Whitehead Goetz (1927 – October 1, 2008) was the Executive Editor (under Chief Editor Warren E. Preece) for the first version of the 15th edition of the ''

Encyclopædia Britannica The (Latin for "British Encyclopædia") is a general knowledge English-language encyclopaedia. It is published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.; the company has existed since the 18th century, although it has changed ownership various t ...

''.Contemporary coverage of the unveiling of the 15th edition
in

TIME magazine ''Time'' (stylized in all caps) is an American news magazine based in New York City. For nearly a century, it was published weekly, but starting in March 2020 it transitioned to every other week. It was first published in New York City on Ma ...

(January 21, 1974) More importantly, he was the Chief Editor for the second version of the 15th edition, which was a massive revision and re-organization of the ''Britannica''. Goetz, who obtained a B.S. from

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

in 1950 and joined Britannica in 1952, served as Chief Editor from 1979 to 1991. He is given critical acclaim for making the second version a much more useful encyclopedia, moving it away from the epistemological preconceptions of

Mortimer J. Adler Mortimer Jerome Adler (December 28, 1902 – June 28, 2001) was an American philosopher, educator, encyclopedist, and popular author. As a philosopher he worked within the Aristotelian and Thomistic traditions. He lived for long stretches in N ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Goetz, Philip W. Encyclopædia Britannica 1927 births 2008 deaths Northwestern University alumni