Eason Jordan

Last updated
Eason Jordan
Eason Jordan at Gotham Media Lunch Break.jpg
Eason Jordan in 2012
Born (1960-10-16) October 16, 1960 (age 63)
U.S.
Occupation(s)Journalist, television executive, entrepreneur
Employer CNN (1982–2005)
Awards Emmy Award (x4)
Peabody Award (x2)
DuPont-Columbia Award
Livingston Award

Eason Jordan (born October 16, 1960) is an executive and entrepreneur who serves as the Rockefeller Foundation's Senior Vice President for Connected Leaders. [1]

Contents

He previously helped launch and lead CNN, NowThis News, the Malala Fund and several of his own companies. [2]

Biography

Jordan studied at DeKalb College and Georgia State University. Early jobs included assignment editor at WXIA-TV, and radio news correspondent at WGIG, both in Altanta. He was later a correspondent for WSBI in Brunswick, Tennessee. [3]

At CNN, where he worked 1982-2005, he served as chief news executive and president of newsgathering and international networks. While at CNN, he helped oversee CNN's coverage of the Falklands War and the 1982 Lebanon War. In 1989 he was appointed to direct CNN's international news coverage, and in 1995 took on the added responsibility of overseeing CNN International. [3]

He subsequently (2005-2012) founded and headed several companies, including Oryx Strategies, Poll Position, Headline Apps, and Praedict. [2] In 2006, Jordan teamed up with journalist Robert Young Pelton and several others to launch Iraq Slogger, a clearinghouse of news and information coming out of Iraq during the Iraq War. The site was intended to aggregate articles by both foreign correspondents and Iraqi journalists, as well as nonprofessionals. [4] [5] [6] According to Pelton, the site had insufficient income and ceased operations in 2009. [7]

In 2012, Jordan joined NowThis, a digital video news service, as its founding general manager, [8] [9] [10] [11] working there for two years.

He later (2014-2017) served as a director at the Malala Fund, the education-focused foundation launched by Malala Yousafzai, the youngest-ever Nobel Peace Prize laureate and U.N. Messenger of Peace. He initially served as the organization's director of operations and communications and later as its director of special projects. [12]

Jordan serves on the board of trustees of the Fugees Family NGO [13] and the advisory council of Stanford's Human Perception Lab,[ citation needed ] and he is member of the Council on Foreign Relations [14] and the ONE Campaign.

He was portrayed by the actor Clark Gregg in Live From Baghdad (2002), a film about the team of CNN journalists who covered the first Gulf War. As CNN was the only news organization broadcasting live, firsthand reports from Baghdad, the Iraqi capital, for most of the war, this is widely considered the event that "put CNN on the map". [15]

Controversy

On April 11, 2003, Jordan revealed in an opinion piece in The New York Times called "The News We Kept to Ourselves" that CNN knew about human rights abuses committed in Iraq by Saddam Hussein since 1990. [16] As described in the same essay, Jordan personally met with Uday Hussein, eldest son of Saddam Hussein of Iraq, in 1995 at the Iraqi Olympic Committee headquarters, where Hussein told Jordan he intended to assassinate his two sons-in-law, Hussein Kamel al-Majid and Saddam Kamel, who had defected to Jordan and exposed the Iraqi regime. They were eventually killed upon their return to Iraq. [17]

In response to his op-ed, Jordan was harshly criticized by The New Republic 's Franklin Foer, in an article in The Wall Street Journal , who said CNN should have left Iraq rather than spread the regime's propaganda. [18]

Alleged comments at 2005 World Economic Forum

On January 27, 2005, during the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, Jordan was reported to have said that American troops were targeting journalists. Although there is no transcript of Jordan's statement (the event was videotaped, but the WEF refused to release it, or make a transcript of the event), Barney Frank claimed Jordan seemed to be suggesting "it was official military policy to take out journalists", and later added that some U.S. soldiers targeted reporters "maybe knowing they were killing journalists, out of anger" — claims that Jordan denied. [19]

On February 11, 2005, Jordan resigned from CNN to "prevent CNN from being unfairly tarnished by the controversy over conflicting accounts of my recent remarks regarding the alarming number of journalists killed in Iraq". [20] [19] In a press release, Jordan also stated that "I have great admiration and respect for the men and women of the U.S. armed forces, with whom I have worked closely and been embedded in Baghdad, Tikrit, and Mosul". [19]

