Joel H. Rosenthal is president of Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs. As a nonprofit leader, scholar, and teacher he works to empower ethical action, with a particular focus on U.S. foreign policy, issues of war and peace, human rights, and pluralism. At Carnegie Council, Rosenthal leads a team that identifies critical ethical issues, convenes experts, and produces agenda-setting resources to educate and activate communities globally.
Rosenthal is editor-in-chief of the Ethics & International Affairs journal published by Cambridge University Press. His first book Righteous Realists is an examination of the political realists who shaped post-WWII America in the nuclear age, including Hans Morgenthau, Reinhold Niebuhr, and George Kennan. His current writing and commentary can be found at the President’s Desk.
Rosenthal is the recipient of numerous awards including the Distinguished Scholar Award from the International Studies Association for his lifetime achievement in international studies and an Honorary Degree of Doctor of Social Science from the University of Edinburgh. He received his Ph.D. from Yale University and BA from Harvard University.
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Featured Work
APR 14, 2009 • Article
“The Current” Interviews Joel Rosenthal
Transcript of an interview with The Current, Columbia University’s undergraduate journal of contemporary politics, culture, and Jewish affairs. THE CURRENT: What does it mean ...
FEB 9, 2009 • Podcast
The Cuba Wars: Fidel Castro, the United States and the Next Revolution
As Castro finally leaves the stage and a new president arrives in Washington, both the Cuban system and U.S.-Cuba relations could be on ...
JAN 27, 2009 • Podcast
Lessons in Disaster: McGeorge Bundy and the Path to War in Vietnam
For Bundy, the ultimate actor in Vietnam was not the military, the secretary of state or of defense, or the national security advisor. It was ...
JAN 27, 2009 • Podcast
The Crisis of American Foreign Policy: Wilsonianism in the Twenty-First Century
Was George W. Bush the true heir of Woodrow Wilson, the architect of liberal internationalism? Was the Iraq War a result of liberal ideas about ...
JAN 13, 2009 • Podcast
Andrew Carnegie
Biographer David Nasaw tells the fascinating story of Andrew Carnegie's efforts to stop World War I, and how his failure broke his heart.
NOV 4, 2008 • Podcast
Ark of the Liberties: America and the World
Ted Widmer shows that from its beginnings, the United States, for all its shortfalls, has been by far the world's greatest advocate for freedom.
JUL 8, 2008 • Podcast
Torture, Rights, and Values: Why the Prohibition of Torture is Absolute
Rodin's premise is that if we have a commitment against torture, then it leads to an absolute prohibition on torture. Luban worries that our commitment ...
MAY 21, 2008 • Podcast
Rising Powers, Shrinking Planet: The New Geopolitics of Energy
Michael Klare warns that the world's diminishing sources of energy may create a new arms race between the U.S. and China. It is essential ...
NOV 29, 2007 • Podcast
Finance as a Tool of National Security: Update on the Effort to Combat Terror Financing
Levitt discusses the behind-the-scenes work that Treasury is doing to cut off funds for terrorism, with particular focus on Iran.