City Arts & Lectures
City Arts & LecturesCity Arts & Lectures
Since 1980, City Arts & Lectures has presented onstage conversations with outstanding figures in literature, politics, criticism, science, and the performing arts, offering the most diverse perspectives about ideas and values. City Arts & Lectures programs can be heard on more than 130 public radio stations across the country and wherever you get your podcasts. The broadcasts are co-produced with KQED 88.5 FM in San Francisco. Visit CITYARTS.NET for more info.
City Arts & Lectures, Inc.
Since 1980, City Arts & Lectures has presented onstage conversations with outstanding figures in literature, politics, criticism, science, and the performing arts, offering the most diverse perspectives about ideas and values. City Arts & Lectures programs can be heard on more than 130 public radio stations across the country and wherever you get your podcasts. The broadcasts are co-produced with KQED 88.5 FM in San Francisco. Visit CITYARTS.NET for more info.
City Arts & Lectures, Inc.
Frances Moore Lappé's book “Diet for a Small Planet” was controversial when it first came out in 1971. She reflects on changes of the last 50 years, as the personal and societal benefits of eating a plant-based diet are widely accepted.
David Tatel recently retired after nearly 30 years on America’s second-highest court, and published a memoir “Vision: A Memoir of Blindness and Justice”.
Historian and philosopher Yuval Harari's latest book considers the perils and promises of artificial intelligence.
Historian Heather Cox Richardson is the author of the popular daily "Letters from an American" and the new book "Democracy Awakening: Notes on the State of America"
An encore of a 2016 appearance by the late Steve Silberman, author of “Neurotribes - The Legacy of Autism and the Future of Neurodiversity”
Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson's new memoir, “Lovely One,” traces her family’s ascent from segregation to her confirmation as the first Black woman ever to sit on the Supreme Court.
Daniel Handler's new book is a memoir - "And Then? And Then? What Else?" and Sarah Manguso's new novel "Liars" has autobiographical elements.
Writer Ann Patchett talks about her newest novel, Tom Lake, about the lives parents lead before their children are born.
David Brooks talks about his latest book, How To Know A Person.
Filmmaker Jon M. Chu talks about his new memoir of growing up as a restaurant kid in Silicon Valley and developing his Asian American identity. ley and
Journalist Carvell Wallace talks about and reads from his new memoir, Another Word for Love.
Author and screenwriter Gabrielle Zevin's most recent novel is set in the early years of video game development.
Chloe Cooper Jones talks about her memoir Easy Beauty and about societal norms on beauty, motherhood, and disability.
Poet Victoria Chang talks about her new collection, "With My Back to the World", inspired by the paintings of Agnes Martin
Musician Serj Tankian talks about his new memoir and his activism in support of his ancestral homeland of Armenia
Maggie Nelson is an author and academic whose deeply personal and analytical writing has covered such topics as gender, sexuality, and freedom.
Amy Tan's newest book, The Backyard Bird Chronicles, mixes memoir with natural history and includes her own sketches of the birds she observes.
Retired Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer discusses his new book on constitutional philosophies
Actor and comedian Tiffany Haddish has a new book, I Curse You With Joy.
U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy has guided federal response to some of the most difficult health crises in recent history; his latest effort is fighting the "loneliness epidemic".
Historian Doris Kearns Goodwin's books give an intimate account of leaders like the Kennedys, Martin Luther King Jr., and Lyndon Johnson. Her new book, inspired by her late husband’s letters and memorabilia, is both personal and political
Activists and organizers Astra Taylor and Leah Hunt-Hendrix have co-written a new book that presents a detailed examination of solidarity, and its potential for creating lasting change.
Philosopher Kohei Saito's new book Slow Down: The Degrowth Manifesto argues that moving away from constant economic growth and consumerism can save the planet.
Anne Lamott's newest memoir, Somehow: Thoughts on Love, discusses finding love late in life, the changing ways we love our children, and the ways love can keep us going in a painful world.
