Pulitzer Prize-Winning Cultural Critic & Author; Former Arts Critic at The New York Times; Author of "Negroland"
Margo Jefferson Biography
Margo Jefferson is a cultural critic known for her commentary on literature, theater, race, and American life. After graduating from Columbia Journalism School, Jefferson began her career as an associate editor at Newsweek, where she was the first Black and the first female book reviewer. She later joined the staff of The New York Times as an arts and culture critic, earning the Pulitzer Prize for Criticism for her writing. Jefferson also served as the Sunday theater critic and, as a critic at large, covered subjects ranging from Virginia Woolf and Langston Hughes to Judy Garland and Oprah Winfrey.
Jefferson has contributed to The Yale Review, The Washington Post, The Nation, Vogue, O, Newsweek, Harper's, and Granta. Her work has been included in anthologies such as The Mrs. Dalloway Reader, Best African American Essays: 2010, and The Jazz Cadence of American Culture. She has written and performed two theater pieces at The Cherry Lane Theatre and The Culture Project, and has received a John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship and a Rockefeller Foundation/Theater Communications Group Grant.
Her book "On Michael Jackson" provides a cultural analysis of the pop icon's legacy. Jefferson's memoir "Negroland" received the National Book Critics Circle Award for Autobiography, The Heartland Prize for Nonfiction, The Bridge Prize for Nonfiction, and was short-listed for The Baillie Gifford Prize. The New York Times included it among the 50 best memoirs of the last 50 years. The memoir blends personal narrative with cultural analysis in a style that incorporates prose, poetry, dialogue, and historical essay.
Jefferson's memoir "Constructing a Nervous System" draws on figures from jazz, literature, art, sports, and entertainment who have influenced her perspective as a writer. The book earned the Rathbones Folio Prize and was named a finalist for the Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Nonfiction. Jefferson also received the Windham-Campbell Literature Prize in nonfiction.
Jefferson has taught at the Columbia University School of the Arts as a professor of professional practice in writing. Her career spans journalism, criticism, memoir, and performance, focusing on the intersections of race, class, culture, and American identity. Jefferson's work explores complex ethical subjects and encourages audiences to reconsider their perspectives on American life.
Margo Jefferson Videos
Margo Jefferson: Coming of Age in Black Chicago's Elite
Author and Pulitzer Prize-winning arts critic Margo Jefferson talks about growing up in the center of the Venn diagram in a fiercely segregated...
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What topics does Margo Jefferson speak about?
Margo Jefferson is a keynote speaker and industry expert whose speaking topics include Anti-Racism, Author, Black Heritage, Black History Month, Celebrity, DEI, Diversity & Inclusion, Journalist, Music, Non-Fiction Authors, Social Activism, Storytelling -
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Margo Jefferson is a keynote speaker and industry expert who speaks on a wide range of topics. The estimated speaking fee range to book Margo Jefferson for your event is $20,000 - $30,000. Margo Jefferson generally travels from New York, NY, USA and can be booked for (private) corporate events, personal appearances, keynote speeches, or other performances. Similar motivational celebrity speakers are Samantha Irby, Xernona Clayton, Patricia "Ms. Pat" Williams, Jodie Patterson and Elaine Welteroth. Contact All American Speakers for ratings, reviews, videos and information on scheduling Margo Jefferson for an upcoming live or virtual event.
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