Jesse Walker (born September 4, 1970) is books editor of ''

Reason Reason is the capacity of consciously applying logic by drawing conclusions from new or existing information, with the aim of seeking the truth. It is closely associated with such characteristically human activities as philosophy, science, ...

'' magazine. The

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

alumnus has written the books ''The United States of Paranoia: A Conspiracy Theory'' (HarperCollins, 2013) and ''Rebels on the Air: An Alternative History of Radio in America'' (NYU Press, 2001), and he maintains a blog called ''The Perpetual Three-Dot Column''. His articles have appeared in a number of 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 ...

'', ''

The Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...

'', ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

'', ''

The Atlantic ''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, ...

'',

Salon Salon may refer to: Common meanings * Beauty salon, a venue for cosmetic treatments * French term for a drawing room, an architectural space in a home * Salon (gathering), a meeting for learning or enjoyment Arts and entertainment * Salon (P ...

, ''

The New Republic ''The New Republic'' is an American magazine of commentary on politics, contemporary culture, and the arts. Founded in 1914 by several leaders of the progressive movement, it attempted to find a balance between "a liberalism centered in hum ...

'', ''

Politico ''Politico'' (stylized in all caps), known originally as ''The Politico'', is an American, German-owned political journalism newspaper company based in Arlington County, Virginia, that covers politics and policy in the United States and intern ...

'', ''

L.A. Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...

'', ''

L.A. Weekly ''LA Weekly'' is a free weekly alternative newspaper in Los Angeles, California. It was founded in 1978 by Jay Levin, who served as president and editor until 1991. Voice Media Group sold the paper in late 2017 to Semanal Media LLC, whose paren ...

'', ''

Chronicles Chronicles may refer to: * ''Books of Chronicles'', in the Bible * Chronicle, chronological histories * ''The Chronicles of Narnia'', a novel series by C. S. Lewis * ''Holinshed's Chronicles'', the collected works of Raphael Holinshed * ''The Idhu ...

'', ''

Boing Boing ''Boing Boing'' is a website, first established as a zine in 1988, later becoming a group blog. Common topics and themes include technology, futurism, science fiction, gadgets, intellectual property, Disney, and left-wing politics. It twice won ...

'', '' No Depression'', and the ''

Journal of American Studies The ''Journal of American Studies'' is a quarterly peer-reviewed academic journal covering international perspectives on the history, literature, politics and culture of the United States. It includes a book review section. Though academic in natu ...

''.

Views

Walker's writings display a definite

libertarian Libertarianism (from french: libertaire, "libertarian"; from la, libertas, "freedom") is a political philosophy that upholds liberty as a core value. Libertarians seek to maximize autonomy and political freedom, and minimize the state's e ...

bent, and he has cast a protest vote for the

Libertarian Party Active parties by country Defunct parties by country Organizations associated with Libertarian parties See also * Liberal parties by country * List of libertarian organizations * Lists of political parties Lists of political part ...

's nominee in every presidential election of his adult lifetime except one, though "more often than not, I think they've put up a terrible candidate."

Foreign policy

Walker was critical of the

War on Terror The war on terror, officially the Global War on Terrorism (GWOT), is an ongoing international Counterterrorism, counterterrorism military campaign initiated by the United States following the September 11 attacks. The main targets of the campa ...

and opposed the

Patriot Act The USA PATRIOT Act (commonly known as the Patriot Act) was a landmark Act of the United States Congress, signed into law by President George W. Bush. The formal name of the statute is the Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropr ...

. He has stated that it is a myth that the U.S. pursued an "

isolationist Isolationism is a political philosophy advocating a national foreign policy that opposes involvement in the political affairs, and especially the wars, of other countries. Thus, isolationism fundamentally advocates neutrality and opposes entangl ...

" foreign policy between

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

Conspiracy Theories

He has identified five kinds of conspiracy theories: * The "Enemy Outside" refers to theories based on figures alleged to be scheming against a community from without. * The "Enemy Within" finds the conspirators lurking inside the nation, indistinguishable from ordinary citizens. * The "Enemy Above" involves powerful people manipulating events for their own gain. * The "Enemy Below" features the lower classes working to overturn the social order. * The "Benevolent Conspiracies" are angelic forces that work behind the scenes to improve the world and help people.Jesse Walker, ''The United States of Paranoia: A Conspiracy Theory'' (2013
excerpt and text search
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Selected bibliography

* "Every Man a Sultan: Indigenous Responses to the Somalia Crisis"
''Telos''
103 (Spring 1995). New York: Telos Press.

References

External links

''Perpetual Three-Dot Column''
*
''No Depression'' archive

NPR Interview, "Suspicious? In 'United States Of Paranoia,' It's Not Just You"

Nieman Lab Interview, "The history of American conspiracy theories holds some lessons for fake news debunkers, says Jesse Walker"

Vice Interview, "America’s Not-So-Secret Paranoid Underbelly"

The Atlantic, "How Russian Trolls Imitate American Political Dysfunction"

The New Republic, "All the President’s Phantoms"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Walker, Jesse 1970 births Living people American bloggers American libertarians American magazine editors American male bloggers American male writers American political writers Competitive Enterprise Institute University of Michigan alumni Place of birth missing (living people) 21st-century American non-fiction writers