Matt Yglesias
Encyclopedia
Matthew Yglesias is an American political blog
ger and a prominent voice in the American liberal
blogosphere
.
is a screenwriter and novelist and the son of novelists Jose Yglesias
, of Cuban and Spanish descent, and Helen Bassine Yglesias
, daughter of Polish-Jewish immigrants.
Yglesias went to high school at The Dalton School
in New York City and later attended Harvard University
where he studied philosophy
. He graduated magna cum laude in 2003. He was editor-in-chief of The Harvard Independent
, a weekly newsmagazine, and also wrote for several other campus publications.
Yglesias started blogging in early 2002, while still in college, focusing mainly on American politics
and public policy
issues, often approached from an abstract, philosophical perspective. He was one of the supporters of the Iraq war, although he's changed his mind since then. Yglesias joined the American Prospect as a writing fellow upon his graduation in 2003, subsequently becoming a staff writer. His posts appeared regularly on the magazine's collaborative weblog TAPPED. His personal blog has been hosted, at various times, on blog
ger, Typepad
, Josh Marshall's TPMCafe
, and at matthewyglesias.com. From June 2007 until August 2008, he was a staff writer at The Atlantic Monthly
, and his blog was hosted on the magazine's website, The Atlantic. In July 2008, he announced that he would leave The Atlantic Monthly for his current home at the Center for American Progress
, because he missed "the sense of collegiality that comes from working with like-minded colleagues on a shared enterprise" and thought he could "help advance their mission". He recently announced plans to leave the Center for American Progress to take a job writing for Slate's Moneybox.
He has also written for mainstream publications such as the New York Times Magazine, and has made occasional appearances on radio and television as a political commentator. He is a regular contributor to BloggingHeads.tv
. Yglesias is often referred to in the blogosphere as Big Media Matt, a semi-affectionate nickname coined by Duncan Black
after his recruitment by the American Prospect.
Andrew Sullivan
takes nominations on his blog for the Yglesias Award, a tongue-in-cheek honor "for writers, politicians, columnists or pundits who actually criticize their own side, make enemies among political allies, and generally risk something for the sake of saying what they believe." Yglesias is also somewhat infamous for the often bad spelling of his blog posts, a weakness to which he frankly admits.
Besides analytic philosophy
, Yglesias has a passion for basketball
and occasionally posts about the NBA, particularly the Washington Wizards
.
Blog
A blog is a type of website or part of a website supposed to be updated with new content from time to time. Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in...
ger and a prominent voice in the American liberal
Liberalism
Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
blogosphere
Blogosphere
The blogosphere is made up of all blogs and their interconnections. The term implies that blogs exist together as a connected community or as a social network in which everyday authors can publish their opinions...
.
Life
Matthew Yglesias's father Rafael YglesiasRafael Yglesias
Rafael Yglesias is an American novelist and screenwriter. His parents were the novelists Jose Yglesias and Helen Yglesias. The blogger and journalist Matthew Yglesias is his older son; his younger son, Nicholas, is also a novelist and has applied to become a police cadet.Yglesias was born and...
is a screenwriter and novelist and the son of novelists Jose Yglesias
Jose Yglesias
Jose Yglesias was an American novelist and journalist.-Biography:Yglesias was born in the Ybor City section of Tampa, Florida, and was of Cuban and Spanish descent. His father was from Galicia. He moved to New York City in 1937 and served in the United States Navy during World War II...
, of Cuban and Spanish descent, and Helen Bassine Yglesias
Helen Yglesias
Helen Bassine Yglesias was an American novelist.-Early life:Yglesias was the youngest of seven children born to Solomon and Kate Bassine, both Yiddish-speaking immigrants from the Russian-controlled portion of Poland who lived in an apartment in Fort Greene, Brooklyn. Solomon Bassine was the...
, daughter of Polish-Jewish immigrants.
Yglesias went to high school at The Dalton School
The Dalton School
The Dalton School, originally called the Children's University School, is a private university-preparatory school on New York City's Upper East Side and a member of both the New York Interschooland the Ivy Preparatory School League...
in New York City and later attended Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
where he studied philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
. He graduated magna cum laude in 2003. He was editor-in-chief of The Harvard Independent
The Harvard Independent
The Harvard Independent is a weekly newspaper produced by undergraduate students at Harvard University. It is one of many hard-news media outlets on the Harvard undergraduate campus.-Origin and history:...
, a weekly newsmagazine, and also wrote for several other campus publications.
