
Eric Deggans
Eric Deggans is NPR's first full-time TV critic.
Deggans came to NPR in 2013 from the Tampa Bay Times, where he served a TV/Media Critic and in other roles for nearly 20 years. A journalist for more than 20 years, he is also the author of Race-Baiter: How the Media Wields Dangerous Words to Divide a Nation, a look at how prejudice, racism and sexism fuels some elements of modern media, published in October 2012, by Palgrave Macmillan.
Deggans is also currently a media analyst/contributor for MSNBC and NBC News. In August 2013, he guest hosted CNN's media analysis show Reliable Sources, joining a select group of journalists and media critics filling in for departed host Howard Kurtz. The same month, Deggans was awarded the Florida Press Club's first-ever Diversity award, honoring his coverage of issues involving race and media. He received the Legacy award from the National Association of Black Journalists' A&E Task Force, an honor bestowed to "seasoned A&E journalists who are at the top of their careers." And in 2019, he was named winner of the American Sociological Association's Excellence in the Reporting of Social Justice Issues Award.
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 also has joined a prestigious group of contributors to the first ethics book created in conjunction with the Poynter Institute for Media Studies for journalism's digital age: The New Ethics of Journalism, published in August 2013, by Sage/CQ Press.
From 2004 to 2005, Deggans sat on the then-St. Petersburg Times editorial board and wrote bylined opinion columns. From 1997 to 2004, he worked as TV critic for the Times, crafting reviews, news stories and long-range trend pieces on the state of the media industry both locally and nationally. He originally joined the paper as its pop music critic in November 1995. He has worked at the Asbury Park Press in New Jersey and both the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and Pittsburgh Press newspapers in Pennsylvania.
Now serving as chair of the Media Monitoring Committee for the National Association of Black Journalists, he has also served on the board of directors for the national Television Critics Association and on the board of the Mid-Florida Society of Professional Journalists.
Additionally, he worked as a professional drummer in the 1980s, touring and performing with Motown recording artists The Voyage Band throughout the Midwest and in Osaka, Japan. He continues to perform with area bands and recording artists as a drummer, bassist and vocalist.
Deggans earned a Bachelor of Arts in political science and journalism from Indiana University.
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Jason Katims, executive producer for TV shows like Friday Night Lights and Parenthood, has a new show. Amazon's drama As We See It provides an incisive and emotional look at autism.
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The new HBO Max show Peacemaker — about the DC Comics character of the same name — picks up where the film Suicide Squad left off. Is it a show you'll want to watch?
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NPR TV critic Eric Deggans shares what shows he loved in 2021 and what TV should have gotten more attention.
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John Madden's authenticity and charm helped him to become a pop culture figure. He was the face and name of one of the world's most popular video games: Madden NFL. He died Tuesday at the age of 85.
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From NPR's annual list of reading recommendations, Books We Love, we hear four suggestions of history books from 2021.
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The third season finale of HBO's Succession aired Sunday. After a slow start, the season had finally started to feel like it was taking off.
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After a lackluster first episode, the new HBO revival of Sex and the City — called And Just Like That — meets the modern moment by taking established characters in new directions.
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The show, which premiers on Monday, is based on the true story of a mild-mannered couple who commit horrific crimes.