Power Money and the People: The Making of Modern Austin

Twenty years ago Austin Texas was a small unassuming city whose greatest distinctions were being the state capital and the home of the University of Texas. Today Austin is touted in such places as the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times as one of the fastest-growing cities in America. Its population shot up from 186000 in 1960 to more than 700000 in 1987. It is home to such notable companies as IBM Motorola Lockhead and Tracor and in 1983 Austin beat out scores of American cities to attract the glamorous high tech research consortium known as MCC.