Ezra Klein

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Ezra Klein
Klein in 2020
Born (1984-05-09) May 9, 1984 (age 39)
Irvine, California, U.S.
EducationUniversity of California, Santa Cruz
University of California, Los Angeles (BA)
Occupations
  • Journalist
  • political commentator
  • podcast host
Years active2003–present
Employers
Spouse
​
(m. 2011)​
Children2
RelativesAbel Klein (father)

Ezra Klein (born May 9, 1984) is an American progressive journalist, political analyst, New York Times columnist, and the host of The Ezra Klein Show podcast.[1][2][3] He is a co-founder of Vox and formerly was the website's editor-at-large.[1] He has held editorial positions at The Washington Post and The American Prospect, and was a regular contributor to Bloomberg News and MSNBC.[1][4] His first book, Why We're Polarized, was published by Simon & Schuster in January 2020.[2][5]

Klein rose to prominence as a blogger who became well known for his in-depth analysis on a range of policy issues.[6][7] By 2007, Klein's blog had gained a substantial following and was acquired by The American Prospect, where he was an associate editor.[8] At The Washington Post, Klein managed Wonkblog, a branded blog that featured his writing on domestic policy.[9]

In 2014, alongside fellow journalists Matthew Yglesias and Melissa Bell, Klein co-founded Vox, a website for explanatory news owned by Vox Media.[10] He was the editor-in-chief, and later as editor-at-large.[11] Klein also contributed articles to the site, hosted an associated podcast (The Ezra Klein Show), and worked as an executive producer for Vox's Netflix series Explained.[2] In November 2020, Klein announced he would be leaving Vox to join The New York Times as a columnist and podcast host.[12][13]

Early life and education[edit]

Klein is Jewish and was raised in[14] in Irvine, California.[7] His father, Abel Klein, is a professor of mathematics at the University of California, Irvine; his mother is an artist.[7][15] Klein attended University High School, where he was a poor student and graduated in 2002 with a 2.2 GPA.[15] Klein attended the University of California, Santa Cruz for two years before transferring to the University of California, Los Angeles, from which he graduated in 2005 with a BA in political science. While at UCSC, he applied to write for City on a Hill Press but was rejected.[16] He said school was never a great fit for him academically or socially.[17]

Career[edit]

Klein worked on Howard Dean's primary campaign in Vermont in 2003 and interned for the Washington Monthly in Washington, D.C., in 2004. "The media is as effective and important an agent for change as the legislative bodies, and I think it's where I'm happiest and most effective," Klein said.[18] In 2003, he and Markos Moulitsas were two of the earliest bloggers to report from a political convention, that of the California State Democratic Party.[19] In 2006, Klein was one of several writers pseudonymously flamed by The New Republic writer Lee Siegel (posting as a sock puppet called sprezzatura).[20]

On December 10, 2007, Klein moved his blog full-time to The American Prospect.[8]

Klein's prolific blogging caught the attention of Steven Pearlstein, The Washington Post's veteran business columnist. "I was blown away by how good he was—how much the kid wrote—on so many subjects," Pearlstein said. Pearlstein sent samples of Klein's work to managing editor Raju Narisetti. A few weeks after he heard from Pearlstein, Washington Post foreign correspondent John Pomfret asked Klein to have lunch with him and financial editor Sandy Sugawara. Narisetti hired Klein to be the Post's first pure blogger on politics and economics.[7] On May 18, 2009, he began writing at the newspaper.[21]

In May 2011, when Bloomberg View launched, Klein became a columnist there in addition to his work at The Washington Post and MSNBC.[22]

Klein announced he would be leaving The Washington Post in January 2014, with the intent to start a new media venture with several other veteran journalists.[23] The new media venture was later identified as the politics site Vox.[24] Klein had previously "proposed the creation of an independent, explanatory journalism website—with more than three dozen staffers" and an annual budget of more than US$10 million to remain at The Washington Post. During negotiations, Post publisher Katharine Weymouth and new owner Jeff Bezos did not make a counteroffer.[25]

