Monday, February 9, 2009: Like the host of our program, former CNN anchor Daryn Kagan knows what it’s like to lose a high-profile media job that she loved. Bob and Daryn talk about starting over in mid-career. Daryn now runs a website devoted to inspirational, motivational stories—the kind that “make her heart go zing.” She included many of them in her book, What’s Possible! Then, singer-songwriter Elliott Murphy has released an album for almost every year he’s been recording — 29 to be exact since his debut in 1973 with Aquashow. But he’s not a household name in the U.S., maybe because he was one of the first American artists to go independent — and he’s lived in France since 1989. Murphy talks about his life on the road and books: he’s written five including a semi-autobiography, Cold and Electric, and the novel, Where the Men are Rich and the Women are Naked.
Tuesday, February 10, 2009: Bob talks with historian Henry Louis Gates, Jr. about the misconceptions and myths surrounding Abraham Lincoln. Gates is presenting Looking for Lincoln on PBS February 11. Then, you know “snark” when you hear it: it’s biting, mean, condescension disguised as high-brow teasing. Maureen Dowd is very good at it. And so was Cicero. New Yorker film critic David Denby says it’s “spreading like pinkeye through the media” and weakening the public discourse. Denby’s book, Snark, was published this month.
Wednesday, February11, 2009: Washington Post Book World editor Rachel Shea talks with Bob about the Post’s recent decision to close down the print version of Book World. Then, In So Much Damn Money: The Triumph of Lobbying and the Corrosion of American Government, Robert Kaiser explains how things really work in Washington today—and why they largely don’t.
Thursday, February 12, 2009: In honor of the 200th birthday of naturalist Charles Darwin, Professor of molecular biology Sean B. Carroll talks to Bob about his latest book Remarkable Creatures: Epic Adventures in the Search for the Origins of Species. The book recounts the journeys of pioneering naturalists, from Charles Darwin to Charles Walcott. Then, the full title of Darwin’s most famous book is, On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life. Darwin was raised by abolitionists and it’s believed that his hatred of slavery helped shape his theory of evolution. Darwin’s Sacred Cause is one of a slew of books being published this month. Bob speaks with the book’s author, science historian James Moore.
Friday, February 13, 2009: David Broder of The Washington Post joins Bob to talk live about the latest news from Capitol Hill and beyond. Next, Bob talks to Alex Ellis about his program, “Tied to Greatness,” a youth outreach program. Then, to get you ready for the Oscars, we bring back Bob’s interview with the star and the director/screenwriter of the film Frozen River. Melissa Leo is nominated for Best Actress and Courtney Hunt is nominated for Best Original Screenplay for their movie which follows two women whose need for fast cash drives them to smuggle illegal immigrants across the frozen St. Lawrence River.