William C. Rhoden is an American sports journalist and author who formerly worked as a columnist for The New York Times from 1983 until 2016,[1][2] when he joined ESPN's The Undefeated as a writer-at-large,[3] where he is currently employed. Rhoden is also a visiting senior practitioner at Arizona State University[4] as well as the director of the Rhoden Fellows program.

Background

Rhoden with sports analyst Stephen A. Smith

Rhoden was born in 1950 in Chicago, Illinois.[1] He attended Morgan State University from 1968 to 1973, and played on the 1968 Morgan State Bears football team that beat the Grambling Tigers in Yankee Stadium,[5] the annual match known as the "Whitney Young Classic".[5][6][7]

Career

After graduating from college, he worked for the Afro-American Times, the Baltimore Sun, and eventually Ebony where he became a columnist for magazine from 1974 to 1978. In 1983, Rhoden joined the New York Times staff as a sports columnist.

In 2006, he published his first book, the Forty Million Dollar Slaves: The Rise, Fall, and Redemption of the Black Athlete, an original and perceptive analysis of the racist history and current reality of professional sports in the United States.[8][9][10][11] Etan Thomas, a major activist and retired professional basketball player, praises this book and claims it is a "necessary read for all young athletes."[12]

References

  1. ^ a b "William C. Rhoden: Sports of The Times". The New York Times. April 7, 2005. Archived from the original on 2005-04-07.
  2. ^ Rhoden, William C. (July 25, 2016). "A Career Transition, Inspired by One of the NFL's Best". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 25 July 2016.
  3. ^ "William C. Rhoden". Andscape. ESPN. Retrieved 31 March 2021.
  4. ^ "William Rhoden | iSearch". isearch.asu.edu. Arizona State University. Retrieved 31 March 2021.
  5. ^ a b Harris, Burney (October 11, 2010). "Remarkable Journey: The Richardson Era". Morgan Magazine. pp. 3–11. Retrieved 16 March 2017. {{cite magazine}}: Cite magazine requires |magazine= (help)
  6. ^ "Whitney M. Young /New York Urban League Classic". Black College Sports: History & Legends Archives. Retrieved 3 April 2017.
  7. ^ Staff Writer (July 22, 1971). "Grambling, Morgan State in 1st Whitney Young Classic". JET. p. 47.
  8. ^ Leonard, David J. (August 13, 2006). "Golden Shackles". The Washington Post.
  9. ^ Davis, David (October 19, 2006). "More Gray Than Black and White". Los Angeles Times.
  10. ^ Straight, Susan (July 9, 2006). "Body and soul". Los Angeles Times.
  11. ^ Goldstein, Warren (July 23, 2006). "Unfair Play". The New York Times.
  12. ^ "Q&A with Etan Thomas". C-SPAN.org. Retrieved 2018-10-29.
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