Fred Hiatt

Washington, D.C.

Editorial page editor and columnist overseeing the Washington Post Opinions section, 2000-2021

Education: Harvard College, BA in History; Harvard University US-Japan Program; Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies, Russian language and area studies

Fred Hiatt was the editorial page editor of The Post from 2000 until his death in 2021. He wrote editorials for the newspaper and a biweekly column. Hiatt started at The Post in 1981. Earlier, he worked as a reporter for the Atlanta Journal and the Washington Star. At The Post, he covered government, politics, development and other issues in Fairfax County and statewide in Virginia, and later military and national security affairs on the newspaper's national staff. From 1987 to 1990, he and his wife were co-bureau chiefs of The Post's Northeast Asia bureau in Tokyo, and from 1991 to 1995 they
Latest from Fred Hiatt

Selected writings of Fred Hiatt, 1996-2021

His topics ranged broadly, but if there was one theme that dominated, it was his fierce commitment to protecting human rights and safeguarding democracy, at home and abroad.

December 7, 2021

With hundreds of nominees to confirm, the Senate doesn’t deserve Thanksgiving break

Thanks to a few GOP senators, President Biden is miles away from having a full government in place.

November 23, 2021

China is perfecting a 21st-century method of destroying an entire people

We think of genocide as industrial-scale killing. A new report suggests China may be committing the crime in a different way. Will Coca-Cola and other Olympic sponsors celebrate the upcoming Games as if this is not happening?

November 14, 2021

What Democrats should have said to Big Oil

Last week, House Democrats roasted, insulted and shamed Big Oil executives. Here's what they should have said: 'Thank you. We accept your offer.'

October 31, 2021

How a lie becomes respectable, step by cowardly step

Washington niceties are helping to normalize Donald Trump's attack on democracy.

October 17, 2021

How Josh Hawley, Ted Cruz and an irrational system make us more vulnerable to the next 9/11

Surely, you say, no politician, no matter how ambitious or demagogic, would so deliberately take actions guaranteed to weaken national security.

September 20, 2021

In justifying one blunder, Biden may commit another

Biden has said a central purpose of his presidency is promoting democracy. But he is poised to abandon that goal and risk damaging the United States' standing in the world.

August 24, 2021

The U.S. government is designed for failure. And, a new study shows, it’s getting worse.

Our nonsensical appointment and confirmation process is a huge impediment to tackling long-term problems.

August 8, 2021

Toyota has mixed feelings about the Tokyo Olympics. But it’s okay with the Genocide Olympics.

Unfortunately, the company is boycotting the wrong games.

July 25, 2021

Legally, Trump’s tech lawsuit is a joke. But it raises a serious question.

Beneath the lies and self-pity, Trump might have a point.

July 8, 2021