Margaret Bourke-White

American photographer Margaret Bourke-White (1904-1971) was a leader in the new field of photojournalism. As a staff photographer for Fortune and Life magazines, she covered the major political and social issues of the 1930s and 1940s.

Born in New York City, New York on June 14, 1904, Margaret Bourke-White was the daughter of Joseph and Minnie White. (She added the name Bourke, her mother's maiden name, after her first marriage ended). One of the original staff photographers for Life magazine, she was a pioneer in the field of photojournalism. She photographed the leading political figures of her time: Franklin Roosevelt, Winston Churchill, Joseph Stalin, and Mahatma Gandhi. She also called attention to the suffering of unknown people, from the poor...