Pierre Emil George Salinger (June 14, 1925 – October 16, 2004) was an American journalist, author and politician. He served as the ninth press secretary for United States Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson. Salinger served as a United States Senator in 1964 and as campaign manager for the 1968 Robert F. Kennedy presidential campaign.

After leaving politics, Salinger became known for his work as an ABC News correspondent, particularly for his coverage of the Iran Hostage Crisis; the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland; and his claims of a missile being the cause of the explosion of TWA Flight 800.

Salinger was born in San Francisco, California. His father, Herbert Salinger, was a New York City-born mining engineer, and his mother, Jehanne (née Biétry), was a French-born journalist. Salinger's mother was Catholic and his father was Jewish.

His maternal grandfather was Pierre Biétry, a member of the French National Assembly, who became known for his "vigorous" defense of Capt. Alfred Dreyfus, who was wrongly convicted of treason in 1894. Bietry died in Indochina at the age of 39.

Salinger was considered a child prodigy in music who played on a grand piano even before he learned to read. After his family moved to Canada, his parents discovered his innate talent at the piano and he was enrolled into the Toronto Conservatory of Music, where he was groomed to become a concert pianist. He recalled, "Each weekday, a tutor came to the house for three hours of academic instruction, and when she left, I was 'free' to practice the piano for four or five hours."

He gave his first public concert when he was six and was considered a concert pianist. He continued studying piano after they returned to San Francisco and was able play scores by Bach, Debussy, Beethoven and George Gershwin, whom he once met.

When he was 12, Salinger's mother told him his full-time piano studies were isolating him from society. She suggested he spend a year away from piano to engage in other social activities, including sports. He did, but never returned to his original goal of becoming a pianist and instead wanted to become a writer or journalist.

His talent and love of music carried over into his career as press secretary when, at the behest of First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy, he would invite musicians such as Pablo Casals and Igor Stravinsky to the White House. President Lyndon B. Johnson once had Salinger perform on the piano to 600 of his guests.  "If Jackie Kennedy was the one who thought maybe America was ready for a higher culture, her ally in it or her agent was Pierre," said Richard Reeves, author of President Kennedy: Profile of Power (1993).

Salinger attended public magnet Lowell High School in San Francisco. He attended San Francisco State University (then College) from 1941 to 1943, during which time he became managing editor and columnist for the student newspaper.

Salinger left SF State to enlist in the United States Navy in July 1943 and became skipper of a submarine chaser off Okinawa during World War II. He distinguished himself during Typhoon Louise by making a daring rescue of some men stranded on a reef. For this act, he received the Navy and Marine Corps medal. ...

Source: Article "Pierre Salinger" from Wikipedia in English, licensed under CC-BY-SA 3.0.

Pierre Salinger est un journaliste et conseiller en communication politique américain, né le 14 juin 1925 à San Francisco (Californie) et mort le 16 octobre 2004 à Cavaillon (Vaucluse).

Né aux États-Unis, d'un père américain, Herbert Salinger, ingénieur des mines, originaire de New York, et d'une mère française, Jehanne Biétry, journaliste, originaire de la région de Belfort, fille de Pierre Biétry, député du Finistère et syndicaliste, dirigeant de la Fédération nationale des Jaunes de France. Pierre Salinger est élevé dans la religion catholique professée par sa mère (son père étant juif).

Engagé dans la Deuxième Guerre mondiale (1939-1945) dans la marine, il est décoré de la Navy and Marine Corps Medal, pour conduite héroïque, puis commence en 1946 une longue carrière de quarante ans de journaliste, en commençant au San Francisco Chronicle.

En 1947, il est diplômé de l'Université de San Francisco (USF). Il se fait un nom, enquêtant notamment sur les terribles situations dans les prisons américaines ou encore sur les liens entre le syndicat des camionneurs et la mafia (article dans le Collier's Magazine). Cette dernière enquête lui fait rencontrer Robert Kennedy en 1957. Il avait dans le passé rejoint Adlai Stevenson, candidat démocrate à l'élection présidentielle américaine de 1952 contre le général Dwight Eisenhower.

Sa rencontre avec Robert «Bob» Kennedy va lui permettre de devenir chef des enquêteurs pour le Sénat. À cette occasion il rencontre John Fitzgerald Kennedy, jeune sénateur du Massachusetts. Les frères Kennedy l'introduisent rapidement et il devient un membre du «clan». En 1960, il est nommé responsable de presse de la campagne de John Kennedy, puis en 1961 porte-parole de la Maison-Blanche, fonction qu'il conservera après l'assassinat de John F. Kennedy, sous la présidence de Lyndon Johnson jusqu'en 1964.

Il devient ensuite sénateur par intérim pendant une courte période, remplaçant le sénateur démocrate Clair Engle. De 1965 à 1968 il est Vice-président de la Continental Airlines.

En 1968, il dirige la campagne à la présidence de Robert Kennedy. Lorsque ce dernier est assassiné le 4 juin 1968, Salinger est à une trentaine de mètres de lui. Bouleversé par cet assassinat, il déménage en France.

Bilingue, il devient grand reporter à l'hebdomadaire français L'Express entre 1973 et 1978. Il prend également la direction de Radio Caraïbes International avec son ami Jacques Dauphin à partir de 1978. Il travaille ensuite pour le réseau de télévision ABC, dont il a notamment dirigé le bureau de Paris (en tant que Chief Foreign Correspondent) puis celui de Londres de 1978 à 1987.

À la fin des années 1980, il figure également, avec d'autres personnalités comme François Spoerry, Paul-Loup Sulitzer et Jean-Pierre Thiollet, parmi les membres d'Amiic, organisation mondiale pour l'investissement immobilier et la construction implantée à Genève (dissoute en 1997). ...

Source: Article "Pierre Salinger" de Wikipédia en français, soumis à la licence CC-BY-SA 3.0.