Wallace Carroll

John Wallace Carroll (December 5, 1906 – July 28, 2002) was an American journalist, newspaper editor, and publisher, known for his 1968 editorial "Vietnam — Quo Vadis?" which called for an end to the Vietnam War and influenced President Lyndon B. Johnson’s initial withdrawal of troops from the conflict. Carroll at the time was the editor and publisher of the Winston-Salem Journal and Sentinel (1963–1974). Carroll had previously worked as news editor for the Washington Bureau of The New York Times (1955–1963), as executive editor of the Winston-Salem Journal and Sentinel (1949–1955) and as a foreign correspondent for United Press in Europe (1929–1942). From 1942 to 1945 he headed the European division of the United States Office of War Information, charged with all propaganda efforts aimed at Nazi-conquered Europe during World War II. While in Great Britain and France he covered London's hunger strikes and the Stavisky riots in Paris, reporting on the growing political and economic discontent on the continent. On his return home via Asia, he landed in Pearl Harbor just days after the Japanese attack on the U.S. fleet and was among the first journalists allowed to view the destruction. That year he also published the book We’re In This With Russia, an assessment of the Soviet Union's ability to fight off the Nazi onslaught. The position required Carroll to work closely with both the Political Warfare Executive, a secret British agency created in 1941 to produce and disseminate propaganda, as well as with General Dwight Eisenhower’s Psychological Warfare Branch. During this time, Carroll was instrumental in developing communication strategies aimed at ensuring the preservation of Rome and in minimizing the Luftwaffe’s presence during D-Day, among other campaigns. during which numerous journalists under Carroll and Reston's direction garnered fame and recognition. These included Russell Baker, Tom Wicker, Allen Drury, Anthony Lewis, and Max Frankel, among others. His return coincided with the surgeon general's report on the dangers of smoking in 1964. He also provided frequent advice to the U.S. State Department on U.S.-Soviet relations. Like his father, John was a member of the Pulitzer Prize Board, and garnered numerous journalism awards before his death in 2015.