Poet, essayist, and cultural critic Hanif Abdurraqib’s new memoir There’s Always This Year: On Basketball and Ascension. seamlessly blends personal narrative with observations on music, race, and sports.
Sociologist Matthew Desmond's new book, Poverty, By America, discusses how wealthy Americans keep poor people poor - often without realizing it.
After more than six decades fighting for equality and freedom, activist and Angela Davis remains at the forefront of today’s political issues. Her new book is “Abolition, Part One”.
Novelist Tommy Orange reads from his new book, Wandering Stars, and talks about having his first novel be assigned reading in schools.
Tariq Trotter, aka Black Thought, is a founding member of seminal hip hop band The Roots whose new memoir is The Upcycled Self.
Calvin Trillin's latest book collects stories about journalism and its practitioners gathered over his seven decades in the profession.
Tech journalist Kara Swisher talks about her new memoir, Burn Book, with one of the Silicon Valley CEOs she frequently covers, Sam Altman of OpenAI.
US Poet Laureate Ada Limón reads from her work and talks about her inspiration from the natural world and family life.
Sociologist Gretchen Sisson talks about her new boo, "Relinquished", about women who give their children up for adoption and why they do it.
Two authors with new books: Nick Romeo on ethical economics and Kaveh Akbar's debut novel about a young Iranian-American.
Writer A.S. Byatt, who died in November 2023, came to City Arts & Lectures in 2009 after the publication of her novel "The Children's Book".
An encore presentation of our 2016 conversation with songwriter and musician Paul Simon.
Benjamin Moser spent twenty years working on his latest book about Dutch master painters, from Rembrandt and Vermeer to lesser known figures.
Gynecologist and pain medicine specialist Dr. Jen Gunter's newest book is “Blood: The Science, Medicine, and Mythology of Menstruation”.
Neuroscientist, primatologist, and author Robert Sapolsky's latest book is the case against the existence of free will.
In her new book, To Free the Captives: A Plea for the American Soul, poet Tracy K. Smith meditates on who we are as a nation and what we might hope to mean to one another.
Filmmaker John Waters and actor Aubrey Plaza discuss Waters' first novel, their favorite directors, and why Waters prefers baths to showers.
David Brooks writes for the New York Times Op-Ed section, is a regular contributor to the PBS Newshour, and the author of many books - including his latest, How To Know A Person, is a guide to fostering deeper relationships.
Leslie Jones talks about her TV career and her new memoir in this podcast-only special. NOTE: This program contains a lot of explicit language and content that has not been bleeped!
Viet Thanh Nguyen's debut novel, The Sympathizer, earned him a Pulitzer Prize. Now he’s written a memoir, A Man of Two Faces.
Cartoonist Roz Chast's been chronicling modern life’s anxieties and absurdities for the New Yorker Magazine since 1978, will share stories from her newest book, I Must Be Dreaming.
Werner Herzog talks about filmmaking and writing, including his new memoir, Every Man for Himself and God Against All.
Comedian Maria Bamford's new memoir, Sure I'll Join Your Cult, addresses her mental health struggles and experiences with self-help groups.
Michael Lewis's latest book, Going Infinite, is the story of the rise and fall of cryptocurrency king Sam Bankman-Fried
Dr. Raj Patel talks about his new book addressing global health crises and economic challenges in the private sector and government; and conservation photographer Jo-Anne McArthur talks about our complex relationship with animals.
Writer Jhumpa Lahiri won a Pulitzer Prize for her debut short story collection in 2000 - and now she's writing in her third language, Italian.
Comedian Keegan-Michael Key and his wife and collaborator Elle Key take a deep dive into the history of sketch comedy from commedia del'arte to TikTok
Novelist George Saunders, author of Lincoln in the Bardo, talks about the unconventional career path that brought him to writing - eventually
In his new memoir, Sir Patrick Stewart talks about his journey from working-class Yorkshire to the Royal Shakespeare Company to "Star Trek".
Zadie Smith's new novel, "The Fraud", is a work of historical fiction that tells the story of a celebrity trial in Victorian England.
