Maureen Orth
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224300463
2008-07-08T06:27:43Z
Wklimon
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{{Infobox journalist
| name = Maureen Ann Orth
| image =
| caption =
| birthname =
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1943|1|26}}
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| education = [[B.A.]] 1964</br>[[University of California, Berkeley]]</br>Masters in Journalism, [[UCLA]]
| occupation = [[Journalist]]
| alias =
| gender = [[Female]]
| status =
| title =
| family =
| spouse = [[Tim Russert]] <br>(married 1983 until his death 2008)
| children = Luke Russert (born 1985)
| relatives =
| ethnic =
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| credits = ''[[Vanity Fair]]'' correspondent (1993-present), ''[[Vogue (magazine)|Vogue]]'' contributing editor (1984-1989), ''[[New York Woman]]'' columnist (1986-1990), ''[[Newsweek]]'' lifestyle editor, (1973-1978)
| agent =
| URL = http://maureenorth.com/
}}
'''Maureen Ann Orth''' (b. [[January 26]], [[1943]]) is an [[United States|American]] [[journalist]] who largely covers stories pertaining to [[pop culture]].
==Education and early career==
Orth attended the [[University of California, Berkeley]], graduating in 1964.<ref name="college">
{{cite web
| last = Edelstein
| first = Wendy
| title = The dangers of media lite: Vanity Fair reporter advises J-school students to do the ‘hard, hard work’ of reporting
| publisher = ''UCBerkeley News''
| date = 2004-05-04
| url = http://berkeley.edu/news/berkeleyan/2004/05/05_orth.shtml
| accessdate = 2008-06-18 }}
</ref> Following her graduation from college, she served in the [[Peace Corps]] in [[Medellín]], [[Colombia]], from 1964 to 1966.<ref name="peacecorps">
{{cite web
| last = Peace Corps
| first =
| title = Notable former Peace Corps Volunteers in Communications
| publisher = ''[[The Peace Corps]]''
| date =
| url = http://www.peacecorps.gov/index.cfm?shell=learn.whatispc.notable.communications
| accessdate = 2007-01-15 }}
</ref>
==Journalism career==
Maureen Orth served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Colombia in the 1960s where she helped build Escuela Marina Orth. An experienced journalist and the third woman writer of Newsweek, she has been a Special Correspondent for ''Vanity Fair'' since 1993. She started writing for the magazine in 1988. Among the heads of state she has interviewed are Russian President Vladimir Putin, British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, Argentine President Carlos Menem, and Irish President Mary Robinson.
She has also profiled controversial figures such as Gerry Adams, Madonna, Mohammed Fayed, Vladimir Zhirinovsky, Marc Rich, as well as fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld and Tina Tuner.
Orth’s investigative story highlighting the role of Afghanistan’s illegal opium trade in funding terrorism written shortly after 9/11, has been lauded by the Office of Drug Control Policy. Her profile on murder suspect Andrew Cunanan for the September 1997 issue was the first in-depth report on the man who killed Versace. The article served as the basis for her best selling book, Vulgar Favors (Delacorte Press, 1999). Orth has also written investigative pieces regarding the allegations of sexual abuse by Michael Jackson and child abuse by Woody Allen, and has chronicled the zig zagging career of Arianna Huffington.
Prior to joining Vanity Fair, Orth was contributing editor at Vogue and a network correspondent for NBC News. She was also a senior editor for New York and New West magazines. Orth worked for Newsweek from 1973 to 1978, where she was the entertainment editor and the lifestyle editor, and wrote seven cover stories. While at Newsweek she took a leave of absence to be Italian director Lina Wertmuller’s assistant on the film Seven Beauties. Orth has written for such publications as The Washington Post, The New York Times, Oprah, Rolling Stone, and Esquire. She was nominated for a National Magazine Award in reporting for her article on Michael and Arianna Huffington, which appeared in the November 1994 issue of Vanity Fair. While at Newsweek, Orth won a National Magazine Award for group coverage of the arts.
She helped begin an intergenerational residence for homeless mothers in New York City and has served on the Executive Committee of the College of Arts and Sciences, University of California, Berkeley, 2000-2006, and the boards of the National Council of Peace Corps Volunteers and the International Women's Democracy Center.
==Family and personal life==
In 1983 Orth married the political journalist [[Tim Russert]], whom she met at the 1980 Democratic National Convention. Their son Luke was born in August 1985. Russert died on [[June 13]], [[2008]].
Orth is the dedicatee of her friend [[Larry McMurtry]]'s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel [[Lonesome Dove]].
==Bibliography==
*''[[The Importance of Being Famous]]'', 2004
*''[[Vulgar Favors]]'', 2000
==Awards==
*National Magazine Award Finalist-- article about [[Michael Huffington|Michael]] and [[Arianna Huffington]], (''[[Vanity Fair (magazine)|Vanity Fair]]'', November 1994)
*National Magazine Award -- group coverage of the [[art]]s Newsweek 1973
==References==
{{reflist}}
==External links==
*[http://maureenorth.com/index.html Official Web Site]
{{DEFAULTSORT:Orth, Maureen}}
[[Category:American journalists]]
[[Category:Peace Corps volunteers]]
[[Category:Washington, D.C. writers]]
[[Category:People from Washington, D.C.]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:1942 births]]
[[Category:University of California, Berkeley alumni]]
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