Eric Schlosser
Encyclopedia
Eric Schlosser is an American journalist
and author known for investigative journalism, such as in his books Fast Food Nation
, Reefer Madness
and Chew On This
.
. His father Herbert Schlosser, a former Wall Street lawyer who turned to broadcasting later in his career, eventually became the President of NBC
in 1974.
Eric Schlosser studied American History at Princeton University
and earned a graduate degree in British Imperial History from Oxford
.
Schlosser lives in California with his wife Shauna Redford, daughter of Robert Redford
, and has two children.
, William McKinley
's assassin, who shoots the President in anger over U.S. occupation of the Philippines
. Americans was produced in 2003, but is not available in the United States. We the People, another play drawing on American history—in this case, the events surrounding the writing of the United States Constitution
—followed in 2007.
in Boston, Massachusetts. He quickly gained recognition for his investigative pieces, earning two awards within two years of joining the staff; he won the National Magazine Award
for reporting for his two-part series “Reefer Madness” and “Marijuana and the Law” (Atlantic Monthly, August and September, 1994), and he won the Sidney Hillman Foundation award for his article, “In the Strawberry Fields” (Atlantic Monthly, November 19, 1995). In addition to the Atlantic Monthly, Schlosser's work has appeared in Rolling Stone
, Vanity Fair
, The New Yorker
, The New York Times
, and The Nation
.
, an exposé on the unsanitary and discriminatory practices of the fast food
industry. Fast Food Nation evolved from a two-part article in Rolling Stone. Schlosser helped adapt his book into a 2006 film
directed by Richard Linklater
. The film opened November 19, 2006. Schlosser is credited as co-screenwriter and executive producer. He has written Chew On This
(2006, with Charles Wilson
).
He has also written the 2003 book Reefer Madness
, a three part book that discusses the history and current trade of marijuana, the use of migrant workers in California strawberry fields, and the American pornography
industry and its history.
He is currently at work on a book on nuclear weapons and another book on America's prison system which has been nearly 10 years in the making.
called Fast Food Nation the "Best Business Book of the Year" in 2001. Schlosser's work has been required reading for the entire incoming freshman class at Louisiana State University and Holy Cross.
's Super Size Me
, having a one-on-one discussion with the filmmaker about the fast-food industry. He declined to appear in the film itself. He made a public appearance along with Robert Kenner
, Alice Waters, Gary Hirshberg, and Marcel Van Ooyen on June 5, 2009 at the Times Center in NYC following the screening of his new film Food, Inc. presented by the Museum of the Moving Image. Food Inc. explores the way the American food supply is now controlled by a handful of corporations that often put profit ahead of consumer health, the livelihood of the American farmer, the safety of workers and our own environment. Owen Gleiberman, film critic for Entertainment Weekly, wrote "I'm not generally in the habit of praising documentaries for being good for you, but Food, Inc. is more than a terrific movie—it's an important movie, one that nourishes your knowledge of how the world works (or, in this case, has started not to work)."
He was interviewed by Franny Armstrong
in 2005 and is a feature interviewee in her film McLibel
.
Schlosser also served as an executive producer on the 2007 film There Will Be Blood
.
When asked how much cooperation the meatpacking and fast food industries lent to his research of Fast Food Nation, Schlosser said the following: "None of the major meatpacking companies allowed me to visit their facilities. McDonald's was not at all helpful. The industry, on the whole, didn't roll out a welcome mat. But many of the workers at fast food restaurants and meatpacking plants were eager to talk with me. They felt that their stories had not yet been told, and they wanted the world to know what was happening. Their help made "Fast Food Nation" possible..."
As a result of Schlosser's criticisms of the food industry, he has been the victim of verbal attacks at book signings and public speaking events that he believes to be the work of citizens employed by large food corporations. He has openly challenged many of the food corporations he feels responsible of tainting America's food system to public debates regarding their policies and regulations. All such invitations have been declined with the exception of one British McDonald's executive.
