William J. Broad (born March 7, 1951) is an American

science journalist Science journalism conveys reporting about science to the public. The field typically involves interactions between scientists, journalists, and the public. Origins Modern science journalism dates back to '' Digdarshan'' (means showing the d ...

, author and a Senior Writer at ''

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 ...

''.

Education

Broad earned a master's degree from the

University of Wisconsin A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...

in 1977.About the author
William J. Broad.

Career

Broad is the author or co-author of eight books, including '' Germs: Biological Weapons and America's Secret War'' (Simon & Schuster, 2001) which was a number-one ''New York Times'' Best Seller. His other titles include ''Betrayers of the Truth: Fraud and Deceit in the Halls of Science'' (co-written with

Nicholas Wade Nicholas Michael Landon Wade (born 17 May 1942) is a British author and journalist. He is the author of numerous books, and has served as staff writer and editor for ''Nature'', ''Science'', and the science section of ''The New York Times''. ...

, Simon & Schuster, 1982), ''Teller's War: The Top-Secret Story Behind the Star Wars Deception'' (Simon & Schuster, 1992), ''The Universe Below: Discovering the Secrets of the Deep Sea'' (Simon & Schuster, 1997), and ''The Science of Yoga: The Risks and the Rewards'' (Simon & Schuster, 2012). His books have been translated into more than a dozen languages. His work focuses on the social repercussions of science. In 2009, he received criticism for an article on the sustainability of the

blue grenadier The blue grenadier (also known as hoki, blue hake, New Zealand whiptail, or whiptail hake, ''Macruronus novaezelandiae'') is a merluccid hake of the family Merlucciidae found around southern Australia and New Zealand, as well as off both the Atla ...

fish from representatives of the

New Zealand fishing industry As with other countries, New Zealand, New Zealand’s 200 nautical miles exclusive economic zone gives its fishing industry special fishing rights. It covers 4.1 million square kilometres. This is the sixth largest zone in the world, and is fourte ...

Awards

Broad has won two shared

Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prize () is an award for achievements in newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature, and musical composition within the United States. It was established in 1917 by provisions in the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made h ...

s, an

News and Documentary Emmy Award The News & Documentary Emmy Awards, or News & Documentary Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the National Academy of Television Arts and Scien ...

, and an

Alfred I. duPont–Columbia University Award The Alfred I. duPont–Columbia University Award honors excellence in broadcast and digital journalism in the public service and is considered one of the most prestigious awards in journalism. The awards were established in 1942 and administered ...

. The 1986

Pulitzer Prize for Explanatory Journalism The Pulitzer Prize for Explanatory Reporting has been presented since 1998, for a distinguished example of explanatory reporting that illuminates a significant and complex subject, demonstrating mastery of the subject, lucid writing and clear p ...

recognized ''

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 d ...

'' staff coverage of U.S. antimissile defense in space, or Star Wars: "a six-part comprehensive series on the Strategic Defense Initiative, which explored the scientific, political and foreign policy issues involved in 'Star Wars'." The 1987

Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting This Pulitzer Prize has been awarded since 1942 for a distinguished example of reporting on national affairs in the United States. In its first six years (1942–1947), it was called the Pulitzer Prize for Telegraphic Reporting – National. Li ...

recognized ''New York Times'' staff coverage of the

Space Shuttle Challenger disaster On January 28, 1986, the broke apart 73 seconds into its flight, killing all seven crew members aboard. The spacecraft disintegrated above the Atlantic Ocean, off the coast of Cape Canaveral, Florida, at 11:39a.m. Eastern Time Zone, EST (1 ...

: "the aftermath of the Challenger explosion, which included stories that identified serious flaws in the shuttle's design and in the administration of America's space program." In 2002, the PBS ''Nova'' documentary ''Bioterror'' won a

; it detailed the threat of

bioterrorism Bioterrorism is terrorism involving the intentional release or dissemination of biological agents. These agents are bacteria, viruses, insects, fungi, and/or toxins, and may be in a naturally occurring or a human-modified form, in much the same ...

and featured the work of Broad and his fellow co-authors of ''Germs''. In 2005 he and ''New York Times'' colleague

David E. Sanger David E. Sanger (born July 5, 1960) is an American journalist who is the chief Washington correspondent for ''The New York Times''. A 1982 graduate of Harvard College, Sanger has been writing for the ''Times'' for 30 years covering foreign policy, ...

were Pulitzer finalists in the Explanatory Reporting category for their aggressive reporting and lucid writing that cast light on the shadowy process of

nuclear proliferation Nuclear proliferation is the spread of nuclear weapons, fissionable material, and weapons-applicable nuclear technology and information to nations not recognized as " Nuclear Weapon States" by the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Wea ...

". In 2007, he shared a

DuPont Award DuPont de Nemours, Inc., commonly shortened to DuPont, is an American multinational chemical company first formed in 1802 by French-American chemist and industrialist Éleuthère Irénée du Pont de Nemours. The company played a major role in ...

(with the ''New York Times'' team,

Investigation Discovery Investigation Discovery (stylized and branded on-air as ID since 2008) is an American multinational pay television network dedicated to true crime documentaries owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. As of February 2015, approximately 86 million Ameri ...

and

Canadian Broadcasting Corporation The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (french: Société Radio-Canada), branded as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian public broadcaster for both radio and television. It is a federal Crown corporation that receives funding from the government. ...

) from the

Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism The Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism is located in Pulitzer Hall on the university's Morningside Heights campus in New York City. Founded in 1912 by Joseph Pulitzer, Columbia Journalism School is one of the oldest journalism s ...

for the documentary, ''Nuclear Jihad: Can Terrorists Get the Bomb?''

Publications

* With

Judith Miller Judith Miller (born January 2, 1948) is an American journalist and commentator known for her coverage of Iraq's Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) program both before and after the 2003 invasion, which was later discovered to have been based on ...

and Stephen Engelberg, '' Germs: Biological Weapons and America's Secret War'' * ''The Publishing Game: Getting More for Less'' * With

, '' Betrayers of the Truth: Fraud and Deceit in the Halls of Science''. New York:

Simon & Schuster Simon & Schuster () is an American publishing company and a subsidiary of Paramount Global. It was founded in New York City on January 2, 1924 by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. As of 2016, Simon & Schuster was the third largest publ ...

, 1983. .
''Star Warriors: A Penetrating Look into the Lives of the Young Scientists Behind Our Space Age Weaponry''
Simon & Schuster (1985) .
''Teller's War: The Top-Secret Story Behind the Star Wars Deception''
Simon & Schuster (1992) . * ''The Universe Below'' (1997) New York: Simon & Schuster. Also * ''The Oracle: The Lost Secrets and Hidden Messages of Ancient Delphi'' (2006). New York: Penguin Press. Also * ''The Science of Yoga: The Risks and the Rewards'' (2012). New York: Simon & Schuster.

''The New York Times'' (Nov. 12, 2007)

Reviews

Some of Broad's works are reviewed in: * *

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Broad, William J. 1951 births Living people American science writers American science journalists American male journalists Pulitzer Prize for Explanatory Journalism winners Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting winners The New York Times Pulitzer Prize winners Webster University alumni Place of birth missing (living people)