WRIGHT, Lawrence

American journalist, playwright, and screenwriter renowned for his penetrating investigations into secretive organizations and complex geopolitical events. Born in Oklahoma City and raised in Texas, Wright began his career as a staff writer for Rolling Stone before joining Texas Monthly magazine, where he developed his distinctive approach to long-form narrative journalism combining meticulous research with compelling storytelling.

Wright gained national prominence with “The Looming Tower: Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11” (2006), a comprehensive examination of the origins of international terrorism that won the Pulitzer Prize for General Non-Fiction. The book traced the ideological and operational development of al-Qaeda through detailed profiles of key figures including Osama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri, while analyzing intelligence failures that preceded the September 11 attacks.

His investigation into the Church of Scientology, “Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, and the Prison of Belief” (2013), exposed the organization’s internal practices, financial operations, and treatment of members through extensive interviews with former high-ranking officials. The book documented alleged physical abuse, forced labor, and systematic harassment of critics, while examining Scientology’s influence in Hollywood and its legal battles with government agencies. Wright’s work became the basis for Alex Gibney’s documentary “Going Clear,” which won three Emmy Awards.

Throughout his career at The New Yorker, where he has been a staff writer since 1992, Wright has tackled diverse subjects including the siege at the Branch Davidian compound in Waco, the AIDS epidemic in Africa, and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. His theatrical works include “My Trip to Al-Qaeda,” a one-man show based on his terrorism reporting.