Jim Lobe
Encyclopedia
James R. Lobe is an American journalist
and the Washington Bureau Chief of the international news agency Inter Press Service
. He has also written for Foreign Policy In Focus
, Oneworld.net
, Alternet
, TomPaine.com
, Asia Times
, and other internet news publications. Lobe is best known for his criticism of U.S. foreign policy, American militarism
, with a particular focus on the neo-conservatives
, their worldview, their relationship to other political tendencies, and their influence in the Bush administration.
from Williams College
in Williamstown (Massachusetts), with highest honors in History. He received his Juris Doctor
from Boalt Hall School of Law at the University of California, Berkeley
in 1974.
and Bureau Chief of Inter Press Service
(IPS) from 1980 to 1985, and again from 1989 to the present. IPS is an international news and feature agency
that specializes in the coverage of events and issues of interest to or affecting developing countries
.
Since 2001, Lobe has served on the Foreign Policy in Focus
Board of Advisors.
and School of Communications at the University of Washington
, Seattle; Union College
in Schenectady, New York; Wesleyan University
in Middletown, Connecticut; American University
in Washington D.C.; University of San Francisco
(USF); and New York University
.
He also lectured at the Institute of American Affairs, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences
, Beijing, China; the Institute of International Relations in Hanoi, Vietnam; and the Graduate Institute of International Studies
, Geneva, Switzerland (April, 2005). In 2004, he acted as defense attorney for the Project of the New American Century at the BRussells Tribunal
in Brussels.
He was the first to relate that agenda to the controversial Defense Policy Guidance (DPG) draft paper that was overseen by then-Undersecretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz
and I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby
, and leaked to the New York Times in March, 1992.
Lobe was among the first to cover the split within the Bush administration between the coalition of hawks – neo-conservatives, aggressive nationalists, and the Christian Right – on the one hand and the “realists” centered in the State Department and the Central Intelligence Agency
(CIA) on the other. Since 2001, many of his stories have dealt with the internal balance of power and its evolution over the six years in which Bush has been president.
Jim Lobe has written at some length on the general worldview of neo-conservatives, as well as of their policy agendas as they have evolved over time.
public-affairs program Panorama
: “The War Party”, broadcast May 18, 2003; and was interviewed for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s
Four Corners public affairs program: “American Dreamers”, broadcast March 10, 2003.
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
and the Washington Bureau Chief of the international news agency Inter Press Service
Inter Press Service
Inter Press Service is a global news agency. Its main focus is the production of independent news and analysis about events and processes affecting economic, social and political development....
. He has also written for Foreign Policy In Focus
Foreign Policy In Focus
Foreign Policy In Focus is a project of the Institute for Policy Studies in Washington, DC. FPIF describes itself as a "Think Tank Without Walls" that brings together over 600 writers, scholars, academics, artists and activists seeking to make the United States a more responsible global...
, Oneworld.net
Unimondo
Unimondo is an Italy-based non-governmental organisation working in issues related to ICT. It has been involved in reporting on and working in South-East Europe...
, Alternet
AlterNet
AlterNet, a project of the non-profit Independent Media Institute, is a progressive/liberal activist news service. Launched in 1998, AlterNet now claims a readership of over 3 million visitors per month .AlterNet publishes original content as well as journalism from a wide variety of other sources...
, TomPaine.com
TomPaine.com
TomPaine.com is a website with news and opinion on United States politics from a liberal perspective, named after the political writer Thomas Paine. It features a mixture of original articles and links to articles on other websites....
, Asia Times
Asia Times
Asia Times was a newspaper launched in Thailand by Thai tycoon Sondhi Limthongkul in 1995. The newspaper hired talent from around the world to produce a regional English-language newspaper....
, and other internet news publications. Lobe is best known for his criticism of U.S. foreign policy, American militarism
Militarism
Militarism is defined as: the belief or desire of a government or people that a country should maintain a strong military capability and be prepared to use it aggressively to defend or promote national interests....
, with a particular focus on the neo-conservatives
Neoconservatism
Neoconservatism in the United States is a branch of American conservatism. Since 2001, neoconservatism has been associated with democracy promotion, that is with assisting movements for democracy, in some cases by economic sanctions or military action....
