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William L. Shirer '25 (1904-1993) is most known for broadcasting from Berlin during World War II. He left Berlin and returned to the United States in December of 1940 when it became too dangerous to continue broadcasting from Germany. In the US he published his first book, Berlin Diary, while broadcasting for CBS. He is most known for publishing The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich which, to this day, is an important work for World War II historians.
Before Berlin, Shirer worked for the Paris Tribune, and later the Chicago Tribune, while taking on the responsibility of Bureau Chief for Central Europe. He covered Mahatma Gandhi beginning in 1931 and was one of two Western reporters who had regular contact with Gandhi during his movement. In 1934 Edward R. Murrow asked Shirer to broadcast from Vienna for CBS. Shirer’s news reports where among the first broadcast internationally.
The George T. Henry College Archives holds over a 100 linear feet of materials from Shirer including his: manuscripts, broadcasts, speeches, correspondence, and diary. The collection is open to the public and researchers. For more information on visiting the archives please see the Researchers tab at the top of the page. For more information on the Shirer collection please see the William L. Shirer papers in the catalog.
Major funding for support of the Shirer Archives
and Papers is provided through the generosity of
Alan M. and Anne M Anderson
Class of 1978 and 1981
