The Library of Congress > Researchers > Search Finding Aids > Malcolm W. Browne papers, 1959-2013
Malcolm W. Browne papers, 1959-2013
The papers of Malcolm W. Browne (1931-2012) span the years 1959-2013. The collection contains correspondence, notebooks, working files, and research material associated primarily with Browne's career as a foreign correspondent and science writer for the New York Times. The papers are organized six series: Foreign Correspondent File , Science Correspondent File , Correspondence , Speeches and Writings File , Miscellany , and Oversize .
Before his employment with the New York Times, Browne served as the bureau chief for Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos for the Associated Press in Saigon, Vietnam. It was in this capacity in 1963 that he shot his award-winning photograph of the self-immolating Buddhist monk, Thích Quảng Đức, whose death drew exposure to the South Vietnamese government’s persecution of Buddhists. Browne, along with David Halberstrom, would go on to win the Pulitzer Prize for international reporting the following year. After joining the Times in 1967, he served as bureau chiefs for South America, Eastern Europe, and Southeast Asia. The Foreign Correspondent File encompasses his work from this period, including interoffice correspondence and memoranda from both the Associated Press and New York Times, work and research files from various assignments, and other material collected from his time serving abroad. The assignment files contain news copy, photographs, and other information relating to the various regions and stories Browne was assigned.
After his success as a foreign correspondent, Browne transitioned to the science department of the New York Times in 1977, covering topics more suited to his educational background and personal interests. He went on to became senior editor of the science magazine Discover from 1981-1985 before returning to the Times as a science reporter until his retirement. The Science Correspondent File includes Browne’s assignment files, subject files, and interoffice correspondence while working at the Times and Discover. A significant portion of the series consists of letters to the editor praising, criticising, and correcting his work. The files from his various assignments prominently feature Antarctica, which he visited and reported on several times.
The Correspondence series contains personal correspondence kept by Malcolm Browne throughout his career. Besides family members and friends, Browne kept in touch with several Associated Press colleagues including Horst Faas and Edith Lederer, as well as the then-Ambassador to South Vietnam, Henry Cabot Lodge, Jr. The Speeches and Writings File consists of journals, book reviews, articles written by and about Browne, and material regarding speaking events. The journals in this series are pocket journals Browne kept while covering his stories throughout his career, ranging from Vietnam and Cambodia to the many different topics covered while he was a science reporter. The Speeches and Writings File also contains material relating to his book, The New Face of War, including reviews, drafts of the second edition, and correspondence with Bobbs-Merrill and other publishing companies. The Miscellany series contains material related to organizations of which Browne was a member, his course instruction at Princeton University, and personal photographs.