William J. Dobson
William J. Dobson | |
|---|---|
| Born | William Joel Dobson March 2, 1973 North Kingstown, Rhode Island, United States |
| Alma mater | Middlebury College (AB) Harvard University (AM) Harvard Law School (JD) |
| Occupation | Co-editor |
| Employer | Journal of Democracy |
| Notable credit | The Dictator's Learning Curve |
William J. "Will" Dobson is an American journalist and author who writes frequently on foreign affairs and international politics. He is the co-editor of the Journal of Democracy. Previous roles include Chief International Editor at NPR and the Politics and Foreign Affairs Editor for Slate.[1]
Early life
[edit]Dobson was born on a naval base in North Kingston, Rhode Island. His father, W. Joel Dobson, was a Lt. Commander in the U.S. Navy. His mother, Barbara Joyce Dobson, is an English teacher.
Dobson grew up in Spartanburg, South Carolina, and attended Spartanburg Day School. He received a Bachelor of Arts summa cum laude from Middlebury College. He later earned a master's degree in East Asian Studies from Harvard University and a Juris Doctor cum laude from Harvard Law School. He lives in Washington, DC with his wife and two children.[2]
Career
[edit]From 2004 to 2008, Dobson was the Managing Editor of Foreign Policy magazine. During his tenure at Foreign Policy, the magazine was nominated for a National Magazine Award five years in a row – the only magazine of its size to receive five consecutive nominations – and won the top prize twice.[3]
Previously, he served as the Senior Editor for Asia at Newsweek International and as Associate Editor at Foreign Affairs.[4] He has also been a visiting scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.[5]
During the height of the Arab Spring, he wrote daily pieces on modern authoritarianism for the Washington Post’s editorial page.[2] While reporting from Cairo, Dobson wrote the first account of the Egyptian military’s torture of female protestors in Tahrir Square.
Dobson's first book, The Dictator's Learning Curve[6] was published by Doubleday in 2012. The non-fiction book is an analysis of modern authoritarianism and has been reviewed by various media.[7] The Washington Post, New York Times, Financial Times, and Publishers Weekly were among those giving positive reviews.[8]
Awards
[edit]Dobson was named a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum in 2006.[9] In 2003, he was named the U.S. Rapporteur for the World Economic Forum's East Asia Summit.[10] The Singapore International Foundation awarded him a Distinguished Visitor Fellowship in 2008.[11] The East-West Center awarded him a Senior Journalist Fellowship for Southeast Asia (2006) and an Journalism Fellowship (2008). Dobson was a Knight Media Fellow (2003) to the Salzburg Global Seminar, and later a Freeman Fellow in U.S.-East Asian Relations (2007).[12]
Middlebury College recognized him with an Alumni Achievement Award in 2011.[13] Dobson is also a 1994 Truman Scholar.[14]
Published works
[edit]Books (Editor)
[edit]- Defending Democracy in an Age of Sharp Power, (Johns Hopkins University Press; 2023).
Books (Author)
[edit]- The Dictator’s Learning Curve, (Doubleday; 2012). ISBN 978-0385533355
Op-eds and articles
[edit]- The Mandarin in the Machine, Journal of Democracy, October 2022
- A Glimpse of the Way Forward, Journal of Democracy, July 2020
- The Ghost of Hugo Chavez, Slate, March 6, 2013
- Putin the Pitiful, Slate, December 28, 2012
- The East Is Crimson, Slate, May 23, 2012
- Why China Wishes Chen Would Just Go Away, Slate, May 2, 2012
- Dictatorship for Dummies, Tunisia Edition, The Washington Post, January 23, 2011
- 'The Military is above the Nation', The Washington Post, March 15, 2011
- ‘Another dictatorship, just with new faces’ for Egypt, The Washington Post, March 16, 2011
- ‘Worse than our Worst Nightmare during Mubarak,' The Washington Post, March 17, 2011
- Where are the dictator’s helpers? The Washington Post, March 18, 2011
- One Woman’s Fight to Preserve a Russian Forest, The Washington Post, March 24, 2011
- The Opposition Dictators Deserve, The Washington Post, April 16, 2011
- Why I am Glad bin Laden Lived to See the Arab Spring, The Washington Post, May 5, 2011
- In Venezuela, Fighting for the Chance to Run: ‘He will annihilate that one leader,’ The Washington Post, May 15, 2011
- Imagining a World Without Dictators, The Washington Post, August 26, 2011
- Why Gaddafi was the quintessential 20th-century dictator, The Washington Post, October 21, 2011
- In Russia, Fires—and politicians—are bringing down forests[dead link], The Washington Post, August 13, 2010
- China’s Jittery Leaders, The New Republic, March 3, 2011
- A Victory for Democratic Foreign Policy, The New Republic, May 3, 2011
- The Day Nothing Much Changed, Foreign Policy, August 8, 2006
- Tunisia’s Lessons for Repressive Regimes, U.S. News & World Report, January 20, 2011
- Global Democracy over a Barrel, The Boston Globe, May 14, 2009
Media appearances
[edit]Dobson has appeared and provided commentary for various news organizations, including C-SPAN,[15] PBS NewsHour,[16] CNN, CBS, MSNBC, National Public Radio, and Voice of America.
References
[edit]- ^ "William J. Dobson". ash.harvard.edu. Retrieved July 6, 2023.
- ^ a b "Author List". Lippencot Massie McQuilken. Retrieved May 31, 2012.
- ^ "About". William J. Dobson. Retrieved May 31, 2012.
- ^ "Who We Are". Slate. Retrieved May 31, 2012.
- ^ Dobson, William (May 16, 2009). "Saviors and Survivors". Financial Times. Retrieved May 31, 2012.
- ^ The Dictator’s Learning Curve
- ^ Publishers Weekly, BusinessWeek and Foreign Policy magazine
- ^ "The Dictator's Learning Curve by William J. Dobson: 9780307477552 | PenguinRandomHouse.com: Books". PenguinRandomhouse.com. Retrieved July 6, 2023.
- ^ Young Global Leader
- ^ "EAST ASIA ECONOMIC SUMMIT 2003 ASIA AGENDA MONITOR" (PDF). World Economic Forum. Retrieved May 31, 2012.
- ^ "SIF Distinguished Visitors". Singapore International Foundation. Retrieved June 1, 2012.
- ^ "Newsletter". Salzburg Global Seminar. Retrieved June 1, 2012.
- ^ "2010-2011 Events" (PDF). Middlebury College. Retrieved June 1, 2012.
- ^ "Truman Scholarship". Herald-Journal. August 3, 1994. Retrieved June 1, 2012.
- ^ "William J. Dobson | C-SPAN.org". www.c-span.org. Retrieved July 6, 2023.
- ^ "William Dobson on Egypt's 'Quick', 'Dynamic' Process". PBS NewsHour. Retrieved June 1, 2012.