Steve Smith
Biography
Born on Oct. 30, 1956, in Connecticut, Smith studied African law and anthropology at the University of Paris, and history, philosophy, and political science at the Free University of Berlin. After working as a freelance journalist for a few years, Smith joined the staff of Liberation in 1986, replacing Pierre Haski as the paper's Africa Editor. In 2000 he became the Africa Editor for Le Monde, becoming deputy director there two years later. In 2005 he left the paper to return to work as a freelance journalist. Smith is the author of numerous French language books and academic publications related to the anthropology and history of Africa, including books on Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Coted'lvoire, and Somalia. He has also written a number of biographies on notable African people, including General Mohamed Oufkir (1998), Emperor Jean-Bedel Bokassa (2000), and Winnie Madikizela-Mandela (2007).
