Professor McWhorter discussed his book Doing Our Own Thing: The Degradation of Language and Music and Why We Should, Like, Care, published by Gotham Books. The book explores the growing divide between formal written English and spoken English. According to Mr. McWhorter, American language and music are no longer well-regarded means of expression. He feels that the individualistic, multicultural values of the 1960s have eroded social formality in speech and negatively effected Americans' intellectual and artistic capabilities. After his presentation he responded to questions from members of the audience.