Stephen Witt Keynote Speaker

  • Regular contributor to the New Yorker
  • Author of 'How Music Got Free'
  • Columbia University journalism graduate

Stephen Witt's Biography

Stephen Witt is a journalist, regular contributor to the New Yorker and the author of ‘How Music Got Free: The End of an Industry, the Turn of the Century, and the Patient Zero of Piracy’

Stephen was born in New Hampshire in 1979 and raised in the Midwest. He graduated from the University of Chicago with a degree in mathematics in 2001. He spent the next six years playing the stock market, working for hedge funds in Chicago and New York. Following a two-year stint in East Africa working in economic development, he graduated from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism in 2011.

In ‘How Music Got Free’ published in 2015,  Stephen Witt traces the secret history of digital music piracy, from the German audio engineers who invented the mp3, to a North Carolina compact-disc manufacturing plant where factory worker Dell Glover leaked nearly two thousand albums over the course of a decade, to the high-rises of midtown Manhattan where music executive Doug Morris cornered the global market on rap, and, finally, into the darkest recesses of the Internet.

The book was nominated for countless awards including the Financial Times and Mckinsey Business book of the year 2015 for which it made the shortlist.

He currently lives in Brooklyn, New York.

Read More

Check Stephen Witt's speaking fees and availability

    Sending your message…

    Please wait, this can take a moment

    Message sent…

    Close

    Please provide your details and we’ll get in touch as soon as possible.

    We can only respond to requests for professional speaking engagements. We are unable to respond to requests for autographs, shoutouts and personalized messages.

    View our related Speakers

    Karina Vold Speaker
    Exclusive
    Karina Vold
    Philosopher of Artificial Intelligence and Cognitive Science, Technologist
    Daisy Rogers Speaker
    Exclusive
    Daisy Rogers
    Professional artist, writer, creative director, Founder of Liberally and speaker on diversity
    Kenneth Cukier Speaker
    Exclusive
    Kenneth Cukier
    Bestselling author & keynote speaker on technology and business Deputy Executive Editor, The Economist
    Mark P. Mills Speaker
    Exclusive
    Mark P. Mills
    Expert on Energy Transitions and Emerging Technologies
    Xiaojie Xu Speaker
    Exclusive
    Xiaojie Xu
    Expert on Chinese Energy Policy
    Anil Seth speaking
    Anil Seth Speaker
    Exclusive
    Anil Seth
    World-renowned neuroscientist, bestselling author and TED speaker
    stuart kirk
    Stuart Kirk Speaker
    Exclusive
    Stuart Kirk
    Former Global Head of Responsible Investments at HSBC
    james beacham
    James Beacham Speaker
    Exclusive
    James Beacham
    Particle physicist and science storyteller
    Jonnie Penn
    Jonnie Penn Speaker
    Exclusive
    Jonnie Penn
    Technologist, Best Selling Author, Historian
    Scott Anthony Speaker
    Exclusive
    Scott Anthony
    Leading Business Management Thinker