Dr. Bettina Love talks with comedian and activist W. Kamau Bell about the impact of forty years of racist public school policy on generations of Black lives.
Bobby Berk is the interior designer on Netflix's "Queer Eye" whose new book is “Right at Home: How Good Design Is Good for the Mind.”
Novelist and bookstore owner Ann Patchett's latest book is the story of three sisters returning to their family home during the pandemic.
Poet Natalie Diaz and essayist and critic Hilton Als explore different aspects of American identity in their work
Conversations with the authors of two new books - a biography of five literary marriages, and a mystery novel from a visual artist
We speak to the authors of two new books, one about our relationship to work, and another one about hospice and art.
Two brothers who are both members of the judiciary - recently retired Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer and federal district court Judge Charles Breyer - discuss their approaches to the law and the courts
Filmmaker John Waters and actor Aubrey Plaza discuss Waters' first novel, their favorite directors, and why Waters prefers baths to showers.
Poet and novelist Ocean Vuong reads from his work and talks about his creative process and how he became a writer.
Epidemiologist Dr. Monica Gandhi was on the front lines of treating COVID-19 - and discussing how to respond to it. Her new book is Endemic: A Post-Pandemic Playbook”.
Author Brandon Taylor's new novel, The Late Americans, follows a circle of lovers and friends at a Midwestern university.
Comedian Jamie Loftus has written a book that explores the world of hot dogs - from competitive eating to mascots
Author and poet Javier Zamora emigrated from El Salvador to the US at the age of nine - alone. His memoir, Solito, tells that story from a child's point of view.
Actor Tom Hanks has just published his first novel, about the people who work on film crews.
Nancy Pelosi has represented San Francisco in Congress for more than 35 years, and is the first woman to serve as Speaker of the House of Representatives. She’ll talk about historic accomplishments such as the passage of the Affordable Care Act, and her view of the political future of the US.
TV producer Andy Cohen writes about his experiences as a single father in his new memoir "The Daddy Diaries: The Year I Grew Up"
Political leader and activist Stacey Abrams is also an author of legal thrillers - her newest one, Rogue Justice, has just been published.
Novelist and physician Abraham Verghese's latest book is The Covenant of Water, the story of 20th century India as seen by a single family.
Physician and author Siddhartha Mukherjee's new book, The Song of the Cell, explains the history and future of cell biology.
Actor Laura Dern's co-written a new memoir with her mother, fellow actor Diane Ladd, called "Honey, Baby, Mine".
Theoretical physicist Michio Kaku talks about quantum computing, and how this powerful technology might eventually solve some of humanity's biggest problems from global warming to incurable disease.
Photographer and filmmaker Richard Mosse documents environmental and humanitarian crises around the world.
Jeffrey Toobin's new book uses previously unreleased archival material to tell the story of Timothy McVeigh and the Oklahoma City bombing.
Poets Clint Smith and Terisa Siagatonu address issues like climate change and parenthood, while also looking back at American history
Legal ethicist Nita Farahany's new book, The Battle for Your Brain, talks about how advances in medical and computer technology are making it possible to monitor people's thoughts and feelings.
Laurel Braitman talks about grief and secular rituals, and her new memoir, which explores growing up with a terminally ill parent.
In a program from 2017, surgeon and author Atul Gawande talks about his book “Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End.” It’s a very personal examination of what medicine can't overcome, and how embracing death is an essential aspect of medical care.
Novelist Jennifer Egan's latest book, The Candy House, is something of a sequel to her Pulitzer-Prize-winning A Visit From the Goon Squad.
Journalist Michael Pollan takes us on an exploration of three psychoactive substances derived from plants – opium, caffeine, and mescaline – challenging some long-held beliefs, and charting our powerful, and possibly beneficial, attraction to these substances.
Zimbabwean novelist, essayist, and activist Tsitsi Dangarembga talks with American activist Angela Davis about colonialism, feminism, and abolition.
