About David Wise
Lived 1930 – 2018 (aged 87–88). David Wise was an American journalist and novelist.
David Wise (May 10, 1930 – October 8, 2018) was an American journalist and author who worked for the New York Herald-Tribune in the 1950s and 1960s, and published a series of non-fiction books on espionage and US politics as well as several spy novels. His book The Politics of Lying: Government Deception, Secrecy, and Power won the George Polk Award (Book category, 1973), and the George Orwell Award (1975).
Early life Wise was born in Manhattan, New York City, New York.
Education In 1951, Wise graduated from Columbia University, where he was editor-in-chief of the Columbia Daily Spectator.
Career In 1951, Wise joined the New York Herald-Tribune and became the paper's White House correspondent in 1960. He was chief of the paper's Washington, D.C. bureau from 1963 to 1966. In 1970–71 he was a Fellow of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, and in 1977–79, he lectured in political science at the University of California, Santa Barbara. A confidential CIA review of The Invisible Government, which was declassified in 1995, declared that: "In Great Britain, which is second to none in its devotion to liberty, there exists an Official Secrets Act under which the authors would have been tried and sentenced to prison. … That much of this material has been printed before does not reduce the value to the Soviets of having it gathered in one volume under such genuine American auspices."
Later work Wise's book The Politics of Lying: Government Deception, Secrecy, and Power (1973) won the George Polk Award (Book category, 1973), and the George Orwell Award (1975). Later works include Cassidy's Run: The Secret Spy War Over Nerve Gas (2000) on Operation Shocker, and Spy: The Inside Story of How the FBI's Robert Hanssen Betrayed America, (2002), on Robert Hanssen.
Wise also published several novels, including Spectrum (1981), based on the 1965 The Apollo Affair.
Personal life On October 8, 2018, Wise died from pancreatic cancer in Washington, D.C. He was 88 years old.
Works Articles "Is Anybody Watching the CIA?" Inquiry (Nov. 27, 1978), pp. 17-21. Books The U-2 Affair, with Thomas B. Ross. Random House (1962). The Invisible Government, with Thomas B. Ross. Random House (1964). The Espionage Establishment, with Thomas B. Ross. Random House (1967). The Politics of Lying: Government Deception, Secrecy, and Power. Random House (1973). The American Police State: The Government Against the People. Random House (1976). Spectrum. Viking Press (1981). novel. The Children's Game. Doubleday (1983). novel. The Samarkand Dimension. St. Martin's/Marek (1987). novel. The Spy Who Got Away. Random House (1988). Molehunt: The Secret Search for Traitors that Shattered the CIA. Random House (1992). Nightmover: How Aldrich Ames Sold The CIA To The KGB For $4.6m. (1995). Cassidy's Run: The Secret Spy War Over Nerve Gas. Random House (2000). Spy: The Inside Story of How the FBI's Robert Hanssen Betrayed America. Random House (2002). Democracy Under Pressure: An Introduction to the American Political System, with Milton C. Cummings, Jr. (2004). Tiger Trap: America's Secret Spy War with China. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (2011).
Awards 1973 George Polk Award (Book category), for The Politics of Lying 1975 Orwell Award, for The Politics of Lying
Don’t just read it —
keep it.
Full-length biographies made to live with: read them, listen on the way to work, watch them tonight.
- E-book
- Audio
- Video
Instant download · yours to keep · every purchase keeps this site free
Important facts
People in David Wise's life
Named in this biography and alive at the same time
Contemporaries
People whose lives overlapped David Wise's
Frequently asked questions
Who was David Wise?
American journalist and author (1930-2018)
When was David Wise born?
David Wise was born in 1930.
When did David Wise die?
David Wise died on 8 October 2018.
What was David Wise's occupation?
David Wise was a journalist and novelist.
What nationality was David Wise?
David Wise was American.
Sources & further reading
· DBpedia: David Wise (journalist)
Cite this page
APA: Biography.guide. (2026). David Wise. https://biography.guide/david-wise-journalist/
MLA: "David Wise." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/david-wise-journalist/.
Chicago: "David Wise." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/david-wise-journalist/.
Data last updated: 2026-09-20 · Spot an error? Report a correction.
Page generated 2026-09-27 05:20 UTC