Wesley J. Smith

Wesley J. Smith is a lawyer and an award winning author, a senior fellow in bioethics at the Discovery Institute, an attorney for the International Task Force on Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide, and a special consultant for the Center for Bioethics and Culture. In 2004 he was named by the National Journal as one of the nation’s top expert thinkers in bioengineering.

Smith has authored or co-authored eleven books. He formerly collaborated with consumer advocate Ralph Nader, and has been published in regional and national outlets such as the New York Times, Newsweek, Wall Street Journal, USA Today, San Francisco Chronicle, Seattle Times, the New York Post, and many others.

Brief Biography
Smith is a prolific author, and frequent contributor to National Review and The Weekly Standard. He closely followed the case of Terri Schiavo in 2005, and wrote frequently on the topic. He opposes assisted suicide and euthanasia. He is also a noted critic of mainstream views in bioethics and of what he calls the radical animal liberation movement His book Culture of Death: The Assault on Medical Ethics in America was named Best Health Book of the Year at the 2001 Independent Publishers Book Awards. .

Smith is a frequent guest on radio and television talk shows, He has testified as an expert witness in front of federal and state legislative committees, and is an international public speaker. His blog Secondhand Smoke discusses the issues about which he advocates, as well as promoting the importance of human exceptionalism. He also contributes a biweekly podcast called Brave New Bioethics, which is produced by the Discovery Institute.

Smith is married to the syndicated newspaper columnist, Debra Saunders.