Throughout America's young history there has been a necessary tension between the individual and the group.

Since 2001 Evans has served as editor-at-large of The Week Magazine and since 2005 he has been a contributor to The Guardian and BBC Radio 4. In 2000 he retired from leadership positions in journalism to spend more time on his writing. He has written various books on history and journalism with his The American Century (1998) receiving particular acclaim.