Dr. William Hammond is an American historian who specializes in the United States’ conflicts in Southeast Asia, especially Vietnam. He worked in Washington, DC for the Army’s Center of Military History. During his career, he has written two books about Korean and Vietnam and mentored several more. He is best known for his widely praised account of media and military relations during the Vietnam War. Dr. Hammond now works as an adjunct professor at the University of Maryland, College Park, teaching courses about Vietnam and military-media history.[1]
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Dr. Hammond matriculated at The Catholic University of America in Washington DC. After earning his bachelor’s degree in medieval history, Dr. Hammond continued at Catholic University, working for a Ph.D. Dr. Hammond earned his Ph.D in history in 1972, while the Vietnam War raged.
After receiving his Ph.D., Dr. Hammond began working as a civilian for the United States Army Center of Military History. Dr. Hammond worked at the Army Center for almost forty years, becoming Chief of the General Histories Branch. While at the Center, Dr. Hammond co-authored Black Soldier, White Army, a history of African American soldiers during the Korean War and the end of segregation in the army.[2] Dr. Hammond’s greatest work was a two volume series about the military and the media during Vietnam. A condensed version was released in 1998, titled Reporting Vietnam: Media and the Military at War. The book would later win the Richard W. Leopold Prize two years later. The book was a critical success, with Stephen Ambrose calling it "the best study of the press and the armed forces ever written." [3] The book is important as the US Army admits that the press did not cause the military defeat in Vietnam.
Starting in 1991, Dr. Hammond began teaching honors seminars in the University of Maryland. He is a senior lecturer and offers classes such as the Military and the Media in American History and The United States in Vietnam.[4]
Public Affairs: The Media and the Military, 1962 - 1968 (1988)
Public Affairs: The Military and the Media, 1968–1973 (1996)
Black Soldier, White Army: The 24th Infantry Regiment in Korea (1996)
Reporting Vietnam: Media and Military at War (1998)