Sarah Kendzior

Kendzior was raised in Meriden, Connecticut.{{cite news|last1=Jung|first1=Helin|title=How I Became a Political Journalist Working in the Middle of the Country|url=https://www.cosmopolitan.com/career/a8578596/sarah-kendzior-political-journalist-get-that-life/|work=Cosmopolitan |date= January 30, 2017}}{{cite news|last1=Wicentowski|first1=Danny|title=How Sarah Kendzior Became the Prophet of Flyover Country| url= https://www.riverfronttimes.com/stlouis/sarah-kendzior-st-louis/Content?oid=31701656&showFullText=true|work=Riverfront Times|date=June 5, 2019}}

In 2000, Kendzior received a Bachelor of Arts in history from Sarah Lawrence College and, in 2006, she received a Master of Arts in Eurasian Studies from the Department of Central Eurasian Studies at Indiana University Bloomington. Her thesis was State Propaganda on Islam in Independent Uzbekistan.{{cite thesis|last=Kendzior|first=Sarah|date=2006|title=State Propaganda on Islam in Independent Uzbekistan|type=M.A.|publisher=Indiana University |oclc= 761020312| url= https://iucat.iu.edu/catalog/6705057}} In 2012, Kendzior earned a Doctor of Philosophy in anthropology from Washington University in St. Louis. Her dissertation was The Uzbek Opposition in Exile: Diaspora and Dissident Politics in the Digital Age, and her advisor was John Bowen.{{cite thesis|last=Kendzior|first=Sarah|date=2012|title=The Uzbek Opposition in Exile: Diaspora and Dissident Politics in the Digital Age |type= PhD| publisher= Washington University in St. Louis|oclc=853623602|url=https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/art_sci_etds/19|doi=10.7936/K7PK0D3M}} Her focus of study was former Soviet Union totalitarian states. Kendzior's dissertation was on how dissidents from Uzbekistan used the internet to challenge an authoritarian government in a climate of surveillance and distrust.

From 2000 to 2003, Kendzior worked as an online news editor and writer for the New York Daily News.{{cite news|last1=Corwin|first1=Sylvie|title=New York Times Bestseller Sarah Kendzior Speaks at Annual Hosokawa Lecture|url=https://whitmanwire.com/news/2019/04/30/new-york-times-bestseller-sarah-kendzior-speaks-at-annual-hosokawa-lecture/ |access-date=May 7, 2019|work=Whitman Wire|date=April 30, 2019}}{{cite news|last1=Rehagen|first1=Tony|title=From Russia to flyover country, Sarah Kendzior might be the voice we need|url=https://www.cjr.org/the_profile/sarah-kendzior.php|access-date=May 7, 2019|work=Columbia Journalism Review|date=April 9, 2018 }} From 2012 to 2014, Kendzior was a columnist for Al Jazeera,.{{Cite web|url=https://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/profile/sarah-kendzior-.html|title=Sarah Kendzior|publisher=Al Jazeera |access-date=July 16, 2018}} From 2016 to 2020, Kendzior was a columnist for The Globe and Mail.{{Cite news |date=2017-03-21 |title=Opinion: At long last, a forum where Trump cannot escape the truth |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/at-long-last-a-forum-where-trump-cannot-escape-the-truth/article34361866/ |access-date=2024-10-25 |work=The Globe and Mail |language=en-CA}} She has also written for The Guardian,{{Cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/profile/sarah-kendzior|title=Sarah Kendzior |website= The Guardian |access-date=July 16, 2018}} Foreign Policy,{{Cite web|url=https://foreignpolicy.com/2016/08/03/welcome-to-donald-trumps-america/|title=Sarah Kendzior|website=Foreign Policy|date=August 3, 2016 |access-date=July 16, 2018}} Marie Claire,{{cite news| last1= Kendzior |first1= Sarah |title= What the Trump Campaign's Potential Collusion with Russia Really *Means*—and Why It's So Scary|url=https://www.marieclaire.com/politics/a27353/trump-russia-implications-for-average-americans/|access-date=May 7, 2019|work=Marie Claire|date=May 31, 2017}} and other outlets. Some of Kendzior's journalism has focused locally on St. Louis.{{cite news|last1=Kendzior|first1=Sarah|title=Meet Darren Seals. Then tell me black death is not a business |url= https://thecorrespondent.com/5349/meet-darren-seals-then-tell-me-black-death-is-not-a-business/1512965275833-fe73c5b1|access-date=May 7, 2019|work=The Correspondent|date=October 1, 2016}}

