Stephen Thompson: Extraordinary Writer and Music Visionary?

Stephen Thompson is one of the contributors to NPR's Song of the Day. Some of the articles he has written can be found here (for some reason this list doesn't include the article he posted today; maybe it takes a day to get onto the list).

I never cease to be impressed with the music that he has highlighted on NPR. Perhaps he and I just have similar tastes in music; however, I also am very impressed with how he writes. Other contributors to NPR do a fine job, but there's something about Thompson's writing that shows that he has gone beyond simply learning how to write professionally. His writing shows that he has worked hard to hone his writing talents just as sharply as his ear for interesting music.

From his bio (I've bolded a few things I thought were noteworthy)...

Stephen Thompson is an online producer for NPR Digital Media, where he edits and contributes to Song of the Day (a daily column on NPR.org), among other projects.

In 1993, Thompson created The Onion's entertainment section, The A.V. Club, which he edited until December 2004. As a guest music commentator on NPR's Morning Edition, he has discussed topics ranging from summer pop anthems to his own bizarrely ill-conceived 2,500-mile road trip to attend 2006’s South By Southwest music festival. His entertainment writing has also run in Paste magazine, The Washington Post, and The London Guardian.

During his tenure at The Onion, Thompson edited the 2002 book The Tenacity of the Cockroach: Conversations with Entertainment's Most Enduring Outsiders (Crown), and copy-edited six best-selling comedy books. While there, he also coached The Onion’s softball team to a sizzling 21-42 record, and was once outscored 72-0 in a span of 10 innings.

A 1994 graduate of the University of Wisconsin, Thompson recently relocated from Madison to Silver Spring, Md., leaving behind his wife and two children. (They promise to join him soon.) His hobbies include watching reality television without shame, touting the immutable moral superiority of the Green Bay Packers, and maintaining a fierce rivalry with all Midwestern states other than Wisconsin.

I can honestly say that Stephen Thompson is one of the many important things that supports my allegiance to NPR. Thanks, Mr. Thompson, for your service. (is that a silly thing to say?)

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