William C. Rhoden is an American sports journalist and author who formerly worked as a columnist for The New York Times from 1983 until 2016,[1][2] when he joined ESPN's The Undefeated as a writer-at-large,[3] where he is currently employed.

[1] He attended Morgan State University from 1968 to 1973, and played on the 1968 Morgan State Bears football team that beat the Grambling Tigers in Yankee Stadium,[5] the annual match known as the "Whitney Young Classic".

[5][6][7] After graduating from college, he worked for the Afro-American Times, the Baltimore Sun, and eventually Ebony where he became a columnist for magazine from 1974 to 1978.

In 2006, he published his first book, the Forty Million Dollar Slaves: The Rise, Fall, and Redemption of the Black Athlete, an original and perceptive analysis of the racist history and current reality of professional sports in the United States.

[8][9][10][11] Etan Thomas, a major activist and retired professional basketball player, praises this book and claims it is a "necessary read for all young athletes.