On Dec. 7, 1941, Eugene Burns, AP's bureau chief in Honolulu, couldn't get out the news of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor because the military had taken control of all communications lines. In Washington, AP editor William Peacock got word of the attack from President Franklin D. Roosevelt's press secretary. In the language and style used by journalists of his era, Peacock dictated the details of the announcement.
FLASH
WASHINGTON — White House says Japs attack Pearl Harbor.