Biographical Dictionary of American Newspaper Columnists

Newspaper columnists entertain and inform millions of readers each day, yet their lives and careers have received relatively little attention. This reference offers concise career profiles of some 600 columnists who write or have written for U.S. newspapers. It contains entries for all the giants in the field, plus other syndicated, self-syndicated, and local columnists. Included are columnists who have written on politics, humor, and topics of general interest.

What newspaper columnists have won the Nobel Peace Prize? What political columnist later became president of ABC-TV? What New York Times columnist won an unprecedented four Pulitzer prizes? This reference offers concise profiles of some 600 columnists who write or have written for U.S. newspapers. Included is a wealth of information about these influential writers who inform and entertain millions of Americans each day.

The volume contains entries for the giants in the field, plus other syndicated, self-syndicated, and local columnists. Included are columnists, living or dead, whose works contain fairly general reading matter, including politics and humor. Excluded are those who write columns on specialized topics, such as gardening, bridge, computers, and health. Entries are arranged alphabetically and show how these individuals became columnists and what later career paths many of them followed. When possible, entries conclude with bibliographies of works by and about the columnists.

SAM G. RILEY is Professor of Communication Studies at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. His previous books include The Best of the Rest: Non-Syndicated Newspaper Columnists Select Their Best Work (1993), Consumer Magazines of the British Isles (1993), Corporate Magazines of the United States (1992), (1990), Index to City and Regional Magazines (1989), Magazines of the American South (1986), and Index to Southern Periodicals (1986), all published by Greenwood Press.