David Remnick
A journalist and editor who has stewarded The New Yorker into the 21st century, blending literary ambition with sharp political reportage.
Born 1958 (age 68)·American journalist, writer, and editor·Birthday: October 29·Baby Boomers
Biography
David Remnick built his reputation not in Manhattan's media circles, but in the crumbling corridors of Soviet power. As a Washington Post correspondent in Moscow during the late 1980s and early 1990s, he had a front-row seat to history, witnessing the empire's final gasp. His book on the subject, 'Lenin's Tomb,' earned him a Pulitzer Prize and established his voice: deeply reported, elegantly written, and driven by a fascination with power and its consequences. In 1998, he was handed the reins of The New Yorker, a magazine with an unmatched literary pedigree. Remnick, while honoring that legacy, pushed the publication to engage more directly with the urgent political and cultural storms of the day, from the War on Terror to the rise of Barack Obama, whom he profiled in a bestselling biography. Under his editorship, the magazine has continued to publish landmark fiction and poetry while also breaking major investigative stories, maintaining its status as a vital center of American thought.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
David was born in 1958, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When David Was Born
The biggest hits of 1958
#1 Movie
South Pacific
Best Picture
Gigi
#1 TV Show
Gunsmoke
David's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1958Born
NASA founded
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $11,050Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Volare" — Domenico ModugnoBest Picture: Gigi
1963Started school
JFK assassinated in Dallas; Martin Luther King's 'I Have a Dream' speech
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $13,100Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"Sugar Shack" — Jimmy Gilmer & The FireballsBest Picture: Tom Jones
1971Became a teenager
Voting age lowered to 18 in the US
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $18,100Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Joy to the World" — Three Dog NightBest Picture: The French Connection
1974Could drive
Nixon resigns the presidency
Gas: $0.53/galHome: $22,600Min wage: $2.00/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"The Way We Were" — Barbra StreisandBest Picture: The Godfather Part II
1976Could vote
Apple Computer founded; US bicentennial
Gas: $0.59/galHome: $29,300Min wage: $2.30/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"Silly Love Songs" — WingsBest Picture: Rocky
1979Turned 21
Iran hostage crisis begins; Three Mile Island accident
Gas: $0.86/galHome: $37,900Min wage: $2.90/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"My Sharona" — The KnackBest Picture: Kramer vs. Kramer
1988Turned 30
Pan Am Flight 103 bombed over Lockerbie
Gas: $0.90/galHome: $74,800Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Faith" — George MichaelBest Picture: Rain Man
1998Turned 40
Google founded; Clinton impeachment
Gas: $1.06/galHome: $107,300Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Too Close" — NextBest Picture: Shakespeare in Love
2008Turned 50
Barack Obama elected first Black US president; financial crisis
Gas: $3.27/galHome: $153,100Min wage: $6.55/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Low" — Flo RidaBest Picture: Slumdog Millionaire
2018Turned 60
Royal wedding of Harry and Meghan; Parkland shooting
Gas: $2.72/galHome: $211,800Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Donald Trump"God's Plan" — DrakeBest Picture: Green Book
2026Age 68 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Awarded the Pulitzer Prize for General Non-Fiction in 1994 for his book 'Lenin's Tomb: The Last Days of the Soviet Empire.'
- Has served as the editor of The New Yorker magazine since 1998, one of the longest tenures in its history.
- Authored 'The Bridge: The Life and Rise of Barack Obama,' a comprehensive biography of the 44th U.S. President.
- Was named Editor of the Year by Advertising Age in 2000 for revitalizing The New Yorker's brand.
Did You Know?
Before journalism, his first job was as a night shift obituary writer for the Washington Post.
He is a dedicated amateur jazz guitarist and has written extensively about music.
Remnick conducted the last major interview with former President Barack Obama before he left office in 2017.
He turned down an offer to become the editor of The New York Times Magazine to remain at The New Yorker.
“"The point of journalism is not to make everyone feel good. It's to tell the truth."”
