Raymond Clapper (1892–1944) was a commentator and news analyst for both radio and newspapers[1] who was described in a Life magazine article as "one of America's ablest and most-respected journalists."[2]
The son of a farmer of Pennsylvania Dutch ancestry, Clapper was born in La Cygne, Kansas. When he was young, his father moved the family to Kansas City in order to take a factory job to better support his family.[3]
In the summer of 1916, while he was still enrolled at the University of Kansas, Clapper worked as a reporter for The Kansas City Star.[6] That fall, he began working for the United Press wire service in Chicago, Illinois.[7] In 1917, he was promoted to manager of UP's Northwest Bureau, which had headquarters in Chicago and served newspapers in western Canada and portions of six states.[8]
In 1923, Clapper was transferred to Washington, D.C., to report on politics there. Six years later, he was made the manager of UP's Washington operation.[9]
Clapper's success resulted to a large extent from "his objective writing style and his ability to explain the politics and policies of Washington for the average reader."[9] His reputation was enhanced nationally by an exposé, "Racketeering in Washington," that was published in 1933. Later that year he was hired by The Washington Post. A year later, he began a column, Between You and Me, which was distributed daily to 176 Scripps-Howard Newspapers newspapers.[9]
When he died, Clapper was still officially a political columnist for Scripps-Howard, but he was reporting on the invasion of the Marshall Islands during World War II.[4]
Marquis Childs took over Clapper's column Washington Calling when he died.[10]
Clapper was a newscaster for the Mutual Broadcasting System in the 1930s and 1940s.[11] In 1942, he replaced Raymond Gram Swing on Mutual's evening newscast when Swing moved to another network. A reviewer writing about Clapper's debut broadcast wrote, "His approach is colloquial, colorful and vivid ..."[12]
Clapper's success in newspapers and radio led to opportunities in public speaking. An article in the January 24, 1942, issue of Billboard listed Clapper among "top radio names who are currently lecturing or have recently lectured, and who have been getting between $1,000 and $1,500."[15]
In 1944, Clapper's widow edited some of his columns into a book, Watching the World. It was published by Whittlesey House, McGraw-Hill Book Company, Inc.[16] The book was described in a contemporary advertisement as containing "the cream of his work -- columns, broadcasts, articles ... reflecting outstanding events during those critical years."[17] The book included a 32-page biography of Clapper by Mrs. Clapper.[18]
Clapper was killed February 1, 1944,[1] when an airplane in which he was riding collided with another plane during the World War II invasion of the Marshall Islands. "Both planes crashed into a lagoon," a news report said, leaving no survivors.[4]
^ abDeLong, Thomas A. (1996). Radio Stars: An Illustrated Biographical Dictionary of 953 Performers, 1920 through 1960. McFarland & Company, Inc. p. 55. ISBN978-0-7864-2834-2.