Kendzior has frequently appeared on MSNBC on the AM Joy show hosted by Joy Reid.{{cite news|last1=Meyer|first1=Ken|title=MSNBC Guest: Republicans Want 'One-Party State' that Trump Will Rule as an 'Autocrat'|url=https://www.mediaite.com/tv/msnbc-guest-republicans-want-one-party-state-that-trump-will-rule-as-an-autocrat/|access-date=May 7, 2019|work=Mediaite|date=May 7, 2019}}

Kendzior and Bill Kristol were the main speakers for the 7th annual Public Values Symposium held on March 29, 2019, at the University of Missouri–Saint Louis.{{cite news|last1=Walentik|first1=Steve|title=William Kristol, Sarah Kendzior headline 7th annual Public Values Symposium| url= https://blogs.umsl.edu/news/2019/04/01/kristol-kendzior/|access-date=April 1, 2019|work=UMSL Daily|publisher=University of Missouri–Saint Louis Daily|date=April 1, 2019}}{{cite news|last1=Lewis|first1=Jon|title=Diversity in Approach Is Our Strength: Bill Kristol And Sarah Kendzior On Political Divisiveness |url= https://news.stlpublicradio.org/post/diversity-approach-our-strength-bill-kristol-and-sarah-kendzior-political-divisiveness#stream/0|date=March 28, 2019|access-date= April 1, 2019 |work= stlpublicradio.org}} The two speakers saw "eye-to-eye... on the importance of people speaking up for what they believe in the face of eroding societal norms." They disagreed on the role of American institutions, which Kendzior described as corrupt and unable to stave off authoritarianism, with Kendzior noting, “Belief in American exceptionalism is what got us here.” {{Cite web |last=Wicentowski |first=Danny |title=How Sarah Kendzior Became the Prophet of Flyover Country |url=https://www.riverfronttimes.com/news/sarah-kendzior-st-louis-31701656 |access-date=2023-02-17 |website=Riverfront Times |language=en}}

Kendzior was a featured speaker for the Canadian Journalism Foundation's annual Ottawa J-Talk on April 9, 2019.{{cite news| last1= Paez| first1= Beatrice| title= Don't overlook the 'exhausted majority' in political coverage, journalist says|url=https://www.hilltimes.com/2019/04/10/dont-overlook-the-exhausted-majority-in-political-coverage-journalist-says/196094|access-date=May 7, 2019|work=The Hill Times|date=April 10, 2019}}

Regarding her coverage of Donald Trump, Kendzior has stated that she has had "three advantages":

{{blockquote|I transitioned into covering the presidential election in March 2016. I had three advantages in covering Donald Trump specifically as a candidate. First, I worked in New York tabloid media, so I knew exactly how he marketed himself. Then, I studied dictatorships and authoritarian regimes the entire time I was doing my PhD.... A lot of things that Trump was doing in his campaign reminded me of things I saw in Uzbekistan, Russia, and other authoritarian states around the world. Alarm bells started going off in my head.... Third, I live in the center of the country, not in D.C. or New York. When they talk about how hard things are out here, that's accurate.}}

Arthur Levitt interviewed Kendzior about her book and career in a May 2019 podcast for Bloomberg News.{{cite news|first1= Sarah | last1= Kendzior| interviewer= Arthur Levitt |title=Survival Became the Aspiration of My Generation (Podcast) |url= https://www.bloomberg.com/news/audio/2019-05-10/survival-became-the-aspiration-of-my-generation-podcast|access-date=May 11, 2019|work=Bloomberg News|date=May 10, 2019}}

The Columbia Journalism Review reported that because of her writings and expertise on authoritarian states, "as the new president came into power and the specter of Russian interference in his victory triggered Mueller's investigation, the limos started lining up" to drive Kendzior to interviews at television studios because her insights are valuable to the public.

In 2015, Kendzior self-published her first book as an ebook – a collection of essays on the American condition first published by Al Jazeera starting in 2013 – called The View from Flyover Country.

In June 2017, speaking to an American Library Association conference, Hillary Clinton described herself as "riveted by... The View From Flyover Country, which turned out to be especially relevant in the midst of our current health-care debate."{{cite news|last1=Landsbaum|first1=Claire|title=Here Are All the Books Hillary Clinton Has Time to Read Now|url=https://www.thecut.com/2017/06/all-the-books-hillary-clinton-has-time-to-read-elena-ferrante.html|access-date=May 11, 2019|work=The Cut|date=June 27, 2017 }}{{cite news|last1=Ascarelli|first1=Silvia|title=Hillary Clinton signs off on a summer reading list|url=https://www.marketwatch.com/story/hillary-clinton-signs-off-on-a-summer-reading-list-2017-07-03|access-date=May 11, 2019|work=MarketWatch|date=July 4, 2017}}

