Episodes

Join Michael in his conversation with Jane Leavy about her new book, Make Me Commissioner, I Know What’s Wrong with Baseball and How to Fix It which is a behind the scenes road trip through the far corners of the baseball world as she sets out to uncover how the game broke, and to find the people and the ideas that just might bring it back. Jane Leavy is an award-winning former sportswriter and feature writer for the Washington Post, known for diving into a subject and emerging with work that i...

Join Michael in his conversation with DeMaurice Smith about his new book, Turf Wars, The Fight for the Soul of America’s Game which chronicles his 14-year tenure as the head of the National Football League Players Association. DeMaurice Smith is the former executive director of the National Football League Players Association. Prior to the NFLPA, De was an assistant United States attorney, counsel to the US deputy attorney general, and a partner in major law firms. He is now a visiting professo...

Join Michael in his conversation with DeMaurice Smith about his new book, Turf Wars, The Fight for the Soul of America’s Game which chronicles his 14-year tenure as the head of the National Football League Players Association. DeMaurice Smith is the former executive director of the National Football League Players Association. Prior to the NFLPA, De was an assistant United States attorney, counsel to the US deputy attorney general, and a partner in major law firms. He is now a visiting professor...

Join Michael in his conversation with Alex Vernon about his new book Peace is a Shy Thing, The Life and Art of Tim O’Brien which chronicles the life and writings of Tim O’Brien best known for his beloved book The Things They Carried. Alex is the M.E. and Ima Graves Peace Distinguished Professor of English at Hendrix College. Alex Vernon graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point (the only literature major in his class of over a thousand), served in combat as a tank platoon leader in ...

Join Michael in his conversation with Will Bardenwerper about his new book Homestand, Small Town Baseball and the Fight for the Soul of America which tells the story of Will’s efforts to find the heart of Americana through the lens of minor league baseball. Will has contributed to The New York Times, The Washington Post, Harper’s and other outlets and is the author of The Prisoner in His Palace: Saddam Hussein, His American Guards, and What History Leaves Unsaid. He served as an Airborne Ranger...

Join Michael Zeldin for this extraordinary 90-minute conversation with Max Weinberg, Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame drummer from Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band, as they discuss Max’s musical career, his thoughts on music and drumming, his recollections of other great drummers, especially the late Rolling Stones drummer Charlie Watts, and much more. Guest Max Weinberg, Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame drummer from Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band Max “the Mighty Max” Weinberg. A bundle of drive, neuros...

Stevie Van Zandt while, perhaps, best known as a founding member of Bruce Springsteen’s E Street band and leader of Little Steven and the Disciples of Soul, he is also a writer, producer, actor (having starred in the Sopranos and Lilyhammer), radio host on Sirius/XM’s Little Steven’s Underground garage, political activist, founder of TeachRock.org, and much more. He is also a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Join me and Stevie Van Zandt as we discuss his terrific new memoir, Unrequited ...

Join Michael in his discussion with Cody Keenan as they discuss his book, Grace: President Obama and Ten Days in the Battle for America. The book recounts the most remarkable eulogy delivered by President Obama in Charleston, South Carolina after the hate crime murders of Reverend Pickney and eight parishioners in the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church. Guest Cody Keenan Cody Keenan rose from a campaign intern in Chicago and deputy pirate to become chief speechwriter at the White House ...

Join Michael in his conversation with Kevin Sack about his new book Mother Emanuel, Two Centuries of Race, Resistance, and Forgiveness in One Charleston Church which is an epic account of perseverance not just the Mother Emanuel congregation in Charleston, SC but of a people who withstood enslavement, Jim Crow, and all matter of violence with an unbending faith. Kevin Sack is a veteran journalist who has written broadly about national affairs for more than four decades and has shared in three Pu...

Join Michael in his conversation with Janet Singer Applefield about her new book Becoming Janet, Finding Myself In The Holocaust which tells the story of her survival as a child in Poland during the Holocaust. Janet is one of the 11% of Jewish children who survived the Holocaust thanks to the kindness of righteous Christians. Since coming to America, Janet earned her undergraduate degree from Rutgers University and a Master of Social Work from Boston University and has over 30 years’ experience ...

Join Michael in his conversation with Professor Alan Dershowitz about his new book The Preventive State, The Challenge of Preventing Serious Harms While Preserving Essential Liberties which articulates a jurisprudence of prevention which endeavors to balance the needs of governments to prevent future harm while balancing the need to protect fundamental civil liberties. Alan Dershowitz has been litigating, teaching, and writing about law and policy for more than 60 years. He was the youngest ten...

Join Michael in his conversation with Gareth Gore about his new book, Opus, The Cult of Dark Money, Human Trafficking, and Right-Wing Conspiracy in the Catholic Church, which documents the rise and secret history of the Opus Dei movement. Gareth is a financial journalist and editor with two decades of experience covering some of the biggest financial stories in over 25 countries. His writing has been published in Bloomberg, Thomson Reuters, and International Financing Review. He is the host of ...

