Melvin L. Barnet
Encyclopedia
Melvin L. Barnet was a copy editor for The New York Times
from 1953-1955. He was known for being immediately fired when he invoked the Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution
at a Senate subcommittee hearing in 1955.
before the Senate Internal Security Subcommittee, as a Communist.
Barnet was called before the subcommittee on July 13, 1955. The Senators at the hearing were concerned with Barnet's and his associates political activity during the 1930s. Barnet told the subcommitee he had abandoned Communism
in 1942. The subcommittee then moved on to question him about other people he may or may not have known "as a Communist."
The committee's attorney presented the names of twenty other people and each time Barnet responded to the question with the same sentence, "I assert my privilege, sir, under the 5th Amendment." When Burdett's name was presented Barnet still refused to identify even his accuser "as a Communist."
After the hearing ended Barnet returned to the Times Washington Bureau where he was handed a note that read, in part, that his conduct "has caused the Times to lose confidence in you as a member of its news staff."
Barnet's career in journalism ended the day of the hearing, he was 59 years old.
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
from 1953-1955. He was known for being immediately fired when he invoked the Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution
Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution
The Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which is part of the Bill of Rights, protects against abuse of government authority in a legal procedure. Its guarantees stem from English common law which traces back to the Magna Carta in 1215...
at a Senate subcommittee hearing in 1955.
The hearing
Barnet, a Harvard educated journalist, had worked his way to The New York Times when he was implicated, in the testimony of Winston BurdettWinston Burdett
Winston Burdett was an American broadcast journalist and correspondent for the CBS Radio Network during World War II and later for CBS television news. He was born in Buffalo, New York. From 1937-1942 he was involved with the Communist Party...
before the Senate Internal Security Subcommittee, as a Communist.
Barnet was called before the subcommittee on July 13, 1955. The Senators at the hearing were concerned with Barnet's and his associates political activity during the 1930s. Barnet told the subcommitee he had abandoned Communism
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
in 1942. The subcommittee then moved on to question him about other people he may or may not have known "as a Communist."
The committee's attorney presented the names of twenty other people and each time Barnet responded to the question with the same sentence, "I assert my privilege, sir, under the 5th Amendment." When Burdett's name was presented Barnet still refused to identify even his accuser "as a Communist."
After the hearing ended Barnet returned to the Times Washington Bureau where he was handed a note that read, in part, that his conduct "has caused the Times to lose confidence in you as a member of its news staff."
Barnet's career in journalism ended the day of the hearing, he was 59 years old.