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The wait is over! We’ve announced our full program for the 2023 Texas Tribune Festival, happening Sept. 21-23 in downtown Austin. Now’s the time to grab your tickets!
With this full program announcement come 66 additional speakers and another round of big names in politics, policy and media, including legendary journalist Katie Couric; former White House senior advisers David Axelrod and Karl Rove; “PBS NewsHour” White House correspondent Laura Barrón-López; Neera Tanden, domestic policy adviser to President Joe Biden; political strategist James Carville; and Tim Miller, writer-at-large at The Bulwark. Texas Tribune staff will also take the stage, including CEO Sonal Shah; Editor-in-Chief Sewell Chan; reporters Renzo Downey, Joshua Fechter, Emily Foxhall, Karen Brooks Harper, Eleanor Klibanoff, Jayme Lozano-Carver, Jolie McCullough, Kate McGee, Pooja Salhotra, Patrick Svitek and Perla Trevizo; and managing editor Matthew Watkins.
Together, we’ll explore important themes throughout our three days of conversation. These are issues of urgency and consequence, often the subject of the Tribune’s recent coverage — issues such as the challenges facing Texas K-12 and higher education and Texas’ energy future. And with Texas as the foundation, we’ll also engage in a deep examination of our national politics.
We’ll consider the 2024 races for U.S. Senate and president with the candidates themselves and with the country’s leading political analysts. We’ll assess the integrity of upcoming elections and the state of the media that will provide the coverage. We’ll examine how big cities in Texas and around the country are changing and responding to critical challenges facing urban America. And we’ll probe into the state of U.S. democracy with the critical perspectives of journalists, elected officials and policy advisers.
TribFest’s three days of programming begin Wednesday, Sept. 20 with our annual barbecue dinner, this year at the award-winning Lamberts Downtown Barbecue, featuring a conversation between legendary political strategist James Carville and Tribune co-founder Evan Smith. (It sells out every year. Get your tickets while they’re still available!) On Thursday, Sept. 21, we’ll welcome Fest attendees to grab their badges early with a can’t-miss program featuring big names like CNN’s Jake Tapper; Jen Easterly, director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency; journalist Wesley Lowery; and Bari Weiss, founder and editor of The Free Press, along with another appearance by Carville.
Our opening session Thursday night at the Paramount Theatre (not announced just yet) takes you right into Friday’s program with full slates of conversations happening across eight venues. On Friday evening, we’ll host both TribFeast, our dinner fundraiser to support our nonprofit newsroom, and a guest favorite: political trivia night emceed by journalist Luke Russert.
And on Saturday, Sept. 23, TribFest will include Open Congress, the free, daylong, open-to-the-public celebration featuring big conversations with political icons; top-notch programming; fun, interactive experiences; and more, taking place in four event tents up and down Austin’s iconic Congress Avenue. (RSVP for Open Congress today.) The Festival experience will conclude Saturday evening with a must-attend closing session at the Paramount. (We’ll share our closing keynote soon, too!)
With TribFest, you’ll often hear us tout, with excitement, “the changemakers you know and those you should know.” The same goes for the issues we’ll explore together over three days. Run through this year’s program, and you’re sure to find the issues about which you care deeply that impact us all: public education, the environment, criminal justice. But take a moment to also discover issues you want to learn more about, too. How might those conversations fit into your Festival itinerary?
At TribFest, you’ll be joined by Texans of equally inquisitive minds and civic spirit. Get your tickets today and join a conversation unlike any other on the issues that impact our lives and our communities.
We look forward to welcoming you.
Disclosure: Paramount Theatre has been a financial supporter of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribune’s journalism. Find a complete list of them here.
More than 200 speakers are now confirmed for the 2023 Texas Tribune Festival in downtown Austin from Sept. 21-23. Each year, the Festival engages, challenges and surprises attendees with unexpected talent mashups, must-see interviews and more, curated by the award-winning journalists at The Texas Tribune. See the lineup and get tickets today.
