Markos Kounalakis
Encyclopedia
Markos Kounalakis is a Greek-American journalist and author. Kounalakis is the president and publisher emeritus of the Washington Monthly, a magazine founded by Charles Peters in 1969. Kounalakis co-anchors the nationally syndicated weekly political program, Washington Monthly on the Radio. He is also currently a senior fellow at the Center for Media and Communication Studies, Central European University
in Budapest
.
during World War II. He fought with Constantine Mitsotakis
, who later became Prime Minister of Greece. Like his father, he was a blue-collar construction worker who maintains his Class A heavy equipment truck drivers license.
in 1978. He received his MSc in Journalism from Columbia University
in 1988, was a Robert Bosch Foundation
Fellow in Europe (1988–1989), and an International Journalism Graduate Fellow at the University of Southern California
(1995–1996) and El Colegio de México
in Mexico City.
Radio and Mutual News
in the USSR, based in Moscow from 1991–1992. He previously reported for Newsweek
on the fall of the Berlin Wall
and the end of the Cold War in Hungary, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Bulgaria, and Albania. Newsweek also sent him to cover the early phase of the Yugoslav civil war. He went to Afghanistan and covered the "Holy War Without End" for The Los Angeles Times
Magazine.
In 2002, The New York Times called him a "White Knight" for saving the venerable Washington Monthly magazine. Publisher Kounalakis and editor Paul Glastris
have since rejuvenated the magazine, grown its readership, and increased its impact – making it a "progressive must-read" in Washington, D.C., according to James Carville
. Its expose of former education secretary William Bennett
's gambling problem brought early attention to the Kounalakis/Glastris team.
; Board of Advisors at Georgetown College
and the Wilson Council at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars
. He is the Vice Chairman of the Board of Advisors at the Southeast Europe Project at WWICS; he is a trustee of the World Affairs Council of Northern California
; and formerly served as Chairman of Internews
Network 2002–2004; Vice Chairman of the California State World Trade Commission 2001–2003; Board of Trustees of the Western Policy Center 2001–2005. In June 2003, he chaired a multinational reconstruction conference in Athens, Greece where Iraq's media laws were drafted.
Kounalakis and his wife, Eleni Tsakopoulos Kounalakis, have established two chairs in politics and democracy at Georgetown University
and Stanford University
in 2000. The couple has two sons, Neo and Eon. His wife currently serves as the U.S. Ambassador to Hungary
.
http://web.me.com/newshook/War_Prayer/The_War_Prayer.html (short film, 2007)
Central European University
For other uses, see European University Central European University is a graduate-level, English-language university offering degrees in the social sciences, humanities, law, public policy, business management, environmental science, and mathematics...
in Budapest
Budapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
.
Early life
Born in San Francisco to refugee parents from Greece. His father, Antonios, was an underground guerrilla fighter against the Nazis on the island of CreteCrete
Crete is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, and one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece. It forms a significant part of the economy and cultural heritage of Greece while retaining its own local cultural traits...
during World War II. He fought with Constantine Mitsotakis
Constantine Mitsotakis
Constantine Mitsotakis , a Greek politician, was born in Chania, Crete. He came from a political family: his father and grandfathers were members of parliament, and the great liberal leader Eleftherios Venizelos was his uncle...
, who later became Prime Minister of Greece. Like his father, he was a blue-collar construction worker who maintains his Class A heavy equipment truck drivers license.
Academics
Kounalakis received a public education in the San Francisco Bay Area and received his Bachelor's degree in Political Science at the University of California, BerkeleyUniversity of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
in 1978. He received his MSc in Journalism from Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
in 1988, was a Robert Bosch Foundation
Bosch fellowship
The Robert Bosch Fellowship Program was established in 1984 to promote closer US-German ties. It is fully funded by Robert Bosch Foundation , one of the largest foundations in Germany....
Fellow in Europe (1988–1989), and an International Journalism Graduate Fellow at the University of Southern California
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
(1995–1996) and El Colegio de México
El Colegio de México
El Colegio de México, A.C. is a prestigious Mexican institute of higher education, specializing in teaching and research in the social sciences and the humanities...
in Mexico City.
