Joan Maureen Walsh (born September 18, 1958) is a liberal American political pundit and journalist. Walsh is national affairs correspondent for ''

The Nation ''The Nation'' is an American liberal biweekly magazine that covers political and cultural news, opinion, and analysis. It was founded on July 6, 1865, as a successor to William Lloyd Garrison's '' The Liberator'', an abolitionist newspaper t ...

,'' and was previously an on-air political analyst at CNN and

MSNBC MSNBC (originally the Microsoft National Broadcasting Company) is an American news-based pay television cable channel. It is owned by NBCUniversala subsidiary of Comcast. Headquartered in New York City, it provides news coverage and political ...

. She produced the 2020 documentary ''"The Sit In: Harry Belafonte Hosts The Tonight Show."'' She is a former editor-in-chief of ''

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 ( ...

'' and author of the book ''What's the Matter with White People?''

Early life and education

Walsh was born in

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

to an

Irish Catholic Irish Catholics are an ethnoreligious group native to Ireland whose members are both Catholic and Irish. They have a large diaspora, which includes over 36 million American citizens and over 14 million British citizens (a quarter of the Briti ...

family. In 1960, her family moved to Oceanside,

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United States and the 18 ...

. She has one brother and one sister. At the age of 13, her family moved to a northern suburb of

Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee i ...

where she attended high school. Her mother died when she was 17. Walsh is a graduate of the

University of Wisconsin A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United Stat ...

, where she wrote for '' The Daily Cardinal''.

Media career

Print media

When the online magazine ''

'' launched in 1998, Walsh became its first news editor. She was editor-in-chief from 2005 to 2010. In 2015, she left ''Salon'' for ''

'', and would become the publication's national affairs correspondent.

TV career

Walsh worked at

for a total of twelve years, six of them under contract. On December 23, 2017, Walsh said MSNBC had chosen not to renew her contract, which the network described as a decision made because of an annual review. In their statement, MSNBC also said that "Unfortunately we couldn’t renew Joan, but she and her distinct perspective will still be invited on our shows." MSNBC's decision to not renew Walsh's contract prompted critical reactions from other MSNBC personalities, including

Joy Reid Joy-Ann M. Lomena-Reid (born December 8, 1968), known professionally as Joy Reid, is an American cable television host, MSNBC national correspondent, liberal political commentator, and author. She hosted the weekly MSNBC morning show, ''AM Joy' ...

and

Chris Hayes Christopher Loffredo Hayes (; born February 28, 1979) is an American political commentator, television news anchor, activist, and author. Hayes hosts '' All In with Chris Hayes'', a weekday news and opinion television show on MSNBC. Hayes also ...

. Some of Walsh's supporters also protested MSNBC's decision using the Twitter hashtag #KeepJoanWalsh. Later that day, Walsh tweeted that she would move to CNN in 2018, which was soon confirmed by a CNN spokeswoman. While at CNN, Walsh pushed back against former

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of P ...

staffer Marc Short for accusing her of being

anti-religious Antireligion is opposition to religion. It involves opposition to organized religion, religious practices or religious institutions. The term ''antireligion'' has also been used to describe opposition to specific forms of supernatural worship ...

. It was announced on December 14, 2020, that her contract with CNN would not be renewed. Walsh stated in response:

“I’m grateful to CNN for the opportunity. Nobody is promised a decade of paid TV commentary. Arguably, nobody deserves it! I am certainly willing to contribute to my friends’ shows on MSNBC and on CNN too when I’m right for the topic.”

Social media activity

On April 1, 2018, Kyle Kashuv, a witness of the

Stoneman Douglas High School shooting On February 14, 2018, 19-year-old Nikolas Cruz opened fire on students and staff at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in the Miami suburban town of Parkland, Florida, murdering 17 people and injuring 17 others. Cruz, a former student at ...

, tweeted that Walsh "liked" a tweet criticizing him. She replied, "Are you really policing who 'likes' tweets from a grieving Parkland father who lost his daughter? Good luck handling your stress, Kyle."

Personal life

Walsh is divorced and has one daughter, Nora Walsh DeVries.

Books

*(with C. W. Nevius) ''Splash Hit! Pacific Bell Park and the San Francisco Giants'' (Chronicle Books, 2001) *''What's the Matter with White People? Why We Long for a Golden Age That Never Was'' (Wiley, 2012)

References

External links

Profile
at ''

'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Walsh, Joan Maureen 1958 births Living people American women journalists MSNBC people American political journalists Salon (website) people The Nation (U.S. magazine) people American women writers American people of Irish descent University of Wisconsin–Madison alumni