Michael Birch (journalist)
Encyclopedia
Michael Birch was an Australian journalist. He was a Senior Australian Associated Press
correspondent in Vietnam
in 1968 and was killed on 5 May 1968 in Saigon
during the Tet offensive.
before coming to St Peter's College, Auckland
in Form I in 1954. His interest in newspapers was evident then, when in Form 3 he and a small group produced a two-page school newspaper. At the end of Form Four his family returned to Australia and he completed his schooling at the Marist College at New Norcia and Perth
.
in Melbourne
.
as a cadet reporter and very quickly became a graded reporter. He transferred to the Melbourne Herald in 1965 and for this paper reported from Canberra
. He had ambitions of becoming a foreign correspondent
and applied to join the Australian Associated Press. In May 1967, he was chosen from over 100 applicants and in December was posted to Vietnam where he became the Senior Australian Associated Press correspondent, covering the Vietnam war
.
magazine correspondent John Cantwell, 29, from Sydney and two Reuters
men, Bruce Pigott, 23, from Melbourne, and Cornish-born Ronald Laramy, 31
Birch, who was 24 when he died, was also a poet and two of his poems, Vietnam 68 and Saigon-1968, were published posthumously in the 1968 St Peter's College Magazine.
Australian Associated Press
Australian Associated Press is Australia's national news agency. The organisation was established in 1935 by Fairfax and The Herald and Weekly Times.AAP employs more than 175 journalists who work in bureaux in all Australian states and territories...
correspondent in Vietnam
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
in 1968 and was killed on 5 May 1968 in Saigon
Ho Chi Minh City
Ho Chi Minh City , formerly named Saigon is the largest city in Vietnam...
during the Tet offensive.
Early life
Birch went to school in TasmaniaTasmania
Tasmania is an Australian island and state. It is south of the continent, separated by Bass Strait. The state includes the island of Tasmania—the 26th largest island in the world—and the surrounding islands. The state has a population of 507,626 , of whom almost half reside in the greater Hobart...
before coming to St Peter's College, Auckland
St Peter's College, Auckland
St Peter's College is a Catholic college for year 7 to 13 boys . The school, located in Auckland, is one of the largest Catholic schools in New Zealand and is an integrated school under an integration agreement entered into by the Catholic Bishop of Auckland and the Government of New Zealand in...
in Form I in 1954. His interest in newspapers was evident then, when in Form 3 he and a small group produced a two-page school newspaper. At the end of Form Four his family returned to Australia and he completed his schooling at the Marist College at New Norcia and Perth
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
.
Journalist antecedents
Birch's father had been a journalist in Australia and New Zealand. One grandfather was a drama critic on the New Zealand Herald and the other grandfather was a music critic for The AgeThe Age
The Age is a daily broadsheet newspaper, which has been published in Melbourne, Australia since 1854. Owned and published by Fairfax Media, The Age primarily serves Victoria, but is also available for purchase in Tasmania, the Australian Capital Territory and border regions of South Australia and...
in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
.
Career
Birch joined The West AustralianThe West Australian
The West Australian is the only locally-edited daily newspaper published in Perth, Western Australia, and is owned by ASX-listed Seven West Media . The West is published in tabloid format, as is the state's other major newspaper, The Sunday Times, a News Limited publication...
as a cadet reporter and very quickly became a graded reporter. He transferred to the Melbourne Herald in 1965 and for this paper reported from Canberra
Canberra
Canberra is the capital city of Australia. With a population of over 345,000, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory , south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Melbourne...
. He had ambitions of becoming a foreign correspondent
Foreign correspondent
Foreign Correspondent may refer to:*Foreign correspondent *Foreign Correspondent , an Alfred Hitchcock film*Foreign Correspondent , an Australian current affairs programme...
and applied to join the Australian Associated Press. In May 1967, he was chosen from over 100 applicants and in December was posted to Vietnam where he became the Senior Australian Associated Press correspondent, covering the Vietnam war
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
.
Vietnam
Birch was often in the thick of things during the Tet offensive of 1968. It was on 5 May, when he and three other correspondents were covering events in the Saigon suburb of Cholon, that he, along with the others, was ambushed and killed by the Vietcong. The three other journalists were: TimeTime (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
magazine correspondent John Cantwell, 29, from Sydney and two Reuters
Reuters
Reuters is a news agency headquartered in New York City. Until 2008 the Reuters news agency formed part of a British independent company, Reuters Group plc, which was also a provider of financial market data...
men, Bruce Pigott, 23, from Melbourne, and Cornish-born Ronald Laramy, 31
Birch, who was 24 when he died, was also a poet and two of his poems, Vietnam 68 and Saigon-1968, were published posthumously in the 1968 St Peter's College Magazine.