Journalist Patrick Radden Keefe's new book "Rogues" collects several of his New Yorker profiles of people who he describes as "grifters, killers, rebels, and crooks"
Poet Natalie Diaz and essayist and critic Hilton Als explore different aspects of American identity in their work.
Cultural satirist Fran Lebowitz shares her views on everything from Toni Morrison to psychedelics
Two in-studio conversations, one on the history of and difficulties with telehealth and telemedicine - and the second about Paradise - what does it mean and where can it be found?
Musician and songwriter Thao Nguyen and cook and author Samin Nosrat discuss their work and their identities as children of immigrants, and Thao performs two songs.
An encore of 2021's program with Nikole Hannah-Jones, who won the Pulitzer Prize for the 1619 Project, a new adaptation of which premieres on Hulu this month.
Two brothers who are both members of the judiciary - recently retired Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer and federal district court Judge Charles Breyer - discuss their approaches to the law and the courts
A conversation between two writers whose work – be it fiction, criticism or art theory- captures the spirit, concerns, and aesthetics of this moment.
Richard Powers has been called The Great American Eco-Novelist, and his books include "The Overstory" and "Bewilderment"; he talks with neuroscientist Indre Viskontas about our relationship to the natural – and digital – worlds.
Pianist Jeremy Denk talks about his new memoir "Every Good Boy Does Fine" and deconstructs a Bach fugue
Kim Stanley Robinson's imaginative fiction about climate change won him the unusual honor of an invitation to the United Nations conference on the subject.
The legendary musician and writer Patti Smith's new book, A Book of Days, is an intimate view into Smith’s life, particularly as it played out during the pandemic, featuring over 365 of her own photographs.
Economist, professor, author, and former Secretary of Labor Robert Reich talks about how he's using digital media such as TikTok to reach new audiences
Culinary historian Jessica B. Harris talks about her book "High on the Hog: How African American Cuisine Transformed America" which was made into a Netflix series in 2021.
Siddhartha Mukherjee's new book, The Song of the Cell, tells the story of scientists' discoveries of the workings of the human body's tiny components.
In her new memoir Uphill, writer and broadcaster Jemele Hill traces her journey from her childhood in Detroit to her career with ESPN and the controversy over her description of Donald Trump as a white supremacist.
Anand Giridharadas's new book The Persuaders offers an insider account of activists and everyday citizens working to change minds, bridge divisions, and fight for democracy
Actor and activist Jane Fonda has redefined herself again and again. Her current passion is fighting climate change - at 84, she says she’s never been happier, and we’ll hear why
Harvard University researchers Emily Weinstein and Carrie James set out to try and understand more about the effects of social media on teenagers
George McCalman's new book “An Illustrated Black History”, features 145 Black artists, scientists, and public intellectuals whose enormous contributions to US history are in stark contrast with their frequent absence from the public eye.
Poet and novelist Leila Mottley uses her writing as a tool to call for social justice reform and advocate for victims of sexual violence.
W. Kamau Bell and Kate Schatz talk about their antiracism workbook, Do The Work, which gives readers a hands-on understanding of systemic racism, white privilege, and Black disenfranchisement–and what to do about it all.
Novelist Andrew Sean Greer's new book Less is Lost is a sequel to his Pulitzer-Prize-winning Less, which catches up with Arthur Less as he and his pug travel across the country in a rusty camper van on a literary tour.
Humorist Andy Borowitz discusses his new book Profiles in Ignorance: How America’s Politicians Got Dumb and Dumber
Angela Garbes talks about her new book, Essential Labor: Mothering as Social Change, and the obstacles faced by caregivers.
Dave Eggers' most recent novel, The Every, envisions a dystopian near-future dominated by a single gigantic social media company.
Mary Roach's latest book, "Fuzz: When Nature Breaks The Law" combines conservation science with stories of "nature's lawbreakers".
LA chef Keith Corbin talks about his journey from selling drugs in Watt to owning his own restaurant in his new book, California Soul.
Highlights from some of the many times Salman Rushdie has appeared on City Arts & Lectures, talking about his writing, the creative process, and everything from the Marx Brothers to Stendhal.
