Rebecca Burns is an author and journalist who focuses on Southern history and the intersection of race, religion, and politics.

She was a 2007 Georgia Author of the Year finalist for her first book, Rage in the Gate City: The Story of the 1906 Atlanta Race Riot. In Spring 2008, Burns was selected for the PEN/Faulkner Writers in Schools program for Atlanta Public Schools. The book was released in a second edition by University of Georgia Press in 2009.

Rebecca's latest book, an account of the 1968 Atlanta funeral for Martin Luther King Jr., was published by Scribner in January 2011. Titled Burial for a King, the book recounts one of the most pivotal weeks in modern U.S. history.

In addition, Rebecca wrote the Atlanta title in the West Side Publishing  Yesterday & Today book series. It was released in August 2010. 

Rebecca was editor in chief of Atlanta magazine for seven years. Under her direction, the magazine received dozens of local, regional, and national awards for its journalism and design excellence. She also oversaw Atlanta magazine’s ancillary titles, including the successful launch of Georgia College Guide. In March 2010 she was named director of digital strategy for the magazine's parent company, Emmis Publishing. In this role she works with the editors and publishers of the company's family of magazines on a range of projects including websites, apps, and digital editions (such as for the iPad).

She is a frequent speaker at civic and community events and often lectures at colleges and high schools. She has taught as an adjunct at the University of Georgia. A graduate of Georgia State University's Masters program in Communication, she serves as a board member for VOX Teen Communications. Rebecca lives in Avondale Estates, Georgia, with her husband, the designer and illustrator James Burns.