Joshua Johnson (journalist)

Joshua Johnson (born March 22, 1980)[1][2] is an American journalist. He is the former host of 1A, which is produced by WAMU and nationally distributed by NPR. In 2019, he joined MSNBC.[3]

Joshua Johnson
Born (1980-03-22) March 22, 1980
West Palm Beach, Florida, U.S.
Alma materUniversity of Miami

Early life

Johnson was born and raised in West Palm Beach, Florida, the only son of a public school teacher and Vietnam veteran.[4][5] He became interested in journalism as a child, inspired by African American journalists such as Ed Bradley, Bernard Shaw, and Dwight Lauderdale.[6][5]

He graduated from the University of Miami and began his career in public radio working for a collaborative project between WLRN and the Miami Herald, from 2004 to 2010.[7][8]

Career

In 2010, Johnson relocated to San Francisco to work for KQED, where he served as morning newscaster until early 2016. In 2016, he hosted the radio series Truth Be Told, produced by KQED and distributed by Public Radio International.[9] Truth Be Told dealt with issues of race in America, and four episodes were broadcast nationally.[5] He was also a substitute host of KQED's Forum and taught courses in podcasting at the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism.[7][6] In September 2016, he guest hosted The Diane Rehm Show for two days, and in November, Rehm announced Johnson would be taking over her time slot.[8]

In late 2019, Johnson announced that he would be leaving 1A on December 20 to become an anchor for MSNBC in 2020.[3]

Personal life

Johnson declines to discuss his own personal opinions, and says he has been called both conservative and liberal.[10]

Johnson is a member of the National Association of Black Journalists,[4] and is openly gay.[5][6]

References
  1. Johnson, Joshua [@jejohnson322] (22 March 2015). "Wait: you missed my birthday today?!?" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  2. Heil, Emily (9 February 2018). "5 Minutes With: '1A' radio host Joshua Johnson". The Washington Post. ...Johnson, a 37-year-old transplant from San Francisco...
  3. Steinberg, Brian (19 November 2019). "MSNBC Adds Joshua Johnson to Anchor Ranks". Variety. Retrieved 29 November 2019.
  4. "Joshua Johnson". WAMU. Retrieved 16 December 2017.
  5. Montgomery, David (2 February 2017). "Meet Joshua Johnson, Diane Rehm's successor — and a bold move for WAMU". Washington Post.
  6. DiGuglielmo, Joey (15 March 2017). "Diane Rehm successor is not who you'd expect". Washington Blade.
  7. Farhi, Paul (16 November 2016). "Diane Rehm's station taps Joshua Johnson, a lesser-known radio host, as her successor". Washington Post.
  8. Beaujon, Andrew (18 November 2016). "Diane Rehm's Replacement Wants His Show to Be Relentlessly Civil, Even Nowadays". Washingtonian.
  9. Falk, Tyler (March 8, 2016). "New KQED radio pilot gets personal about race". Current.
  10. Villarreal, Yezmin (22 May 2017). "Joshua Johnson Is Part of NPR's New Generation". The Advocate.
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