Scope and Content Note
The Daniel Schorr Papers (1916-2010) span the years 1922-2010, with the bulk of the material dating from 1943 to 2006. The papers are organized into the following series: Family and Personal File, Correspondence, Broadcasts and Film, Speeches and Public Appearances, Writings File, Subject File, Miscellany, 2017 Addition, Oversize.
The Family and Personal File contains biographical material, professional achievement awards, and estate, financial, and military records. The correspondence consists chiefly of Schorr's letters to his mother, Tillie Godiner Schorr. They describe his activities as a United States Army intelligence officer stationed at Camp Polk, Louisiana, and Fort Sam Houston, San Antonio, Texas, during World War II. In later years the letters provide details of his life and work in postwar Europe into the Cold War era. In addition to politics, Schorr also covered cultural events. His friendship with violinist Isaac Stern is well documented. The diaries and notebooks contain Schorr's observations while on news reporting assignments.
The Correspondence series contains incoming and copies of outgoing letters to professional colleagues, friends, and fans. Chief correspondents are Harry A. Blackmun, Charles W. Colson, Captain Alfred Friendly, Richard M. Nixon, William S. Paley, Richard S. Salant, Ted Turner, and Herman Wouk.
The Broadcasts and Film series forms the centerpiece of the papers. Although incorporating contracts, correspondence, and publicity material, most of the series consists of scripts written primarily for Cable News Network, Columbia Broadcasting System, and National Public Radio. European events covered include postwar reconstruction, the Marshall Plan, the creation of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, superpower summit meetings, Moscow under Nikita Sergeevich Khrushchev, and the Berlin crisis of 1961. Individuals receiving coverage by Schorr were Khrushchev, Konrad Adenauer, Fidel Castro, and Dwight D. Eisenhower. In the United States, Schorr reported on issues relating to civil rights, urban problems, and the environment. He is particularly known for his investigation of the Watergate Affair and scandals involving the Central Intelligence Agency and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The papers document his clash with CBS and the United States House of Representatives over his publication of a suppressed intelligence report.
The Speeches and Public Appearances series documents Schorr's activities on the professional lecture circuit as a keynote speaker, as well as a classroom lecturer, conference participant, and panel moderator. He regularly participated in the Aspen Institute for Humanistic Studies (later the Aspen Institute) in Aspen, Colorado. Material includes background information, contracts, correspondence, notes, publicity, and texts of speeches.
The Writings File includes production material for Schorr's books, Clearing the Air, Don't Get Sick in America, and Staying Tuned: A Life in Journalism. Schorr's career as a print journalist is represented by clippings and typescripts of articles written for newspapers and magazines. The topics duplicate those covered in his broadcasts.
The Subject File contains Schorr's reference material for his writings and broadcasts, chiefly news clippings, reports, and printed material.
The Miscellany series consists of legal case material regarding freedom of speech issues, Schorr's press passes, and a set of National Public Radio playing cards featuring its journalists.
The 2017 Addition series spans the years 1939 to 2010, with the bulk of the material dating between 1986 and 1990. The series complements the initial portion of the collection and relates to Schorr's career as a print and broadcast journalist. The material is arranged in five groups: broadcasts and film, correspondence, family and personal file, miscellany, and writings. The majority of the 2017 Addition consists of scripts of Schorr's regular commentary on National Public Radio (NPR) as a senior news analyst, including appearances on Weekend Edition, All Things Considered, The Two-Way,and a special call-in program initiated in 1991 at the onset of the Gulf War. The period 1986 to 1991 is particularly well documented, though scripts date throughout the tenure of Schorr's career at NPR, from 1985 until his death in 2010. Many of the scripts in this series overlap with those in the Broadcasts and Film series, though many of the scripts contained here include Schorr's edits and annotations. Also included are several iterations of the script for Watergate, a television miniseries narrated by Schorr in 1994. The writings file contains clippings of articles authored by Schorr for various serial publications, as well as a copy of his manuscript for Staying Tuned: A Life in Journalism.
The Oversize series includes awards, certificates, and posters.