Paula Kerger, president and CEO of PBS, discusses the impact of public television on communities and the way PBS has addressed issues around media, culture, education and technology.
Tony Award-winning actor John Cameron Mitchell discusses his groundbreaking career.
John Cameron Mitchell is a screenwriter, director and actor whose cult rock musical “Hedwig and the Angry Inch” won Mitchell Best Director at the Sundance Festival. He was also nominated for a Golden Globe as Best Actor for that same film. His recent Broadway production of Hedwig garnered him Tony Awards for his performance and for Best Revival.
Mitchell has directed other films, including “How to Talk to Girls at Parties,” “Shortbus” and “Rabbit Hole.”
Tim O’Brien, author of “The Things They Carried,” talks about his book, “Dad’s Maybe Book.”
Tim O’Brien’s acclaimed novels include “The Things They Carried” (an NEA Big Read, which the New York Times said belongs on “the short list of essential fiction about Vietnam”), “If I Die in a Combat Zone,” “In the Lake of the Woods” and “Going After Cacciato” (which won the 1979 National Book Award in fiction), among others. In 2013 he was awarded the Pritzker Military Library Literature Award for Lifetime Achievement in Military Writing. O’Brien was interviewed for Ken Burns’ 2017 documentary series, “The Vietnam War.” Most recently he was a co-writer on the Vietnam episodes of the NBC series “This Is Us.” His 2019 book is “Dad’s Maybe Book,” where he shares wisdom from a life in letters, lessons learned in wartime and the challenges, humor and rewards of raising two sons.
Filmmaker Ed Zwick discusses his celebrated Hollywood career and his film, “Trial by Fire,” starring Laura Dern.
Ed Zwick is an award-winning film and television director and producer. He co-created the television series “thirtysomething” and together with Marshall Herskovitz produced “My So-Called Life” and “Once and Again.” He also executive produced the series “Nashville.” Zwick began his feature film career directing “About Last Night.” He went on to direct the Academy Award-winning films “Glory” and “Legends of the Fall.” Zwick also directed the films “Courage Under Fire,” “The Siege,” “The Last Samurai,” “Blood Diamond,” “Defiance,” “Love & Other Drugs” and “Pawn Sacrifice.” Zwick and Herskovitz also produced the Academy Award-nominated film “I Am Sam,” as well as “Traffic” – winner of two Golden Globe Awards and four Academy Awards. Zwick also directed “Jack Reacher: Never Go Back,” starring Tom Cruise. Zwick has been honored with three Emmy Awards, the Humanitas Prize, the Writer’s Guild of America Award, two Peabody Awards, a Director’s Guild of America Award and the Franklin J. Schaffner Alumni Award from the American Film Institute. He received an Academy Award as a producer of 1999’s Best Picture “Shakespeare in Love.”
Journalist and author Lawrence O’Donnell discusses the modern news landscape, his various writing endeavors and his show “The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell.”
Lawrence O’Donnell hosts “The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell” on MSNBC. His background in politics, entertainment and news leads to lively discussions as he addresses the biggest issues and most compelling stories of the day. Among other political positions, O’Donnell served as Senior Advisor to Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan from 1989 through 1992. He is an Emmy Award-winning executive producer and writer for the NBC series “The West Wing,” and creator and executive producer of the NBC series, Mister Sterling. Born in Boston, O’Donnell is a graduate of Harvard College.
Actor and musician John Doe talks about his latest book, the origin of punk rock and the thrill of performing.
John Doe is an actor and musician who co-founded the Los Angeles punk band X. He has appeared in over 50 films and television productions including “Great Balls of Fire!,” “Roadside Prophets,” “Roswell” and more. His book “Under the Big Black Sun” explores the LA punk rock movement and its evolution.
Henry Louis Gates, Jr. is the Alphonse Fletcher University Professor at Harvard University, as well as Director of the W.E.B. Du Bois Institute for African and African American Research. Dr. Gates is also an author, cultural critic and filmmaker. He has produced numerous series for PBS including “Looking for Lincoln,” “Many Rivers to Cross: The History of the African American People” and “Finding Your Roots,” many of which he also hosts. His documentary series “Black America Since MLK: And Still I Rise” aired on PBS stations in 2016.
Wendell Pierce is an actor, producer and author, best known for playing Detective Bunk Moreland on HBO’s “The Wire.” A New Orleans native, he starred as Antoine Batiste in “Treme,” the HBO series about the city after Hurricane Katrina. Pierce is a three-time NAACP Image Award Nominee for best actor in a television drama and won the 2008 Image Award for best actor in a television movie. His memoir, “The Wind in the Reeds: A Storm, A Play, and the City That Would Not Be Broken,” was published in 2015.
Mary Lynn Rajskub is a comedian and actress, best known for playing Chloe on Fox’s hit series “24.” She has also appeared on “2 Broke Girls,” “Californication,” “Arrested Development,” “Mr. Show” and as a regular panelist on “Chelsea Lately.” Rajskub has also been seen in movies, including “Safety Not Guaranteed” and “The Kings of Summer.”
Brian Stelter is CNN’s Senior Media Correspondent and host of “Reliable Sources.” Stelter joined CNN after six years at The New York Times, where he covered the television and digital media industries. Stelter also wrote the New York Times best-seller “Top of the Morning,” which uncovers the darker side of morning television.
