Donald S. Kellermann
Encyclopedia
Donald Simon Kellermann was an American journalist who served as the first director of what became the Pew Research Center
.
Kellermann was born in 1927 in Brooklyn
. He was a radio broadcaster while serving with the United States Army
in Germany
during World War II
and went to work for the Brooklyn Eagle
after leaving Hofstra University
.
While working for Newsday in 1952, Kellermann agreed to commit a crime in order to be able to write stories from inside jail. He deliberately broke into a bar while working for Newsday
so that he could write about his experiences at the Suffolk County
Jail. While his reporting from jail led to an investigation of conditions at the facility, the case against him was ultimately thrown out as he had no criminal intent and had not stolen anything. The charges against him were ultimately tossed out.
CBS News
hired him as a producer, where programs he created during his more than a decade with the network included interviews with President John F. Kennedy
and Prime Minister of Israel
David Ben-Gurion
, as well as a life story of Charles Dickens
. He was later employed by National Educational Television
, the predecessor to today's Public Broadcasting Service
, where he was the director of cultural programming. He spent five years in the 1970s as chief of staff to U.S. Senator
Jacob K. Javits
. He co-authored the 1973 book, The President Versus Congress, with Javits. Kellermann later worked for the Joint Republican Leadership Office.
Returning to media, he was hired by the Times Mirror company, publisher of the Los Angeles Times
, where he initially worked in Washington, D.C.
before moving to Los Angeles
to become the firm's director of corporate public affairs. As part of the newspaper company's opinion polling operation, Kellermann was named to serve as the first director of the Times Mirror Center, which would later become known as the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press after The Pew Charitable Trusts
initiated sponsorship of the organization in the 1990s.
Opinion polls which he initiated covered attitudes of younger people to newspapers, studied how people's values affected their stand on major issues and published "The Pulse of Europe", a survey of western European nations in the aftermath of the Cold War
.
A resident of Washington, D.C.
, Kellermann died in his home there at the age of 83 on November 10, 2010 from liver cancer
. He was survived by his wife, Joan, two daughters and two granddaughters.
Pew Research Center
The Pew Research Center is an American think tank organization based in Washington, D.C. that provides information on issues, attitudes and trends shaping the United States and the world. The Center and its projects receive funding from The Pew Charitable Trusts. In 1990, Donald S...
.
Kellermann was born in 1927 in Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
. He was a radio broadcaster while serving with the United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
and went to work for the Brooklyn Eagle
Brooklyn Eagle
The Brooklyn Daily Bulletin began publishing when the original Eagle folded in 1955. In 1996 it merged with a newly revived Brooklyn Daily Eagle, and now publishes a morning paper five days a week under the Brooklyn Daily Eagle name...
after leaving Hofstra University
Hofstra University
Hofstra University is a private, nonsectarian institution of higher learning located in the Village of Hempstead, New York, United States, about east of New York City: less than an hour away by train or car...
.
While working for Newsday in 1952, Kellermann agreed to commit a crime in order to be able to write stories from inside jail. He deliberately broke into a bar while working for Newsday
Newsday
Newsday is a daily American newspaper that primarily serves Nassau and Suffolk counties and the New York City borough of Queens on Long Island, although it is sold throughout the New York metropolitan area...
so that he could write about his experiences at the Suffolk County
Suffolk County, New York
Suffolk County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York on the eastern portion of Long Island. As of the 2010 census, the population was 1,493,350. It was named for the county of Suffolk in England, from which its earliest settlers came...
Jail. While his reporting from jail led to an investigation of conditions at the facility, the case against him was ultimately thrown out as he had no criminal intent and had not stolen anything. The charges against him were ultimately tossed out.
CBS News
CBS News
CBS News is the news division of American television and radio network CBS. The current chairman is Jeff Fager who is also the executive producer of 60 Minutes, while the current president of CBS News is David Rhodes. CBS News' flagship program is the CBS Evening News, hosted by the network's main...
hired him as a producer, where programs he created during his more than a decade with the network included interviews with President John F. Kennedy
John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....
and Prime Minister of Israel
Prime Minister of Israel
The Prime Minister of Israel is the head of the Israeli government and the most powerful political figure in Israel . The prime minister is the country's chief executive. The official residence of the prime minister, Beit Rosh Hamemshala is in Jerusalem...
David Ben-Gurion
David Ben-Gurion
' was the first Prime Minister of Israel.Ben-Gurion's passion for Zionism, which began early in life, led him to become a major Zionist leader and Executive Head of the World Zionist Organization in 1946...
, as well as a life story of Charles Dickens
Charles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens was an English novelist, generally considered the greatest of the Victorian period. Dickens enjoyed a wider popularity and fame than had any previous author during his lifetime, and he remains popular, having been responsible for some of English literature's most iconic...
. He was later employed by National Educational Television
National Educational Television
National Educational Television was an American non-commercial educational public television network in the United States from May 16, 1954 to October 4, 1970...
, the predecessor to today's Public Broadcasting Service
Public Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
, where he was the director of cultural programming. He spent five years in the 1970s as chief of staff to U.S. Senator
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
Jacob K. Javits
Jacob K. Javits
Jacob Koppel "Jack" Javits was a politician who served as United States Senator from New York from 1957 to 1981. A liberal Republican, he was originally allied with Governor Nelson Rockefeller, fellow U.S...
. He co-authored the 1973 book, The President Versus Congress, with Javits. Kellermann later worked for the Joint Republican Leadership Office.
Returning to media, he was hired by the Times Mirror company, publisher of the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
, where he initially worked in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
before moving to Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
to become the firm's director of corporate public affairs. As part of the newspaper company's opinion polling operation, Kellermann was named to serve as the first director of the Times Mirror Center, which would later become known as the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press after The Pew Charitable Trusts
The Pew Charitable Trusts
The Pew Charitable Trusts is an independent non-profit, non-governmental organization , founded in 1948. With over US$5 billion in assets, its current mission is to serve the public interest by "improving public policy, informing the public, and stimulating civic life."-History:The Trusts, a single...
initiated sponsorship of the organization in the 1990s.
Opinion polls which he initiated covered attitudes of younger people to newspapers, studied how people's values affected their stand on major issues and published "The Pulse of Europe", a survey of western European nations in the aftermath of the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
.
A resident of Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, Kellermann died in his home there at the age of 83 on November 10, 2010 from liver cancer
Liver cancer
Liver tumors or hepatic tumors are tumors or growths on or in the liver . Several distinct types of tumors can develop in the liver because the liver is made up of various cell types. These growths can be benign or malignant...
. He was survived by his wife, Joan, two daughters and two granddaughters.