Charles McRay Blow (born August 11, 1970) is an American journalist, commentator and former op-ed columnist for The New York Times and political analyst for MSNBC.

[3] Blow graduated magna cum laude from Grambling State University, with a bachelor's degree in mass communication.

He also served as president of Grambling State's chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity.

[4] On February 5, 2025, Blow wrote his final column for The New York Times Opinion section.

"[15] In 2021, Blow published The Devil You Know: A Black Manifesto in which he advocates people of color taking direct action by moving to states where they can build a political majority.

[19] In January 2025, Blow announced that he was leaving the New York Times and would join Harvard University as its inaugural Langston Hughes Fellow.

[30] In his autobiography, Fire Shut Up in my Bones, Blow revealed that he was sexually abused as a child by an older cousin.