James Pogue

Pogue has written for publications including Harper's Magazine, The Los Angeles Times, The New York Times Magazine, and the London Review of Books.[2] He is a frequent contributor to left-wing publications like The Baffler, and his 2020 essay on the influence of tech platforms and Hollywood on contemporary writing created controversy.[5][6]

Pogue grew up in Cincinnati, Ohio, and has written frequently about midwestern politics.[7] His essay about the city's political history was collected in City by City, published by FSG.[8]

Pogue's reporting on armed politics has been supported by the Pulitzer Center and an Alicia Patterson Fellowship.[9] His 2019 Harper's article on farm murders in South Africa generated controversy and has been frequently cited in academic literature.[10][11] He has written about dissident Irish Republican Army groups in Northern Ireland[12] and frequently about militia groups in the rural American west.[13][14]

His work on armed politics frequently intersects with reporting on environmental issues. Pogue has contributed reporting and opinion pieces to the Los Angeles Times on environmental policy,[15][16] and has written frequently about forestry and fire in California.[17][18]

Pogue is the author of Chosen Country: A Rebellion in the West. The book was called a "fascinating debut" by NPR,[19] and praised in the New York Review of Books, The Los Angeles Review of Books and other publications.[20][21] It was criticized by some publications for its personal narrative and essayistic digressions. Kirkus called the book "courageous," but cited "some excess and irrelevance."[22]

His work has been supported by the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting,[2] and his 2019 essay about forestry in California was a "notable" selection in the 2020 edition of Best American Science and Nature Writing.[23]

• Grantee Page at the Pulitzer Center
• Author page at The Baffler
• Author Page at Harper's