In his newest novel The Last White Man, Mohsin Hamid tells the story of a man who wakes up one morning to find his skin has changed color. .
journalist Michael Pollan takes us on an exploration of three psychoactive substances derived from plants – opium, caffeine, and mescaline – challenging some long-held beliefs, and charting our powerful, and possibly beneficial, attraction to these substances.
This week, we look at the connection between the state of our bodies and the state of the planet, with the authors of the new book "Inflamed: Deep Medicine and the Anatomy of Injustice"
A two-part miniseries from 2020, in which past City Arts & Lectures guests talk across, among, and around one another.
Crosstalk is a two-part series of compiled conversations between recent City Arts & Lectures guests discussing literary identity and the sometimes pleasurable, sometimes painful, act of writing.
A conversation on the science of sleep, and how we can improve it, with Matt Walker of the Center for Human Sleep Science
Kim Stanley Robinson's new novel, The Ministry for the Future, imagines a near-future where climate change has wreaked havoc - but it's not without hope.
Amor Towles talks about his new novel, The Lincoln Highway, his writing process, and how he keeps in touch with readers.
Writer, scholar, and activist Angela Davis has been fighting for Black liberation, equal rights for women, queer and transgender people since the 1960s.
Novelist David Mitchell is one of the most structurally inventive writers of our time, he talks with fellow author Pico Iyer about the creative process.
Michael Lewis is the author of The Big Short, Moneyball, and his most recent work The Premonition: A Pandemic Story. He’ll talk to Dave Eggers about how he finds the fascinating subjects – and real-life characters – that drive his best-selling books.
Neil Gaiman reads his short story "Chivalry" in this outtake from his 2022 City Arts & Lectures appearance
One of today’s most prolific and imaginative authors, Neil Gaiman is a modern master of fantasy writing. His groundbreaking comic book series The Sandman is being adapted into a show on Netflix.
Richard Powers has been called The Great American Eco-Novelist, and his books include "The Overstory" and "Bewilderment"; he talks with neuroscientist Indre Viskontas about our relationship to the natural – and digital – worlds.
Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Jennifer Egan talks with computer scientist Jaron Lanier. Egan’s new book, The Candy House, imagines a technology that allows people to access – and give away – every memory they’ve ever had.
Musician and actor Janelle Monáe has collaborated with several writers on a short story collection, The Memory Librarian, based on the world of her album Dirty Computer.
Krista Tippett hosts the podcast "On Being", which features conversations about faith, ethics and moral wisdom.
Lauren Groff's newest novel, Matrix, imagines the life of Marie du France, a medieval writer who became France’s first woman poet.
Rachel Cusk, author of the Outline Trilogy, joins us to talk about the ethics of writing from personal experience and the state of the contemporary novel.
Iranian-born writer Azar Nafisi, the author of Reading Lolita in Tehran, has a new book about the subversive power of literature.
To commemorate Questlove's 2022 Academy Award, we're listening back to his 2018 conversation with Boots Riley about creativity across multiple genres.
A podcast-only special with two controversial progressive prosecutors, San Francisco's Chesa Boudin and Cook County (Chicago)'s Kim Foxx
We reach into the archives for a 2008 program with former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, who died March 23, 2022 at the age of 84.
ournalist Jacob Ward's new book, “The Loop" is an investigation into the negative effects of artificial intelligence
Buddhist meditation teacher Jack Kornfield and writer Anne Lamott discuss navigating uncertain times – what Lamott calls the “COVID College” - and finding compassion for others, even those who hurt us.
Pianist Jeremy Denk talks about his new memoir "Every Good Boy Does Fine" and deconstructs a Bach fugue
A conversation from the archives with the late Dr. Paul Farmer, physician, anthropologist, and global health advocate
Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer, who announced his intention to retire at the end of the current term, discusses "The Court and the World" in this rebroadcast of a 2015 program.
