John Strausbaugh

John Strausbaugh is a journalist and cultural commentator based in New York City. He is also the host of the New York Times podcast series “Weekend Explorer,” offering virtual tours into New York City's scandalous past. His previous books have examined the history of recreational drug use (The Drug User: Documents 1840-1960, co-edited with Donald Blaise, 1990), the intersection of politics and popular culture in the White House (Alone With the President, 1992), the priesthood that spreads the gospel of Elvisism (E: Reflections on the Birth of the Elvis Faith, 1995) and Rock and Roll's infidelity to the youth culture that created it (Rock 'Til You Drop: The Decline From Rebellion to Nostalgia, 2001), which was declared “the definitive word on the senescent Rolling Stones” by the New York Times. Rock Til You Drop established Strausbaugh as a favorite on American and British radio and television talk shows.

Strausbaugh followed up with the book Black Like You: Blackface, Whiteface, Insult & Imitation in American Popular Culture, 2006, which explores race relations in popular culture, including the pervasive and long-lasting impact of black-face performance in rock and roll, hip-hop, advertising, “gangsta-lit” and contemporary Hollywood film-making. The book firmly established Strausbaugh as a writer of erudite, engaging and penetrating social commentary. His vivid writing style and candid treatment of controversial subject matter are exemplified in Sissy Nation: How America Became a Culture of Wimps & Stoopits, which will be released on February 5th, 2008.