Peter Arnett, the New Zealand-born journalist who became a household name reporting from the front lines of some of the 20th and 21st centuries’ most significant conflicts, died December 17 in Los Angeles at the age of 89. From the rice paddies of Vietnam to the besieged streets of Baghdad, Arnett’s unflinching coverage redefined war reporting, earning him a Pulitzer Prize and a reputation for both courage and controversy. His career, spanning more than five decades, wasn’t defined by taking sides, but by a relentless pursuit of truth, a commitment he maintained even when it drew the ire of governments and the public alike.
Born Peter Gregg Arnett on November 13, 1934, in Riverton, New Zealand, he grew up in Bluff, a small coastal town he often described as being “at the bottom end of the world.” His connection to the land ran deep; his great-great-grandmother was of Ngāi Tahu, and his family held traditional rights to gather muttonbirds – tītī – on Poutama Island. Arnett often spoke of these early adventures as formative, instilling in him a sense of resilience and self-reliance that would serve him well throughout his career. He attended Waitaki Boys’ High School, though his time there was cut short by expulsion for violating school dating rules.
From Local News to Global Conflict
Arnett’s journalistic journey began modestly, writing for the Southland Times alongside his brothers, covering local events like cat shows and community meetings. But his ambition extended far beyond local reporting. After a stint in Wellington, he sought opportunities abroad, working for English-language newspapers in Thailand and Laos. It was in Laos, reporting on the escalating civil war for the Associated Press (AP) in 1960, that Arnett first demonstrated the daring and resourcefulness that would turn into his hallmarks. When Captain Le Kong seized control of the country, Arnett famously swam across a river, clutching his story, passport, and $200 in his teeth, to reach Thailand and file his report, ensuring it reached news outlets worldwide.
This act of journalistic commitment foreshadowed a career defined by being in the thick of the action. Arnett’s coverage of the Vietnam War for AP cemented his reputation as a premier war correspondent. His reporting was lauded for its objectivity and detail, providing a ground-level perspective often missing from official narratives. David Halberstam, a Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times journalist, called him “the best reporter of the [Vietnam] war,” while Bill Keller, the paper’s editor, described him as “maybe the quintessential war correspondent of our half-century.”
A Pulitzer and Controversy in Vietnam
Arnett’s unflinching reporting didn’t always sit well with those in power. In 1965, an aide to President Lyndon B. Johnson reportedly described him as “more damaging to the US cause than a whole battalion of Vietcong.” Despite the criticism, Arnett continued to report with unwavering dedication, earning the Pulitzer Prize for International Reporting in 1966. He remained in Vietnam after the official U.S. Withdrawal in 1973, feeling a responsibility to document the war’s final chapter, and was among the last journalists to exit Saigon in 1975 as the city fell to North Vietnamese forces.
Arnett’s approach, as he himself explained in his autobiography, Live from the Battlefield, was rooted in a commitment to objective reporting. “From the beginning of the war to the end I looked at Vietnam as a news story, not a crusade for one side or the other,” he wrote. “I believed that gathering information was a worthwhile pursuit, and truth the greatest goal I could aspire to.”
From Baghdad to CNN and Beyond
In 1981, Arnett joined CNN, a fledgling cable news network, and his profile rose dramatically during the Gulf War in 1991. He and two colleagues were the only Western journalists with live access to Baghdad during the initial hours of Operation Desert Storm, providing unprecedented coverage as the coalition forces launched their attack. As the frontline approached the Iraqi capital, Arnett remained the sole Western reporter in the city, a position that drew both acclaim and condemnation. He faced accusations of being a “traitor of Baghdad,” particularly after securing an exclusive interview with Saddam Hussein. Arnett defended CNN’s coverage, arguing that it offered a perspective “not subject to US censorship,” showing the impact of the bombing on civilian areas.
Throughout his career, Arnett interviewed numerous world leaders, including Fidel Castro, General Manuel Noriega, and, in a particularly prescient 1997 interview, Osama bin Laden. When asked about his future plans, bin Laden chillingly replied, “You’ll see them and hear about them in the media, God willing,” a statement that would take on a grim significance after the 9/11 attacks.
However, Arnett’s career wasn’t without further controversy. A 1998 CNN/Time magazine report alleging that the U.S. Military had used chemical weapons on deserters in Laos during the Vietnam War sparked a major outcry. An internal CNN investigation found the reporting to be “flawed,” leading to a retraction and Arnett’s departure from the network a year later. He later returned to Iraq in 2003 to cover the U.S.-led invasion for NBC and National Geographic, but was again embroiled in controversy after stating on Iraqi state television that the initial U.S. War plan had failed, resulting in his dismissal from both networks.
Arnett retired from journalism in 2007, having earned over 60 journalism awards throughout his career. In 2012, he was awarded the New Zealand Order of Merit in the Queen’s Birthday Honours. He later served as a professor of journalism at Shantou University in China, retiring from that position in 2015. He remained a U.S. Citizen while retaining his New Zealand passport.
Peter Arnett’s legacy is complex, a testament to the challenges and responsibilities of war reporting. He leaves behind his wife, Nina Nguyen, and their children, Andrew, a filmmaker, and Elsa, who followed in her father’s footsteps as a journalist. The next official recognition of his contributions will be a memorial service planned by his family in Los Angeles in early January, according to NZ On Screen.
His career serves as a reminder of the vital role journalists play in bearing witness to history, even – and perhaps especially – when that history is uncomfortable or unpopular. Share your memories of Peter Arnett’s reporting and its impact on your understanding of global events in the comments below.
