Matthew "Matt" Power (October 22, 1974 – March 10, 2014) was an American journalist.

Early life and education

Power was born October 22, 1974, in

Middlebury, Vermont Middlebury is the shire town (county seat) of Addison County, Vermont, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 9,152. Middlebury is home to Middlebury College and the Henry Sheldon Museum of Vermont History and the adjacent ...

and grew up in nearby

Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...

. His mother was Jane Steele. His father was John Power. He had two sisters, Julie Ruppert and Elizabeth Robison. Power studied at

Middlebury College Middlebury College is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Middlebury, Vermont, United States. Founded in 1800 by Congregationalism in the United States, Congregationalists, Middlebury w ...

and at

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

. He left Columbia before graduating to intern at ''

Harper's Magazine ''Harper's Magazine'' is a monthly magazine of literature, politics, culture, finance, and the arts. Launched in New York City in June 1850, it is the oldest continuously published monthly magazine in the United States. ''Harper's Magazine'' has ...

''.

Career

Power worked both as a print and broadcast journalist. His work appeared in such periodicals as '' GQ'', ''Harper's Magazine'', ''

Men's Journal ''Men's Journal'' was an American men's lifestyle magazine focused on outdoor recreation and comprising editorials on the outdoors, environmental issues, health and fitness, style and fashion, and gear. It was founded in 1992 by Jann Wenner of ...

'', ''

National Geographic ''National Geographic'' (formerly ''The National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as ''Nat Geo'') is an American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. The magazine was founded in 1888 as a scholarly journal, nine ...

'', and ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

''. His articles were also collected in annual anthologies such as '' Best American Travel Writing'' and ''Best American Spiritual Writing'', and he was a three-time finalist for the

Livingston Award The Livingston Awards at the University of Michigan are American journalism awards issued to media professionals under the age of 35 for local, national, and international reporting. They are the largest, all-media, general reporting prizes in Amer ...

for Young Journalists in international reporting. Additionally,

WNYC WNYC is an audio service brand, under the control of New York Public Radio, a non-profit organization. Radio and other audio programming is primarily provided by a pair of nonprofit, noncommercial, public radio stations: WNYC (AM) and WNYC- ...

noted Power "was considered one of the most vibrant, young voices in public radio".

Personal life

At the time he died, Power lived in

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

and was married to Jessica Benko.

Death

Power died in

Uganda Uganda, officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the ...

on March 10, 2014, at age 39, while working on an assignment for ''Men's Journal''. He had been accompanying British explorer

Levison Wood Major Levison James Wood, , VR (born 5 May 1982) is a British Army officer and explorer. He is best known for his extended walking expeditions in Africa, Asia, and Central America. He has also undertaken numerous other overland journeys, inclu ...

, who was trekking along the

Nile The Nile (also known as the Nile River or River Nile) is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile is the longest river in Africa. It has historically been considered the List of river sy ...

in a year-long attempt to become the first person to walk the length of that river, when Power unexpectedly suffered from severe heatstroke while walking in the bush and died within hours before help could arrive.

Matthew Power Literary Reporting Award

In honor of Power,

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...

established the Matthew Power Literary Reporting Award in 2015. Since then, the annual award has supported the work of non-fiction writers.

References

External links

Official website
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Power, Matthew 1974 births 2014 deaths American male journalists People from Prospect Heights, Brooklyn People from Middlebury, Vermont People from Cornwall, Vermont Deaths from hyperthermia