Herman Sandberg
 Herman Sandberg    (journalist) | ||||||||||||||
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 Sandberg (right) in 1964 | ||||||||||||||
| Born | 19 December 1918 Dieren | |||||||||||||
| Died | 10 January 2008 (Age 89) Laren | |||||||||||||
| Nationality | Dutch | |||||||||||||
| Alma mater | University of Amsterdam | |||||||||||||
| Children | • Jan Sandberg • Jacobijn Sandberg • Pieter Sandberg | |||||||||||||
Dutch editor-in-chief of one of the country's largest newspapers at the time, Het Parool.
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Herman Willem Sandberg was a Dutch journalist. From 1961 to 1981 he was editor-in-chief of one of the country's largest newspapers at the time, Het Parool.[1] A staunch proponent of the U.S. war in Vietnam[2] , he attended the 1968 Bilderberg conference.
Background
During the Second World War and German occupation he was already involved in the then illegal newspaper Het Parool and he was a member of the resistance. Sandberg studied law at the Municipal University in Amsterdam, where he obtained his master's degree shortly before the proclamation of the declaration of loyalty for students (March 13, 1943). [1]
He was one of the key figures in the Personal Cards Central (PBC), the resistance organization led by Gerrit van der Veen that specialized in the production of false identity cards and ration cards. In the second half of 1944 until the liberation in May 1945, he also took part in the armed resistance.[2]
Career
After an internship as a correspondent in Paris, Sandberg joined Het Parool in 1950, for which he would hold foreign posts for more than ten years as a correspondent in Bonn ((from where he covered the uprising of 1956 in Hungary) and London.[2] During his German period he completed his academic dissertation on the history of the formation of the Federal Republic.[1]
In 1961 he succeeded Dr PJ Koets as editor-in-chief of Het Parool. In that position, he became the longest-serving editor-in-chief in the newspaper's history.[2]
He was the first politically independent editor-in-chief of Het Parool. His predecessors GJ van Heuven Goedhart and Dr Koets were both members of the Labor Party. When Sandberg was appointed by the PvdA-related Foundation Board of Het Parool, Sandberg had stipulated that he would be completely free in his assessment of politics. [1]
His lack of affinity with the policy of the Labor Party in fact meant a break between the newspaper and the party, which led to an exodus of pro-PvdA board members (Dr. Ivo Samkalden, ir. H. Vos and JG Suurhoff).
Sandberg's vehement support of the Vietnam War alienated a substantial part of Het Parool's majority liberal and left-wing readership.[2] In addition to demographic changes, this started a steady decline in subscriptions and circulation, which persisted for almost four decades.
He was married to Rieke Hagen, a PBC courier whom he had met in the resistance. Three children were born of their marriage: Jan (journalist), Jacobijn (psychologist) and Pieter (lawyer).[1]
Event Participated in
| Event | Start | End | Location(s) | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bilderberg/1968 | 26 April 1968 | 28 April 1968 | Canada Mont Tremblant | The 17th Bilderberg and the 2nd in Canada |
