Thomas Frank (Journalist)
Thomas Frank (born 1965) is an American author and journalist who writes about politics, culture, and the relationship between these phenomena. His writings, which draw upon his training as a historian of culture and ideas, analyze trends in American electoral politics and propaganda, advertising, popular culture, mainstream journalism and economics. He has focused particularly upon exploring the rhetoric and impact of the 'Culture Wars' in American political life.
Politics
Frank comes from a leftist political perspective and is highly critical of Republican governance, especially the presidency of George W. Bush. However, he has also criticized the Democratic Party for "swearing off economic liberalism"[1]. He is unique among writers on the American Left both for his political outlook, which revives the discourses of the American Populist Movement of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, [2] and for his polemical style, which has been said to update that of the muckrakers of the same historical era [3].
Frank is the founder and editor of The Baffler and the author of several books, most recently The Wrecking Crew: How Conservatives Rule. Other writings include essays for Harper's Magazine, Le Monde diplomatique, Bookforum, and the Financial Times. His book What's the Matter with Kansas?, published in 2004, earned him nationwide and international recognition.
Personal life
Frank was born in Kansas City, Missouri in 1965. He grew up in a local suburb, Mission Hills, Kansas. Frank graduated from Shawnee Mission East High School. He later attended the University of Kansas. He also attended the University of Virginia and the University of Chicago, where he received a Ph.D. in history in 1994. He currently lives in Washington, DC with his wife, Wendy, and their children.
He began writing a weekly column called "The Tilting Yard" in the Wall Street Journal on May 14, 2008.
Books
- The Conquest of Cool (1997) ISBN 0-226-26012-7
- One Market Under God: Extreme Capitalism, Market Populism, and the End of Economic Democracy (2000) ISBN 0-385-49503-X
- New Consensus for Old: Cultural Studies from Left to Right (2002) ISBN 0-9717575-4-2
- What's the Matter with Kansas? (2004) ISBN 0-8050-7339-6
- The Wrecking Crew: How Conservatives Rule (2008) 384pp, ISBN 0805079882, Publisher: Henry Holt and Co., Pub. Date: 2008-09-05.
As Editor
- Commodify Your Dissent: Salvos from The Baffler (1997) ISBN 0-393-31673-4
- Boob Jubilee: The Mad Cultural Politics of the New Economy: Salvos from the Baffler (2003) ISBN 0-393-32430-3
See also
- The Trap (TV Documentary Series) Thomas Frank features in The Trap, a BBC documentary.
External links
- Frank's personal website
- Thomas Frank Author Page (Henry Holt and Company)
- What's The Matter With "What's The Matter With Kansas"; The Nation; October 11, 2005; Study (pdf) argues that the white working class hasn't moved right and that "moral values" are not pushing them to vote Republican.
- Class is Dismissed Thomas Frank's reply to Prof. Bartels' study What's The Matter With "What's The Matter With Kansas".
- New Consensus for Old: Cultural Studies from Left to Right 26 page book/pamphlet put out by Prickly Paradigm in Fall 2002.
- PBS's NOW with Bill Moyers An interview on What's the Matter With Kansas?
- Vorlage:Imdb name
- Frank giving speech at "Hostile Takeover"
- Opinion article in the Wall Street Journal written by Frank
- VIDEO: Thomas Frank, Aug. 14, 2008 - The Wrecking Crew: How Conservatives Rule, presentation at Powell's Books in Portland, Oregon, from recent book tour.