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Malcolm Gladwell: Did NYC 'Backwardness' Help the High Line?

2,251 views · Published 21 December 2010 · 1:53 · Indexed 26 October 2026

Channel: FORA.tv · 2010 · News & Politics

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Complete video at: http://fora.tv/2010/12/08/The_New_York_High_Line_An_Urban_Model_Or_Not

New York City's municipal government is known for its inefficiency, but has this "backwardness" actually proven to be fertile ground for the seeds of innovation? Author Malcolm Gladwell points out that if not for bureaucratic disjointedness, the city would have torn down the High Line long before its creative renovation into an urban park.

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Exploring the power of place in our lives, this year the Great Issues Forum poses questions such as: How does our sense of place define us? How are our notions of space and place evolving as we move into the future? How is urbanization shaping our physical and human environment?

Participants include Malcolm Gladwell, best-selling author and New Yorker contributor; Jerilyn Perine, Executive Director of the Citizens Housing and Planning Council; and Robert Hammond, Co-Founder and Executive Director of Friends of the High Line.

The conversation is moderated by John Mollenkopf, Distinguished Professor of Political Science and Sociology at the Graduate Center, and Director of the Center for Urban Research. - CUNY

Malcolm Gladwell has been a staff writer at The New Yorker since 1996. He is the author of, most recently, "What the Dog Saw: And Other Adventures," and the Times best-selling books "The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference," "Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking," and "Outliers: The Story of Success."

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