Klein was editor-in-chief at Vox, later editor-at-large, and formerly wrote for and edited Wonkblog at The Washington Post. He frequently provides political commentary on MSNBC's The Rachel Maddow Show, Hardball with Chris Matthews, and The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell. He is a former contributor to Countdown with Keith Olbermann. On March 14, 2013, The Week magazine reported that Klein was among those being considered to host MSNBC's yet-unnamed 8 p.m. weekday prime-time show that would replace The Ed Show.[26] Ultimately, the time slot was filled with All In with Chris Hayes.

In October 2015, Klein, along with Sarah Kliff and Matt Yglesias, launched The Weeds, a Vox podcast of detailed discussions on public policy.[27] Klein also hosts the podcast The Ezra Klein Show.[28] Klein is an executive producer of Vox's Netflix series Explained, which debuted in 2018.[29][30]

In October 2019, Klein, along with other reporters from Vox Media, started the podcast Impeachment, Explained.[31] Klein joined the New York Times in 2020 and became one of their opinion columnists in 2021.[12][32] According to an analysis by British digital strategist Rob Blackie, Klein was one of the most commonly followed political writers among Biden administration staff on Twitter.[33]

Health care debate[edit]

In December 2009, Klein wrote an article in The Washington Post, stating that U.S. Senator Joe Lieberman was "willing to cause the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people in order to settle an old electoral score", because Lieberman "was motivated to oppose health care legislation in part out of resentment at liberals for being defeated in the 2006 Connecticut Democratic Primary".[34] Klein based his estimate on an Urban Institute report that estimated that 22,000 people died in 2006 because they lacked health insurance.[35] This article was criticized by Jonah Goldberg of the National Review, who called it a "silly claim".[36] Charles Lane, also of The Washington Post, described Klein's article as an "outrageous smear". But E. J. Dionne, also of The Washington Post, agreed with Klein's claim, saying that "Klein is right that there is not a shred of principle in Lieberman's opposition."[37] Klein later said he regretted the phrasing[38] and his position is that despite universal coverage, the social determinants of health are still powerful predictors that, on average, ensure the lower socioeconomic classes die sooner than those with more income and education.[39][40]

JournoList[edit]

In February 2007, Klein created a Google Groups forum called "JournoList" for discussing politics and the news media. The forum's membership was controlled by Klein and limited to "several hundred left-leaning bloggers, political reporters, magazine writers, policy wonks and academics".[41] Posts within JournoList were intended only to be made and read by its members.[42] Klein defended the forum saying that it "[ensures] that folks feel safe giving off-the-cuff analysis and instant reactions". JournoList member and Time magazine columnist Joe Klein (no relation to Ezra Klein) added that the off-the-record nature of the forum was necessary because "candor is essential and can only be guaranteed by keeping these conversations private".[41]

The existence of JournoList was first publicly revealed in a July 27, 2007, blog post by blogger Mickey Kaus.[43] However, the forum did not attract serious attention until March 17, 2009, when an article published on Politico detailed the nature of the forum and the extent of its membership.[41] The Politico article set off debate within the blogosphere over the ethics of participating in JournoList and raised questions about its purpose. The first public excerpt of a discussion within JournoList was posted by Mickey Kaus on his blog on March 26, 2009.[44]

In addition to Ezra Klein, membership of JournoList included Jeffrey Toobin, Eric Alterman, Paul Krugman, Joe Klein, Matthew Yglesias, and Jonathan Chait.[citation needed]

On June 25, 2010, Ezra Klein announced in his Washington Post blog that he would be terminating the JournoList group. This decision was instigated by fellow blogger Dave Weigel's resignation from the Post following the public exposure of several of his JournoList emails about conservative media figures.[45][46]

Klein had justified excluding conservative Republicans from participation as "not about fostering ideology but preventing a collapse into flame war. The emphasis is on empiricism, not ideology."[47]

