Fulton Lewis III (January 25, 1936 - September 6,
2017) was an American journalist, the only son of the late network
American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, pe ...
news commentator
Fulton Lewis Jr.
Fulton Lewis Jr. (April 30, 1903 in Washington D.C. – August 20, Lists his death date as 21 August, but other references show the death date to be 20 August. 1966 in Washington D. C.) was a conservative American radio broadcaster from the 1930 ...
and Alice Huston Lewis.
Education and early career
Fulton Lewis III attended Landon School in
Bethesda, Maryland
Bethesda () is an unincorporated, census-designated place in southern Montgomery County, Maryland. It is located just northwest of Washington, D.C. It takes its name from a local church, the Bethesda Meeting House (1820, rebuilt 1849), which in ...
and the
University of Virginia
The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United S ...
, graduating from the latter in 1957. His first job was News Director of a small station in
Jamestown, New York
Jamestown is a city in southern Chautauqua County, in the U.S. state of New York. The population was 28,712 at the 2020 census. Situated between Lake Erie to the north and the Allegheny National Forest to the south, Jamestown is the largest pop ...
but soon afterwards (1959) he was hired by the
House Un-American Activities Committee
The House Committee on Un-American Activities (HCUA), popularly dubbed the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC), was an investigative committee of the United States House of Representatives, created in 1938 to investigate alleged disloy ...
of the U.S. Congress as its Research Director. The following year, he produced and narrated the Committee's documentary film of the May 1960 riots in San Francisco protesting the Committee's hearings there. The script was written by FBI Director
J. Edgar Hoover
John Edgar Hoover (January 1, 1895 – May 2, 1972) was an American law enforcement administrator who served as the first Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). He was appointed director of the Bureau of Investigation ...
and showed evidence of involvement by members of the
Communist Party USA
The Communist Party USA, officially the Communist Party of the United States of America (CPUSA), is a communist party in the United States which was established in 1919 after a split in the Socialist Party of America following the Russian Revo ...
in the incitement and leadership of the riots. In 1961, Lewis resigned from the Committee to embark on a nationwide lecture/debate tour in defense of the validity of the film. He appeared on over 750 college and university campuses.
In 1963, Lewis was named National Field Director of
Young Americans for Freedom
Young Americans for Freedom (YAF) is a conservative youth activism organization that was founded in 1960 as a coalition between traditional conservatives and libertarians on American college campuses. It is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizati ...
, a conservative youth group inspired by publisher
William F. Buckley Jr.
William Frank Buckley Jr. (born William Francis Buckley; November 24, 1925 – February 27, 2008) was an American public intellectual, conservative author and political commentator. In 1955, he founded ''National Review'', the magazine that stim ...
He continued his lecturing and debating as a means of organizing YAF chapters on campuses and to recruit support for the presidential candidacy of Sen.
Barry Goldwater (R-AZ). Lewis was later hired as a speechwriter for Goldwater and his running mate Rep.
William E. Miller
William Edward Miller (March 22, 1914 – June 24, 1983) was an American politician who served in the United States House of Representatives from New York as a Republican. During the 1964 presidential election, he was the Republican nominee fo ...
(R-NY) in their unsuccessful campaign of 1964. Following the election, he continued his lecture tour appearing on hundreds of campuses and at civic, business and political meetings.
After the death of his father on August 20, 1966, Lewis was asked by the
Mutual Broadcasting System
The Mutual Broadcasting System (commonly referred to simply as Mutual; sometimes referred to as MBS, Mutual Radio or the Mutual Radio Network) was an American commercial radio network in operation from 1934 to 1999. In the Old-time radio, golden ...
to continue the elder Lewis' nightly 15-minute broadcasts, which he did until 1979. His commentaries were heard on over 500 of the network's affiliates by an estimated 16 million people.
War correspondent
Lewis frequently traveled abroad as a war correspondent. Among other conflicts, he covered the 1967
Six-Day War
The Six-Day War (, ; ar, النكسة, , or ) or June War, also known as the 1967 Arab–Israeli War or Third Arab–Israeli War, was fought between Israel and a coalition of Arab states (primarily Egypt, Syria, and Jordan) from 5 to 10 Ju ...
in
Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
, the war in
Vietnam
Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...
(six trips), the conflict in
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
, and the
Biafra
Biafra, officially the Republic of Biafra, was a partially recognised secessionist state in West Africa that declared independence from Nigeria and existed from 1967 until 1970. Its territory consisted of the predominantly Igbo-populated form ...
n war for independence from
Nigeria
Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...
.
Rhodesian boycott
Lewis also travelled to
Rhodesia to cover that country's efforts to survive a
United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...
economic
boycott
A boycott is an act of nonviolent, voluntary abstention from a product, person, organization, or country as an expression of protest. It is usually for moral, social, political, or environmental reasons. The purpose of a boycott is to inflict som ...
. Lewis' interviews with Rhodesian Prime Minister
Ian Smith
Ian Douglas Smith (8 April 1919 – 20 November 2007) was a Rhodesian politician, farmer, and fighter pilot who served as Prime Minister of Rhodesia (known as Southern Rhodesia until October 1964 and now known as Zimbabwe) from 1964 to 1 ...
in the late 1960s are widely credited with bringing that issue to public attention in the U.S. Lewis argued that the boycott was instigated because Rhodesia had not perfected a "one-man, one-vote" system of government. However, as a result of the boycott the U.S. could no longer purchase metallurgical-grade
chromium ore (a mineral needed for national defense) from Rhodesia, and was forced to import it from the Soviet Union—which, Lewis pointed out, had perfected a "no-man, no vote" system. Lewis was the author of
legislation
Legislation is the process or result of enrolled bill, enrolling, enactment of a bill, enacting, or promulgation, promulgating laws by a legislature, parliament, or analogous Government, governing body. Before an item of legislation becomes law i ...
introduced by Sen.
Harry F. Byrd Jr.
Harry Flood Byrd Jr. (December 20, 1914 – July 30, 2013) was an American orchardist, newspaper publisher and politician. He served in the Senate of Virginia and then represented Virginia in the United States Senate, succeeding his father, Harr ...
(D-VA) in 1971 which provided that, in the event the U.S. was importing any strategically essential material from a
communist source, there would be no prohibition against the importation of that same material from a non-communist source. After heated debate in the House and Senate, the measure - Section 503 of the Military Procurement Authorization Act of 1971 - was approved and, on November 7, 1971, signed into law by President
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...
.
Later career
In 1980, Lewis retired from journalism and moved to Florida, where he owned and operated a computer
database
In computing, a database is an organized collection of data stored and accessed electronically. Small databases can be stored on a file system, while large databases are hosted on computer clusters or cloud storage. The design of databases sp ...
services company. He continued to lecture throughout the nation, served as a consultant to numerous political candidates, and was a frequent contributor of articles to conservative journals.
Awards and recognition
In July 2007, Lewis was a featured speaker at the national conventions of the College Republican National Federation and the TeenAge Republicans. In February, 2008, Lewis was named "Broadcasting Pioneer of the Year 2008" by the Broadcasters Club and the Florida Association of Broadcasters.
Death
Fulton Lewis III died on September 6, 2017 in Sarasota, Florida of heart and lung disease.
References
External links
Fulton Lewis III websiteat Syracuse University
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lewis, Fulton III
American male journalists
1936 births
Living people
Florida Republicans