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]
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]
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]
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]
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.