David Brooks

Early Life and Education

David Brooks was born on August 11, 1961, in Toronto, where his father was pursuing a doctorate at the University of Toronto. His early childhood was spent in New York City's Stuyvesant Town housing complex, with his father later teaching English literature at New York University and his mother studying 19th-century British history at Columbia University. Raised in a Jewish household, Brooks attended the Episcopal Grace Church School in Manhattan's East Village during his primary years. When he was twelve, his family relocated to the affluent Main Line suburbs of Philadelphia, where he graduated from Radnor High School in 1979 after participating on the debate team alongside future actor Tom F. Wilson. As an undergraduate, he wrote satirical pieces for campus publications, including a notable spoof of conservative luminary William F. Buckley Jr. that directly led to a job offer from Buckley after a campus lecture.

Journalistic Career Path

In 1984, he accepted an internship at William F. Buckley's National Review in New York, which immersed him in the affluent conservative circles he had previously satirized, including yachting expeditions, Bach concerts, and dinners at Buckley's Park Avenue apartment and Connecticut villa. After this internship, he spent time at Stanford University's Hoover Institution and wrote film reviews for The Washington Times . His major break came in 1986 when he was hired by The Wall Street Journal, initially editing the book review section and occasionally serving as a film critic for five months. From 1990 to 1994, the newspaper posted him as an op-ed columnist in Brussels, where he covered European affairs, Russia, the Middle East, and South Africa, making numerous trips to Moscow.

Columnist and Author

In 2003, after the publication of his successful cultural commentary Bobos in Paradise, Brooks was recruited by New York Times editorial page editor Gail Collins to become a regular opinion columnist. Collins sought a conservative writer who could engage liberal readers without making them "shriek and throw the paper out the window," and Brooks began his column in September 2003, though he initially struggled with the volume of criticism his work attracted. Alongside his journalism, Brooks built a parallel career as a bestselling author of non-fiction books that explore sociology, psychology, and morality. His major publications, all from prominent houses like Simon and Schuster and Random House, have shaped public discourse on class, character, and human connection. Brooks has also held academic positions, serving as a visiting professor of public policy at Duke University in 2006 and teaching a course on philosophical humility at Yale University in 2013.

David Brooks is the author of seven non-fiction books. His first book, Bobos in Paradise: The New Upper Class and How They Got There, was published in 2000. This was followed by On Paradise Drive: How We Live Now (And Always Have) in the Future Tense in 2004. His notable later works include The Social Animal: The Hidden Sources of Love, Character, and Achievement from 2011 and The Road to Character from 2015. These books were published by major houses such as Simon and Schuster and Random House.

• Bobos in Paradise: The New Upper Class and How They Got There (2000)
• On Paradise Drive: How We Live Now (And Always Have) in the Future Tense (2004)
• The Social Animal: The Hidden Sources of Love, Character, and Achievement (2011)
• The Road to Character (2015)

His 2011 book, The Social Animal: The Hidden Sources of Love, Character, and Achievement, was excerpted in The New Yorker in January 2011. It received mixed reviews upon its full publication in March of that year. The book sold well and reached number three on the Publishers Weekly best-sellers list for non-fiction in April 2011. In 2012, Brooks served as the volume editor for The Best American Essays. In 2019, he gave a TED talk in Vancouver entitled "The Lies Our Culture Tells Us About What Matters, And a Better Way to Live". TED curator Chris Anderson selected it as one of his favourite talks of 2019.

Political Commentary and Evolution

David Brooks's political ideology has defied easy categorization, evolving from his self-described past as a democratic socialist to a commentator who places himself on the moderate right. He describes his philosophy as Burkean and Whig, emphasizing gradual reform and institutional wisdom, and has stated that one of his callings is to represent a moderate Republican perspective. By 2021, he wrote that he situated himself on the rightward edge of the leftward tendency, within the moderate wing of the Democratic Party, and in 2024 noted he was "rooting for the Democrats about 70 percent of the time" and was almost all the way to joining the party. His commentary has often critiqued both major American parties for polarization and special interest capture, famously imagining a hypothetical moderate "McCain-Lieberman Party" in a 2006 column. Brooks initially supported the 2003 invasion of Iraq, believing coalition forces would be welcomed as liberators, but by 2015 he concluded the decision was a clear misjudgment, attributing it to widespread faulty intelligence rather than a political conspiracy.

Brooks's assessments of presidential candidates have been notably independent. He was a long-time admirer of John McCain but voted for Barack Obama in 2008 due to his opposition to McCain's running mate, Sarah Palin, whom he later regretted calling a "cancer" on the Republican Party. He publicly urged Obama to run for president in 2006 and admired his intellectual depth, though he gave Obama's presidency a B− grade in 2011. In the 2016 election, Brooks supported Hillary Clinton as a competent alternative to Donald Trump, whom he strongly opposed, authoring a 2016 New York Times op-ed titled "No, Not Trump, Not Ever." On foreign policy, Brooks has been a consistent supporter of Israel, visiting almost annually since 1991 and supporting it during the 2014 Gaza War, though he has also criticized Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and described certain Israeli military actions in Gaza as "uncivilized." He has emphasized that groups like Hamas and Hezbollah must be degraded while maintaining his critical support for Israel.

