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David McWilliamsIrish journalist and economist
Country:
 Ireland |
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Biography of David McWilliams
David McWilliams is an Irish journalist and economist. He has worked as an economist at the Central Bank of Ireland, as well as for the Swiss bank UBS, the largest bank in Europe, and the Banque Nationale de Paris, which became BNP Paribas in 2000. He has recently become a television presenter and documentary filmmaker on Irish channels TV3 and RTÉ, and has published three books: 'The Pope's Children', 'The Generation Game', and 'Follow the Money'.
Early Life and Education
David McWilliams was born in 1966 in Dun Laoghaire, a port on the east coast of Ireland, and grew up in Windsor Park, Monkstown, Dublin. His father, a Scot, worked in a paint factory but was unemployed for much of David's childhood. His mother, from Cork, worked as a teacher in Bray. David McWilliams is married to Sian Smyth, a former corporate lawyer from the outskirts of Belfast, Northern Ireland. Like most Irish people, McWilliams is a Roman Catholic. He lives and works in Dublin.
In Dublin, McWilliams attended Blackrock College, a boys' school for ages 14-18, and then graduated from Trinity College Dublin with a degree in economics. In the late 80s, he obtained a diploma from the College of Europe in Bruges, Belgium, which provides postgraduate education.
Career
From 1990 to 1993, McWilliams worked as an economist at the Central Bank of Ireland. At the age of 27, he moved to London to work as a market analyst at UBS. After a few years in London, he worked for the Banque Nationale de Paris and then as a market strategist at Rockwest Capital, a New York hedge fund, from 1999 to 2002. Returning to Ireland in 2002, McWilliams focused mainly on journalism and television. He became the host of the news and analysis program 'Agenda' on TV3 and covered the general elections in 2002. He also hosted a morning show on Dublin radio station NewsTalk 106 from 2002 to 2004. Soon after, he became the host of 'The Big Bite', a discussion evening television program on RTÉ One, and became a regular columnist for 'The Sunday Business Post' and 'Irish Independent'. His latest articles for these newspapers are also available on his website and in the monthly newsletter, 'The David McWilliams Agenda'.
In February 2006, he mistakenly accused fans of the football club Shamrock Rovers of inciting the riots that took place in Dublin on February 25, 2006. In November 2006, RTÉ One began airing 'Pope's Children', a three-part documentary based on his book of the same name, which examined the economic and social situation in modern Ireland. The book sparked controversy with accusations of plagiarism. McWilliams' next book, 'The Generation Game', which discusses the specificities of the Irish economy and its interaction with other countries, was published in September 2007 and also accompanied by a three-part documentary with the same title. His book 'Follow the Money' was published in 2009.
Economic Beliefs and Recognition
In terms of his economic beliefs, McWilliams is considered a supporter of free-market economist Milton Friedman, who belongs to the monetarist school. In January 2007, McWilliams was listed as one of the "250 Young Global Leaders" at the World Economic Forum.
