Past Event

Inspired by The Atlantic's enduring partnership with the Aspen Ideas Festival, the fourth-annual Washington Ideas Forum gathers an audience of 600 people, including government officials, top business executives, global thought leaders, academics, and celebrities. It is the place to hear - and meet - the most prominent thinkers of our time.

An early sample of confirmed participants includes: Bill Gates, chairman of Microsoft; Timothy Geithner*, treasury secretary; Representative Nancy Pelosi, Democratic leader; Senator Marco Rubio (R-Fla.); Peggy Hamburg, commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration; Lawrence Summers, former treasury secretary; Robert Kimmitt, former undersecretary of state and deputy treasury secretary; Douglas Holtz-Eakin, former director of the Congressional Budget Office; Jon Huntsman, former U.S. ambassador to China; Heather Bresch, CEO of Mylan; Kevin Madden, senior advisor to Mitt Romney; Bill Burton, senior strategist for Priorities USA; Trevor Potter, former commissioner and chairman of the Federal Election Commission; Joel Klein, former chancellor of the New York City Department of Education; Scott Davis, president and CEO of UPS; Steve Case, co-founder of AOL and chairman and CEO of Revolution; David Rubenstein, co-founder of the Carlyle Group; Michael Porter, professor at Harvard Business School; Walter Isaacson, CEO of the Aspen Institute and author of Steve Jobs: A Biography; James Duff, CEO of the Newseum; and David Bradley, chairman of Atlantic Media Company.

*Some speakers’ participation is pending the outcome of the election on November 6, after which additional participants will also be announced.

Participating journalists include: Jonathan Alter, contributing correspondent for NBC News; James Bennet, editor in chief of The Atlantic; Margaret Carlson, Bloomberg columnist and editorial director of the Washington Ideas Forum; Steve Clemons, Washington editor at large of The Atlantic; Candy Crowley, anchor of CNN’s State of the Union; James Fallows, national correspondent for The Atlantic; Mark Halperin, co-author of Game Change; Jonathan Karl, ABC News’ senior political correspondent; David Leonhardt, Washington bureau chief of The New York Times; Chris Matthews, host of MSNBC’s Hardball; Michele Norris, host of NPR’s All Things Considered; Norah O’Donnell, co-host of CBS’ This Morning; and Martha Raddatz, ABC News’ senior foreign-affairs correspondent.

Expanding the breadth of its political coverage in 2012, the Washington Ideas Forum is pleased to announce a partnership with Harvard University’s Institute of Politics. The collaboration will feature special “Election Insights” programming, exploring the major themes driving the campaigns—from the influence of new media to the rise of super PACs.

For the first time, the Washington Ideas Forum will originate from the Newseum’s Annenberg Theater, allowing for a significantly larger in-studio audience and an expanded footprint at the museum. Additionally, all mainstage programming will be live-streamed on TheAtlantic.com, and after the event, programming will be available via ForaTV.

By invitation only.