William Shawn

William Shawn (born Aug. 31, 1907, Chicago, Ill., U.S.—died Dec. 8, 1992, New York, N.Y.) was an American editor who headed The New Yorker (1952–87), shaping it into one of the most influential periodicals in the United States.

Shawn left college after two years and briefly worked as a journalist and pianist before joining The New Yorker as a freelance writer (1933). In 1939 he was named managing editor. After the death of founding editor Harold Ross (1952), Shawn became editor and shifted the magazine’s tone from lighthearted irreverence to serious reporting of major social and political issues. He was esteemed as an editor who demanded accuracy and who nurtured writers and other editors. He published writing by John Cheever, John Updike, Hannah Arendt, John McPhee, James Baldwin, Rachel Carson, and Truman Capote, whose In Cold Blood was first serialized in the magazine (1965). He hired two critics with far-reaching influence—Pauline Kael, on film, and Roger Angell, on baseball. When new owners forced Shawn to retire in 1987, more than 150 of his colleagues protested by asking his replacement to decline the position.