The publication of “Hiroshima,” John Hersey’s seminal 1946 New Yorker piece, was a turning point in the history of the magazine and in the course of investigative journalism in America. A war correspondent in the Pacific, Hersey was one of the first American journalists to arrive at Hiroshima after the United States detonated an atomic bomb there on August 6, 1945. He quickly began gathering eyewitness accounts for a New Yorker story. What resulted was a powerful and detailed 30,000-word narrative that chronicled the experiences of six survivors, while exploring the human and ethical implications of the atomic age. Two months before the story’s publication, Hersey proposed that the piece be printed in four parts. Instead, Shawn convinced Ross to devote an entire issue to Hersey’s historic report—a first for the magazine.

Learn more about John Hersey’s “Hiroshima” from author and journalist Lesley Blume in the audio guide.