Bill Keller, born January 18, 1949, in Washington, D.C., is an American journalist renowned for his extensive career in international reporting and editorial leadership. He joined The New York Times in 1986 as its Moscow bureau chief, covering the final years of the Soviet Union until 1991, and returned to the role from 1994 to 1995. Keller later managed the Johannesburg bureau during South Africa's transition from apartheid, served as foreign editor, and rose through the ranks to managing editor before becoming executive editor from July 2003 to September 2011. He stepped down on September 6, 2011 (announced June 2, 2011), and became a bi-weekly columnist for the Times until 2014. In 2014, Keller founded and served as the first editor-in-chief of The Marshall Project, a nonprofit journalism organization focused on criminal justice reform in the United States, leading it until 2019. His tenure there emphasized in-depth reporting on incarceration, policing, and legal system failures. Keller has been recognized for his contributions to journalism, including coverage of pivotal global events, though his editorial decisions at the Times, such as on the Iraq War reporting, drew criticism from some quarters for insufficient skepticism toward government intelligence.