Awards[edit]

In 2010, he was named Blogger of the Year by The Week magazine and The Sidney Hillman Foundation.[48][49] In 2011, he was named one of the 50 most powerful people in Washington, D.C., by GQ.[50] His blog was also named one of the 25 best financial blogs by Time magazine in 2011.[51] In 2013, Klein won the Online News Association Award for Best Online Commentary.[52] He also won the American Political Science Association's Carey McWilliams Award,[53] for "a major journalistic contribution to our understanding of politics". He appeared as one of 80 men featured in Esquire's 80th anniversary issue[54] and in a feature in T magazine.[55]

Personal life[edit]

Klein is married to Annie Lowrey,[56] an economic policy reporter at The Atlantic.[57] They have two children, the first born in February 2019 and the second in fall 2021.[58] Klein is vegan.[59]

Bibliography[edit]

  • Why We're Polarized. Avid Reader Press. 2020. ISBN 978-1-4767-0032-8.[60]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c "Ezra Klein Profile and Activity - Vox". www.vox.com. Retrieved January 28, 2021.
  2. ^ a b c "Ezra Klein". Simon & Schuster. Retrieved February 1, 2021.
  3. ^ "The boy in the bubble". Columbia Journalism Review. Archived from the original on January 25, 2017. Retrieved December 6, 2018.
  4. ^ "Ezra Klein". Prospect.org. Archived from the original on April 28, 2019. Retrieved August 8, 2016.
  5. ^ Ornstein, Norman J. (January 28, 2020). "Why America's Political Divisions Will Only Get Worse (Published 2020)". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved February 1, 2021.
  6. ^ Shin, Caroline (March 23, 2011). "Here Are The 5 Most Liberal And Conservative Media Twitter Feeds". Business Insider. Archived from the original on September 24, 2018. Retrieved December 6, 2018.
  7. ^ a b c d Jaffe, Harry (March 4, 2010). "Post Watch: Whiz Kid on the block". The Washingtonian. Archived from the original on June 10, 2011. Retrieved January 30, 2011.
  8. ^ a b Klein, Ezra (December 9, 2007). "Ezra Klein: Moving Day". Ezraklein.typepad.com. Archived from the original on March 5, 2010. Retrieved February 17, 2014.
  9. ^ "Down with the GVP!". Washington Post. April 7, 2010. Archived from the original on September 27, 2011. Retrieved January 30, 2011.
  10. ^ Marx, Greg. "Vox.com is going to be a great test of Ezra Klein's critique of journalism". Columbia Journalism Review. Archived from the original on June 25, 2018. Retrieved August 21, 2018.
  11. ^ Stelter, Brian (September 26, 2017). "Lauren Williams named editor in chief of Vox; Ezra Klein to be editor at large". CNNMoney. Archived from the original on June 8, 2019. Retrieved December 6, 2019.
  12. ^ a b "Ezra Klein Joins Times Opinion as Columnist and Podcast Host". The New York Times Company. November 20, 2020. Retrieved November 21, 2020.
  13. ^ Fischer, Sara (November 20, 2020). "Ezra Klein and Lauren Williams are leaving Vox". Axios. Retrieved November 21, 2020.
  14. ^ "What Does It Mean To Be Jewish Today? What Do Jews Bring To The World?". Moment Magazine. May 2011. Archived from the original on October 4, 2013. Retrieved February 17, 2014.
  15. ^ a b Wallace, Benjamin (January 31, 2014). "Here, Let Ezra Explain". New York. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015.
  16. ^ Saney, Loully (October 9, 2013). "Q&A: Washington Post reporter and Wonkblog editor Ezra Klein". The Daily Princetonian. Archived from the original on October 19, 2014. Retrieved April 9, 2014.
  17. ^ Pierce, Jacob (February 12, 2020). "Lessons on Polarization from Journalist Ezra Klein". GoodTimes.SC. Good Times. Archived from the original on February 21, 2020. Retrieved February 21, 2020.
