Matt Welch | |
|---|---|
 Welch in July 2016 | |
| Born | Matthew Lee Welch July 31, 1968 |
| Occupation(s) | Journalist, political commentator |
| Political party | Independent |
| Spouse | Emmanuelle Richard |
| Children | 2 |
Matthew Lee Welch (born July 31, 1968) is an American blogger, journalist, author, and libertarian political pundit.[2][3]
Welch was born on July 31, 1968, in Bellflower, California. He was raised in Long Beach, California.[1] He attended UC Santa Barbara as part of the class of 1990, but did not complete a degree. Through his mother, author Mary Bobbitt Townsend, he is the great-great-grandson of Rear Admiral Hugo Osterhaus.[4][5]
In the late 1990s, Welch wrote for Tabloid.Net, along with Tim Blair and Ken Layne.[6] In the early 1990s, he was one of the founders of the Prague-based newspaper Prognosis.[7] He researched the effects of UN sanctions against Iraq, often criticizing the reporting of others.[8][9][10] Commentator Mike Rosen praised his research as "yeoman's work."[11]
In 2007, he wrote a portrayal of 2008 Republican presidential nominee John McCain from a libertarian perspective. In McCain: The Myth of a Maverick,[12] Welch argued that a McCain presidency would advance a statist agenda.[13][14][15][16] Through a FOIA request, Welch obtained a copy of McCain's National War College thesis which, based on his experience as a POW, argued for the teaching of US foreign policy to military recruits.[17]
From 2008 to 2016, he was editor-in-chief at the monthly libertarian journal, Reason.[18] He now serves as editor-at-large.[19] From 2006 to 2007, he was an editorial page editor for the Los Angeles Times.[19] Welch earned the award for "Best Entertainment Review/Criticism/Column" in the 53rd Annual Southern California Journalism Awards, hosted by the Los Angeles Press Club, for his work, "Bailing Out Big Brother: Media criticism goes from rebelling against media oligarchs to handing them a lifeline."[20]
In 2011, Matt Welch co-wrote The Declaration of Independents: How Libertarian Politics Can Fix What's Wrong with America with Reason.tv editor-in-chief Nick Gillespie.[21] He has become a frequent commentator on cable news shows, and was co-host of the Fox Business Network current events and political discussion show, The Independents.
Matt Welch is co-host of The Fifth Column podcast along with Kmele Foster and Michael Moynihan.
Welch lives in Brooklyn, New York, with his wife and two daughters.[19]
