Wilbert L. Cooper

Writer + producer + memoirist

wilbert cooper’s Bio

Wilbert L. Cooper was raised in Northeastern Ohio. He studied journalism at Ohio University and earned a master's degree in publishing at New York University. He is based in Brooklyn and has written for outlets such as The Guardian, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and The Marshall Project. His Vice documentary “The Cleveland Strangler” was nominated for a National Magazine Award. In 2024, he was the recipient of the Richard J. Margolis Award. His debut memoir, The Black Shield, will be published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux in the fall of 2026.

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Website | Visit Wilbert at APL!

books by wilbert cooper

wilbert cooper in the media

Articles by Wilbert Cooper:

• Out of the Blue: The Rise and Fall of a Black Cop | THE MARSHALL PROJECT

• How Trump’s war on DEI is roiling US police | THE GUARDIAN

• From Jimi Hendrix to Colin Kaepernick, the Afro as Rebellion|THE WALL STREET JOURNAL

• The Designer Reimagining America’s Most Iconic Accessory | THE NEW YORK TIMES

• An Artist Making a Powerful Statement — by Creating Work About Herself | THE NEW YORK TIMES

• The Chef on a Mission to Bring Soulful, Healthy Food to All of Brooklyn | THE NEW YORK TIMES

• I Was Forced to Fight, Now I'm Learning to Cry | VICE

• The Evolution of Black Masculinity Through Fashion | VICE

• Todd McFarlane Is the Anti-Hero of American Comics | VICE