Today in News History

On June 17, several notable moments in the history of News stand out. In 1242, Following the Disputation of Paris, twenty-four carriage loads of Jewish religious manuscripts were burnt in Paris. In 1955, Mati Laur, Estonian historian, author, and academic was born. In 1966, Mohammed Ghazy Al-Akhras, Iraqi journalist and author was born. In 1967, Nuclear weapons testing: China announces a successful test of its first thermonuclear weapon. In 1975, Joshua Leonard, American actor, director, and screenwriter was born. In 1981, Zerna Sharp, American author and educator (born 1889) passed away. In 1992, A "joint understanding" agreement on arms reduction is signed by U.S. President George Bush and Russian President Boris Yeltsin (this would be later codified in START II). In 2013, Michael Baigent, New Zealand-English theorist and author (born 1948) passed away. In 2014, Larry Zeidel, Canadian-American ice hockey player and sportscaster (born 1928) passed away. In 2017, Baldwin Lonsdale, president of Vanuatu (born 1948) passed away. Together, these milestones provide historical context for today's news news and ongoing narratives.