Today in News History

On June 17, several notable moments in the history of News stand out. In 1929, Tigran Petrosian, Armenian chess player (died 1984) was born. In 1930, U.S. President Herbert Hoover signs the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act into law. In 1932, Bonus Army: Around a thousand World War I veterans amass at the United States Capitol as the U.S. Senate considers a bill that would give them certain benefits. In 1940, The three Baltic states of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania fall under the occupation of the Soviet Union. In 1957, Uģis Prauliņš, Latvian composer was born. In 1966, Mohammed Ghazy Al-Akhras, Iraqi journalist and author was born. In 1982, Marek Svatoš, Slovak ice hockey player (died 2016) was born. 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 2012, Stéphane Brosse, French mountaineer (born 1971) passed away. In 2015, Süleyman Demirel, Turkish engineer and politician, 9th President of Turkey (born 1924) passed away. Together, these milestones provide historical context for today's news news and ongoing narratives.