David Greenberg: Wins $50,000 Hiett Prize in the Humanities
The Hiett Prize is among the nation’s most prestigious honors in the humanities. The $50,000 annual award was created by The Dallas Institute in 2004 in collaboration with philanthropist Kim Jordan to recognize a person in the early stages of a career “whose work promises to advance the way we think and live.”
Dr. Greenberg specializes in American political and cultural history. His first book, Nixon’s Shadow: The History of an Image (W.W. Norton, 2003) won the Washington Monthly Political Book Award, the American Journalism History Book Award, and, in dissertation form, Columbia University’s Bancroft Dissertation Award. In 2006 he published two books: Calvin Coolidge, a biography in the American Presidents Series edited by the late Arthur Schlesinger Jr. (Henry Holt); and Presidential Doodles (Basic Books). He is currently at work on a book for Norton about the history of presidents and spin. He has won numerous other awards and fellowships including from the American Academy of Arts & Sciences, the White House Historical Association, and the Mrs. Giles R. Whiting Foundation.
Before pursuing his graduate studies, Prof. Greenberg worked as a political journalist in Washington. He served as the assistant to author Bob Woodward of the Washington Post, on The Agenda: Inside the Clinton White House (Simon & Schuster, 1994) and went on to become Managing Editor and later Acting Editor of The New Republic magazine. As an academic, he has continued to write for a general readership as a columnist for Slate and a contributing editor to The New Republic. He has also written for the New York Times, The New Yorker, The Atlantic Monthly, Foreign Affairs, and other popular publications. His scholarly articles and reviews have appeared in Raritan, Daedalus, The Journal of American History, and Political Science Quarterly, among other journals. He holds a BA, summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa, from Yale University (1990) and a PhD in history from Columbia University (2001). He lives in New York City with his wife and two children.
Dr. Larry Allums, Executive Director of the Dallas Institute, remarked that the Hiett competition this year was extremely close. “Dr. Greenberg finished just ahead of Dr. Steven Salaita of Virginia Tech and Dr. James McWilliams of Texas State University at San Marcos. We’re very proud to have all three finalists associated with the Hiett Prize and congratulate Dr. Greenberg on being selected as the recipient for 2008.”
The selection process for the winner is a rigorous six-month procedure. Applicants from across the U.S. are initially screened, undergo a second round of evaluation and elimination, and are judged ultimately by a panel of eminent humanities professionals in a third and final stage. Judges for the 2008 Hiett Prize were: Robert Hollander, Literature, Princeton University; Clayborne Carson, History, Stanford University and The Hoover Institution; and Jacques Barzun, History and Cultural Studies, retired from Columbia University and living in San Antonio.
ABOUT THE 2008 HIETT PRIZE IN THE HUMANITIES AWARD DINNER
David Mamet, Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright and two-time Oscar-nominated screenwriter and director will deliver the keynote address at The Dallas Institute’s 2008 Hiett Prize in the Humanities Award Dinner on Tuesday, April 8, at the Dallas Museum of Art. WFAA-TV/Channel 8 film critic Gary Cogill is master of ceremonies for the 2008 event. Co-chairs are Pat Ann Dawson and Elise Murchison. Honorary chair is Caroline Rose Hunt. The evening begins at 6:00 pm with cocktails in the Atrium; the keynote by David Mamet and presentation of the Hiett Prize are at 7:00 pm in Horchow Auditorium; and dinner under the stars follows at 8:15 pm in the Sculpture Garden. Individual tickets are $300 each. Sponsorship packages are available at the following levels: $20,000 Benefactor, $15,000 Underwriter, $10,000 Patron, and $5,000 Friend. For tickets and information, please call (214) 871-2440.