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Albert Samaha

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Albert Samaha is an American journalist. He was previously inequality editor at Buzzfeed News and currently works as an investigative reporter in sports at the Washington Post. He is the author of two books, Never Ran, Never Will (2018) and Concepcion (2021).

Early life and education

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Samaha was born in Vallejo, California.[1] His mother was born and raised in the Philippines and grew up in a wealthy family.[2] Samaha's father is Lebanese, and met his mother in Saudi Arabia when she was a flight attendant. Samaha lived in Manila for kindergarten, and then spent the rest of his childhood in northern California.[3] Much of his maternal family immigrated to the United States around the same time as his mother, including his uncle, Spanky Rigor, who was a member of the famous Manila sound group VST & Company before moving.[4] Samaha's father lived in Paris; his parents divorced when he was a child.[5]

His family moved frequently, living in cities including San Francisco, San Mateo, and Sacramento.[3] Samaha was an athlete in his youth and played basketball, baseball, and football.[6] He received his bachelor’s degree in communication studies from the University of San Diego, where he was a defensive back on the football team.[7] He left the football team after two years and switched his focus to journalism.[1] Samaha attended Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism for his master’s degree.[8]

Career

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Samaha worked at alt weeklies in his early career, including Riverfront Times, San Francisco Weekly, and the Village Voice, where he covered criminal justice and learned the fundamentals of investigative reporting.[3][1] In 2015 he was hired by Adam Serwer to work at Buzzfeed News just after it launched its criminal justice beat.[3] During his tenure he reported on inequality, culture, and policing.[9][10]

Samaha's debut book Never Ran, Never Will focused on the Mo Better Jaguars, a youth football team in Brownsville, Brooklyn.[6] He spent two years of time with the players and coaches to prepare the manuscript.[6] The book received a starred review from Booklist,[11] and Samaha won the 2019 New York Society Library Hornblower Award.[12]

Samaha published an essay for Buzzfeed News on the election of Rodrigo Duterte that informed the direction of his second book, a memoir called Concepcion: An Immigrant Family’s Fortunes.[10] The book centers his family's immigration from the Philippines to the United States. Kirkus Reviews described Concepcion as "an edifying, well-written narrative that provides an intimate perspective on the legacy of colonialism."[5] The book is called "Concepcion" after his maternal family's name.[1] Samaha was named a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award in Autobiography.[13]

In April 2023 he lost his job when Buzzfeed laid off 15% of the company staff and shut down Buzzfeed News.[10] Samaha joined the Washington Post as an investigative reporter for the sports section in July 2023.[14]

Accolades

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Books

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  • Samaha, Albert (2018-09-04). Never Ran, Never Will: Boyhood and Football in a Changing American Inner City. PublicAffairs. ISBN 9781610398688.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  • Samaha, Albert (2021-10-12). Concepcion: Conquest, Colonialism, and an Immigrant Family's Fate. Riverhead Books. ISBN 9780593086087.

References

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  1. ^ a b c d Visaya, Momar G. (2020-07-16). "The untold story of Spanky Rigor seen through the lens of his nephew, Fil-Am author Albert Samaha". Asian Journal News. Retrieved 2024-09-21.
  2. ^ Blumberg-Kason, Susan (2021-11-03). ""Concepcion: An Immigrant Family's Fortunes" by Albert Samaha". Retrieved 2024-09-21.
  3. ^ a b c d "Longform Podacst #435: Albert Samaha · Longform". Longform. 2021-04-07. Retrieved 2024-09-21.
  4. ^ Gonzalez, Michael (2022-01-19). "Fortune's Call: Albert Samaha's Family Saga". Positively Filipino | Online Magazine for Filipinos in the Diaspora. Retrieved 2024-09-21.
  5. ^ a b "Concepcion". Kirkus. Retrieved 20 September 2024.
  6. ^ a b c "Poor Students More Likely To Play Football, Despite Brain Injury Concerns". NPR. 2019-02-03. Retrieved 2024-09-20.
  7. ^ Lovato, Roberto (2021-10-12). "A Memoir of Filipino American Family Life in the Wake of Colonialism". New York Times. Retrieved 2024-09-20.
  8. ^ "Albert Samaha joins The Post as a sports investigative reporter". Washington Post. 2023-07-13. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2024-09-21.
  9. ^ Wanbaugh, Taylor (2016-12-01). "BuzzFeed News' Albert Samaha and a modern-day lynching in Mississippi". Nieman Foundation. Retrieved 2024-09-20.
  10. ^ a b c Castillo, Amaris. "As BuzzFeed cuts its newsroom, journalists react with shock, sadness". Poynter. Retrieved 20 September 2024.
  11. ^ Lukowsky, Wes. "Never Ran, Never Will: Boyhood and Football in a Changing American Inner City". Booklist. Retrieved 2024-09-20.
  12. ^ a b "New York Society Library Announces Winners of NYC Book Awards | Fine Books & Collections". www.finebooksmagazine.com. Retrieved 2024-09-21.
  13. ^ a b Schaub, Michael (2022-02-11). "Concepcion by Albert Samaha: 2021 Autobiography Finalist". National Book Critics Circle. Retrieved 2024-09-21.
  14. ^ Murray, Jason (2023-07-13). "Albert Samaha joins The Washington Post as a sports investigative reporter". Editor & Publisher. Retrieved 20 September 2024.
  15. ^ "Whiting Creative Nonfiction Grant". www.whiting.org. Retrieved 2024-09-21.
  16. ^ "Announcing the 2019 PEN America Literary Awards Finalists". PEN America. 2019-01-15. Retrieved 2024-09-21.
  17. ^ "Livingston Awards finalists announced". University of Michigan News. 2023-04-28. Retrieved 2024-09-20.
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