Daniel Webster

Daniel Webster, Professor of Health Policy and Management at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Policy and Research,examines some surprisingly hopeful possibilities that exist for a controversial public policy conundrum that seems to have no universally acceptable answer.

“Gun control policy tends to be dominated by emotion and ideology. Mr. Webster has become a leader by approaching the debate with data and reason.”
— The Baltimore Sun

ABOUT DANIEL

Daniel Webster is one of the nation’s leading experts on the prevention of gun violence. He is Professor of Health Policy and Management at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Policy and Research. Daniel co-edited the book Reducing Gun Violence in America: Informing Policy with Evidence and Analysis, an outgrowth of a symposium he organized at Johns Hopkins on the one month anniversary of the Newtown, Connecticut school shootings. He has published numerous articles on youth gun acquisition, adolescent violence prevention, intimate partner violence, and sensible firearm policy.

Who had the most influence over your current work?
Phil Cook’s research showing the complexities in Chicago’s underground gun market; Garen Wintemute’s research on criminal histories of legal handgun purchasers; my early mentor Alex Wagenaar.

What’s the hardest thing you’ve ever done?
Give my dad’s eulogy. He had a huge impact on my life—a constant inspiration—and a leader who transformed his community in Kentucky for the better, fought for the disempowered, and brought out the best in others.

What do you do to lift your spirits?
Play with my dog and cats, all named after baseball players.

LEARN MORE

Guiding Evidence for Gun Violence Prevention
Q&A with Daniel on the TEDMED Blog

Reducing Gun Violence in America: Informing Policy with Evidence and Analysis
Webster D and JS Vernick, eds. Johns Hopkins University. 2013.

Updated Evidence and Policy Developments on Reducing Gun Violence in America
Webster DW, Vernick JS. Johns Hopkins University. 2014.

Commentary: Evidence to Guide Gun Violence Prevention in America
Annual Review of Public Health. 2015;36:1-4.

Effects of policies designed to keep firearms from high-risk individuals
Webster DW, Wintemute GJ. Annual Reviews of Public Health. 2015;36:21-37. 

News Media Framing of Serious Mental Illness and Gun Violence in the United States
McGinty EE, et al. Amer J Pub Health. 2014;104:406–13. 

Interrupting violence: How the CeaseFire Program prevents imminent gun violence through conflict mediation
Whitehill JM, Webster DW, et al. J Urban Health. 2014;91:84-95. 

Effects of the repeal of Missouri’s handgun purchaser licensing law on homicides
Webster DW, Crifasi CK, Vernick JS. Journal of Urban Health 2014;91:293-302. Erratum: J Urban Health 2014; 91:598-601.