Jonathan Mahler P’26, staff writer for The New York Times Magazine, will discuss his recent book, The Gods of New York: Egotists, Idealists, Opportunists, and the Birth of the Modern City, 1986–1990, which examines the metamorphosis of New York City. Offering a “kaleidoscopic and deeply immersive portrait of a city whose identity was suddenly up for grabs” (Amazon), Mahler explores how the late ’80s marked a period of profound transformation. Bringing to the forefront a cast of outsized characters, extraordinary wealth, social problems, and mounting crisis, he illustrates the city’s rebirth as a glitzy capital of global finance—and, as the New York Times observes, a "Petri dish of ego, ambition, and class division." This era permanently reshaped New York’s ethos and social fabric—birthing figures whose influence dominates today and foreshadowing the forces that now divide the nation, all the while elevating Zohran Mamdani to power.
(Photo credit: David Jacobs)
Jonathan Mahler P’26 is a longtime staff writer for The New York Times Magazine and the author of the bestselling Ladies and Gentlemen, the Bronx Is Burning, which was adapted as an ESPN miniseries; The Challenge; and The Gods of New York, which was named a best book of the year by the New York Times, the New Yorker, the Economist, and Amazon. At the Times magazine, he covers a wide range of topics including politics, entertainment, education, media, the law, sports. His journalism has received numerous awards and been featured in The Best American Sports Writing.
(Photo credit: David Jacobs)
