Charles M. Blow is an Op-Ed columnist at The New York Times, where his column appears on Mondays and Thursdays. Mr. Blow’s columns tackle hot-button issues such as social justice, racial equality, presidential politics, police violence, gun control, and the Black Lives Matter Movement.

Mr. Blow is also a CNN commentator and was a Presidential Visiting Professor at Yale, where he taught a seminar on media and politics.

Mr. Blow is the author of the critically acclaimed New York Times best-selling memoir, Fire Shut Up in My Bones. The book won a Lambda Literary Award and the Sperber Prize and made multiple prominent lists of best books published in 2014. People Magazine called it “searing and unforgettable.”

Mr. Blow joined The New York Times in 1994 as a graphics editor and quickly became the paper’s graphics director, a position he held for nine years. In that role, he led The Times to a best of show award from the Society for News Design for The Times’  information graphics coverage of 9/11, the first time the award had been given for graphics coverage.  He also led the paper to its first two best of show awards from the Malofiej Infographics World Summit for work that included coverage of the Iraq war.  He then went on to become the paper’s design director for news before leaving in 2006 to become the art director of National Geographic Magazine. Before coming to The Times, Mr. Blow had worked at The Detroit News.

He graduated magna cum laude from Grambling State University in Louisiana, where he received a B.A. in mass communications, and he holds an honorary doctorate from Massachusetts College of Art and Design in Boston. He lives in Brooklyn and has three children. 

Today's Social and Political Issues

As a New York Times columnist known for his fearless brand of political and social commentary, Charles Blow has become a familiar face on TV and a frequent target for conservative critics. His column typically features charts, but it's mainly his words, written and spoken, that continue to spark conversation and debate about social and political issues of the day. As a speaker, Blow fearlessly tackles contentious issues, such as dating, childhood obesity, life in large cities, acceptance of gays in society and President Obama. Blow has recently spoken on topics such as: income inequality, xenophobia, teen pregnancy, education and the relationship between journalism and justice as evident by the Trayvon Martin shooting.

New York Times Opinion Columnist Charles Blow Celebrates Himself in New Memoir

The Observer

In his deeply personal first book, Fire Shut Up in My Bones, Charles Blow recounts his impoverished upbringing in the rural town of Gibsland, La.… Read more 

Charles Blow's presentation was informative, important, and inspiring. it was even better than expected, which is saying a lot! Too, he was personally gracious and witty.

-Larchmont Mamaroneck Human Rights Committee

Charles was amazing to work with throughout the entire process. He was very low maintenance prior to his performance. Yet, during the performance, he wooed the crowd through his visionary speech that detailed some of his past experiences through reading excerpts from his book, “Fire Shut Up in My Bones.” Overall, I was in awe of where he’d been and how much he’d accomplished. He has a very compelling story that everyone needs to hear. Thanks!

-Dalton State College

Charles was amazing. His presentation exceeded ALL of our expectations and feedback from the event has been nothing but positive. He was an absolute pleasure to work with .

-New York State Office of Victim Services