Yglesias started blogging in early 2002, while still in college, focusing mainly on American politics
American politics
American politics is an area of study within the academic discipline of political science. It is primarily, but not exclusively, studied by researchers in the United States...
and public policy
Public policy
Public policy as government action is generally the principled guide to action taken by the administrative or executive branches of the state with regard to a class of issues in a manner consistent with law and institutional customs. In general, the foundation is the pertinent national and...
issues, often approached from an abstract, philosophical perspective. He was one of the supporters of the Iraq war, although he's changed his mind since then. Yglesias joined the American Prospect as a writing fellow upon his graduation in 2003, subsequently becoming a staff writer. His posts appeared regularly on the magazine's collaborative weblog TAPPED. His personal blog has been hosted, at various times, on blog
Blog
A blog is a type of website or part of a website supposed to be updated with new content from time to time. Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in...
ger, Typepad
TypePad
TypePad is a blogging service from company Say Media . Originally launched in October 2003, TypePad is based on Six Apart's Movable Type platform, and shares technology with Movable Type such as templates and APIs, but is marketed to non-technical users and includes additional features like...
, Josh Marshall's TPMCafe
TPMCafe
TPMCafe is a center-left blog portal created by Josh Marshall as a spin-off blog to his popular Talking Points Memo. It debuted on May 31, 2005....
, and at matthewyglesias.com. From June 2007 until August 2008, he was a staff writer at The Atlantic Monthly
The 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,...
, and his blog was hosted on the magazine's website, The Atlantic. In July 2008, he announced that he would leave The Atlantic Monthly for his current home at the Center for American Progress
Center for American Progress
The Center for American Progress is a progressive public policy research and advocacy organization. Its website states that the organization is "dedicated to improving the lives of Americans through progressive ideas and action." It has its headquarters in Washington D.C.Its President and Chief...
, because he missed "the sense of collegiality that comes from working with like-minded colleagues on a shared enterprise" and thought he could "help advance their mission". He recently announced plans to leave the Center for American Progress to take a job writing for Slate's Moneybox.
He has also written for mainstream publications such as the New York Times Magazine, and has made occasional appearances on radio and television as a political commentator. He is a regular contributor to BloggingHeads.tv
Bloggingheads.tv
Bloggingheads.tv is a political, world events, philosophy, and science video blog discussion site in which the participants take part in an active back and forth conversation via webcam which is then broadcast online to viewers...
. Yglesias is often referred to in the blogosphere as Big Media Matt, a semi-affectionate nickname coined by Duncan Black
Atrios
Duncan Bowen Black , better known by his pseudonym Atrios , is an American liberal blogger living in Philadelphia. His weblog Eschaton is one of the most popular political weblogs, receiving an average of over 100,000 hits every day...
after his recruitment by the American Prospect.
Andrew Sullivan
Andrew Sullivan
Andrew Michael Sullivan is an English author, editor, political commentator and blogger. He describes himself as a political conservative. He has focused on American political life....
takes nominations on his blog for the Yglesias Award, a tongue-in-cheek honor "for writers, politicians, columnists or pundits who actually criticize their own side, make enemies among political allies, and generally risk something for the sake of saying what they believe." Yglesias is also somewhat infamous for the often bad spelling of his blog posts, a weakness to which he frankly admits.
Besides analytic philosophy
Analytic philosophy
Analytic philosophy is a generic term for a style of philosophy that came to dominate English-speaking countries in the 20th century...
, Yglesias has a passion for basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
and occasionally posts about the NBA, particularly the Washington Wizards
Washington Wizards
The Washington Wizards are a professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C., previously known as Washington Bullets. They play in the National Basketball Association .-Early years:...
.
Works
- "Long Philosophical Rant about Spider-Man 2", Ultimate blogs: masterworks from the wild Web, Editor Sarah Boxer, Random House, Inc., 2008, ISBN 9780307278067
- "The Media", The 12-Step Bush Recovery Program, Gene Stone, Carl Pritzkat, Tony Travostino, Random House, Inc., 2008, ISBN 9780812980363
- Heads in the Sand: How the Republicans Screw Up Foreign Policy and Foreign Policy Screws Up the Democrats, WileyJohn Wiley & SonsJohn Wiley & Sons, Inc., also referred to as Wiley, is a global publishing company that specializes in academic publishing and markets its products to professionals and consumers, students and instructors in higher education, and researchers and practitioners in scientific, technical, medical, and...
, April 2008, ISBN 9780470086223.
External links
- Slate Moneybox column
- Yglesias' old The Atlantic blog
- Yglesias' new Center for American Progress blog
- TAPPED
- Video discussions/debates in which Yglesias has taken part on Bloggingheads.tvBloggingheads.tvBloggingheads.tv is a political, world events, philosophy, and science video blog discussion site in which the participants take part in an active back and forth conversation via webcam which is then broadcast online to viewers...