Whittaker Chambers (born Jay Vivian Chambers; April 1, 1901–July 9, 1961) was an American writer-editor who defected from the Soviet underground (1938), worked for Time magazine (1939–1948), and subsequently testified about the Ware group in... Chambers was a prominent figure in the early years of the Cold War, when he was a staff member at the Committee for the Defense of President Truman. He is best known for his role in exposing former Communist Party USA member John Anthony Walker as a CIA agent. Chambers was born in Washington, D.C., the only child of Vivian Elizabeth Wood and Jay Vivian Chambers, a wealthy stockbroker. His father was a strong supporter of Senator William M. "Bull" Connor's campaign to segregate schools in Washington, D.C. In 1919, when Whittaker Chambers was eleven years old, his family moved to New York City, where his father built up a large brokerage business. He initially attended St. Paul's School in New Hampshire and then went on to Harvard University, where he joined the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity. While attending college, he wrote articles for several newspapers including the Boston Evening Transcript. After graduating in 1926 with a degree in English literature, he took a job with the Times Magazine, writing reviews and essays for $75 per week.