Our City, Our Story 2023

Featuring David Brooks

We are thrilled to announce that Our City, Our Story 2023 will feature major political and social analyst David Brooks.

Make plans to join us for a luncheon at the Hilton Memphis on Thursday, September 21, 2023. This event is sponsored by MIFA in partnership with The Daily Memphian and Rhodes College.

A bi-weekly op-ed columnist for the New York Times and regular analyst on PBS NewsHour and NPR's All Things Considered, David has written several New York Times bestsellers, including his most recent, The Second Mountain: The Quest for a Moral Life. He is also the founder of Weave: The Social Fabric Project at the Aspen Institute.

Click here to purchase his books from our Our City, Our Story promotional partner Novel.

Click here for photos from our 2022 event.

Sponsorship Opportunities

About David Brooks

David Brooks has a gift for bringing audiences face to face with the spirit of our times with humor, insight and quiet passion. He is a keen observer of the American way of life and a savvy analyst of present-day politics and foreign affairs.

He holds several prestigious positions as a commentator:

  • Bi-weekly Op-Ed columnist for the New York Times
  • Regular analyst on PBS NewsHour and NPR’s All Things Considered

David’s New York Times bestseller, The Road to Character, “explains why selflessness leads to greater success. He tells the story of ten great lives that illustrate how character is developed, and how we can all strive to build rich inner lives, marked by humility and moral depth. In a society that emphasizes success and external achievement, The Road to Character is a book about inner worth.”

In his most recent book, The Second Mountain: The Quest for a Moral Life (Random House), David explores the four commitments that define a life of meaning and purpose: to a spouse and family, to a vocation, to a philosophy or faith, and to a community.

His previous books, The Social Animal: The Hidden Sources of Love, Character and Achievement, uses the story of a fictional American couple to explain the importance of neuroscience and sociology in understanding America’s politics, culture, and future. His other books, Bobos in Paradise and On Paradise Drive are in a style he calls “comic sociology”—descriptions of how we live and “the water we swim in” that are as witty and entertaining as they are revealing and insightful. Bobos in Paradise was a New York Times bestseller.

David is currently teaching a course at Yale University. He holds honorary degrees from Williams College, New York University, Brandeis University, Occidental College, among others. In 2010, Brooks became a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

David Brooks has worked at The Weekly Standard, joining the magazine at its inception and serving as senior editor. He has been a contributing editor at Newsweek and the Atlantic Monthly. He worked at The Wall Street Journal for nine years in a range of positions, including op-ed editor.

Credentials

  • Jackson Senior Fellow, Yale University
  • Op-Ed Columnist, The New York Times
  • Weekly political commentator, PBS NewsHour
  • Member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
  • Regular commentator on NPR
  • Former writer, editor or columnist for Wall Street Journal, Atlantic Monthly, Newsweek, The Weekly Standard, and other major print media

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Thanks to Our Sponsors

Many thanks to the generous sponsors of Our City, Our Story 2023. Learn more about becoming a corporate sponsor or table host.

 

Hope Sponsor


 

Stability Sponsor

Nike, Inc.

State Systems

 

Independence Sponsor

Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. Beta Epsilon Omega Chapter

Huey's Restaurants

Summit Asset Management LLC

Duncan Eye, PLLC

 


 

Promotional Partner

 


Table Hosts

Bill & Margaret Craddock

Tucker Dewey & Mark Jordan

Paula Jacobson

Alec & Margaret McLean

John & Jenna Nichols

Herb & the Rev. Dr. Dorothy Sanders Wells

Emily Woodside & Dr. Bill Falvey

Sharon Younger & Carol Ann Mallory