Judith Miller
Her April 2001 front-page story, 'Defector Describes Iraqi Mobile Biological Weapons,' directly shaped the case for war, a story the Times later disavowed in a 1,200-word editor's note.
Born 1948 (age 78)·American journalist·Birthday: January 2·Baby Boomers
Biography
Judith Miller co-wrote the April 21, 2001, article 'Defector Describes Iraqi Mobile Biological Weapons,' citing Curveball, a source later deemed a fabricator by intelligence agencies. The Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times reporter spent 85 days in jail in 2005 for contempt of court, refusing to reveal her source in the Valerie Plame CIA leak case. Miller's reporting, particularly a September 8, 2002, story headlined 'U.S. Says Hussein Intensifies Quest for A-Bomb Parts,' became a primary document for the Bush administration's case to invade Iraq. The Times published an extraordinary editor's note on May 26, 2004, stating that coverage led by Miller was 'not as rigorous as it should have been.' She left the paper later that year. Miller later authored the 2015 book 'The Story: A Reporter's Journey,' defending her methods. Her career remains a central exhibit in debates about journalistic sourcing, institutional accountability, and the media's role in enabling state power.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
Judith was born in 1948, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Judith Was Born
The biggest hits of 1948
#1 Movie
The Red Shoes
Best Picture
Hamlet
#1 TV Show
Texaco Star Theatre
Judith's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1948Born
Israel declares independence; Berlin Blockade begins
Gas: $0.26/galHome: $7,450Min wage: $0.40/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Twelfth Street Rag" — Pee Wee HuntBest Picture: Hamlet
1953Started school
DNA structure discovered by Watson and Crick
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $8,750Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Song from Moulin Rouge" — Percy FaithBest Picture: From Here to Eternity
1961Became a teenager
Yuri Gagarin becomes the first human in space
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $12,500Min wage: $1.15/hrPresident: John F. Kennedy"Tossin' and Turnin'" — Bobby LewisBest Picture: West Side Story
1964Could drive
Civil Rights Act signed; Beatles arrive in America
Gas: $0.30/galHome: $13,450Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"I Want to Hold Your Hand" — The BeatlesBest Picture: My Fair Lady
1966Could vote
Star Trek premieres on television
Gas: $0.32/galHome: $14,200Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"The Ballad of the Green Berets" — SSgt Barry SadlerBest Picture: A Man for All Seasons
1969Turned 21
Apollo 11: humans walk on the Moon; Woodstock festival
Gas: $0.35/galHome: $15,550Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Sugar, Sugar" — The ArchiesBest Picture: Midnight Cowboy
1978Turned 30
First test-tube baby born
Gas: $0.63/galHome: $35,300Min wage: $2.65/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Shadow Dancing" — Andy GibbBest Picture: The Deer Hunter
1988Turned 40
Pan Am Flight 103 bombed over Lockerbie
Gas: $0.90/galHome: $74,800Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Faith" — George MichaelBest Picture: Rain Man
1998Turned 50
Google founded; Clinton impeachment
Gas: $1.06/galHome: $107,300Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Too Close" — NextBest Picture: Shakespeare in Love
2008Turned 60
Barack Obama elected first Black US president; financial crisis
Gas: $3.27/galHome: $153,100Min wage: $6.55/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Low" — Flo RidaBest Picture: Slumdog Millionaire
2018Turned 70
Royal wedding of Harry and Meghan; Parkland shooting
Gas: $2.72/galHome: $211,800Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Donald Trump"God's Plan" — DrakeBest Picture: Green Book
2026Age 78 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Shared the 2002 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service for reporting on global terrorism.
- Co-authored the 1990 bestseller 'Saddam Hussein and the Crisis in the Gulf.'
- Was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for International Reporting in 1986.
Did You Know?
She began her career at The Progressive magazine in 1971.
She holds a master's degree in public affairs from Princeton University.
She was the first female bureau chief for The New York Times in Washington, D.C. (never held the position; this is a corrected fact).
“My job is to tell readers what the government says. It is not my job to pass judgment on whether it is true.”
