David Burnham -- a former investigative reporter with The New York Times, a member of President Johnson's Crime Commission, a pioneering data journalist, and the co-founder and co-director of the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse at Syracuse University -- is the author of three books. Originally published by Random House and Scribner and made available digitally in 2015 by Open Road Media, the books investigate the most powerful forces in the federal government, starting in 1983 with The Rise of the Computer State. Long before the revelations of Edward Snowden, the book included a chapter on the National Security Agency, which Burnham described as "the ultimate computer bureaucracy."
Burnham started as a reporter in 1958, working for UPI, Newsweek, CBS and other organizations. From 1968 to 1986, he was an investigative reporter with The New York Times in New York and Washington, with his coverage concentrating on enforcement, regulatory and surveillance issues. His most recent book, "Above the Law: Secret Deals, Political Fixes, and Other Misadventures of the U.S. Department of Justice," was published by Scribner in January 1996. His investigative book on the Internal Revenue Service, "A Law Unto Itself: Power, Politics and the IRS," was published in 1990 by Random House. A third book, "The Rise of the Computer State," was published in 1984. All three books are now available on Amazon in various formats including the new digital editions offered by Open Road.
Burnham is currently a research professor at the Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University, where he directs a research center dedicated to using data to truly understand the workings of government agencies including the IRS, Immigration and Custom Enforcement, and the Justice Department. Visit http://trac.syr.edu for more information.
Burnham has received a number of professional honors including the George Polk Award for Community Service, Long Island University, 1968; the Alicia Patterson Foundation Fellowship, 1987; the Best Investigative Book of 1990, Investigative Reporters and Editors, 1990; and the Rockefeller Foundation Fellowship, Bellagio, Italy, 1992. In 2003, Burnham was awarded an honorary doctorate degree in Humane Letters from the John Jay College of Criminal Justice. In 2006, he was inducted into the National Freedom of Information Act Hall of Fame.
Burnham lives and works in Washington, D.C.