Career
Kounalakis worked as a foreign correspondent for NBCNBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
Radio and Mutual News
Mutual Broadcasting System
The Mutual Broadcasting System was an American radio network, in operation from 1934 to 1999. In the golden age of U.S. radio drama, MBS was best known as the original network home of The Lone Ranger and The Adventures of Superman and as the long-time radio residence of The Shadow...
in the USSR, based in Moscow from 1991–1992. He previously reported for Newsweek
Newsweek
Newsweek is an American weekly news magazine published in New York City. It is distributed throughout the United States and internationally. It is the second-largest news weekly magazine in the U.S., having trailed Time in circulation and advertising revenue for most of its existence...
on the fall of the Berlin Wall
Berlin Wall
The Berlin Wall was a barrier constructed by the German Democratic Republic starting on 13 August 1961, that completely cut off West Berlin from surrounding East Germany and from East Berlin...
and the end of the Cold War in Hungary, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Bulgaria, and Albania. Newsweek also sent him to cover the early phase of the Yugoslav civil war. He went to Afghanistan and covered the "Holy War Without End" for The Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
Magazine.
In 2002, The New York Times called him a "White Knight" for saving the venerable Washington Monthly magazine. Publisher Kounalakis and editor Paul Glastris
Paul Glastris
Paul Glastris is an American journalist and political columnist. Glastris is the current editor in chief of The Washington Monthly and was President Bill Clinton's chief speechwriter from September 1998 to the end of his presidency in early 2001. Before 1998, Glastris was a correspondent for U.S....
have since rejuvenated the magazine, grown its readership, and increased its impact – making it a "progressive must-read" in Washington, D.C., according to James Carville
James Carville
Chester James Carville, Jr. is an American political consultant, commentator, educator, actor, attorney, media personality, and prominent liberal pundit. Carville gained national attention for his work as the lead strategist of the successful presidential campaign of then-Arkansas governor Bill...
. Its expose of former education secretary William Bennett
William Bennett
William John "Bill" Bennett is an American conservative pundit, politician, and political theorist. He served as United States Secretary of Education from 1985 to 1988. He also held the post of Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy under George H. W...
's gambling problem brought early attention to the Kounalakis/Glastris team.
Service
Kounalakis serves on the Board of Visitors at the Columbia University Graduate School of JournalismColumbia University Graduate School of Journalism
The Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism is one of Columbia's graduate and professional schools. It offers three degree programs: Master of Science in journalism , Master of Arts in journalism and a Ph.D. in communications...
; Board of Advisors at Georgetown College
Georgetown College (Georgetown University)
Georgetown College, infrequently Georgetown College of Arts and Sciences, is the oldest school within Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. The College is the largest undergraduate school at Georgetown, and until the founding of the Medical School in 1850, was the only higher education division...
and the Wilson Council at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars
Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars
The Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars , located in Washington, D.C., is a United States Presidential Memorial that was established as part of the Smithsonian Institution by an act of Congress in 1968...
. He is the Vice Chairman of the Board of Advisors at the Southeast Europe Project at WWICS; he is a trustee of the World Affairs Council of Northern California
World Affairs Council of Northern California
The World Affairs Council of Northern California, founded in 1947 and headquartered in San Francisco, CA, offers a forum where diverse audiences engage in critical issues that inform their actions...
; and formerly served as Chairman of Internews
Internews
Internews Network is an international non-profit organization whose mission is to empower local media worldwide to give people the news and information they need, the ability to connect, and the means to make their voices heard...
Network 2002–2004; Vice Chairman of the California State World Trade Commission 2001–2003; Board of Trustees of the Western Policy Center 2001–2005. In June 2003, he chaired a multinational reconstruction conference in Athens, Greece where Iraq's media laws were drafted.
Kounalakis and his wife, Eleni Tsakopoulos Kounalakis, have established two chairs in politics and democracy at Georgetown University
Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a private, Jesuit, research university whose main campus is in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic university in the United States...
and Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
Marriage and children
He married Eleni Tsakopoulos in IstanbulIstanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
in 2000. The couple has two sons, Neo and Eon. His wife currently serves as the U.S. Ambassador to Hungary
United States Ambassador to Hungary
This is a list of ambassadors of the United States to HungaryUntil 1867 Hungary had been part of the Austrian Empire, when the empire became Austria-Hungary. Hungary had no separate diplomatic relations with other nations...
.
Books
- Defying GravityDefying GravityDefying Gravity may refer to:In film and television:* Defying Gravity , a 2009 drama television series* Defying Gravity * Defying Gravity , a 1997 independent gay-themed romantic dramaIn music...
: The Making of Newton (1993) - Beyond Spin: The Power of Strategic Corporate Journalism (with Drew Banks, 1999)
- Hope is a Tattered Flag: Voices of Reason and Change for the Post-Bush Era (June 2008)
Film
The War PrayerThe War Prayer
"The War Prayer," a short story or prose poem by Mark Twain, is a scathing indictment of war, and particularly of blind patriotic and religious fervor as motivations for war....
http://web.me.com/newshook/War_Prayer/The_War_Prayer.html (short film, 2007)