Wajahat Ali's new memoir, Go Back to Where You Came From, describes his experiences as a nerdy Muslim Pakistani-American kid in the Bay Area suburbs.
Educator, activist, and San Francisco Poet Laureate Tongo Eisen-Martin talks about his writing and reads from his work
One of the most popular poets in America, Billy Collins talks about his latest collection, aging and mortality, and when to abandon a poem.
Author and animal scientist Temple Grandin talks about her newest book on helping children on the autism spectrum.
From the City Arts & Lectures archives, a 2006 conversation with the late E. O. Wilson, biologist and author who popularized the concept of biodiversity.
A conversation from the archives with the late Wayne Thiebaud, painter and teacher
From the City Arts & Lectures archives, a 2010 conversation with the late Archbishop Desmond Tutu and his daughter, Mpho Tutu
A 2011 conversation with the late Joan Didion, whose essays, novels, screenplays, and memoirs both chronicled and shaped American culture with a sharp and distinctively Californian sensibility.
From the City Arts & Lectures archives, a 1995 conversation between trailblazing poet, feminist, and cultural critic bell hooks, and novelist Walter Mosley.
Louise Erdrich’s newest novel, The Sentence, is a ghost story that takes place in a Minneapolis bookstore, set against the real-life backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic and the murder of George Floyd.
Journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones and filmmaker Barry Jenkins talk about "The 1619 Project"
In this 2008 archive program, lyricist and composer Stephen Sondheim talks about adapting musical theater from unconventional source material and his reaction to critics.
Gary Shteyngart talks about his new pandemic-themed novel "Our Country Friends" and about finding and writing humor in dark times.
New Yorker writer Jelani Cobb talks about the anthology The Matter of Black Lives, which compiles New Yorker essays on race in America.
Anita Hill talks about her work in the thirty years since she testified about sexual harassment at the Senate confirmation hearings of Justice Clarence Thomas
New Yorker staff writer Susan Orlean's latest book explores her love and wonder of animals - and the stories of some truly bizarre pet owners, like a woman who has twenty-three pet tigers.
Author Dave Eggers talks about the problems of big technology and social media in his new novel "The Every".
Congressman Adam Schiff has been one of Donald Trump’s harshest critics, and led Trump’s first impeachment trial in the Senate. He’ll discuss that and his new book “Midnight in Washington: How We Almost Lost Our Democracy And Still Could”.
Andrea Elliott's book Invisible Child follows Dasani Coates, a child living in a shelter in New York City, and her family for eight years.
Science writer Mary Roach talks about her newest book, "Fuzz: When Nature Breaks The Law"
Norwegian writer Karl Ove Knausgaard talks about and reads from his newest book, a novel called The Morning Star.
Colson Whitehead, who won the Pulitzer Prize for his historical novel "The Underground Railroad", has turned to a new genre for his latest book - the heist novel.
Daniel Handler, who sometimes writes under the pen name of Lemony Snicket, discusses his first book for readers of all ages, Poison for Breakfast.
Dr. Andrew Budson's new book is a guide for caregivers of someone with Alzheimer's disease and dementia.
How can mental health disorders like depression and anxiety be helped by hallucinogens like LSD and psilocybin? Michael Pollan will talk about the history and current research on these drugs, and how psychedelics changed his own mind.
Poet, musician, and novelist Rita Dove is a former US Poet Laureate whose most recent collection is “Playlist for the Apocalypse”.
Joy Harjo is a performer and writer of the Muskogee Creek Nation, serving her second term as United States Poet Laureate.
Alison Bechdel talks about her latest graphic memoir "The Secret to Superhuman Strength”, which examines her fascination with fitness.
Journalist Courtney Martin's new book "Learning in Public" examines the persistence of school segregation in the US through the lens of her daughter's public school.
One of the world’s leading theoretical physicists, Brian Greene is widely recognized for his groundbreaking discoveries in the field of superstring theory.
Long before the pandemic drove therapists and their clients to Zoom, psychotherapy was taking place without both people in the same room.