In April 2018, Flatiron Books published an updated print version of The View .{{cite news |last1=Heuer |first1=Alex |last2=Marsh |first2=Don |last3=Kendzior |first3=Sarah |date=April 2018 |title=St. Louis journalist Sarah Kendzior in conversation with Don Marsh |work=St. Louis on the Air |publisher=St. Louis Public Radio |url=http://news.stlpublicradio.org/post/st-louis-journalist-sarah-kendzior-conversation-don-marsh}} The New York Post described it as a "collection of essays from the talented Kendzior, who writes intelligently and with great empathy about problems faced by the Midwest."{{cite news|last1=Dawson|first1=Mackenzie|title=This week's must-read books|url=https://nypost.com/2018/04/21/this-weeks-must-read-books-178/|access-date=May 11, 2019|work=New York Post|date=April 21, 2018}} The Buffalo News described Kendzior's The View as "an astonishment and a challenge to convention for all sorts of reasons,"{{cite news|last1=Simon|first1=Jeff|title=New books put the Rust Belt, Buffalo in the national spotlight|url=https://buffalonews.com/2018/04/21/new-books-put-the-rust-belt-buffalo-in-the-national-spotlight/|access-date=May 11, 2019|newspaper=The Buffalo News|date=April 21, 2018}} and described Kendzior as having "roared to the fore" because of her prediction of the 2016 election results, a result of having studied foreign demagogues and understanding deteriorating conditions in the U.S.

The book was listed as a New York Times bestseller in May 2018.{{cite news|last1=Anonymous|title=Paperback Nonfiction Books – Best Sellers|url=https://www.nytimes.com/books/best-sellers/2018/05/13/paperback-nonfiction/|access-date=May 11, 2019|work=The New York Times|date=May 13, 2018}} On May 13, 2018, The View from Flyover Country was listed as No. 8, "new this week", and summarized as "Essays detailing the 'post-employment' economy.".

Together with Andrea Chalupa, Kendzior co-hosted a podcast, Gaslit Nation, which originated as part of Dame magazine.{{cite web| url= https://www.damemagazine.com/gaslitnation| title=Gaslit Nation| website= damemagazine.com | date=June 20, 2018|access-date= August 15, 2018}} In Psychology Today, Joe Pierre stated that the podcast "frequently reminds listeners that the Trump administration is part of a 'transnational crime syndicate masquerading as a government'",{{cite news |last1= Pierre|first1=Joe|title=Illusory Truth, Lies, and Political Propaganda: Part 2|url=https://www.psychologytoday.com/gb/blog/psych-unseen/202001/illusory-truth-lies-and-political-propaganda-part-2|access-date=February 18, 2020|work=Psychology Today|date=January 23, 2020}} stating that

{{blockquote|

The podcast’s title, Gaslit Nation, refers to their assertion that the Trump administration is "gaslighting" America in precisely the way that Arendt, Orwell, and Pomerantzev have described, by repeatedly contradicting the facts and claiming that black is white. This assertion is supported by independent databases maintained by Politifact and The Washington Post that tally false claims involving President Trump. According to The Washington Post{{'}}s Fact Checker, President Trump has made 15,413 false or misleading statements (and counting) since taking office. Many of these... have been repeated again and again to the point that some no doubt believe it.}}In October 2023, Kendzior announced she would no longer appear on the podcast.{{Cite web |title=sarahkendzior/status/1716838615894872232 |url=https://twitter.com/sarahkendzior/status/1716838615894872232?s=46&t=qGVulu38o7HzEvcvdqBNMg |access-date=2023-10-28 |website=X (formerly Twitter) |language=en}}

In 2016, Kendzior wrote about similarities between Donald Trump and the authoritarian leaders she had studied given Trump's admiration for Russian president Vladimir Putin before there was widespread public awareness of Russia's interference in the US election.{{Cite news|url=https://www.cjr.org/the_profile/sarah-kendzior.php|title=From Russia to flyover country, Sarah Kendzior might be the voice we need|last=Rehagen|first=Tony|date=9 April 2018|work=Columbia Journalism Review|access-date=July 16, 2018}}

Kendzior lives in St. Louis, Missouri, with her husband and their children.

