James Denton
 James Denton     (spook, propagandist) | |
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| Born | July 5, 1951 |
| Died | June 22, 2018 (Age 66) |
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | Elon College |
| Member of | Admiral Jeremiah Denton Foundation, American Committee for Peace in Chechnya, Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation |
He designed, developed, and implemented a portfolio of democratization programs that were active in over 30 countries, mostly in the former communist bloc. By a happy coincidence the new governments aligned with US economic and geopolitical interests.
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James Steele Denton [1] was the publisher and editor of World Affairs and the director of the World Affairs Institute[2] in Washington, D.C. Previously Denton was the executive director of Heldref Publications, founded by Jeane J. Kirkpatrick (of Le Cercle) and her husband Evron.[3]
He designed, developed, and implemented a portfolio of democratization programs that were active in over 30 countries, mostly in the former communist bloc. In addition, he launched a US-supported grant-making program in Eastern Europe to enhance the competence and influence of compliant human rights groups, "independent media" and think tanks that by a happy coincidence furthered US economic and political interests in the region.
Early life
Denton was the son of Jeremiah Denton, a United States Navy Rear Admiral and U.S. Senator from Alabama, and Jane Maury. James Denton grew up on military bases and finished high school in Virginia Beach. He graduated from Elon College in 1973. He went to Officer Candidate School and served in the Navy until 1979. After employment with a travel business in Norfolk, he moved to Washington, D.C.[4]
Denton was a Communications and Anti-Submarine warfare officer on a U.S. Navy warship beginning in 1974. Subsequent assignments included teaching Soviet submarine tactics, and serving in a special operations unit, as well as a watch officer at the Command Center for the Commander of the Atlantic Fleet.[5]
Career
Denton was the director the National Forum Foundation from 1984 to 1997, and executive director of Freedom House from 1997 to 2001. He negotiated and directed the merger of the two organizations in June 1997.
He designed, developed, and implemented a portfolio of democratization programs that were active in over 30 countries, mostly in the former communist bloc. In addition, he launched a US-supported grant-making program in Eastern Europe to enhance the competence and influence of compliant human rights groups, "independent media" and think tanks that by a happy coincidence further US economic and political interests in the region.
He was awarded the Merit of Order by the President of Romania,[6] a special commendation from the Polish government, as well as a commendation from the Coordinating Group of the Serbian Opposition for his part in the successful effort in the US/NATO regime change against Slobodan Milosevic.[6]
In a consulting capacity, he has represented Lech Walesa, Viktor Orbán, and Zoran Djindjic, and has also consulted to the OSCE, ABC News, North Carolina Ballet, The Corporation for Public Broadcasting, The Folger Shakespeare Library, The Twentieth Century Foundation (Budapest), The National Democratic Institute, The Open Society Institute, and The Claremont Institute.
From 2004 to 2006, he developed and implemented the America at a Crossroads initiative—a 20-hour nationally broadcast series of television documentaries that tried to steer public opinion in the wanted direction, "exploring the challenges and opportunities America faces" in the wake of the September 11 attacks. Crossroads was public television's most-watched series in 2007. [7][8]
Denton authored, edited and published books, reports and articles on human rights, democratic development, and terrorism. He is the author of Grinning with the Gipper (Atlantic Monthly Press), which showed how Ronald Reagan popularized his views with humor. He also worked as a speechwriter for Bob Dole's presidential campaign.
In November 2017 Denton received an Honorary Silver Medal of Jan Masaryk from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic.[9]
Personal life
Denton married Marilyn Grisham in 1976, and they had two children. On June 22, 2018, Denton died at his home in Washington, D.C. from prostate cancer at age 66.[4]
A Document by James Denton
| Title | Document type | Publication date | Subject(s) | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Document:Open Letter to Erdogan | open letter | 30 March 2016 | 2016 Turkish coup attempt Justice and Development Party PKK | Open letter from a number of neocon deep state actors warning Turkish Prime Minister Erdoğan to change his ways. The letter was published three months before the failed 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt. |
References
- ↑ https://freedomhouse.org/article/memoriam-james-s-denton |website=freedomhouse.org
- ↑ http://www.worldaffairsjournal.org/
- ↑ http://www.heldref.org/letter.html
- ↑ a b https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/james-s-denton-journal-editor-who-led-programs-to-advance-democracy-dies-at-66/2018/06/23/bc82b436-764d-11e8-9780-b1dd6a09b549_story.html
- ↑ http://www.worldaffairsjournal.org/About%20Us/bios.html
- ↑ a b http://www.freedomhouse.org/article/freedom-house-executive-director-receives-romanias-national-order-merit#.U2EG0cedDFQ
- ↑ http://www.cpb.org/grants/crossroads/chicago_transcript.pdf
- ↑ http://www.worldaffairsjournal.org/About%20Us/bios.html
- ↑ https://www.mzv.cz/jnp/en/issues_and_press/archive/events_and_issues/x2017/x2017_11_02_jan_masaryk_medal_to_james_denton.html