  18. ^ "A Conversation With Political Blogger Ezra Klein of Pandagon". LAist.com. November 2, 2004. Archived from the original on April 14, 2013. Retrieved January 30, 2011.
  19. ^ Weiss, Joanna (May 10, 2004). "Blogs colliding with traditional media: Convention credentials expected for Web logs". Boston Globe. Archived from the original on February 19, 2007. Retrieved January 12, 2008.
  20. ^ Carr, David (September 11, 2006). "A Comeback Overshadowed by a Blog". The New York Times. Archived from the original on December 28, 2016. Retrieved January 12, 2008.
  21. ^ Klein, Ezra. "Ezra Klein - Introduction". Voices.washingtonpost.com. Archived from the original on October 9, 2012. Retrieved February 17, 2014.
  22. ^ Hagey, Keach (April 29, 2011). "Bloomberg View reveals columnists, editorial board". Politico. Archived from the original on May 2, 2011. Retrieved August 6, 2011.
  23. ^ McCarthy, Tom (January 21, 2014). "Washington Post's Ezra Klein leaving newspaper to start 'new venture'". TheGuardian.com. Archived from the original on July 10, 2017. Retrieved January 21, 2014.
  24. ^ Carlson, Nicholas (January 27, 2014). "Here's What Everyone Is Too Polite To Say About Ezra Klein, Wonkblog, And Vox". Business Insider. Archived from the original on January 30, 2014. Retrieved January 28, 2014.
  25. ^ Byers, Dylan; Hadas Gold (January 21, 2014). "Why The Washington Post passed on Ezra Klein". Politico. Archived from the original on January 25, 2014. Retrieved January 28, 2014.
  26. ^ "Why MSNBC is demoting Ed Schultz [Updated]". The Week. Archived from the original on July 9, 2013. Retrieved February 17, 2014.
  27. ^ Klein, Ezra (October 2, 2015). "The Weeds, Vox's new policy podcast, launches today". Vox. Archived from the original on April 24, 2017. Retrieved January 2, 2017.
  28. ^ Thompson, Matt (November 5, 2016). "A Podcast Listener's Guide to the 2016 Election". The Atlantic. Archived from the original on August 8, 2018. Retrieved August 7, 2018.
  29. ^ "Vox steps out of the news cycle in Netflix series". NBC News. May 23, 2018. Archived from the original on November 3, 2020. Retrieved August 7, 2018.
  30. ^ Benton, Joshua (May 23, 2018). "Vox's new Netflix series is really good, but it doesn't get us any closer to figuring out what news on streaming platforms looks like". Nieman Lab. Archived from the original on August 21, 2018. Retrieved August 21, 2018.
  31. ^ "Impeachment, explained". vox.com. Archived from the original on November 24, 2019. Retrieved November 23, 2019.
  32. ^ "Ezra Klein". The New York Times. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
  33. ^ Thompson, Alex; Meyer, Theodoric (January 20, 2021). "Biden 'is planning to run again' in 2024". Politico. Retrieved November 22, 2021.
  34. ^ Klein, Ezra (December 14, 2009). "Joe Lieberman: Let's not make a deal!". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on July 20, 2010. Retrieved May 3, 2010.
  35. ^ Dorn, Stan (January 8, 2008). "Uninsured and Dying Because of It: Updating the Institute of Medicine Analysis on the Impact of Uninsurance on Mortality". Archived from the original on February 26, 2010. Urban Institute.
  36. ^ Goldberg, Jonah (December 15, 2009). "Lieberman Loves Death More than Ezra Klein Loves Life". The Corner. National Review Online. Archived from the original on July 3, 2012. Retrieved July 29, 2010.
  37. ^ Dionne, E.J. (December 15, 2009). "The public option died last summer". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on August 22, 2018. Retrieved May 3, 2010.
  38. ^ Pappu, Sridhar (March 25, 2010). "Washington's Brat Pack Masters Media". The New York Times. Archived from the original on August 22, 2018. Retrieved March 31, 2011.