, their worldview, their relationship to other political tendencies, and their influence in the Bush administration.
Career
In 1970, Lobe graduated magna cum laudeLatin honors
Latin honors are Latin phrases used to indicate the level of academic distinction with which an academic degree was earned. This system is primarily used in the United States, Canada, and in many countries of continental Europe, though some institutions also use the English translation of these...
from Williams College
Williams College
Williams College is a private liberal arts college located in Williamstown, Massachusetts, United States. It was established in 1793 with funds from the estate of Ephraim Williams. Originally a men's college, Williams became co-educational in 1970. Fraternities were also phased out during this...
in Williamstown (Massachusetts), with highest honors in History. He received his Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor is a professional doctorate and first professional graduate degree in law.The degree was first awarded by Harvard University in the United States in the late 19th century and was created as a modern version of the old European doctor of law degree Juris Doctor (see etymology and...
from Boalt Hall School of Law at the University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
in 1974.
Journalist
Jim Lobe has served as the Washington D.C. correspondentCorrespondent
A correspondent or on-the-scene reporter is a journalist or commentator, or more general speaking, an agent who contributes reports to a newspaper, or radio or television news, or another type of company, from a remote, often distant, location. A foreign correspondent is stationed in a foreign...
and Bureau Chief of Inter Press Service
Inter Press Service
Inter Press Service is a global news agency. Its main focus is the production of independent news and analysis about events and processes affecting economic, social and political development....
(IPS) from 1980 to 1985, and again from 1989 to the present. IPS is an international news and feature agency
News agency
A news agency is an organization of journalists established to supply news reports to news organizations: newspapers, magazines, and radio and television broadcasters. Such an agency may also be referred to as a wire service, newswire or news service.-History:The oldest news agency is Agence...
that specializes in the coverage of events and issues of interest to or affecting developing countries
Developing country
A developing country, also known as a less-developed country, is a nation with a low level of material well-being. Since no single definition of the term developing country is recognized internationally, the levels of development may vary widely within so-called developing countries...
.
Since 2001, Lobe has served on the Foreign Policy in Focus
Foreign Policy In Focus
Foreign Policy In Focus is a project of the Institute for Policy Studies in Washington, DC. FPIF describes itself as a "Think Tank Without Walls" that brings together over 600 writers, scholars, academics, artists and activists seeking to make the United States a more responsible global...
Board of Advisors.
Lecturer
Lobe has lectured occasionally on U.S. Foreign Policy, Neo-conservative ideology, the Bush administration, and Foreign Policy and the U.S. Media at various colleges and universities around the United States, including: Jackson School of International StudiesJackson School of International Studies
The Henry M. Jackson School of International Studies is a school within the University of Washington's College of Arts and Sciences, in Seattle, Washington. The school's name honors Henry M. Jackson, a former U.S. Senator from the state of Washington....
and School of Communications at the University of Washington
University of Washington
University of Washington is a public research university, founded in 1861 in Seattle, Washington, United States. The UW is the largest university in the Northwest and the oldest public university on the West Coast. The university has three campuses, with its largest campus in the University...
, Seattle; Union College
Union College
Union College is a private, non-denominational liberal arts college located in Schenectady, New York, United States. Founded in 1795, it was the first institution of higher learning chartered by the New York State Board of Regents. In the 19th century, it became the "Mother of Fraternities", as...
in Schenectady, New York; Wesleyan University
Wesleyan University
Wesleyan University is a private liberal arts college founded in 1831 and located in Middletown, Connecticut. According to the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, Wesleyan is the only Baccalaureate College in the nation that emphasizes undergraduate instruction in the arts and...
in Middletown, Connecticut; American University
American University
American University is a private, Methodist, liberal arts, and research university in Washington, D.C. The university was chartered by an Act of Congress on December 5, 1892 as "The American University", which was approved by President Benjamin Harrison on February 24, 1893...
in Washington D.C.; University of San Francisco
University of San Francisco
The University of San Francisco , is a private, Jesuit/Catholic university located in San Francisco, California. Founded in 1855, USF was established as the first university in San Francisco. It is the second oldest institution for higher learning in California and the tenth-oldest university of...
