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Evan Smith meets backstage with U.S. Senator Joe Manchin, D-West Virginia, before the start of the closing keynote at The Texas Tribune Festival in Austin, TX on Sept. 23, 2023.
The 2023 Texas Tribune Festival

The 2023 Texas Tribune Festival in photos

Here’s a look back at the 2023 Texas Tribune Festival through the eyes of Tribune photographers.

By Pu Ying Huang and Texas Tribune Photo Team

Texas Tribune CEO Sonal Shah, left, speaks with New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu backstage at The Paramount Theatre before co-founder Evan Smith's one-on-one conversation with Gov. Sununu during The Texas Tribune Festival 2023, in Austin, on Sept. 21, 2023.
Texas Tribune co-founder Evan Smith speaks with New Hampshire governor Chris Sununu on the future of the GOP, how the 2024 election will play out and his family’s commitment to public service at the The Texas Tribune Festival in Austin, TX on Sept. 21, 2023.
Hosted by Texas Tribune CEO Sonal Shah, this lunchtime reception will bring together women shaping politics, business, technology and public policy in Texas. Meet other women leading their fields and nab your credentials at The Texas Tribune Festival on Sept. 21, 2023 in Austin, TX.
Artist Sean Allen, who goes by Aye!, paints in front of the Paramount Theatre during The Texas Tribune Festival’s Open Congress Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023 in Austin, Texas.
Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner reacts to Texas Tribune co-founder Evan Smith announcing that Mayor Eric Johnson has switched from Democrat to Republican in a Wall Street Journal op-ed, prior to Turner's one-on-one conversation with Smith at The Texas Tribune Festival 2023, on Sept. 22, 2023.
Dave Weigel speaks one on one with Asa Hutchinson, former governor of Arkansas, about his race for the 2023 Republican presidential nomination at The Texas Tribune Festival in Austin, TX on Sept. 22, 2023.
A light switch in the Paramount Theater is illuminated by light filtering through a slatted vent.
Dick DeGuerin, former prosecuting attorney for the impeachment trial of Attorney General Ken Paxton, embraces General Investigating Committee chair Rep. Ann Johnson, D-Houston, following her one on one panel at The Texas Tribune Festival Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023 in Austin, Texas.
Audio/video crew while Texas Tribune political reporter Patrick Svitek speaks one on one with U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz about why he should be reelected to a third term at The Texas Tribune Festival in Austin, TX on Sept. 23, 2023.
Lesley Briones, Harris County Commissioner, participates during the panel “Locals Controlled,” a part of Open Congress at the Texas Tribune Festival on Sept. 23, 2023
Audience members, including Texas Tribune Editor In Chief Sewell Chan, watch as Evan Smith and Sonal Shah speak with U.S. Senator Joe Manchin, D-West Virginia, about his agenda for America at The Texas Tribune Festival in Austin, TX on Sept. 23, 2023.
Festivalgoers on Open Congress during The Texas Tribune Festival on Sept. 23, 2023 in Austin, TX.
Attendees gather at the Student Breakfast at The Hub at the Texas Tribune Festival on Sept. 23, 2023 in Austin, TX.
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Texas Tribune CEO Sonal Shah, right, speaks with journalist Katie Couric, second from left, at the Austin Club during The Texas Tribune Festival 2023, in Austin, on Sept. 22, 2023.
Festivalgoers at Visit Fort Worth on Open Congress during The Texas Tribune Festival on Sept. 23, 2023 in Austin, TX.
Kathleen McElroy speaks with Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones about confronting racial injustice at The Texas Tribune Festival in Austin, TX on Sept. 23, 2023.
People walk outside of The Paramount Theatre during Open Congress at The Texas Tribune Festival on Sept 23, 2023.
Rusty Hardin, former prosecuting attorney for the impeachment trial of Attorney General Ken Paxton, speaks with General Investigating Committee chair Rep. Ann Johnson, D-Houston, following her one on one panel at The Texas Tribune Festival Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023 in Austin, Texas.
Camera crews film a panel titled Confronting America’s Opioid Crisis:The Next Steps We Need on Open Congress during The Texas Tribune Festival Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023 in Austin, Texas.
A venue security guard takes a rest between panels at The Texas Tribune Festival in Austin, TX on Sept. 22, 2023.
Texas Tribune CEO Sonal Shah, right, and COO Natalie Choate tour the event space at Troublemaker Studios for TribFeast, during The Texas Tribune Festival 2023, in Austin, on Sept. 22, 2023.
Texas Tribune Festival attendees listen to a panel on Open Congress Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023 in Austin, Texas.
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Attendees gather at Open Congress at the Texas Tribune Festival on Sept. 23, 2023 in Austin, TX.
Dolores Huerta signs copies of the book "50 Years of Ms.: The Best of the Pathfinding Magazine that Ignited a Revolution" at the Capital Factory inside the Omni Voltron during The Texas Tribune Festival on Sept. 22, 2023 in Austin, TX.
Evan Smith speaks with U.S. Senator Joe Manchin, D-West Virginia, about his agenda for America at The Texas Tribune Festival in Austin, TX on Sept. 23, 2023.
Texas Tribune Festival goers file out of the Paramount Theatre following the closing keynote Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023 in Austin, Texas.

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