
Jack Beatty
News Analyst, On Point
Jack Beatty is On Point's news analyst. He was a longtime senior editor at The Atlantic Monthly, which he joined in September of 1983, having previously worked as a book reviewer at Newsweek and as the literary editor of The New Republic.
Beatty is the author of "The Rascal King" (1992), a biography of the legendary Boston Mayor James Michael Curly that was nominated for a National Book Critics Circle Award; "The World According to Peter Drucker" (1998), an intellectual biography of the social thinker and management theorist; and "Age of Betrayal: The Triumph of Money in America, 1865-1900" (2007), a thematic history of the Gilded Age. In addition, he is the editor of "Colossus: How the Corporation Changed America" (2001), an anthology of readings on the history of the American corporation named by Business Week as one of the 10 best business books of the year. His most recent book, "The Lost History of 1914: Reconsidering the Year the Great War Began," takes a closer look at the events that lead to World War I. The New Yorker called "The Lost History of 1914" "thought-provoking, and often mordantly ironic."
He has received a Guggenheim fellowship, two fellowships from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, an Olive Branch Award from New York University, a William Allen White Award for criticism from the University of Kansas, and an American Book Award from the Before Columbus Foundation. Born and raised in Boston, Beatty now lives in Hanover, New Hampshire.
Recently published

The Jackpod: Goodbye to all that
On Point news analyst Jack Beatty compares and contrasts what a second term for Donald Trump or Joe Biden would mean for U.S. efforts to combat climate change.

A republic of fear: Jack Beatty on America’s broken social contract
After a mass shooting in Maine, On Point news analyst Jack Beatty turns to 17th century philosopher Thomas Hobbes to try to understand why gun ownership is so prevalent in...

Kakistocracy: Jack Beatty on government by the worst
On Point news analyst Jack Beatty tells us how a second Trump administration could drastically weaken federal agencies and increase the power of the president.

'I voted my district': Jack Beatty on who the McCarthy ousters represent
On Point news analyst Jack Beatty tells us what stands to him out about the districts of the eight representatives who voted to oust Kevin McCarthy as Speaker of the...

The line: Jack Beatty on the sources of white working-class anxiety
On Point News analyst Jack Beatty explores Donald Trump's appeal to voters who see their dignity affronted daily. Plus, a searing message for Democrats and President Biden from one Black...
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Captured: Jack Beatty on the fall in Black and Hispanic working-class support for Democrats
Jack Beatty offers his unique perspective and insight on aspects of current political life in the U.S. In this episode, what’s behind a raft of polls showing a deterioration in...

Sacrifice: Jack Beatty on the sunk moral cost of the Trump supporter
In this weekly podcast, Jack Beatty offers his unique perspective and insight on aspects of current political life in the U.S. In this episode, the tenacity of Donald Trump's most...

'Who are you going to believe, me or your own eyes?': Jack Beatty on the 2024 election
In this new weekly special podcast, On Point’s news analyst Jack Beatty offers his unique perspective and insight on aspects of current political life in the U.S. Today, the leading...

Biden's populist moment: Jack Beatty on the State of the Union address
Populism, border politics and primaries. In this podcast special, On Point news analyst Jack Beatty highlights key moments from President Biden's second State of the Union address.

5 key takeaways from Biden's first State of the Union address
In this podcast special, On Point news analyst Jack Beatty shares a breakdown of President Joe Biden’s first State of the Union address.