Biography: Tom Johnson

In the black journalist movement, Thomas A. Johnson holds an important piece of history – he was the first black reporter on a major daily to serve as a foreign correspondent. As a reporter on the staff of the New York Times, he broke that barrier in 1966. He worked in Africa, Asia (Vietnam), Europe and the Caribbean. He won numerous awards and a Pulitzer Prize nomination for his series on the black solider and the war in Vietnam.

Tom Johnson (center with glasses and camera) and members of the 173rd Airborne unit. Tom won a Pulitzer Prize nomination for his series on the black soldier and the war in Vietnam.

Mr. Johnson, who joined the New York Times in 1966, is currently president of Thomas A. Johnson & Associates, a New York City based public relations firm that he founded in 1981.

A native of St. Augustine, Florida, Johnson was graduated from Long Island University in 1954. From 1962 until he joined The Times, Johnson was a reporter on the staff of Newsday on Long Island. He also taught in the journalism department at New York University from 1969 until 1972. He developed the "Race and the News Media" course widely used by many colleges and universities.

Tom Johnson was a founding member of Black Perspective, the first organization of black reporters which was formed in New York City in 1967. He was also a founder of Black Enterprise magazine. Before beginning his college education, he served in the U.S. Army, attaining the rank of master sergeant. He is married, the father of four children and lives in the borough of Queens in New York City.

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