Stanley Johnston's blunder

By Elliot Carlson

Subjects: Biography, Trials, litigation, Johnston, Stanley, Leaks (Disclosure of information), War correspondents -- United States -- Biography, World war, 1939-1945, cryptography, Censorship, Midway, battle of, 1942, World War, 1939-1945, War, press coverage, Leaks (Disclosure of information) -- United States -- History -- 20th century, World War, 1939-1945 -- Press coverage, Midway, Battle of, 1942, World War, 1939-1945 -- Censorship, Johnston, Stanley -- Trials, litigation, etc, Cryptography, Press coverage, World War, 1939-1945 -- Cryptography, War correspondents, World War, 1939-1945 -- Journalists, History, Chicago Tribune (Firm), Chicago tribune, Chicago Tribune (Firm) -- Trials, litigation, etc, Journalists

Description: "Elliot Carlson tells of Stanley Johnston, a Chicago Tribune reporter who exposed a vitally important secret during World War II. After Johnston is embarked in the USS Lexington during the Battle of the Coral Sea, he is assigned to a cabin on the rescue ship Barnett where messages from Pacific Fleet commander Admiral Chester Nimitz are circulated. One reveals the order of battle of Imperial Japanese Navy forces advancing on Midway Atoll. Johnston shares this info in a 7 June 1942 Chicago Tribune front-page story. Navy officials fear the Japanese will discover the article, realize their code has been cracked, and quickly change it. Drawing on seventy-five-year-old testimony never before released, Carlson describes the grand jury room where jurors convened by the FDR administration consider charges that Johnston violated the Espionage Act. Using FBI files, U.S. Navy records, archival materials from the Chicago Tribune, and Japanese sources, Carlson at last brings to light the full story of Stanley Johnston's trial."--Provided by publisher.