Journalism
Journalism is the practice of investigation and reporting of events, issues and trends to a broad audience in a timely fashion. Though there are many variations of journalism, the ideal is to inform the intended audience. Along with covering organizations and institutions such as government and...
and author known for investigative journalism, such as in his books Fast Food Nation
Fast Food Nation
Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal is a book by investigative journalist Eric Schlosser that examines the local and global influence of the United States fast food industry....
, Reefer Madness
Reefer Madness (2003 book)
Reefer Madness: Sex, Drugs, and Cheap Labor in the American Black Market is a book written by Eric Schlosser and published in 2003. The book is a look at the three pillars of the underground economy of the U.S., estimated by Schlosser to be ten percent of American GDP: marijuana, migrant labor, and...
and Chew On This
Chew on This
Chew On This: Everything You Don't Want to Know about Fast Food is an adaptation of Fast Food Nation for younger readers by Eric Schlosser and Charles Wilson.- Plot summary:...
.
Personal History
Schlosser was born in Manhattan, New York; he spent his childhood there and in Los Angeles, CaliforniaLos Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
. His father Herbert Schlosser, a former Wall Street lawyer who turned to broadcasting later in his career, eventually became the President of NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
in 1974.
Eric Schlosser studied American History at Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
and earned a graduate degree in British Imperial History from Oxford
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
.
Schlosser lives in California with his wife Shauna Redford, daughter of Robert Redford
Robert Redford
Charles Robert Redford, Jr. , better known as Robert Redford, is an American actor, film director, producer, businessman, environmentalist, philanthropist, and founder of the Sundance Film Festival. He has received two Oscars: one in 1981 for directing Ordinary People, and one for Lifetime...
, and has two children.
Drama
As an aspiring playwright, Schlosser wrote the play Americans in 1985. It deals with the theme of American imperialism at the beginning of the 20th century, and features Leon CzolgoszLeon Czolgosz
Leon Czolgosz was the assassin of U.S. President William McKinley.In the last few years of his life, he claimed to have been heavily influenced by anarchists such as Emma Goldman and Alexander Berkman.- Early life :...
, William McKinley
William McKinley
William McKinley, Jr. was the 25th President of the United States . He is best known for winning fiercely fought elections, while supporting the gold standard and high tariffs; he succeeded in forging a Republican coalition that for the most part dominated national politics until the 1930s...
's assassin, who shoots the President in anger over U.S. occupation of the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
. Americans was produced in 2003, but is not available in the United States. We the People, another play drawing on American history—in this case, the events surrounding the writing of the United States Constitution
United States Constitution
The Constitution of the United States is the supreme law of the United States of America. It is the framework for the organization of the United States government and for the relationship of the federal government with the states, citizens, and all people within the United States.The first three...
—followed in 2007.
Journalism
Schlosser started his career as a journalist with The Atlantic MonthlyThe Atlantic Monthly
The Atlantic is an American magazine founded in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1857. It was created as a literary and cultural commentary magazine. It quickly achieved a national reputation, which it held for more than a century. It was important for recognizing and publishing new writers and poets,...
in Boston, Massachusetts. He quickly gained recognition for his investigative pieces, earning two awards within two years of joining the staff; he won the National Magazine Award
National Magazine Award
The National Magazine Awards are a series of US awards that honor excellence in the magazine industry. They are administered by the American Society of Magazine Editors and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism in New York City...
for reporting for his two-part series “Reefer Madness” and “Marijuana and the Law” (Atlantic Monthly, August and September, 1994), and he won the Sidney Hillman Foundation award for his article, “In the Strawberry Fields” (Atlantic Monthly, November 19, 1995). In addition to the Atlantic Monthly, Schlosser's work has appeared in Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
, Vanity Fair
Vanity Fair (magazine)
Vanity Fair is a magazine of pop culture, fashion, and current affairs published by Condé Nast. The present Vanity Fair has been published since 1983 and there have been editions for four European countries as well as the U.S. edition. This revived the title which had ceased publication in 1935...