(USF); and New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
.
He also lectured at the Institute of American Affairs, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences
Chinese Academy of Social Sciences
The Chinese Academy of Social Sciences , established in 1977, is the premier and highest academic research organization in the fields of philosophy and social sciences as well as a national center for comprehensive studies in the People's Republic of China. It was described by Foreign Policy...
, Beijing, China; the Institute of International Relations in Hanoi, Vietnam; and the Graduate Institute of International Studies
Graduate Institute of International Studies
The Graduate Institute of International Studies, best known as HEI , was founded in 1927 as one of the first institutions in the world dedicated to the study of international relations...
, Geneva, Switzerland (April, 2005). In 2004, he acted as defense attorney for the Project of the New American Century at the BRussells Tribunal
BRussells Tribunal
The BRussells Tribunal refers both to a series of hearings taking place in Brussels, April 14-17, 2004, as part of the World Tribunal on Iraq, and to the group of people who organised these hearings....
in Brussels.
Coverage
Jim Lobe was the first journalist to cover the ties between the post-9/11 agenda pursued by the Bush administration and the recommendations of the neo-conservative-led Project for the New American Century.He was the first to relate that agenda to the controversial Defense Policy Guidance (DPG) draft paper that was overseen by then-Undersecretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz
Paul Wolfowitz
Paul Dundes Wolfowitz is a former United States Ambassador to Indonesia, U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense, President of the World Bank, and former dean of the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University...
and I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby
Lewis Libby
I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby is a former adviser to Vice President Dick Cheney, later disbarred and convicted of a felony....
, and leaked to the New York Times in March, 1992.
Lobe was among the first to cover the split within the Bush administration between the coalition of hawks – neo-conservatives, aggressive nationalists, and the Christian Right – on the one hand and the “realists” centered in the State Department and the Central Intelligence Agency
Central Intelligence Agency
The Central Intelligence Agency is a civilian intelligence agency of the United States government. It is an executive agency and reports directly to the Director of National Intelligence, responsible for providing national security intelligence assessment to senior United States policymakers...
(CIA) on the other. Since 2001, many of his stories have dealt with the internal balance of power and its evolution over the six years in which Bush has been president.
Jim Lobe has written at some length on the general worldview of neo-conservatives, as well as of their policy agendas as they have evolved over time.
Interviews
Lobe has been recognized by major international media for his expertise on the neo-conservative movement and foreign policy. He appeared on the BBC’sBBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
public-affairs program Panorama
Panorama (TV series)
Panorama is a BBC Television current affairs documentary programme, which was first broadcast in 1953, and is the longest-running public affairs television programme in the world. Panorama has been presented by many well known BBC presenters, including Richard Dimbleby, Robin Day, David Dimbleby...
: “The War Party”, broadcast May 18, 2003; and was interviewed for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly referred to as "the ABC" , is Australia's national public broadcaster...
Four Corners public affairs program: “American Dreamers”, broadcast March 10, 2003.
Publications
- Lobe, Jim and Oliveri, Adele; eds. (2003) I Nuovi Rivoluzionari: Il Pensiero dei Neoconservatori Americani. Milan: Feltrinelli. (Co-editor)
- Feffer, John; ed. (2003) Power Trip: U.S. Unilateralism and Global Strategy After September 11. New York: Seven Stories Press. (Contributor)
- Ackerman, S., Arkin, W., Marthoz, J., Wery, M.; eds., (2004) Les Etats-Unis a Contre-Courant: Critiques Americaines a L’Egard d’une Politique Etrangere Unilateraliste. Brussels: GRIP. (Contributor)
External links
- Lobe’s stories on the neo-conservatives published by IPS Inter Press Service
- Jim Lobe’s blog Lobelog.com
- Interview by Jonathan Holmes for the ABC public affairs program Four Corners on 17 February, 2003
- Lobe on “What is neo-conservative anyway?”, Asia Times (August 13, 2003)