He created the course “Deconstructing Obama” and teaches courses in journalism and nonfiction writing. He is the author of In Search of Black America which was a New York Times Notable Book of 2000. He has written for Vice, PBS NewsHour, The New York Times Magazine, Book Review and Education Life supplements, Playboy, GQ, Salon, The Washington Post and many other publications. He and his wife Valerie are Co-Founders of Write for the Future, an organization that focuses on ways college admissions essays can help students become better writers.