Tavis Smiley

I respect Tavis Smiley for treating broadcasting as a civic act rather than mere entertainment. Born in Gulfport, raised in Indiana, and forged through work as an aide to Los Angeles mayor Tom Bradley, he built a platform across radio, television, and books, eventually earning a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. A host's real power lies in deciding whom to question and how, and Smiley wielded that power deliberately. Whatever the controversies along the way, I find his insistence on serious, pointed conversation a refreshing counterweight to the noise that dominates so much American media today.

Name (English)

Tavis Smiley

Name (Japanese)

タヴィス・スマイリー

Reading

たゔぃす・すまいりー

Born

September 13, 1964 (age 61)

Zodiac / Chinese zodiac

Virgo / Dragon

Origin

Gulfport, Mississippi, United States

Occupation

radio personality / television presenter / journalist / businessperson / television producer

High school

Maconaquah High School

University

Indiana University

Awards & achievements

• star on Hollywood Walk of Fame

• Official sitehttp://www.tavistalks.com
• Xhttps://x.com/tavissmiley
• Wikipedia (English)https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tavis%20Smiley
• Wikidatahttps://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q164382

Tags

• Mississippi
• radio personality
• television presenter
• journalist

Last updated

2026-06-21

Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public or unconfirmed items are omitted. English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.