From his celebrated conversations with world figures to his work to inspire the next generation of leaders, Tavis Smiley --broadcaster, author, 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 on PBS, as well as The Tavis Smiley Show from Public Radio International (PRI). Smiley has written 21 books. His memoir, What I Know for Sure: My Story of Growing Up in America , became a New York Times bestseller, and the book he edited, Covenant with Black America , became the first nonfiction book by a black-owned publisher to reach #1 on the New York Times bestseller list. In the New York Times bestseller 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. Smiley's book My Journey with Maya , is being adapted as a stage play by Tony-winning director Kenny Leon. The book chronicles his almost 30-year friendship with the iconic poet Maya Angelou.

Smiley's 2014 New York Times bestseller, Death of a King: The Real Story of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s Final Year , and his most recent text, Before You Judge Me: The Triumph and Tragedy of Michael Jackson's Last Days , are both being developed as television event series with Emmy-winner J.J. Abrams and Smiley as co-producers, in partnership with Warner Brothers. The nonprofit Tavis Smiley Foundation is in the midst of a $3 million four-year campaign called ENDING POVERTY: America's Silent Spaces, to alleviate endemic poverty in America. TIME magazine has cited Smiley as one of "The World's 100 Most Influential People," and he has been honored with a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Website: www.

tavistalks.com.