William Powers (born March 14, 1961) is an American writer, journalist, and technologist. He is the author of ''Hamlet's BlackBerry: A Practical Philosophy for Building a Good Life in the Digital Age''.

Life and career

Powers grew up in

Rhode Island Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the List of U.S. states by area, smallest U.S. state by area and the List of states and territories of the United States ...

, and graduated from

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

with a degree in history and literature. He did graduate study in Spain, then moved to

Washington, DC ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan ...

, where he was a U.S. Senate aide working on foreign relations, intelligence and military affairs. Then, Powers joined ''

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 ...

''. His writing has appeared in ''

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, ...

'', ''

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 ...

'' and many other publications. He created ''

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 ...

''s first media column, and wrote a column about the intersection of media and politics that appeared in

Atlantic Media Atlantic Media is an American print and online media company owned by David G. Bradley and based in the Watergate in Washington, D.C. It publishes ''The Atlantic,'' a print and online publication that also holds themed events; and offers business ...

's ''National Journal'' and ''The Atlantic'' online.

Awards, fellowships and talks

Powers is a two-time winner of the

National Press Club Organizations A press club is an organization for journalists and others professionally engaged in the production and dissemination of news. A press club whose membership is defined by the press of a given country may be known as a National Press ...

's Rowse Award for media criticism. He was a Media Fellow at Harvard's

Shorenstein Center The Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy is a Harvard Kennedy School research center that explores the intersection and impact of media, politics and public policy in theory and practice. Among other activities, the center or ...

and a resident fellow at the

MacDowell Colony MacDowell is an artist's residency program in Peterborough, New Hampshire, United States, founded in 1907 by composer Edward MacDowell and his wife, pianist and philanthropist Marian MacDowell. Prior to July 2020, it was known as the MacDowell ...

. He has given keynote talks at conferences such as South by Southwest and the Aspen Ideas Festival.

Bibliography

* ''Hamlet's Blackberry: A Practical Philosophy for Building a Good Life in the Digital Age'', HarperCollins, 2010.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Powers, William 21st-century American novelists 1961 births Harvard University alumni Living people Novelists from Rhode Island The Washington Post people Writers from Providence, Rhode Island