Howard French

Profile image Howard French

Howard French is a professor at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism and a former foreign correspondent and senior writer for The New York Times. With a distinguished career as a bureau chief in China, Japan, West and Central Africa, and Central America and the Caribbean, Howard has a deep understanding of global affairs.

His latest work of non-fiction, “Born in Blackness: Africa, Africans, and the Making of the Modern World,” published by Liveright in October 2021, has been recognized as a book of the year by the Financial Times and Amazon. It has also received prestigious awards such as the 2022 MAAH Stone Award and the Hurston Wright Legacy Award. For more details about his work, please visit https://www.howardwfrench.com/.

Howard’s previous book, “Everything Under the Heavens: How the Past Helps Explain China’s Push for Global Power,” published by Knopf in March 2017, delves into China’s rise on the world stage. His insightful analysis and expertise in Chinese affairs have earned him accolades and critical acclaim.

Among his other notable works is “China’s Second Continent: How a Million Migrants Are Building a New Empire in Africa,” published by Knopf in 2014, which received recognition from The New York Times, The Economist, and The Guardian as one of the most notable books of the year.

With an impressive body of work, Howard has also authored books such as “A Continent for the Taking: The Tragedy and Hope of Africa” in 2004, and “Disappearing Shanghai: Photographs and Poems of an Intimate Way of Life” in 2012, a collection of his documentary photography accompanied by original poetry by Qiu Xiaolong.

Howard’s expertise and insights extend beyond books. He writes a weekly global affairs column for Foreign Policy and contributes to the New York Review of Books. You can find his latest thoughts and updates on Twitter, where he can be found at @hofrench.