Mark Ames
Encyclopedia
Mark Ames is a writer known for his work as a Moscow
-based expatriate
American
journalist
and editor. He is the founding editor of the satirical
biweekly the eXile
in Moscow, to which he regularly contributed before he returned to America. Ames has also written for the New York Press
, The Nation
, Playboy
, The San Jose Mercury News, Alternet
, Птюч Connection, GQ (Russian edition), and is the author of three books.
, a newly urbanized town in the San Francisco Bay Area
's Silicon Valley
, where he attended an Episcopalian private school. He graduated from Saratoga High School
in 1983.
After leaving Saratoga, Ames attended the University of California, Berkeley
, while living with his father (his parents had divorced when Ames was eight years old). He later described how his college years shaped his later political views in a section of the book The Exile: Sex, Drugs, and Libel in the New Russia:
After college, Ames lived in New York City
, Boston
, San Francisco, and Prague
, and played briefly in a punk band.
In August 1991 he visited Europe, spending two weeks in St. Petersburg (at that time called Leningrad). Though he returned to live in Foster City, California
, he continued thinking of Russia
, and delved into Russian literature
. After spending mid '92 to early '93 in Prague, Ames moved to Moscow
. In 1995 he published "The Rise and Fall of Moscow's Expat 'Royalty'" in the English-language Moscow newspaper The Moscow Times
, and was shortly thereafter hired by its competitor Living Here. In 1997 he left to establish the eXile
, where he served as writer and editor.
In The eXile, Ames wrote on such topics as politics, organized crime in Russia, prostitution, and drug use. The paper played practical jokes on Pravda
staffers and public figures including Mikhail Gorbachev
. Chicago Reader contributor Martha Bayne wrote that, "Most notably, the Exile nurtures a peculiarly vicious and schizoid attitude toward women".
In June 2008, the paper's website was closed down and Ames moved back to the U.S. Ames continues to edit the eXile in an online-only format: eXiledonline.
In February, 2010, Vanity Fair
profiled Ames and The eXile.
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
-based expatriate
Expatriate
An expatriate is a person temporarily or permanently residing in a country and culture other than that of the person's upbringing...
American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
journalist
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 editor. He is the founding editor of the satirical
Satire
Satire is primarily a literary genre or form, although in practice it can also be found in the graphic and performing arts. In satire, vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ideally with the intent of shaming individuals, and society itself, into improvement...
biweekly the eXile
The eXile
The eXile was a Moscow-based English-language biweekly free tabloid newspaper, aimed at the city's expatriate community, which combined outrageous, sometimes satirical, content with investigative reporting...
in Moscow, to which he regularly contributed before he returned to America. Ames has also written for the New York Press
New York Press
New York Press was a free alternative weekly in New York City, that was published from 1988 to 2011. During its lifetime, it was the main competitor to the Village Voice...
, The Nation
The Nation
The Nation is the oldest continuously published weekly magazine in the United States. The periodical, devoted to politics and culture, is self-described as "the flagship of the left." Founded on July 6, 1865, It is published by The Nation Company, L.P., at 33 Irving Place, New York City.The Nation...
, Playboy
Playboy
Playboy is an American men's magazine that features photographs of nude women as well as journalism and fiction. It was founded in Chicago in 1953 by Hugh Hefner and his associates, and funded in part by a $1,000 loan from Hefner's mother. The magazine has grown into Playboy Enterprises, Inc., with...
, The San Jose Mercury News, 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...
, Птюч Connection, GQ (Russian edition), and is the author of three books.
Biography
Ames was raised in Saratoga, CaliforniaSaratoga, California
Saratoga is a city in Santa Clara County, California, USA. It is located on the west side of the Santa Clara Valley, directly west of San Jose, in the San Francisco Bay area. The population was 29,926 at the 2010 census....
, a newly urbanized town in the San Francisco Bay Area
San Francisco Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a populated region that surrounds the San Francisco and San Pablo estuaries in Northern California. The region encompasses metropolitan areas of San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, along with smaller urban and rural areas...
's Silicon Valley
Silicon Valley
Silicon Valley is a term which refers to the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area in Northern California in the United States. The region is home to many of the world's largest technology corporations...
, where he attended an Episcopalian private school. He graduated from Saratoga High School
Saratoga High School
Saratoga High School is a high school in Saratoga, California, United States, part of the Los Gatos-Saratoga Joint Union High School District. The school is jointly accredited by the California Department of Education and the Western Association of Schools and Colleges. Student enrollment averages...
in 1983.
After leaving Saratoga, Ames attended 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...
, while living with his father (his parents had divorced when Ames was eight years old). He later described how his college years shaped his later political views in a section of the book The Exile: Sex, Drugs, and Libel in the New Russia:
After college, Ames lived in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, San Francisco, and Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
, and played briefly in a punk band.
In August 1991 he visited Europe, spending two weeks in St. Petersburg (at that time called Leningrad). Though he returned to live in Foster City, California
Foster City, California
Foster City is an affluent planned city located in San Mateo County, California, 94404. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 30,567. Forbes ranked Foster City #10 on their 2009 list of America's Top 25 Towns to Live Well. Money has also recognized Foster City multiple times as...
, he continued thinking of Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, and delved into Russian literature
Russian literature
Russian literature refers to the literature of Russia or its émigrés, and to the Russian-language literature of several independent nations once a part of what was historically Russia or the Soviet Union...
. After spending mid '92 to early '93 in Prague, Ames moved to Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
. In 1995 he published "The Rise and Fall of Moscow's Expat 'Royalty'" in the English-language Moscow newspaper The Moscow Times
The Moscow Times
The Moscow Times is an English-language daily newspaper published in Moscow, Russia since 1992. The circulation in 2008 stood at 35,000 copies and the newspaper is typically given out for free at places English-language "expats" attend, including hotels, cafés and restaurants, as well as by...
, and was shortly thereafter hired by its competitor Living Here. In 1997 he left to establish the eXile
The eXile
The eXile was a Moscow-based English-language biweekly free tabloid newspaper, aimed at the city's expatriate community, which combined outrageous, sometimes satirical, content with investigative reporting...
, where he served as writer and editor.
In The eXile, Ames wrote on such topics as politics, organized crime in Russia, prostitution, and drug use. The paper played practical jokes on Pravda
Pravda
Pravda was a leading newspaper of the Soviet Union and an official organ of the Central Committee of the Communist Party between 1912 and 1991....
staffers and public figures including Mikhail Gorbachev
Mikhail Gorbachev
Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev is a former Soviet statesman, having served as General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1985 until 1991, and as the last head of state of the USSR, having served from 1988 until its dissolution in 1991...
. Chicago Reader contributor Martha Bayne wrote that, "Most notably, the Exile nurtures a peculiarly vicious and schizoid attitude toward women".
In June 2008, the paper's website was closed down and Ames moved back to the U.S. Ames continues to edit the eXile in an online-only format: eXiledonline.
In February, 2010, Vanity Fair
Vanity Fair (magazine)
Vanity Fair is a magazine of pop culture, fashion, and current affairs published by Condé Nast. The present Vanity Fair has been published since 1983 and there have been editions for four European countries as well as the U.S. edition. This revived the title which had ceased publication in 1935...
profiled Ames and The eXile.
External links
- The Exile - an English language, Moscow-based, semi-weekly alternative paper
- Exile Online - the new site of the Exile
- Democracy Now interview with Amy Goodman, Greg Palast, and Dan Briody 8 December 2003
- AlterNet, 3 October 2005, "A Brief History of Rage, Murder and Rebellion" - interview with Ames