David Kahn (writer)
| David Kahn | |
|---|---|
David Kahn 2009
|
|
| Born |
February 7, 1930 New York City |
| Occupation | Historian, journalist, writer |
| Notable works | The Codebreakers - The Story of Secret Writing |
| Spouse | Susanne Fiedler (divorced) |
| Children | Oliver and Michael |
David Kahn (b. February 7, 1930) is a US historian, journalist and writer. He has written extensively on the history of cryptography and military intelligence.
Kahn's first published book, The Codebreakers - The Story of Secret Writing (1967), has been widely considered to be a definitive account of the history of cryptography.
David Kahn was born in New York City to Florence Abraham Kahn, a glass manufacturer, and Jesse Kahn, a lawyer.
Kahn has said he traces his interest in cryptography to reading Fletcher Pratt's Secret and Urgent as a boy. Kahn is a founding editor of the Cryptologia journal. In 1969, Kahn married Susanne Fiedler; they are now divorced. They have two sons, Oliver and Michael.
He attended Bucknell University. After graduation, he worked as a reporter at Newsday for several years. He also served as an editor at the International Herald Tribune in Paris for two years in the 1960s.
It was during this period that he wrote an article for the New York Times Magazine about two defectors from the National Security Agency. This article was the origin of his monumental book, The Codebreakers.
The Codebreakers comprehensively chronicles the history of cryptography from ancient Egypt to the time of its writing. It is widely regarded as the best account of the history of cryptography up to its publication. Most of the editing, German translating, and insider contributions were from the American World War II cryptographer, Bradford Hardie III. William Crowell, the former deputy director of the National Security Agency, was quoted in Newsday as saying "Before he (Kahn) came along, the best you could do was buy an explanatory book that usually was too technical and terribly dull."
...
Wikipedia