, The New Yorker
The New Yorker
The New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons and poetry published by Condé Nast...
, The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, and The Nation
The Nation
The Nation is the oldest continuously published weekly magazine in the United States. The periodical, devoted to politics and culture, is self-described as "the flagship of the left." Founded on July 6, 1865, It is published by The Nation Company, L.P., at 33 Irving Place, New York City.The Nation...
.
Books
Schlosser is known for his bestselling book, Fast Food NationFast Food Nation
Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal is a book by investigative journalist Eric Schlosser that examines the local and global influence of the United States fast food industry....
, an exposé on the unsanitary and discriminatory practices of the fast food
Fast food
Fast food is the term given to food that can be prepared and served very quickly. While any meal with low preparation time can be considered to be fast food, typically the term refers to food sold in a restaurant or store with preheated or precooked ingredients, and served to the customer in a...
industry. Fast Food Nation evolved from a two-part article in Rolling Stone. Schlosser helped adapt his book into a 2006 film
Fast Food Nation (film)
Fast Food Nation is a 2006 American/British drama film directed by Richard Linklater. The screenplay was written by Linklater and Eric Schlosser, loosely based on the latter's bestselling 2001 non-fiction book of the same name...
directed by Richard Linklater
Richard Linklater
-Early life:Linklater was born in Houston, Texas. He studied at Sam Houston State University and left midway through his stint in college to work on an off-shore oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico. While working on the rig he read a lot of literature, but on land he developed a love of film through...
. The film opened November 19, 2006. Schlosser is credited as co-screenwriter and executive producer. He has written Chew On This
Chew on This
Chew On This: Everything You Don't Want to Know about Fast Food is an adaptation of Fast Food Nation for younger readers by Eric Schlosser and Charles Wilson.- Plot summary:...
(2006, with Charles Wilson
Charles Wilson (journalist)
Charles Wilson is a Scottish journalist and newspaper executive.Charlie Wilson was Managing Director of Mirror Group plc from 1992 to 1998, having been Editorial Director of Mirror Group Newspapers from 1991 to 1992...
).
He has also written the 2003 book Reefer Madness
Reefer Madness (2003 book)
Reefer Madness: Sex, Drugs, and Cheap Labor in the American Black Market is a book written by Eric Schlosser and published in 2003. The book is a look at the three pillars of the underground economy of the U.S., estimated by Schlosser to be ten percent of American GDP: marijuana, migrant labor, and...
, a three part book that discusses the history and current trade of marijuana, the use of migrant workers in California strawberry fields, and the American pornography
Pornography
Pornography or porn is the explicit portrayal of sexual subject matter for the purposes of sexual arousal and erotic satisfaction.Pornography may use any of a variety of media, ranging from books, magazines, postcards, photos, sculpture, drawing, painting, animation, sound recording, film, video,...
industry and its history.
He is currently at work on a book on nuclear weapons and another book on America's prison system which has been nearly 10 years in the making.
Reception
Schlosser's work has received positive reviews from across the political spectrum. William F. Buckley gave Reefer Madness a positive review, as did Business Week and the Financial Times. FortuneFortune (magazine)
Fortune is a global business magazine published by Time Inc. Founded by Henry Luce in 1930, the publishing business, consisting of Time, Life, Fortune, and Sports Illustrated, grew to become Time Warner. In turn, AOL grew as it acquired Time Warner in 2000 when Time Warner was the world's largest...
called Fast Food Nation the "Best Business Book of the Year" in 2001. Schlosser's work has been required reading for the entire incoming freshman class at Louisiana State University and Holy Cross.
Films
Schlosser appeared in an interview for the DVD of Morgan SpurlockMorgan Spurlock
Morgan Valentine Spurlock is an American documentary filmmaker, humorist, television producer, screenwriter and journalist best known for the documentary film Super Size Me...
