WILL TOMER
// ABOUT ME
Hello and welcome to my website. I'm Will Tomer, a graduate student at Idaho State University, currently pursuing my Master's degree in History. Before returning to academia, I spent several years working in print journalism — I wrote and edited opinion pieces on technology and data privacy, global affairs, and more for papers in the Rust Belt.
My academic research interests include social and sensory histories of the Third Reich, as well as German post-war reconstruction. I also study media, politics, technology, film, sports, and the craft of writing.
This page is my little corner of the internet. Feel free to poke around.
Quick Facts
| Status | Master's Student at Idaho State University |
| Background | Print Journalism |
| Former Employers | Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Toledo Blade |
| Location | Idaho, USA |
// JOURNALISM
Before graduate school, I reported and wrote for two of the Ohio Valley region's most storied newspapers. A selection of published work is below.
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
| Title | Date | Section |
|---|---|---|
|
The limits of civil discourse
There must be a greater delineation between free speech — the freedom to speak one’s mind without governmental interference — and civil discourse — a conversation or good-faith debate of ideas.
|
Oct 2018 | Opinion |
|
The case for antitrust action against Facebook
It is bad for both commerce and democracy when any company has the influence that Facebook has.
|
Nov 2018 | Opinion |
|
Peter Longerich cuts through the Hitler myth in new biography
Central to Longerich’s book is a focus on Hitler, the politician and man, rather than Hitler, the messianic leader of a Germany eager to avenge the humiliations of World War I.
|
Apr 2019 | Books |
Toledo Blade
Toledo, Ohio
| Title | Date | Section |
|---|---|---|
|
Pursuing justice for Abu Zubaydah, the first victim of the CIA's torture program
Depriving Zubaydah of the rights that form the basis of our government and which we seek to defend undermines the legal and moral credibility of the U.S.
|
Jul 2018 | Features |
|
The importance of baseball
Baseball binds us together in a way that very few things can. It allows for hopes and for dreams, and it can even allow for people to live on forever.
|
Apr 2018 | Opinion |
|
Arrest of Mahmoud Khalil presents an existential threat to nation
If you believe in free speech, now is the time to defend it. Silence emboldens those who seek to crush dissent.
|
Mar 2025 | Opinion |
// RESEARCH & ACADEMICS
I'm currently enrolled in a Master's program for History at Idaho State University, exploring topics relating to the lives of Germans before, during, and after the Third Reich. I am also interested in technology and privacy-related issues.
Thesis (in progress)
“Labor, Discipline, Reeducation, and Memory at Camp Rupert, Idaho, 1943–1946”
A three-level history of Camp Rupert, Idaho (1943–1946) — labor camp, disciplinary camp for German POWs, and secret reeducation site — showing how control over the camp's purpose determined who entered the archive in their own words, and how its silences remain evidence.
M.A. in History, Idaho State University. Advisor: Dr. Sarah Robey.
Sources & Archives
| Collection | Repository |
|---|---|
| RG 389 — Records of the Office of the Provost Marshal General | National Archives at College Park |
| RG 92 — Records of the Office of the Quartermaster General | National Archives at College Park |
| Dott E. Smith Papers | University of Texas at Arlington |
Talks
“Strike, Re-education, and a German Prisoner-of-War Newspaper at Camp Rupert, Idaho, 1945”
Panel: “Local and Global: Connecting Idaho to the World in the Mid-20th Century”
Consortium for Historians of Idaho and its Periphery (CHIP) conference, Idaho State University — September 19, 2026 Upcoming
Areas of Interest
| Area of Interest | Notes |
|---|---|
| Modern Germany | Third Reich, POWs in the U.S., postwar reconstruction |
| Memory & Everyday Life | History of emotions, Alltagsgeschichte, sound & sensory history |
| Tech & Privacy | Surveillance capitalism, data privacy |
| Writing & Rhetoric | Readable history, media criticism |
Currently Reading
| Title | Author |
|---|---|
| German National Socialism and the Quest for Nuclear Power, 1939–49 | Mark Walker |
| A Demon-Haunted Land: Witches, Wonder Doctors, and the Ghosts of the Past in Post-WWII Germany | Monica Black |
| Radio Priest: Charles Coughlin, the Father of Hate Radio | Donald Warren |
| The Memory of Old Jack | Wendell Berry |
| Mason & Dixon | Thomas Pynchon |
[ Download CV (PDF) ]
// CONTACT
Have a question, want to connect, or just saying hi? Use the form below or reach out directly.
Links: LinkedIn