Edward Jay Epstein

• 1. Born In New York

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  Edward Jay Epstein entered the world on the 6th of December 1935 within the bustling streets of New York City. His early academic path led him to Cornell University where he earned both a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Arts in government. One of his professors at that institution was Vladimir Nabokov, a famous novelist who taught literature there. Epstein later returned to academia to receive his PhD in government from Harvard University in 1973. He spent three years teaching courses at Harvard, UCLA, and MIT before leaving the university system entirely.

• 2. Challenging The Warren Commission

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  While still a graduate student at Cornell University in 1966, Epstein published a book titled Inquest. This work served as an influential critique of the official Warren Commission probe into the assassination of John F. Kennedy. He eventually wrote three books about this event which were collected under the title The Assassination Chronicles: Inquest, Counterplot, and Legend in 1992. Two other titles, Legend published in 1978 and Deception published in 1989, drew heavily on interviews with retired CIA Counterintelligence Chief James Jesus Angleton. These writings formed the foundation of his reputation as a journalist willing to question established narratives.

• 3. The Diamond Industry Exposed

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  Epstein turned his attention to the global gem trade with his 1982 book The Rise and Fall of Diamonds. The text detailed how the diamond company De Beers used heavy marketing strategies to turn tiny rocks of transparent crystallized carbon into highly demanded mass market items. His article Have You Ever Tried to Sell a Diamond? from that same year explained these economic mechanisms clearly. The work analyzed the industry's significant impact on southern Africa while exposing the artificial scarcity created by corporate control. This investigation marked a shift from political history to the mechanics of global commerce.

• 4. Armand Hammer And Soviet Ties

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  In his 1996 book Dossier: The Secret History of Armand Hammer, Epstein revealed details about the businessman's financial dealings. He showed how Hammer laundered money to finance espionage for the Soviets during the 1920s and 1930s. The publication included reviews from sources like publishersweekly.com and The New York Times which discussed the findings regarding Hammer's career. This work highlighted the complex relationship between American business figures and foreign intelligence operations during the early Cold War era. It remains one of his most cited investigations into the hidden costs of international power.

• 5. The Snowden Investigation

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  Epstein conducted an in-progress investigation into the circumstances surrounding Edward Snowden's 2013 leak of classified documents. This research resulted in his book How America Lost Its Secrets: Edward Snowden, the Man and the Theft. A House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence report from December 2016 confirmed that Snowden removed digital copies of 1.5 million classified files from the NSA. Epstein noted that Snowden went to Hong Kong where he secretly contacted Russian government officials as Vladimir Putin had revealed in a the 3rd of September 2013 press conference. Despite these contacts, Epstein concluded there was no evidence that Snowden was employed by the Russian intelligence service while in the United States.

• 6. Hall Of Mirrors Documentary

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  A documentary titled Hall of Mirrors premiered at the 55th New York Film Festival in 2017. The film was directed by sisters Ena and Ines Talakic and focused entirely on Epstein's life and career. It covered his notable articles and books including close looks at the findings of the Warren Commission and the structure of the diamond industry. The project also examined the strange career of Armand Hammer and the inner workings of big-time journalism itself. These elements were interwoven with his ongoing work regarding the Snowden leaks and the broader implications for American secrecy.