Social and Cultural Views

Brooks's social commentary frequently focuses on morality, community, and the underpinnings of a good society. He has argued that American culture is experiencing a moment of social repair, noting that teenagers are becoming more sexually abstemious and waiting longer to have sex despite a sex-saturated media environment. He declared the culture wars nearly over in 2007, optimistic about a generation blending liberal frankness with conservative wholesomeness. On the issue of same-sex marriage, Brooks broke with many social conservatives as early as 2003, writing that conservatives should insist on gay marriage as a way to sanctify love and fidelity, framing it as a pro-marriage, traditional value. His analysis of poverty, particularly following the 2015 death of Freddie Gray in Baltimore, argued that the central impediments to upward mobility are matters of social psychology and broken social networks rather than a simple lack of federal spending, and he claimed Gray was not on a path to upward mobility.

In a provocative 2020 essay for The Atlantic titled "The Nuclear Family Was a Mistake," Brooks argued that the ideal of the two-parent nuclear family has collapsed, leading to increased isolation and fragility. He suggested a new paradigm based on extended and chosen family networks is emerging to provide the support and stability the nuclear model often failed to deliver. This focus on social bonds, character formation, and the "hidden sources" of human achievement has been a throughline in his books and columns, cementing his role as a commentator concerned with the moral and relational fabric of society. Brooks has also expressed opposition to self-destructive behaviours like rampant divorce, viewing strong social institutions as essential for personal and communal well-being.

Recent Career Moves and Recognition

He joined The Atlantic as a writer and also became a fellow at the Yale Jackson School of Global Affairs, roles that continue his work in long-form journalism and academic engagement. Throughout his career, Brooks has been recognized through positions on influential boards, including his 2012 election to the University of Chicago Board of Trustees and his service on the advisory board for the university's Institute of Politics. His 2019 TED talk in Vancouver further extended his reach, summarizing his critiques of modern culture's misplaced values and his advocacy for a life centred on relationships and moral depth. The following table outlines key milestones in Brooks's career and institutional affiliations.

Brooks has held positions across major media outlets, including as an opinion columnist for The New York Times and a contributor to the PBS NewsHour. He has also engaged with academic institutions, serving as a visiting professor at Duke University in 2006 and teaching a course at Yale University in 2013. In 2012, he was elected to the University of Chicago Board of Trustees. His commentary and books often explore themes of character, community, and political philosophy.

Questions about David Brooks

Where was David Brooks born?

David Brooks was born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, on August 11, 1961. His father was pursuing a PhD at the University of Toronto at the time. He spent his early childhood living in New York City's Stuyvesant Town housing before his family moved to the suburbs of Philadelphia when he was twelve. Brooks attended Radnor High School there, where he was on the debate team. He later earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in history from the University of Chicago.

What is David Brooks's political ideology?

David Brooks describes himself as a moderate Republican and a Burkean conservative, aligning with a tradition of moderation. He has stated he places himself on the rightward edge of the leftward tendency and within the moderate wing of the Democratic Party. By 2024, he indicated he roots for the Democrats about 70 percent of the time and was almost all the way to joining the party. His ideology has been variously characterized by others as centrist, moderate conservative, or conservative based on his commentary record.

What was David Brooks's view on the Iraq War?

Before the 2003 invasion, David Brooks argued for American military intervention, believing forces would be welcomed as liberators. By 2015, he reflected that the decision to go to war was a clear misjudgment, a view shared by President George W. Bush and many Americans, including himself. He rejected the idea of a political conspiracy to lie about intelligence, instead attributing the error to faulty intelligence. Brooks maintained that the war's outcome was mostly negative, despite some initial hopes for development in the Arab world.

What university did David Brooks attend and what did he study?

David Brooks attended the University of Chicago, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in history in 1979. His senior thesis focused on popular science writer Robert Ardrey. As an undergraduate, he frequently contributed reviews and satirical pieces to campus publications. A notable satirical piece he wrote mocked the lifestyle of conservative William F. Buckley Jr., which ironically led to Buckley offering him a job after a campus visit. This early experience at university helped shape his path into journalism and commentary.

How did David Brooks get his start in journalism?

David Brooks began his journalism career as a police reporter for the City News Bureau of Chicago after graduating university. He has said this experience on the crime beat had a conservatizing influence on him. In 1984, he became an intern at William F. Buckley's National Review, an opportunity that arose from a satirical piece he wrote in college. This internship exposed him to an affluent lifestyle and connected him with influential writers, politicians, and celebrities. Following this, he spent time at the Hoover Institution and wrote movie reviews for The Washington Times before joining The Wall Street Journal in 1986.

What are some of the notable books David Brooks has authored?

David Brooks has authored several notable non-fiction books. His first major book was Bobos in Paradise: The New Upper Class and How They Got There, published in 2000. He followed this with On Paradise Drive in 2004. Other significant works include The Social Animal: The Hidden Sources of Love, Character, and Achievement from 2011 and The Road to Character from 2015. The Social Animal was excerpted in The New Yorker and reached number three on the Publishers Weekly best-sellers list in April 2011. He also served as the volume editor for The Best American Essays in 2012.

Sources and further reading

• David Brooks (Wikipedia)
• David Brooks, UChicago, Leadership and Society Initiative (leadforsociety.uchicago.edu)

Checked by the Yadude Books desk. Last updated 2026-10-23.