Eric Deggans

Eric Deggans is NPR’s first full-time TV critic, also serving as media analyst and guest host, appearing on all the network’s shows, including “Morning Edition,” “Here & Now” and “All Things Considered,” writing for NPR.org and appearing on podcasts such as “Consider This,” “Life Kit” and “Pop Culture Happy Hour.”

He also serves as an adjunct instructor at Duke University’s Sanford School of Public Policy and Indiana University’s Media School, while also serving as a guest instructor and member of the National Advisory Board for the Poynter Institute for Media Studies in St. Petersburg, Florida. He has also served as guest host/interviewer for a range of TV shows and events, from CNN’s media analysis show “Reliable Sources” to the entertainment industry podcast and radio program on Los Angeles NPR member station KCRW, called “The Business.”

In April 2024, he was inducted into the Indiana Journalism Hall of Fame, joining a roster of journalists that includes “60 Minutes” correspondent Steve Kroft, C-SPAN founder Brian Lamb, “CBS Sunday Morning” anchor Jane Pauley and NPR colleague Steve Inskeep. In 2019, Deggans served as the first African American chairman of the board of educators, journalists and media experts who select the George Foster Peabody Awards for excellence in electronic media.

He came to NPR in September 2013 from the Tampa Bay Times newspaper in Florida, where he served as TV/media critic and in other roles for nearly 20 years. He is author of a book dissecting media and race called “Race-Baiter: How the Media Wields Dangerous Words to Divide a Nation,” published in October 2012 by Palgrave Macmillan. He also joined a prestigious group of contributors to the first ethics book created by the Poynter Institute for journalism’s digital age: “The New Ethics of Journalism,” published in August 2013, by Sage/CQ Press.

Through his experience and published work, Eric has developed expertise as a thought leader on issues of race, media, politics, journalism, communication, systemic oppression, social and health inequities and more.