at the 2010 census. Located on a peninsula known as the Northern Neck, it has been designated a historic district. History From 1 ...

in 1890. He received a bachelor's degree from

Randolph–Macon College Randolph–Macon College is a private liberal arts college in Ashland, Virginia. Founded in 1830, the college has an enrollment of more than 1,500 students. It is the second-oldest Methodist-run college in the country, and the oldest in continu ...

in 1909. From 1910 to 1912 he worked as a reporter for ''

The Baltimore Sun ''The Baltimore Sun'' is the largest general-circulation daily newspaper based in the U.S. state of Maryland and provides coverage of local and regional news, events, issues, people, and industries. Founded in 1837, it is currently owned by Tr ...

'', and went on to join the ''

Pittsburgh Dispatch The ''Pittsburgh Dispatch'' was a leading newspaper in Pittsburgh, operating from 1846 to 1923. After being enlarged by publisher Daniel O'Neill it was reportedly one of the largest and most prosperous newspapers in the United States. From 1880 ...

'' as an assistant news editor. In 1915 he joined ''The New York Times'' as a copy editor and quickly became a reporter. He was appointed as the Paris correspondent and covered on the war in Europe. After the war he worked as the ''Time''s' chief European correspondent and reported from across the continent. He covered the rise of fascism in Italy and conducted several interviews with

Benito Mussolini Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (; 29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who founded and led the National Fascist Party. He was Prime Minister of Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 until his deposition in 194 ...

. In 1932 he became managing editor and expanded the ''

New York Times International Edition ''The New York Times International Edition'' is an English-language daily newspaper distributed internationally by the New York Times Company. It has been published in two separate periods, one from 1943 to 1967 and one from 2013 to the prese ...

''. He was the first cousin of

Russell Baker Russell Wayne Baker (August 14, 1925 – January 21, 2019) was an American journalist, narrator, writer of Pulitzer Prize-winning satirical commentary and self-critical prose, and author of Pulitzer Prize-winning autobiography '' Growing Up'' (1 ...

's mother. A book review.

Notes

1890 births 1951 deaths American male journalists American newspaper reporters and correspondents American war correspondents People from Lancaster County, Virginia The New York Times editors The New York Times writers War correspondents of World War I {{US-journalist-19thC-stub