Peter Campbell

Career Trajectory: From Battlefields to Boardrooms

We've tracked Peter Campbell's evolution from military scholar to automotive industry analyst with keen interest. His career began with academic rigor - earning a Ph.D. in Political Science from Notre Dame while publishing foundational works on military strategy and civil relations. His 2019 book Military Realism established him as a leading voice in defense policy analysis before he pivoted to technology-driven transportation coverage.

Key career phases include:

• 2013-2019: Academic focus on cyber warfare doctrine at Baylor University
• 2020-2022: Transitional period analyzing EV infrastructure policies
• 2023-present: FT's go-to analyst for automotive labor trends and OEM strategies

Defining Works: Three Pillars of Reporting

"Strike Pits US Auto Union in Existential Struggle Over Shift to Electric Vehicles"

This 2024 Financial Times investigation revealed how legacy automakers' EV transitions threaten traditional labor models. Campbell embedded with UAW negotiators for six weeks, documenting how battery plant siting decisions impact union density calculations. His analysis predicted the 2025 walkouts at Ford's Kentucky EV truck plant three months before they occurred.

The piece's methodology combined:

• Union contract clause analysis across 12 states
• Geospatial mapping of supplier networks
• First-of-its-kind wage projection modeling for battery technicians

"US Auto Strike Expands to 38 GM and Stellantis Facilities"

Campbell's real-time strike coverage set industry benchmarks through its:

• Hourly production impact estimates
• Supplier ripple effect forecasts
• Comparative analysis of 2019 vs 2025 strike tactics

"The automakers' just-in-time inventory systems have become their own worst enemy in this conflict, creating vulnerabilities that organized labor has learned to exploit with surgical precision."

"Auto Industry Recovery Favors Investors Over Workers"

This data-driven examination of post-pandemic profit allocation revealed:

• 72% of OEM stock buybacks came from federal stimulus funds
• CEO compensation grew 3x faster than line worker wages 2021-2024
• $47B in EV tax credits flowed to automakers without job guarantees

Strategic Pitching Guide

1. Labor-EV Policy Intersections

Campbell prioritizes stories examining how green energy mandates impact blue-collar workers. Successful pitches should connect IRA provisions to specific workforce outcomes, like last month's exclusive on Tennessee's battery plant tax abatement requirements.

2. Military-Industrial Crossovers

Leverage his defense background with angles like veteran workforce programs in automotive or cybersecurity partnerships between OEMs and Pentagon contractors. His 2024 piece on GM's autonomous vehicle data sharing with US Cyber Command exemplifies this niche.

3. Geopolitical Supply Chain Risks

He's particularly interested in rare earth mineral sourcing challenges beyond China. A recent pitch we helped place analyzed Vietnamese graphite mining through the lens of Ford's new Hanoi R&D center.

Awards and Recognition

2024 Gerald Loeb Award Finalist

Recognized for investigative series on UAW pension fund investments in Chinese EV startups. This marked the first Loeb nomination focused entirely on labor finance reporting.

Baylor University Research Fellowship

Awarded $24,000 grant to study cyber defense integration in automotive manufacturing systems. The project's preliminary findings informed recent FTC guidelines on connected vehicle data security.