Matt Welch


Matthew Lee Welch is an American blogger, journalist, author, and
libertarian political pundit.

Early life

Welch was born on July 31, 1968 in Bellflower, California. He was raised in Long Beach, California. He attended UC Santa Barbara as part of the class of 1990, but did not complete a degree. Through his mother, author Mary Bobbitt Townsend, he is the great-great-grandson of Rear Admiral Hugo Osterhaus.

Career

In the late 1990s, he wrote for Tabloid.Net, along with Tim Blair and Ken Layne. In the early 1990s, he was one of the founders of the Prague-based newspaper Prognosis. Welch researched the effects of UN sanctions against Iraq, often criticizing the reporting of others. Commentator Mike Rosen praised his research as "yeoman's work."
In 2007, he wrote a portrayal of 2008 Republican presidential nominee John McCain from a libertarian perspective. In McCain: The Myth of a Maverick, Welch argued that a McCain presidency would advance a statist agenda. Through an FOIA request, Welch obtained a copy of McCain's War College thesis which, based on his experience as a POW, argued for the teaching of US foreign policy to military recruits.
From 2008 to 2016, he was editor-in-chief at the monthly libertarian journal, Reason. He now serves as editor-at-large. From 2006 to 2007, he was an editorial page editor for the Los Angeles Times. Welch earned the award for "Best Entertainment Review/Criticism/Column" in the 53rd Annual Southern California Journalism Awards, hosted by the Los Angeles Press Club, for his work, "Bailing Out Big Brother: Media criticism goes from rebelling against media oligarchs to handing them a lifeline."
In 2011, Matt Welch co-wrote The Declaration of Independents: How Libertarian Politics Can Fix What's Wrong with America with Reason.tv editor-in-chief Nick Gillespie. He has become a frequent commentator on cable news shows, and was co-host of the Fox Business Network current events and political discussion show, The Independents.
Matt Welch is co-host of podcast along with Kmele Foster and Michael Moynihan.

Personal life

Welch is married to journalist Emmanuelle Richard, and they have two daughters.

Publications