U.S. News & World Report editor-at-large David Gergen, who had moderated the WEF discussion, [21] and BBC executive Richard Sambrook, defended Jordan and claimed his remarks, though controversial, were not as extreme as they were hyped and that he did not deserve to be removed from CNN. [19] [21] But U.S. entrepreneur Rony Abovitz, former CNN reporter Rebecca MacKinnon, U.S. journalist Bret Stephens, Swiss journalist Bernard Rapazz, U.S. Senator Chris Dodd, and French historian Justin Vaïsse were also present, and confirmed the essentials of Frank's account. [22]

Bloggers who covered the story (most newspapers and networks chose not to) noted that Jordan had been accusing Israeli and U.S. troops of deliberately targeting journalists as early as October 2002, and had made similar specific claims about Iraq in November 2004. [23] [24] [25] They also noted his earlier admission (in his New York Times Op-Ed piece, "The News We Kept to Ourselves") that CNN had deliberately downplayed the brutality of the Saddam Hussein regime in order to maintain CNN's access to the country. [16]

Awards

Jordan is the recipient of four Emmy Awards, two Peabody Awards, and the DuPont-Columbia Award. At the age of 31, he received the Livingston Award's "Special Citation For Outstanding Achievement" (previously only given posthumously) for coverage of the Gulf War, the Soviet crisis, and the African famine. [26] The Livingston Awards for excellence by professionals under the age of 35 are the largest all-media, general reporting prizes in American journalism.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saddam Hussein</span> President of Iraq from 1979 to 2003

Saddam Hussein was an Iraqi politician and revolutionary who served as the fifth president of Iraq from 1979 to 2003. He also served as prime minister of Iraq from 1979 to 1991 and later from 1994 to 2003. He was a leading member of the revolutionary Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party and later its Iraqi regional branch. Ideologically, he espoused Ba'athism, a mix of Arab nationalism and Arab socialism, while the policies and political ideas he championed are collectively known as Saddamism.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Timeline of the 2003 invasion of Iraq</span>

This is a timeline of the events surrounding the United States-led invasion of Iraq in 2003.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tariq Aziz</span> Iraqi politician (1936–2015)

Tariq Aziz was an Iraqi politician who served as Deputy Prime Minister (1979–2003), Minister of Foreign Affairs (1983–1991) and a close advisor of President Saddam Hussein. Their association began in the 1950s when both were activists for the then-banned Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party. He was both an Arab nationalist and a member of the Chaldean Catholic Church.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2003 invasion of Iraq</span> United States-led military invasion

The 2003 invasion of Iraq was the first stage of the Iraq War. The invasion began on 20 March 2003 and lasted just over one month, including 26 days of major combat operations, in which a United States-led combined force of troops from the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Poland invaded the Republic of Iraq. Twenty-two days after the first day of the invasion, the capital city of Baghdad was captured by coalition forces on 9 April after the six-day-long Battle of Baghdad. This early stage of the war formally ended on 1 May when U.S. President George W. Bush declared the "end of major combat operations" in his Mission Accomplished speech, after which the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) was established as the first of several successive transitional governments leading up to the first Iraqi parliamentary election in January 2005. U.S. military forces later remained in Iraq until the withdrawal in 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Human rights in Ba'athist Iraq</span> Human rights issues from 1979 to 2003

Iraq under the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party saw severe violations of human rights. Secret police, state terrorism, torture, mass murder, genocide, ethnic cleansing, rape, deportations, extrajudicial killings, forced disappearances, assassinations, chemical warfare, and the destruction of the Mesopotamian marshes were some of the methods Saddam Hussein and the country's Ba'athist government used to maintain control. Saddam committed crimes of aggression during the Iran–Iraq War and the Gulf War, which violated the Charter of the United Nations. The total number of deaths and disappearances related to repression during this period is unknown, but is estimated to be at least 250,000 to 290,000 according to Human Rights Watch, with the great majority of those occurring as a result of the Anfal genocide in 1988 and the suppression of the uprisings in Iraq in 1991. Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International issued regular reports of widespread imprisonment and torture.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Iraqi no-fly zones conflict</span> No-fly zones in Iraq proclaimed by the USA, UK and France between 1991–2003

