Bio

Kristal Brent Zook, Ph.D. is an award-winning journalist whose work has appeared in publications such as Essence, The New York Times Sunday Magazine, The Washington Post, The Boston Globe Sunday Magazine, USA Weekend, Vibe, Savoy, Honey, The Nation, The Village Voice, and many others.

The author of four books, her latest is The Girl In The Yellow Poncho. Her previous books are: I See Black People: Interviews with African American Owners of Radio and Television, Black Women's Lives: Stories of Power and Pain, a collection of intimate portraits of women across the country, from an organic farmer in Vermont, to a filmmaker in Los Angeles. Published by Nation Books in 2006, it is already in its third printing. And Color By Fox: The Fox Network And The Revolution In Black Television.

Kristal speaks regularly on popular culture and gender, multiracial identity and blackness, as well as social justice issues involving health, the environment and criminal justice. She has appeared on national cable and broadcast outlets such as NPR, CNN, MSNBC, C-SPAN, MTV, Fox, and TV-One. She is currently a full-time Professor of Journalism and Director of the M.A. Journalism program at Hofstra University in Long Island. Read about her most recent work at www.kristalbrentzook.com. Kristal tweets from @KristalZook.