Tavis Smiley

From his celebrated conversations with world figures to his work to inspire the next generation of leaders, Tavis Smiley — broadcaster, autore, publisher, advocate, and philanthropist — has emerged as an outstanding voice for change. Smiley is currently the host of the late-night television talk show Tavis Smiley su PBS, oltre The Tavis Smiley Spettacolo from Public Radio International (PRI).

In addition to his radio and television work, Smiley has written 18 libri. His memoir, What I Know for Sure: My Story of Growing Up in America, became a New York Times best seller, and the book he edited, Covenant with Black America, became the first nonfiction book by a Black-owned publisher to reach #1 su Il New York Times Best Sellers list.

Nel New York Times best seller, The Rich and the Rest of Us: A Poverty Manifesto, Smiley and his co-author Dr. Cornel West challenge all Americans to re-examine their assumptions about poverty in America — what it really is and how to eradicate it.

His most recent text national best seller is Death of a King: The Real Story of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s Final Year. Nel libro, Smiley recounts the little known story of the denunciations by the press, rejection from the president, dismissal by the country’s Black elite and militant youth, assaults on his character, ideology and political tactics — all of which MLK had to rise above in the final year of his life in order to lead and address the racism, poverty and militarism that threatens, even still, to destroy our democracy.

His forthcoming book, My Journey with Maya, is a remarkable story of friendship, love and courage. Smiley shares personal memories of Maya Angelou, of a twenty-eight year friendship with one of history’s most fascinating women, who left as indelible an imprint on America as she did on him.

Smiley was the presenter and creative force behind AMERICA I AM: The African American Imprint.This unprecedented traveling museum exhibition, which debuted in January 2009, toured the country for four years, celebrating the extraordinary impact of African American contributions to our nation and the world, as told through rare artifacts, memorabilia and multimedia. Many of the artifacts Smiley discovered and displayed during the AMERICA I AM tour are now on permanent display at the Smithsonian Institution.

Smiley’s most gratifying accomplishments are rooted in his passion to inspire the next generation of leaders. The nonprofit Tavis Smiley Foundation has provided leadership training and development for America’s youth. Since its inception, oltre 6,500 young people have participated in the foundation’s Youth to Leaders training workshops and conferences. The Foundation recently announced a $3 million four-year campaign called ENDING POVERTY: America’s Silent Spaces to alleviate endemic poverty in America.

His communications company, The Smiley Group, Inc., is dedicated to supporting human rights and related empowerment issues and serves as the holding company for various enterprises encompassing broadcast and print media, lectures, symposiums, book publishing, and the Internet.

Smiley’s achievements have earned him numerous awards and honorary doctorate degrees, including one from his alma mater, Indiana University. In 2009, Indiana University named the atrium of its School of Public and Environmental Affairs (SPEA) building “The Tavis Smiley Atrium.” Smiley is also the recipient of the prestigious Du Bois Medal from Harvard University and the 2009 Interdependence Day Prize from Demos in Istanbul, Turchia. TEMPO magazine has cited Smiley as one of “The World’s 100 Most Influential People,” and Mr. Smiley has been honored with a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

LATEST BOOK:

His latest book is called, BEFORE YOU JUDGE ME: The Triumph and Tragedy of Michael Jackson’s Last Days.

BEFORE YOU JUDGE ME, has been all over the news—Tavis has done interviews with Fox, MSNBC, The Daily Show, Entertainment Tonight, Access Hollywood and many more talking about the book. USA Today just selected his book as one of its Top 10 “sizzling summer books to pack in your beach bag!," calling it “hot” reading because “the book is timed to the 7^th anniversary of the controversial superstar’s death on June 25^th during a year that has already seen several major losses in the music world.”

Tavis will discuss his new book and what it means for the future of American music culture in a post-Jackson and Prince world. A book-signing will be held July 6, 2016 at 7pm at, Eso Won Bookstore.

Indirizzo: 4327 Degnan Blvd, Los Angeles, California 90008

BEFORE YOU JUDGE ME

by Tavis Smiley and David Ritz
Little, Brown and Company | Giugno 21, 2016
$27 Rilegato | ISBN 978-0-316-25909-5