The Iraqi no-fly zones conflict was a low-level conflict in the two no-fly zones (NFZs) in Iraq that were proclaimed by the United States, United Kingdom, and France after the Gulf War of 1991. The United States stated that the NFZs were intended to protect the ethnic Kurdish minority in northern Iraq and Shiite Muslims in the south. Iraqi aircraft were forbidden from flying inside the zones. The policy was enforced by the United States and the United Kingdom until 2003, when it was rendered obsolete by the 2003 invasion of Iraq. French aircraft patrols also participated until France withdrew in 1996.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Baghdad (2003)</span> Part of the invasion of Iraq

The Battle of Baghdad, also known as the Fall of Baghdad, was a military engagement that took place in Baghdad in early April 2003, as part of the invasion of Iraq.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Media coverage of the Iraq War</span>

The 2003 invasion of Iraq involved unprecedented U.S. media coverage, especially cable news networks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Timeline of the Iraq War</span> Sequence of events in the US invasion of Iraq

The following is a timeline of major events during the Iraq War, following the 2003 invasion of Iraq.

<i>Live from Baghdad</i> (film) 2002 television film

Live from Baghdad is a 2002 American television war drama film directed by Mick Jackson and co-written by Robert Wiener, based on Wiener's book of the same title. The film premiered on HBO on December 7, 2002, during the prelude stage of the Iraq War.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ayad Allawi</span> Prime Minister of Iraq from 2004 to 2005

Ayad Allawi is an Iraqi politician. He served as the vice president of Iraq from 2014 to 2015 and 2016 to 2018. Previously he was interim prime minister of Iraq from 2004 to 2005 and the president of the Governing Council of Iraq in 2003.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Iraqi insurgency (2003–2011)</span> Sectarian/anti-government warfare in American-occupied Iraq

An Iraqi insurgency began shortly after the 2003 American invasion deposed longtime leader Saddam Hussein. It is considered to have lasted until the end of the Iraq War and U.S. withdrawal in 2011. It was followed by a renewed insurgency.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Raghad Hussein</span> Daughter of Saddam Hussein

Raghad Saddam Hussein is an Iraqi in exile and the eldest daughter of former Iraqi ruler Saddam Hussein.

The following lists events in the year 2003 in Iraq.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Human shield action to Iraq</span> Activist movement in opposition to the 2003 Invasion of Iraq

The Human Shield Action to Iraq was a group of people who traveled to Iraq to act as human shields with the aim of preventing the U.S.-led coalition forces from bombing certain locations during the 2003 invasion of Iraq.

Events in the year 2005 in Iraq.

The Saddam–al-Qaeda conspiracy theory was based on false claims by the United States government alleging that a secretive relationship existed between Iraqi president Saddam Hussein and the Sunni pan-Islamist militant organization al-Qaeda between 1992 and 2003. U.S. president George W. Bush used it as a main reason for invading Iraq in 2003.

This article is a chronological listing of allegations of meetings between members of al-Qaeda and members of Saddam Hussein's government, as well as other information relevant to conspiracy theories involving Saddam Hussein and al-Qaeda.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Abu Musab al-Zarqawi</span> Jordanian jihadist (1966–2006)

Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, born Ahmad Fadeel al-Nazal al-Khalayleh, was a Jordanian jihadist who ran a terrorist training camp in Afghanistan. He became known after going to Iraq and being responsible for a series of bombings, beheadings, and attacks during the Iraq War, reportedly "turning an insurgency against US troops" in Iraq "into a Shia–Sunni civil war". He was sometimes known by his supporters as the "Sheikh of the slaughterers".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royal Tulip Al Rasheed Hotel</span> Hotel in Baghdad, Iraq

The Royal Tulip Al Rasheed Hotel is an 18-storey hotel in Baghdad, Iraq, often visited by journalists and media personnel due to its location within Baghdad's Green Zone. It is named after the eighth century Caliph Harun Al-Rashid. It has been a focal point in a number of conflicts in the region, most recently the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq.