  39. ^ Carney, Timothy (February 28, 2011). "Turns out ObamaCare might not save hundreds of thousands of lives". The Washington Examiner. Archived from the original on March 4, 2011.
  40. ^ Klein, Ezra (February 28, 2011). "Health care doesn't keep people healthy -- even in Canada". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on October 17, 2011. Retrieved July 14, 2011.
  41. ^ a b c Calderone, Michael (March 17, 2009). "JournoList: Inside the echo chamber". The Politico. Archived from the original on March 24, 2009. Retrieved March 30, 2009.
  42. ^ "Google Discussiegroepen". Archived from the original on May 28, 2013. Retrieved February 17, 2014.
  43. ^ Mickey Kaus (July 27, 2007). "Educating Ezra Klein". Slate. Archived from the original on March 23, 2009. Retrieved March 30, 2009.
  44. ^ Mickey Kaus (March 26, 2009). "JournoList Revealed! Inside the Secret Liberal Media Email Cabal". Slate. Archived from the original on March 29, 2009. Retrieved March 30, 2009.
  45. ^ Klein, Ezra (June 25, 2010). "On Journolist, and Dave Weigel". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on July 23, 2010. Retrieved June 25, 2010.
  46. ^ Keach Hagey, "David Weigel quits – and a debate begins, Politico.com, June 25, 2010 Archived June 28, 2010, at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved June 27, 2010.
  47. ^ "EzraKlein Archive". The American Prospect. Archived from the original on July 3, 2010. Retrieved July 29, 2010.
  48. ^ "Winners of The Week Opinion Awards". The Week. Archived from the original on January 12, 2012. Retrieved January 21, 2012.
  49. ^ "Sidney Hillman Foundation 2010 Prizes". Archived from the original on May 15, 2010. Retrieved January 21, 2012.
  50. ^ "The 50 Most Powerful People in Washington". GQ. February 2012. Archived from the original on October 5, 2013. Retrieved January 21, 2012.
  51. ^ "The 25 Best Financial Blogs". Time Magazine. March 7, 2011. Archived from the original on January 16, 2012. Retrieved January 21, 2012.
  52. ^ "2013 Awards - Online News Association". Journalists.org. Archived from the original on November 22, 2013. Retrieved February 17, 2014.
  53. ^ "2013 American Political Science Association Awards" (PDF). Apsanet.org. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 1, 2014. Retrieved February 17, 2014.
  54. ^ "Esquire: October 2013". September 16, 2013. Archived from the original on November 1, 2013. Retrieved October 28, 2013.
  55. ^ "Kids These Days". The New York Times. May 31, 2013. Archived from the original on December 18, 2016. Retrieved February 17, 2014.
  56. ^ Stoeffel, Kat (January 15, 2013). "Mazel Tov, Media Power Couple". Observer.com. Archived from the original on October 7, 2013. Retrieved August 21, 2018.
  57. ^ "The Atlantic Names Columnists Ibram X. Kendi, Annie Lowrey, Alex Wagner, and Kevin D. Williamson". The Atlantic (Press release). March 22, 2018. Archived from the original on September 4, 2018. Retrieved August 21, 2018.
  58. ^ Ezra Klein and Jane Coaston (February 25, 2019). "Noah Rothman on the "unjustice" of social justice politics". The Ezra Klein Show (Podcast). Vox Media Podcast Network. Event occurs at 00:00:20. Archived from the original on February 6, 2020. Retrieved March 8, 2019.
  59. ^ "Transcript: Ezra Klein Interviews Ted Chiang". The Ezra Klein Show. The New York Times. March 30, 2021.
  60. ^ Klein, Ezra (January 28, 2020). Why We're Polarized. Avid Reader Press / Simon & Schuster. ISBN 9781476700328. Archived from the original on April 4, 2020. Retrieved February 9, 2020.

External links[edit]

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