Who is he: Juan Williams has been a Fox News Contributor since 1997, appearing regularly on "The O'Reilly Factor."
Williams is a political analyst for Fox News, a regular panelist on Fox Broadcasting's Sunday-morning public-affairs program "Fox News Sunday," and a columnist for FoxNews.com and for The Hill. Williams hosted NPR's "Talk of the Nation" and has anchored Fox News Channel's weekend daytime news coverage.
A former senior correspondent and political analyst for National Public Radio, Williams is the author of the bestselling book Enough, the critically acclaimed biography Thurgood Marshall: American Revolutionary, and the national bestseller Eyes on the Prize: America's Civil Rights Years, 1954–1965, companion volume to the critically acclaimed television series, and Muzzled: The Assault on Honest Debate, released in late July, 2011, the main topic of which is the muzzling of honest exchange of ideas and search for solutions and compromise in America.
During his 21-year career at the Washington Post, Williams served as an editorial writer, op-ed columnist, and White House reporter. His articles have appeared in the New York Times Sunday Magazine, Time, Newsweek, Fortune, The Atlantic Monthly, Ebony, Gentlemen's Quarterly, and The New Republic.
Background: Juan Wiliams was born April 10, 1954 in Panama, the son of a boxing trainer and a seamstress. His family immigrated to Brooklyn, New York when he was four years old, and he earned a scholarship to the Oakwood Friends School in Poughkeepsie, New York. While in high school he was clerk of the student body and editor of the tudent paper, and was involved in sports.
Receiving a scholarship, Williams attended Haverford College, just outside Philadelphia, from which he graduated in 1976 with a B.A. in philosophy. After college, Williams married Susan Delise in 1978, and now has a daughter and two sons.
Williams' journalism career during college included three years at the Philadelphia Bulletin as a reporter intern, winning a Dow-Jones Newspaper Fund Award. He worked as an editor at the Providence Journal for one summer during college.
Immediately after college, he became an intern at The Washington Post, where he worked from 1976 to 2000, including as metropolitan staff writer, where he wrote a six-part series on the DC public schools, which was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize. Williams also reported on Mayor Marion Barry's administration corruption. From there he moved to the national staff as a political analyst and White House correspondent.
On television, Williams began to participate as a panelist on "Inside Washington," and on "Crossfire" as a substitute co-host. Williams appeared on "Capital Gang Sunday," and in 1996 became host of "America's Black Forum."
Williams came under suspicion of sexual harassment during his tenure at the Post, only days after he wrote a column in which he defended Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas against Professor Anita Hill's testimony against him for sexual harassment. The Post published an apology by Williams.
In 2000 Williams joined National Public Radio as host of "Talk of the Nation," a daily program, and then served as senior national correspondent. When Williams began providing commentary at Fox News Channel NPR CEO Vivian Schiller requested Fox stop identifying him as an NPR host. A comment Williams made on "the O'Reilly Factor" in January 2009 prompted her to make this request.
Williams' contract with NPR was terminated on October 20, 2010. Two days previously he had made remarks on "The O'Reilly Factor" stating he gets "worried" and "nervous" when he sees of individuals wearing Muslim garb on airplanes. While Williams later clarified his remarks were not intended to convey bigotry, NPR nonetheless fired him.