References

  1. ↑ "Rockefeller Foundation Announces New Senior Vice President for Connected Leaders". Rockefeller Foundation (Press release). April 11, 2024.
  2. 1 2 "Eason Jordan". LinkedIn. Retrieved July 7, 2024.
  3. 1 2 "Jordan Eason". World Economic Forum. 5 December 2004. Archived from the original on Dec 26, 2004.
  4. ↑ Gahran, Amy (December 24, 2006). "Iraq Slogger: Pro + CitJ from former CNN Chief". Poynter. Retrieved 28 August 2017.
  5. ↑ Mitchell, Greg (December 13, 2006). "Former CNN News Chief To Launch 'IraqSlogger' Site". Editor & Publisher. Retrieved 28 August 2017.
  6. ↑ Filkins, Dexter; Mazzetti, Mark (March 14, 2010). "Contractors Tied to Effort to Track and Kill Militants". The New York Times. Retrieved 26 August 2017.
  7. ↑ Corn, David; Schulman, Daniel (March 29, 2010). "The Pentagon's Stringers". Mother Jones. Retrieved 26 August 2017.
  8. ↑ Weprin, Alex (10 September 2012). "WEBNEWSER: Former CNN Executive Eason Jordan Joins Social Video Startup Now This News". REVOLVING DOOR. TV Newser.
  9. ↑ Porter, Hannah (October 8, 2012). "Tailoring News for the Mobile Crowd: NowThis News is targeting a young audience that is tethered to smartphones and tablets". American Journalism Review . Archived from the original on Oct 11, 2012.
  10. ↑ SHEFFIELD, HAZEL (Nov 9, 2012). "Now This News launches an app to grow its global audience: A new mobile and social news service for millennials is evolving". BEHIND THE NEWS. Columbia Journalism Review.
  11. ↑ Hempel, Jessi (December 5, 2012). "Will news bites for digital natives work?". Fortune . Archived from the original on Feb 7, 2013.
  12. ↑ VALBY, KAREN (Nov 18, 2015). "Malala Strikes Back: Behind The Scenes Of Her Fearless, Fast-Growing Organization" . Fast Company.
  13. ↑ "Board of Trustees". Our Team. Fugees Family. Retrieved July 7, 2024.
  14. ↑ "Membership Roster". Council on Foreign Relations. Retrieved July 7, 2024.
  15. ↑ Kronke, David. "THE WAR THAT PUT CNN ON THE MAP". Daily News. The Free Library. Archived from the original on Mar 7, 2018.
  16. 1 2 Jordan, Eason (April 11, 2003). "The News We Kept to Ourselves". The New York Times.
  17. ↑ "U.S. Policy in Iraq". Washington Journal. C-Span. Retrieved Jan 28, 2007.
  18. ↑ Foer, Franklin (April 14, 2003). "CNN's Access of Evil: The network of record covered Saddam's repression with propaganda". Opinion. The Wall Street Journal . Archived from the original on Apr 22, 2008.
  19. 1 2 3 4 Kurtz, Howard (February 12, 2005). "CNN's Jordan Resigns Over Iraq Remarks". The Washington Post.
  20. ↑ BAUDER, DAVID (February 11, 2005). "CNN News Executive Eason Jordan Quits". Miami Herald. AP Reuters. Archived from the original on Feb 12, 2005.
  21. 1 2 "CNN RELIABLE SOURCES - Eason Jordan Resigns". CNN . Feb 13, 2005. Retrieved 12 November 2015.
  22. ↑ "The 'Supra-national' Professional News Class". Easongate. FDD's Long War Journal . Feb 6, 2005.
  23. ↑ "CNN executive: Iraq targeted network's journalists". CNN. April 11, 2003.
  24. ↑ "An Eason Jordan Timeline of Events". Easongate. FDD's Long War Journal. Feb 11, 2005.
  25. ↑ Rony (January 28, 2005). "Do US Troops Target Journalists in Iraq?". Forumblog.org - The World Economic Forum Weblog. Archived from the original on Jan 10, 2007.
  26. ↑ "Past Winners". Recognizing Young Journalists. Livingston Awards: University of Michigan. 2024. pp. 26–41.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.