James Warren (journalist)
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James C. Warren (born January 4, 1953) is an American
journalist A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a news-worthy form, and disseminates it to the public. The act or process mainly done by the journalist is called journalism ...
, currently the executive editor of NewsGuard, which rates the credibility of news and information sites. Previously, he was chief media writer for the Poynter Institute, a national affairs columnist for U.S. News & World Report, and Washington Bureau chief for the ''
New York Daily News The New York ''Daily News'', officially titled the ''Daily News'', is an American newspaper based in Jersey City, NJ. It was founded in 1919 by Joseph Medill Patterson as the ''Illustrated Daily News''. It was the first U.S. daily printed in ta ...
''. He previously served as a founder of the
Chicago News Cooperative The Chicago News Cooperative was a not-for-profit, Chicago-based cooperative that was created to produce news stories about Chicago for various media organizations. It was formed in November 2009, distributed its content to ''The New York Times'' a ...
and wrote its twice-weekly column in the Chicago edition of ''
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 ...
''. He was the managing editor at the ''
Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television ar ...
'' when he left the paper in 2008. He was the ''Tribune''′s Washington bureau chief from 1993 to 2001, and he appeared for three years on
CNN CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by the M ...
's "
Capital Gang ''Capital Gang'' was an American weekly political talk show on CNN which aired on Saturday evenings at 7 p.m. ET. The show debuted in the fall of 1988 and ran until CNN cancelled it in 2005. The original panel was Pat Buchanan, Robert Novak, Al ...
Sunday" and regularly on "
The McLaughlin Group ''The McLaughlin Group'' was a syndicated half-hour weekly public affairs television program in the United States, during which a group of four pundits, prompted by the host, discusses current political issues in a round table format. John Mc ...
". He was Chicago editor for ''
The Daily Beast ''The Daily Beast'' is an American news website focused on politics, media, and pop culture. It was founded in 2008. It has been characterized as a "high-end tabloid" by Noah Shachtman, the site's editor-in-chief from 2018 to 2021. In a 20 ...
'' and has written regularly for the ''
Huffington Post ''HuffPost'' (formerly ''The Huffington Post'' until 2017 and sometimes abbreviated ''HuffPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and ...
'' and ''
The Atlantic Monthly ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher. It features articles in the fields of politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 1857 in Boston, ...
'', as well as for '' Vanity Fair''. He appears regularly on
MSNBC MSNBC (originally the Microsoft National Broadcasting Company) is an American news-based pay television cable channel. It is owned by NBCUniversala subsidiary of Comcast. Headquartered in New York City, it provides news coverage and political ...
and WGN-TV in Chicago.


Early life and education

Born in New York City and the son of a stockbroker, Warren was educated at Collegiate School, an independent
college preparatory school A college-preparatory school (usually shortened to preparatory school or prep school) is a type of secondary school. The term refers to public, private independent or parochial schools primarily designed to prepare students for higher education ...
in New York City, followed by
Amherst College Amherst College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Amherst, Massachusetts. Founded in 1821 as an attempt to relocate Williams College by its then-president Zephaniah Swift Moore, Amherst is the third oldest institution of higher educatio ...
, where he earned a bachelor's degree in English, in 1974. He later earned a master's degree from
Roosevelt University Roosevelt University is a private university with campuses in Chicago and Schaumburg, Illinois. Founded in 1945, the university was named in honor of United States President Franklin Delano Roosevelt and First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt. The unive ...
in Chicago.


