Today in News History

On June 20, several notable moments in the history of News stand out. In 1921, Byron Farwell, American historian and author (died 1999) was born. In 1923, Peter Gay, German-American historian, author, and academic (died 2015) was born. In 1944, World War II: The Battle of the Philippine Sea concludes with a decisive U.S. naval victory. The lopsided naval air battle is also known as the "Great Marianas Turkey Shoot". In 1946, Xanana Gusmão, Timorese soldier and politician, 1st President of East Timor was born. In 1950, Nouri al-Maliki, Iraqi politician, 76th Prime Minister of Iraq was born. In 1963, Following the Cuban Missile Crisis, the Soviet Union and the United States sign an agreement to establish the so-called "red telephone" link between Washington, D.C., and Moscow. In 1972, Watergate scandal: An .mw-parser-output .frac{white-space:nowrap}.mw-parser-output .frac .num,.mw-parser-output .frac .den{font-size:80%;line-height:0;vertical-align:super}.mw-parser-output .frac .den{vertical-align:sub}.mw-parser-output .sr-only{border:0;clip:rect(0,0,0,0);clip-path:polygon(0px 0px,0px 0px,0px 0px);height:1px;margin:-1px;overflow:hidden;padding:0;position:absolute;width:1px}18+1⁄2-minute gap appears in the tape recording of the conversations between U.S. President Richard Nixon and his advisers regarding the recent arrests of his operatives while breaking into the Watergate complex. In 2012, Andrew Sarris, American critic (born 1928) passed away. In 2019, Iran's Air Defense Forces shoot down an American surveillance drone over the Strait of Hormuz amid rising tensions between the two countries. In 2024, Donald Sutherland, Canadian actor and producer (born 1935) passed away. Together, these milestones provide historical context for today's news news and ongoing narratives.