Gesamtlänge aller Episoden: 61 days 11 hours 4 minutes
The U.S. has only 4% of the world's population — and yet it accounts for 20% of all COVID deaths. 'New Yorker' writer Lawrence Wright discusses America's "plague year." We'll talk about the mishandling of the outbreak and his novel 'The End of October,' about a deadly pandemic.
Journalist Maria Ressa has faced criminal charges and death threats because of her coverage of the populist, authoritarian Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte. She's covered Duterte's bloody "war on drugs," his expanding grip on all parts of the government and his crackdown on the press. In 2018, she was Time Magazine's Person of the Year. Ressa is the subject of a new PBS FRONTLINE documentary, 'A Thousand Cuts,' directed by Ramona Diaz...
German journalist Kai Strittmatter says the Chinese state has amassed an astonishing amount of data about its citizens, which it uses to punish people for even minor offenses. We talk about facial recognition, a citizen point system, and the widespread use of barcodes. Strittmatter's new book is 'We Have Been Harmonized.'
Also, David Bianculli reviews 'Mr. Mayor,' a new sitcom on NBC starring Ted Danson.
CNN's chief medical correspondent says it's never too late to develop new brain pathways. Even small changes, like switching up the hand you hold your fork with, can help optimize brain health. We talk about the importance of learning new skills, good sleep, and how stress affects the brain. Dr. Gupta's new book is 'Keep Sharp.'
Nina Totenberg is widely regarded as the dean of legal journalists. She started covering the Supreme Court in 1971 and became NPR's legal correspondent in 1975. We talk about breaking the Anita Hill story, her friendship with the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and being a pioneer for women in journalism.
The HBO series 'Watchmen' uses sci-fi and action heroes to examine American racism...
Coppola was 29 years old when he signed on to direct a film. "I was young and had no power," he said. "So [the studio] figured they could just boss me around." But Coppola fought back. He recalled the making of his masterpiece in a 2016 interview with Terry Gross.
We close out the year with music from singer-songwriter Loudon Wainwright III and Nighthawks bandleader Vince Giordano. They collaborated on the 1920s and '30s style music for the series 'Boardwalk Empire' and the film 'The Aviator.' Now they've gotten together again on the new album, 'I'd Rather Lead a Band,' a collection of songs from the Great American Songbook. They talk with Terry Gross about their new record and the music of the era.
Luker died last Wednesday of ALS, Lou Gehrig's disease. She was 59. She had a beautiful singing voice, and received Tony nominations for her performances in 'Showboat,' 'The Music Man,' and 'Mary Poppins.' She also starred in a revival of 'The Sound of Music.' We listen back to excerpts of several Fresh Air interviews.
Also, Kevin Whitehead remembers some jazz greats we lost his year.
Even Stephen King is feeling like he's living in a Stephen King novel these days. The author of the 1978 pandemic novel 'The Stand' says he understands why fans have said the COVID-19 pandemic feels like something out of his books. King says he doesn't feel panic or terror, but rather, a "gnawing anxiety."
Patrick Stewart is back as Captain Jean-Luc Picard in the CBS All Access series 'Star Trek: Picard...
One of the most popular shows of the year is the Netflix limited series 'The Queen's Gambit,' which has been streamed by more than 62 million households. It's about an orphaned girl who becomes a chess prodigy, then a chess pro in a male-dominated world. We hear from Scott Frank, the co-creator, executive producer and director of the series. He spoke with guest contributor Arun Venugopal...