John D. Negroponte is the former U.S. deputy secretary of state and director of national intelligence, and currently serves as research fellow and lecturer in international affairs at his alma mater, Yale University.
Negroponte began his career in 1960 when he joined the Foreign Service and was posted in Asia, Europe, and Latin America. He also was a four-time ambassador, with assignments that took him to Honduras, Mexico, the Philippines and Iraq. In addition, Negroponte also served as assistant secretary of state for Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs and as deputy assistant to the president for national security affairs.
In the private sector, Negroponte was employed as executive vice president for global markets at The McGraw-Hill Companies, where he oversaw the company’s international activities.
Negroponte served as the United States permanent representative to the United Nations from 2001 until he became U.S. ambassador to Iraq. Negroponte then became the principal intelligence adviser to President George W. Bush and the nation’s first-ever director of national intelligence in 2005, with responsibilities that included overseeing and coordinating intelligence-community employees across 16 federal agencies and departments. In 2006, Negroponte became deputy secretary of state and served as the department’s chief operating officer.
Negroponte has twice received the State Department’s Distinguished Service Medal. In 2008, President George W. Bush awarded Negroponte the National Security Medal for his outstanding contributions to U.S. national security.