Marvin Galbraith Barrett (May 6, 1920 – August 19, 2006) was an American author and educator known as an authority on broadcast journalism.
Life and career
Barrett was born in Des Moines, Iowa. His father, Edwin, was a radio actor and taught communications at Drake University. Barrett graduated from Harvard University in 1942 with a bachelor's degree in English literature. He served in the United States Navy from 1942 to 1946. In 1952 Barrett married Mary Ellin Berlin, daughter of Irving Berlin.
Barrett worked as a contributing editor to TIME and Newsweek magazines, executive editor of Show Business Illustrated, and managing editor of Show Magazine.
For many years, Barrett was the director of the DuPont-Columbia Survey of Broadcast Journalism. He received the Sigma Delta Chi Award for distinguished journalism for its 1975 report Moments of Truth. He received a master's degree in English from Drake University in 1976.
A near-death experience in 1984 inspired Barrett to keep journals, and resulted in his 1999 book Second Chance: A Life After Death.
Barrett died in Manhattan as a result of congestive heart failure.