Viewpoints Radio
Award-winning reporting on current issues featuring America's leading experts.
Throughout history, stories have been told but sometimes preserving them for future generations has proven difficult. We examine the ways stories have been passed down, and the role the written word has played in shaping our civilizations.
Sarah Ruhl is a MacArthur Fellowship recipient and a famed playwright. As a professor, she met Max Ritvo, who went on to become a published poet. She recounts the story of their friendship and how they used letters to make a connection and comfort one another while Ritvo faced the end of his life.
We know about the planets within the Milky Way Galaxy, but what about planets outside of our neighborhood? We talk to Dr. Donald Goldsmith about “exoplanets” and where science stands on the issue of life thriving somewhere else in the universe.
It’s getting cold outside, which means it’s time to cuddle up with some good books to pass the time. Or maybe you’re just on the prowl for some holiday gifts for the reader in your life. Either way, we have some options for what to read this winter.
Last month, JK Rowling’s Wizarding World saw its latest installment, Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald be met with a low score on Rotten Tomatoes and countless disappointed Harry Potter fans across the globe.
Throughout his career, Eggers has pushed the boundaries of writing, and no book better illustrates his desire to innovate than his 2014 novel, Your Fathers, Where Are They? And the Prophets, Do They Live Forever? It’s a book that consists only of dialogue. Each line is introduced with a single dash, and while it sounds complicated, the form actually makes it …
Lists are a part of our everyday. Often, they are a forgotten part of our everyday. But Shaun Usher read through countless lists to compile a stunning collection of lists throughout time that shed light on the times, our collective history, and the list makers themselves.
Sometimes, classifying art in one specific genre can be tricky. Look at Star Wars. It’s a space opera, sure. But what does that mean? It was built to be a Western. And sci-fi. With some fantasy aspects? And who is the intended audience? Is it for kids? Teenagers? Adults? All of the above? That can be the difficulty in classification.
Hank Green has a massive internet presence as a podcaster, vlogger, tweeter, and more. Now, he’s become an author. His new book, An Absolutely Remarkable Thing, deals with internet fame and our reactionary culture head-on. He joins the show to discuss these issues, and whether is the internet is good.
There’s a long history of soldiers processing their experiences through poetry. We talk to Adam Gilbert, a war historian and author of A Shadow on Our Hearts: Soldier-poetry, morality, and the American war in Vietnam about the history and future of these soldier poets.
Picture books can teach children valuable lessons that will stick with them for life. Our guests discuss the importance of producing books about social issues like race, gender, and disability. And how as a combination of text and images picture books have an advantage when it comes to depicting diversity.
America is facing a literacy problem: according to surveys, fewer than 50% of American schoolchildren are highly proficient readers. We talk to several experts who suggest that we may simply be teaching the skill incorrectly.
It’s a dilemma many of us face from time to time: Should you keep reading a book even if you don’t like it very much, or should you set it down?
The Bollinger Everyman Wodehouse Prize is given annually to what a panel of judges deem to be the funniest book of the year. But this year, the judges hit a snag: they didn’t think any of them were funny.
It’s summer, which is a great time to do some reading. We discuss four books that will keep you turning those pages all summer long.
With all of our technology and reliance on computers, many schools are phasing out some handwriting lessons. Specifically, schools have stopped teaching cursive. We talk to two experts about whether that’s a good idea.
With all of our technology many schools are phasing out some handwriting lessons like teaching cursive. We talk to two experts about whether that’s a good idea.
The financial world was shocked when the FBI began investigating Wall Street big shot Steve Cohen and his company SAC Capital. We discuss what they were looking for, what they found, and what it all means going forward.
For years, Barnes and Noble was the big enemy to independent bookstores. Now, Amazon is the big bad and some are calling for consumers to ‘save” Barnes & Noble…but should we?
True crime stories fascinate us, but they can also have a big impact. We look at true crime and specifically, Michelle McNamera’s book, I’ll Be Gone in The Dark
Chef Alison Roman joins the show to give advice on cooking at home to make sure you can eat deliciously even without spending a night out or losing track of your diet.
Movie criticism these days typically boils down to numbers and general consensus. But when Roger Ebert was alive, he cultivated a following that considered his perspective above all else.
In 1947, India was split into two countries: India and Pakistan. Author Veera Hiranandani talks about the history of the partition and how it is still tragically relevant in 2018.
Springtime is almost here, and with it come an onslaught on books. We talk to three authors about some of the biggest books of the year.
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