On Heroism - (Atlantic Editions) by Jeffrey Goldberg (Paperback)

About the Book

"In this piercing study of Donald Trump's trenchant disdain for military personnel, Jeffrey Goldberg draws upon decades of his own reporting, including key interviews with figures such as John McCain, former Defense Secretary James Mattis, and former chairman of the Joint Chiefs Mark Milley, to paint a portrait of a president whose impulse is to dismiss acts of heroism, and willfully misunderstand the purpose of a military in a democracy"--Page [4] of cover.

Book Synopsis

From the editor-in-chief of The Atlantic comes a grave study of Donald Trump's trenchant disdain for military personnel, a preoccupation that reveals the extent to which Trump is grossly unfit to serve. An Atlantic Edition, featuring long-form journalism by Atlantic writers, drawn from contemporary articles or classic storytelling from the magazine's 165-year archive.

Jeffrey Goldberg draws upon decades of his own reporting, including key interviews with top officials such as John McCain, former Defense Secretary James Mattis, and former chairman of the Joint Chiefs Mark Milley. In doing so, Goldberg paints a portrait of a president whose impulse is to dismiss acts of heroism in pursuit of dangerously undemocratic processes and ideals.

Review Quotes

"The editor-in-chief of The Atlantic gathers five essays on key figures from the modern Republican Party who have exemplified--or utterly distorted--the meaning of patriotism . . . as the author showcases the sometimes maligned heroes who have battled to save the U.S. from the growing rot within, he also reveals the frightening ease with which democracy can be undermined by those unwilling to make the sacrifices necessary to protect it . . . Candid, timely reading." --Kirkus Reviews

About the Author

Jeffrey Goldberg is the editor in chief of The Atlantic, and is the moderator of Washington Week with The Atlantic on PBS. He joined The Atlantic in 2007 as a national correspondent and in 2016 was named the 15th editor in chief of The Atlantic, which was founded in 1857. In 2022 and 2023, The Atlantic won the National Magazine Award for General Excellence; this is the highest honor bestowed by the magazine industry. Under his leadership, The Atlantic has won the first Pulitzer Prizes in its history--three over the past three years--and set new audience and subscription records during his editorship. In 2020, Goldberg was named editor of the year by Adweek, which also named The Atlantic magazine of the year.

Before joining The Atlantic, Goldberg served as the Middle East correspondent and then the Washington correspondent for The New Yorker. Earlier in his career, he was a writer for The New York Times Magazine and New York magazine. He began his career as a police reporter for the Washington Post. Goldberg is the author of Prisoners: A Story of Friendship and Terror. A former fellow of the American Academy in Berlin, he also served as a public-policy scholar at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, and as the distinguished visiting fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Goldberg is the recipient of numerous awards, including the National Magazine Award for Reporting, the Daniel Pearl Award for Reporting, the Overseas Press Club's award for human-rights reporting, and the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists Prize for best investigative reporting.