Editing John Pilger (section)

==Early life and education ==
John Richard Pilger was born on 9 October 1939<ref>Anthony Hayward, ''Breaking the Silence: The Television Reporting of John Pilger,'' London, Network, 2008, p. 3 (no ISBN, book contained within ''Heroes'' DVD, Region 2 boxset).</ref><ref>Trisha Sertori, [http://www2.thejakartapost.com/news/2012/10/11/john-pilger-the-messenger.html "John Pilger: The Messenger"], {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121025190705/http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2012/10/11/john-pilger-the-messenger.html |date=25 October 2012 }} ''[[The Jakarta Post]]'', 11 October 2012.</ref> in [[Bondi, New South Wales]],<ref name="Pilgerbio" /> the son of Claude and Elsie Pilger. His older brother, Graham (1932–2017), was a disabled rights activist who later advised the government of [[Gough Whitlam]].<ref name="GPilger">{{cite news|last=Pilger|first=John|url=http://www.smh.com.au/comment/obituaries/graham-pilger-rowing-coach-and-battler-for-the-disabled-20170215-gue5x6.html|title=Graham Pilger, champion for the rights of the disabled|work=Sydney Morning Herald|date=17 February 2017|access-date=21 February 2017}}</ref> Pilger was of German descent on his father's side,<ref>John Pilger, ''A Secret Country'', p. xiv.</ref> while his mother had English, German and Irish ancestry; two of his maternal great-great-grandparents were Irish convicts transported to Australia.<ref name="discs">[https://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/features/desert-island-discs/castaway/9be0c56e "Interview with John Pilger"], ''[[Desert Island Discs]]'', [[BBC Radio 4]], 18 February 1990</ref><ref>John Pilger, ''Heroes'', p. 10.</ref><ref>[http://johnpilger.com/articles/the-hidden-history-of-the-women-who-rose-up "John Pilger on a hidden history of women who rose up"], 6 July 2018.</ref> His mother taught French in school.<ref name="discs"/>

Pilger and his brother attended [[Sydney Boys High School]],<ref name="Pilgerbio" /><ref name="GPilger"/> where he began a student newspaper, ''The Messenger''. He later joined a four-year journalist trainee scheme with the [[Australian Consolidated Press]].<ref name="Pilgerbio" />