's Super Size Me
Super Size Me
Super Size Me is a 2004 American documentary film directed by and starring Morgan Spurlock, an American independent filmmaker. Spurlock's film follows a 30-day period from February 1 to March 2, 2003 during which he eats only McDonald's food...
, having a one-on-one discussion with the filmmaker about the fast-food industry. He declined to appear in the film itself. He made a public appearance along with Robert Kenner
Robert Kenner
Robert Kenner is an American film and television screenwriter, television director, film director, film producer, and television producer.His career began in 1971 as an assistant cinematographer, and produced his first motion picture, 3:15 - The Moment of Truth, in 1984...
, Alice Waters, Gary Hirshberg, and Marcel Van Ooyen on June 5, 2009 at the Times Center in NYC following the screening of his new film Food, Inc. presented by the Museum of the Moving Image. Food Inc. explores the way the American food supply is now controlled by a handful of corporations that often put profit ahead of consumer health, the livelihood of the American farmer, the safety of workers and our own environment. Owen Gleiberman, film critic for Entertainment Weekly, wrote "I'm not generally in the habit of praising documentaries for being good for you, but Food, Inc. is more than a terrific movie—it's an important movie, one that nourishes your knowledge of how the world works (or, in this case, has started not to work)."
He was interviewed by Franny Armstrong
Franny Armstrong
Franny Armstrong is a British documentary film director working for her own company, Spanner Films, and a former drummer with indie pop group The Band of Holy Joy...
in 2005 and is a feature interviewee in her film McLibel
McLibel (film)
McLibel is a documentary film directed by Franny Armstrong and Ken Loach for Spanner Films about the McLibel case. The film was first completed, as a 52 minute television version, in 1997, after the conclusion of the original McLibel trial...
.
Schlosser also served as an executive producer on the 2007 film There Will Be Blood
There Will Be Blood
There Will Be Blood is a 2007 drama film written, co-produced, and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson. The film is based on Upton Sinclair's 1927 novel Oil!. It tells the story of a silver miner-turned-oilman on a ruthless quest for wealth during Southern California's oil boom of the late 19th and...
.
Food industry's reaction to Schlosser's work
In May 2006, Schlosser and his co-author Charles Wilson released a children's book entitled Chew On This. The book, along with increasing publicity for the Hollywood movie based on Fast Food Nation, resulted in 18 food industry associations launching the www.bestfoodnation.com website as part of a major public relations campaign. The site presents statements about health and labor practices in the American beef, pork, dairy, potato and other industries. However, this website is no longer in operation.When asked how much cooperation the meatpacking and fast food industries lent to his research of Fast Food Nation, Schlosser said the following: "None of the major meatpacking companies allowed me to visit their facilities. McDonald's was not at all helpful. The industry, on the whole, didn't roll out a welcome mat. But many of the workers at fast food restaurants and meatpacking plants were eager to talk with me. They felt that their stories had not yet been told, and they wanted the world to know what was happening. Their help made "Fast Food Nation" possible..."
As a result of Schlosser's criticisms of the food industry, he has been the victim of verbal attacks at book signings and public speaking events that he believes to be the work of citizens employed by large food corporations. He has openly challenged many of the food corporations he feels responsible of tainting America's food system to public debates regarding their policies and regulations. All such invitations have been declined with the exception of one British McDonald's executive.
External links
- (pdf) Biography at Royce Carlton Publishers, December 11, 2006 (archived 2006)
- Biography at Drury University, December 11, 2006
- (MS Word) Biography at Indiana University of Pennsylvania, December 11, 2006
- Ubben Lecture at DePauw University
- Session I: "Moving Beyond Fast Food Nation" (University Channel audio/video) This is the opening session of a Princeton University conference on "Food, Ethics and the Environment", with Peter Singer. Eric Schlosser is introduced at minute 30:30.