Professional career

Warren began his journalism career in the mid-1970s working as a reporter for the ''
Newark Star-Ledger Newark most commonly refers to: * Newark, New Jersey, city in the United States * Newark Liberty International Airport, New Jersey; a major air hub in the New York metropolitan area Newark may also refer to: Places Canada * Niagara-on-th ...
''. In 1977, he joined the financial section of the ''
Chicago Sun-Times The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has the second largest circulation among Chicago newspapers, after the ''Chicago T ...
'', where he worked as a business reporter, a general assignment reporter, a legal affairs reporter and a labor reporter. In 1984, Warren joined the ''Chicago Tribune'' as its labor and legal affairs writer. He later became the paper's media writer. In mid-1992, Warren was named editor of the ''Tribune''′s Tempo lifestyle section.https://securesite.chireader.com/cgi-bin/Archive/abridged2.bat?path=1993/931217/HOTTYPE&search=jim%20Warren%20and%20Tempo In mid-December 1993, Warren was chosen to become the ''Tribune''′s Washington, D.C. bureau chief. Almost immediately after arriving in town, Warren attracted attention with his brash talk. "I have absolutely no desire to make this a long-term thing," he told the ''
Chicago Reader The ''Chicago Reader'', or ''Reader'' (stylized as ЯEADER), is an American alternative weekly newspaper in Chicago, Illinois, noted for its literary style of journalism and coverage of the arts, particularly film and theater. It was founded by a ...
'' in December 1992. "I have no desire to be there in five or ten years as part of the Gridiron Show, prancing around onstage, singing to the president, or whatever the fuck they do." Warren also quickly attracted attention in D.C. by exposing the clubby ways of the star journalists in Washington. Warren in particular targeted broadcast journalists who were paid to give speeches to the organizations that they covered, including
Lesley Stahl Lesley Rene Stahl (born December 16, 1941) is an American television journalist. She has spent most of her career with CBS News, where she began as a producer in 1971. Since 1991, she has reported for CBS's ''60 Minutes''. She is known for her ne ...
,
Tim Russert Timothy John Russert (May 7, 1950 – June 13, 2008) was an American television journalist and lawyer who appeared for more than 16 years as the longest-serving moderator of NBC's ''Meet the Press''. He was a senior vice president at NBC News, Wa ...
and Jack Nelson. Warren saved his heaviest vitriol, however, for
Cokie Roberts Mary Martha Corinne Morrison Claiborne "Cokie" Roberts (née Boggs; December 27, 1943 – September 17, 2019) was an American journalist and author. Her career included decades as a political reporter and analyst for National Public Radio, PBS, ...
, whose speechifying Warren tracked regularly in his weekly ''Tribune'' column in a feature he dubbed "Cokie Watch." Warren himself wound up on TV for three years while living and working in D.C. From 1995 until 1998, Warren became a regular panelist on
CNN CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by the M ...
's political talk show ''Capital Gang Sunday'', which was an offshoot of its show at the time, ''Capital Gang''. In 1997, Warren also began co-hosting a Sunday night radio show on
WGN-AM WGN (720 kHz) is a commercial AM radio station in Chicago, Illinois, with studios on the 18th floor of 303 East Wacker Drive in the Chicago Loop. WGN has a news/talk format, along with broadcasts of Chicago Blackhawks hockey and Northwestern ...
with
Michael Tackett Michael Tackett is an American journalist who covers national politics for ''The New York Times''. He is a former recipient of the White House Correspondent's Association's Edgar A. Poe Award for National Reporting. Early life and education T ...
entitled ''Unconventional Wisdom''. The show aired until early 2006, when WGN canceled it as part of a total overhaul of the station's weekend schedule. The '' Washingtonian'' magazine chose Warren as one of the 50 best and most influential journalists in 2001. In 2001, Warren returned to Chicago as the ''Tribune''′s associate managing editor for features. In 2002, Warren became the ''Tribune''′s deputy managing editor for features. In 2006, Warren became the paper's managing editor for features. Warren left the ''Chicago Tribune'' in a power struggle in August 2008 after the paper got a new editor,
Gerould W. Kern Gerould is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bobby Gerould, American sports announcer * Daniel C. Gerould (1928–2012), American playwright * Gary Gerould, American sports announcer * Gordon Hall Gerould (1877–1953), Ameri ...
, and a new managing editor, Jane Hirt. After leaving the ''Tribune'', Warren began writing for the ''
Huffington Post ''HuffPost'' (formerly ''The Huffington Post'' until 2017 and sometimes abbreviated ''HuffPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and ...
'', continuing his longstanding practice of reviewing magazine articles. He also started writing for ''
The Atlantic Monthly ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher. It features articles in the fields of politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 1857 in Boston, ...
''. In October 2009, Warren was named the publisher of the ''
Chicago Reader The ''Chicago Reader'', or ''Reader'' (stylized as ЯEADER), is an American alternative weekly newspaper in Chicago, Illinois, noted for its literary style of journalism and coverage of the arts, particularly film and theater. It was founded by a ...
'' alternative weekly newspaper in Chicago. In November 2009, Warren began writing a regular column for the
Chicago News Cooperative The Chicago News Cooperative was a not-for-profit, Chicago-based cooperative that was created to produce news stories about Chicago for various media organizations. It was formed in November 2009, distributed its content to ''The New York Times'' a ...
that appeared in ''
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 ...
''. In March 2010, Warren stepped down as publisher of the ''Chicago Reader'' to focus more on the Chicago News Cooperative.http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1004073581


Personal

Warren married then-''Tribune'' editorial writer
Cornelia Grumman Cornelia Grumman is an American Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist. She is the Director of the Early Education Program at the Robert R. McCormick Foundation (http://mccormickfoundation.org/) in Chicago. From 2008–2012, she was the executive direc ...
in 2001. They have two sons, Blair and Eliot, and live in the Graceland West area of the Ravenswood neighborhood on Chicago's North Side.


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Warren, James Living people Amherst College alumni Chicago Reader people Chicago Sun-Times people Chicago Tribune people 1953 births Journalists from New York City Roosevelt University alumni HuffPost writers and columnists