James Hibberd is an American journalist and screenwriter. He is a current Editor at Large for ''

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Hollywood film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade paper, and in 2010 switched to a weekly larg ...

'' again after a ten year stint at ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cu ...

''. His work has been published in publications including ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'', '' Salon'', '' Details'', ''

Cosmopolitan Cosmopolitan may refer to: Food and drink * Cosmopolitan (cocktail), also known as a "Cosmo" History * Rootless cosmopolitan, a Soviet derogatory epithet during Joseph Stalin's anti-Semitic campaign of 1949–1953 Hotels and resorts * Cosmopoli ...

'', and '' Amnesty International Magazine''.

Career

Hibberd is a graduate of the

University of Texas The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...

journalism program. He worked at Austin American-Statesman and later moved to

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ; nv, Hoozdo; es, Fénix or , yuf-x-wal, Banyà:nyuwá) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona, with 1,608,139 residents as of 2020. It is the fifth-most populous city in the United States, and the on ...

and worked as a staff writer for the ''

Phoenix New Times ''Phoenix New Times'' is a free digital and print media company based in Phoenix, Arizona. ''New Times'' publishes daily online coverage of local news, restaurants, music and arts, as well as longform narrative journalism. A weekly print issue ...

''. From 2003 to 2008 he worked for ''TelevisionWeek'' becoming senior editor of the publication. In 2008 Hibberd joined ''

'' as a senior television reporter, and went on to become the television editor for the publication. From 2010 to 2021 he has been at''

'', before returning to ''The Hollywood Reporter'' in March 2021. Hibberd co-wrote the screenplay ''Waco'' with

Rupert Wainwright Rupert Wainwright is an English film and television director, with credits including ''Blank Check'' (1994), ''The Sadness of Sex'' (1995) and ''Stigmata'' (1999). He is also a music video producer and multiple award-winner. British-born, Wain ...

about the

Waco siege The Waco siege, also known as the Waco massacre, was the law enforcement siege of the compound that belonged to the religious sect Branch Davidians. It was carried out by the U.S. federal government, Texas state law enforcement, and the U.S. ...

, after spending a year researching the story. Hibberd wrote the screenplay to the film '' Tell Me How I Die'' which was released in 2016 to mixed reviews.

Controversy

In 2001, while a writer at the ''Phoenix New Times'', Hibberd conducted an interview with an active serial eco-arsonist who had not yet been captured by police. After the interview Hibberd declined to assist in the investigation, and refused to turn over any of his interview notes or other materials to investigators despite being subpoenaed to do so. Some criticized Hibberd’s decision, including ''

The Arizona Republic ''The Arizona Republic'' is an American daily newspaper published in Phoenix. Circulated throughout Arizona, it is the state's largest newspaper. Since 2000, it has been owned by the Gannett newspaper chain. Copies are sold at $2 daily or at $3 ...

'' and the mayor of Phoenix, who accused him of assisting the arsonist. A judge ruled that Hibberd was not legally obligated to hand over any material to police as the arsonist was a protected source. The arsonist was later apprehended.

References

External links

James Hibberd on Twitter
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hibberd, James Year of birth missing (living people) Living people American male journalists 21st-century American journalists University of Texas alumni American television critics 21st-century American screenwriters 21st-century American male writers