Join Michael in his conversation with Becky Aikman about her new book, Spitfires, The American Women Who Flew in the Face of Danger During World War II which tells the story of the American Women who flew the world’s most dangerous aircraft through the treacherous skies over Great Britain during World War II. Becky Aikman is the author of two books of narrative nonfiction: her memoir, Saturday Night Widows, and Off the Cliff: How the Making of Thelma & Louise Drove Hollywood to the Edge. Ai...

Join Michael in his conversation with Joan Nathan about her fabulous book, My Life in Recipes, Food, Family, and Memories which uses recipes to look back on her life, her family history, and her personal journey discovering Jewish cuisine from around the world. Joan is the author of twelve cookbooks. Her books have won awards from both the International Association of Culinary Professionals and the James Beard Foundation. She is a regular contributor to The New York Times and Tablet Magazine an...

Join Michael in his conversation speaking with Robert Edsel about his new book Remember Us, American Sacrifice, Dutch Freedom, and a Forever Promise Forged in World War II which follows twelve main characters over a six-year span from 1940-1946 in war-torn Maastricht, Netherlands. Robert M. Edsel is the New York Times bestselling author of four non-fiction books including The Monuments Men which served as the basis for Academy Award recipient George Clooney’s 2014 film. Mr. Edsel has received nu...

In this special edition honoring National Cancer Survivors Day, join me in this reissue of my interview journalist Ali Rogin, author of Beat Breast Cancer Like A Boss, and Dr. Felice Gersh, integrative medicine physician, women's health advocate and author. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Join Michael in his conversation with Mary Annette Pember about her new book Medicine River, A Story of Survival and the Legacy of Indian Boarding Schools which is a deeply personal account of Native American boarding schools in the United States, and the legacy of abuse wrought by them on her own family and Native culture and life. Mary is a citizen of the Red Cliff Band of the Wisconsin Ojibwe. She is national correspondent for ICT News and has worked as an independent journalist focusing on ...

Join Michael Zeldin for this timely conversation of anti-Asian racism with Daniel James Brown as they discuss his book, Facing the Mountain: A True Story of Japanese American Heroes in World War II: a compelling saga of patriotism, highlighting the contributions and sacrifices that Japanese Americans and their families made for the sake of the country and the world. Guest Daniel James Brown I grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area and attended Diablo Valley College, the University of California a...

Join Michael in his conversation with Professor Elaine Pagels about her new book Miracles and Wonder, The Historical Mystery of Jesus which explores the life and the enduring legacy of Jesus to attract and inspire. Professor Pagels is the Harrington Spear Paine Foundation of Religion at Princeton University. She is the author of the Gnostic Gospels which won both the National Book Award and the National Book Critics Circle Award. She was a MacArthur Fellow and was awarded a National Humanities ...

Join Michael in his discussion with Rossana D’Antonio about her new book, 26 Seconds, Grief, Blame in the Aftermath of Losing My Brother in a Plane Crash, which tells the harrowing story of the crash of TACA airlines flight 390 in Honduras, which was piloted by her brother. Rosanna is a licensed engineer with expertise in infrastructure design and emergency management. She is a Fellow with the American Society of Civil Engineers and serves as a member of the Board of Directors. She is a strong a...

Join Michael in his discussion with Heather Cox Richardson about where we have come since the publication of her book Democracy Awakening in 2023. Heather Cox Richardson is a professor of history at Boston College and an expert on American and political history. She is the author of a widely read Substack newsletter, Letters from an American which synthesizes history and modern political issues. This is her seventh book. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: h...

Join Michael in his conversation with Grace Kessler Overbeke about her new book, First Lady of Laughs, The Forgotten Story of Jean Carroll, America’s First Jewish Woman Stand-up Comedian which tell the story of Jean Carroll, the first Jewish woman to become a star in the field we now call stand-up comedy. Grace Kessler Overbeke is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Theatre at Columbia College, Chicago with a focus on Comedy Studies. Previously, she served as the Perilman Postdoctoral F...

Join Michael in his discussion with David Enrich about his new book Murder the Truth, Fear, The First Amendment, and a Secret Campaign to Protect the Powerful, which details an ongoing assault from the right on New York Times v. Sullivan. David is the business investigations editor for The New York Times and the bestselling author of Dark Towers among other books. He is the winner of numerous journalism awards. Documented Rights Image Detail: Advertisement, "Heed Their Rising Voices" Advertis...

Join Michael in his conversation with Shigehiro Oishi about his new book Life in Three Dimensions, How Curiosity, Exploration, and Experience Make for a Fuller, Better, Life which offers insight into the question of what makes for a good life. Shige is the Marshall Field IV Professor of Psychology at the University of Chicago. He is one of the foremost authorities on happiness, meaning, and culture. His work has been featured in many major media outlets, including The New York Times and the Wal...