Overview

• Born into a wealthy isolationist family, Buckley spent his early years abroad before settling in Connecticut where he developed his trademark eloquence and combative spirit.
• At Yale he honed his debate style and in 1955 founded National Review to champion free-market policies and formalize conservative ideology.
• His confrontational rhetoric reached wide audiences in a famed 1965 debate with James Baldwin at Cambridge University that showcased his ad hominem tactics.
• On the long-running PBS series Firing Line, Buckley extended his influence by pioneering in-depth political conversations that prefigured modern podcasts.
• Tanenhaus’s research reveals how Buckley’s views evolved over time, notably stepping back from overt antisemitism after the Six-Day War while nurturing a more genial private persona.