Annie Lowrey

Annie Lowrey is an American journalist and author whose work focuses on economics, politics, and public policy. As a staff writer at The Atlantic, Lowrey covers economic policy, poverty, and inequality, translating complex policy debates into accessible narratives for a broad audience. She studied English and American literature at Harvard University, where she contributed to Harvard Crimson, before beginning her journalism career.

Lowrey has held editorial roles at Slate, where she contributed to business and economy coverage, as well as at Washington Independent, Foreign Policy, and The New Yorker. She has also served as a staff writer for The New York Times and New York Magazine, and was the Moneybox columnist for Slate. Throughout these positions, Lowrey has developed a reporting style that grounds economic issues in the experiences of everyday Americans.

Lowrey is the author of "Give People Money: How a Universal Basic Income Would End Poverty, Revolutionize Work, and Remake the World." The book was shortlisted for the Financial Times and McKinsey Business Book of the Year Award and explores universal basic income, economic reform, and social policy. Her work has contributed to public discussions on poverty, work, and inequality.

Her book, "The Time Tax: How the Government Wastes Our Time — and How to Fix It," examines the administrative burdens placed on citizens when accessing government benefits. Lowrey coined the term "time tax" to describe the paperwork and mental effort required to access public services, analyzing how these burdens contribute to inequality and affect public policy outcomes.

Lowrey is a frequent guest on CNN, MSNBC, and NPR, and has appeared on PBS Newshour, The Rachel Maddow Show, Morning Joe, Up with Steve Kornacki, Real Time with Bill Maher, and Bloggingheads.tv. Her reporting and commentary provide insight into economic policy, social safety nets, and the forces shaping American life.