Pamela Newkirk, Ph.D.

Pamela is a professor, author, journalist, and multi-disciplinary scholar whose work examines contemporary and historical depictions of African Americans in popular culture. 

Her latest book, Diversity Inc.: The Failed Promise of a Billion-Dollar Business, examines how workplace diversity initiatives have grown into a profoundly misguided industry that has largely failed to move the needle on bringing equality to America’s major industries and institutions. Diversity Inc. was included on TIME magazine’s “Must-Read” books of 2019 and featured in Forbes, Fortune, The Wall Street Journal, The Financial Times, and The Guardian, among other publications. 

Pamela’s previous book, Spectacle: The Astonishing Life of Ota Benga, was awarded the 2016 NAACP Image Award, selected as a New York Times Editor’s Choice, and named a Best Book of 2015 by NPR, The Boston Globe, and The San Francisco Chronicle. Pamela has also compiled and edited two collections of African American letters and authored Within the Veil: Black Journalists, White Media, which won the National Press Club Award for Media Criticism and was recently optioned for a feature film. 

Prior to joining the journalism faculty at New York University, Pamela was a daily reporter at four news organizations, including New York Newsday, where she was part of a Pulitzer Prize-winning team. Her articles have appeared in leading publications such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Guardian, The Wall Street Journal, and TIME.  
Pamela holds a B.A. in Journalism from New York University, an M.S. in Journalism from Columbia University, and a Ph.D. from Columbia University.