How to Rule the World by Theo Baker 

The Explosive Debut That Took Down a University President — And Exposed How Silicon Valley Really Runs the World

In How to Rule the World: An Education in Power at Stanford University, nineteen-year-old freshman Theo Baker (son of New York Times journalists Peter Baker and Susan Glasser) delivers a shocking, hilarious, and propulsive exposé of elite power, ambition, and corruption at the heart of Silicon Valley.

What started as a reluctant student-journalism assignment became front-page news across the country: Baker’s investigation uncovered research misconduct by Stanford’s president Marc Tessier-Lavigne, ultimately forcing his resignation. Along the way, Baker gained unprecedented access to the secretive networks of ultra-wealthy donors, venture capitalists, and ambitious students who treat Stanford as their personal training ground for global influence.

With razor-sharp reporting and surprising wit, Baker reveals a campus where teenagers are plied with excess and access, where cutting corners is encouraged, and where a tiny, hyper-connected elite quietly sets the agenda for the planet. Equal parts memoir, investigative thriller, and cultural takedown, this is the ultimate inside look at how power really works in 21st-century America.