Edwin Okong’o

Award-winning Writer, Journalist, Humorist and Satirist

Edwin Okong’o, a proud son of Africa, is a Kenyan-born, award-winning writer, journalist, humorist and satirist. He has worked as an associate editor at New America Media, and a reporter for PBS’s Frontline/World. "Kenya: Sweet Home, Obama," a documentary he made about Kenyans and the 2008 U.S. presidential elections for the PBS program, was voted the People’s Voice at the 2009 Webby Awards.

From July 2007 to July 2008, Okong’o was the editor in chief of Mshale, the Minneapolis based newspaper for African immigrants. In 2008 Minnesota Monthly voted him Best of Twin Cities for the journalism category for his coverage of the African community. During the 2007 post-election violence in his home country, Okong’o was a resource for various news media including The New York Times, Al-Jazeera and the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.

Okong’o holds a Masters degree in Journalism from the University of California, Berkeley, where he won awards for excellence in journalism. He is working on his first book, a memoir in which he tries to understand how he overcame low self-esteem to excel in education.

Okong’o performs as a stand-up comedian for television audiences, comedy clubs, and conventions across the United States. He is funny, opinionated, and brutally honest. Please check on his Web site for samples of his work.