{{Scholia|author}}

{{Main|Hiding in Plain Sight (Kendzior book)}}

• {{cite book |last1=Kendzior |first1=Sarah |title=The View from Flyover Country: Dispatches from the Forgotten America |date=2018 |publisher=Flatiron Books |location=New York |isbn=978-1-250-18999-8 |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1006491098 |oclc=1006491098}}
• {{cite book |last1=Kendzior|first1=Sarah |title=Hiding in Plain Sight: The Invention of Donald Trump and the Erosion of America |date=2020 |publisher=Flatiron Books |location=New York |isbn=978-1-250-24539-7 |oclc=1147702789}}
• {{Cite book |last=Kendzior |first=Sarah |url=https://search.worldcat.org/title/1289250691 |title=They Knew : How a Culture of Conspiracy Keeps America Complacent. |publisher=Flatiron Books |year=2022 |isbn=9781250210722}}
• {{Cite book |last=Kendzior |first=Sarah |url=https://search.worldcat.org/title/1429657731 |title=The Last American Road Trip |publisher=Flatiron Books |year=2025 |isbn=978-1250879882 |location=New York |publication-date=April 1, 2025}}

• {{cite thesis|last=Kendzior|first=Sarah|date=2006|title=State Propaganda on Islam in Independent Uzbekistan|type=M.A.|publisher=Indiana University|oclc=761020312|url=https://iucat.iu.edu/catalog/6705057}}
• {{cite journal|last1=Kendzior|first1=Sarah|title=Poetry of witness: Uzbek identity and the response to Andijon|journal=Central Asian Survey|date=14 December 2007|volume=26|issue=3|pages=317–334|doi=10.1080/02634930701702365|s2cid=144552452|url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/02634930701702365}} {{Wikidata+icon|Q59619808|y}}
• {{cite journal|last1=Kendzior|first1=Sarah|title=Digital distrust: Uzbek cynicism and solidarity in the Internet Age|journal=American Ethnologist|date=August 2011|volume=38|issue=3|pages=559–575|doi=10.1111/J.1548-1425.2011.01323.X|url=https://anthrosource.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1548-1425.2011.01323.x|access-date=June 21, 2020|archive-date=June 23, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200623165816/https://anthrosource.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1548-1425.2011.01323.x|url-status=dead}} {{Wikidata+icon|Q63598822|y}}
• {{cite journal|last1=Pearce|first1=Katy E.|last2=Kendzior|first2=Sarah|title=Networked Authoritarianism and Social Media in Azerbaijan|journal=Journal of Communication|date=April 2012|volume=62|issue=2|pages=283–298|doi=10.1111/J.1460-2466.2012.01633.X|url=https://academic.oup.com/joc/article-abstract/62/2/283/4085803?redirectedFrom=fulltext}} {{Wikidata+icon|Q63598789|y}}
• {{cite thesis|last=Kendzior|first=Sarah|date=2012|title=The Uzbek Opposition in Exile: Diaspora and Dissident Politics in the Digital Age|type=PhD|publisher=Washington University in St. Louis|oclc=853623602|url=https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/art_sci_etds/19|doi=10.7936/K7PK0D3M}}
• {{cite journal|last1=Pearce|first1=Katy E.|last2=Freelon|first2=Deen|last3=Kendzior|first3=Sarah|title=The effect of the Internet on civic engagement under authoritarianism: The case of Azerbaijan|journal=First Monday|date=2 June 2014|volume=19|issue=6|doi=10.5210/fm.v19i6.5000|doi-access=free}}
• {{cite journal|last1=Kendzior|first1=Sarah|title=Recognize the Spies|journal=Social Analysis|date=1 December 2015|volume=59|issue=4|pages=50–65|doi=10.3167/sa.2015.590404|url=https://www.berghahnjournals.com/view/journals/social-analysis/59/4/sa590404.xml|doi-access=free}}
• {{cite journal|last1=Kendzior|first1=Sarah|title=Redefining Religion: Uzbek Atheist Propaganda in Gorbachev-Era Uzbekistan|journal=Nationalities Papers|date=20 November 2018|volume=34|issue=5|pages=533–548|doi=10.1080/00905990600952954|s2cid=153815671|url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/nationalities-papers/article/redefining-religion-uzbek-atheist-propaganda-in-gorbachevera-uzbekistan/05E521D5E91FB709F5F9994D33A9C985}} {{Wikidata+icon|Q63598828|y}}

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Category:1978 births

Category:Living people

Category:21st-century American women journalists

Category:21st-century American journalists

Category:21st-century American women writers

Category:Place of birth missing (living people)

Category:Missouri independents

Category:MSNBC people

Category:American women television journalists

Category:People from Meriden, Connecticut

Category:Journalists from Connecticut

Category:Journalists from Missouri

Category:Left-wing populism in the United States

Category:Liberalism in the United States

Category:Sarah Lawrence College alumni

Category:Indiana University Bloomington alumni

Category:Washington University in St. Louis alumni