Career
Bageant was originally raised in Winchester, Virginia. He left Winchester and worked as a journalist and editors In 2001, Bageant moved back to Winchester.
In Deer Hunting With Jesus: Dispatches From America"s Class War Bageant discusses how Democrats have lost the political support of poor rural whites and how the Republican Party has convinced these individuals to "vote against their own economic self-interest." The book is mainly centered on his hometown, Winchester.
In 2010, Bageant published a similarly themed book, Bageant used his extended family’s post World World War II years experience to describe the social hierarchy in the United States of America. The book examines the post-war journey of 22 million rural Americans into the cities, where they became, the author argues, the foundation of a permanent white underclass and comprise much of today’s heartland “red state” voters.
Bageant frequently appeared as a commentator on radio and television internationally, and wrote a progressive online column distributed to hundreds of blogs and websites. He maintained his own blog Joe Bageant.com, assisted by Ken Smith who has continued editing the blog since Bageant"s death.
Bageant also served as a senior (roving) editor with Cyrano"s Journal Today and The Greanville Post, two sites devoted to progressive political and media analyses.
During the last years of his life, Bageant lived in Ajijic, a small town on Lake Chapala in central Mexico. He had been living in Ajijic (where he wrote "Rainbow Pie") when he learned that he had a fast-growing and inoperable cancer. On January 4, 2011, Bageant announced on his web site that he had been "struck down by an extremely serious form of cancer" which was inoperable and was unable to engage in correspondence or his usual work, but hoped to be able to resume them in the future.
After Joe died, his Australian publisher asked Bageant"s literary executor, Ken Smith, to select and edit about 80,000 words worth of Joe"s essays.
This book was published in November 2011 as "Waltzing at the Doomsday Ball: The Best of Joe Bageant". Upon its original publication, this posthumous collection was only available in Australia, New Zealand and South Africa where, according to Smith, it sold reasonably well.
On March 27, 2011, it was announced on his website that he had died on March 26 following "a vibrant life" and a four-month struggle with cancer.