Michelle Zauner talks about her memoir, "Crying in H-Mart", about grief, guilt, and loss after her mother's death - but also learning to know her mother through Korean cooking.
Lucy Corin's new novel “The Swank Hotel” explores mental illness, familial grief, and love.
Poet Victoria Chang's new collection, "Obit", is about grief.
Dr. Jen Gunter is a fierce - and entertaining - advocate for better understanding of women's health, whose new book covers the widely misunderstood topic of menopause.
Author Jhumpa Lahiri talks about her latest novel, which she wrote in Italian and then translated into English.
Two experts on physical and emotional well-being discuss the COVID-19 pandemic's stresses and how society can resolve them.
Culinary historian Jessica B. Harris's seminal book "High on the Hog: How African American Cuisine Transformed America" has just been made into a Netflix series
Stacey Abrams, voting rights activist and former Georgia state representative and gubernatorial candidate, was instrumental in turning Georgia blue in 2020. n
Tamika Mallory is an activist who’s just published a book on her life, including the speech she made during the protests following the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
Attorney Bryan Stevenson has helped exonerate innocent Death Row inmates and bring national attention to the failures of America’s criminal justice system.
Novelist David Mitchell is one of the most structurally inventive writers of our time, he talks with fellow author Pico Iyer about the creative process.
Novelist and essayist Rachel Kushner talks about the art of writing and the places and people that inspire her
Activist and filmmaker Astra Taylor and economist Robert Reich reunite a year after their first City Arts conversation to reflect on the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Choreographer Alonzo King, the founder and artistic director of LINES Ballet in San Francisco, talks about his artistic process and the inspiration he took from his parents, who were both civil rights activists.
Playwright Lauren Gunderson's new work is The Catastrophist, a one-man play about her husband, virologist Nathan Wolf.
Two writers with unique perspectives on America: Ocean Vuong, author of On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous, and Tommy Orange, author of There There.
Epidemiologist Larry Brilliant and psychologist Jack Kornfield bring us unique perspectives on life during a pandemic.
One of the pleasures of reading novelist Jenny Offill’s books is hearing the emotional struggles and ambivalent attitudes of very honest narrators.
Sociologist Reuben Jonathan Miller discusses the constraints and challenges faced by formerly incarcerated people, long after they've paid their debt to society.
In this City Arts & Lectures Podcast exclusive, Daniel Handler and Rebecca Handler talk about family and work in a uniquely familiar conversation that only siblings could have.
Poet, memorist, and essayist Patricia Lockwood talks about her first novel, No One is Talking About This, and her thoughts on grief, creativity, and the ephemeral and addictive world of the internet.
Susan Choi is the author of five books, most recently "Trust Exercise". She talks about growing up as one of a few people of color in her Indiana town, and how teaching writing has made her a better writer.
Lily King discusses her latest novel, “Writers and Lovers”, the story of an aspiring author finding her way in the world.
Cognitive neuroscientist Matthew Walker is an expert in sleep science, researching what goes on in the brain while we sleep, and how habits can be improved.
Columbia University neuroscientist Dr. Carl Hart talks about his latest book, "Drug Use for Grown-Ups: Chasing Liberty in the Land of Fear"
Filmmaker Cheryl Dunye's work explores questions of race and gender, and blends documentary aesthetics with fictive elements, earning the term "Dunyementary".
Actor Gabriel Byrne discusses his new memoir, Walking with Ghosts, and his journey from an Irish childhood to Hollywood.
Two veteran political opinion researchers discuss the art - and the future - of polling, in an era where the electorate seems unpredictable.
Dr. Robert Sapolsky, a primatologist and neurologist with a unique gift for storytelling, discusses his book "Behave: The Biology of Humans at Our Best and Worst"
Join us for a conversation about creativity, confinement, and story-telling with two of the creators of Ear Hustle, the first podcast created and produced in prison
Renowned chef and author Thomas Keller talks about his latest book, diversity in restaurant kitchens, and the post-pandemic future of the industry.
CNN host and comedian W. Kamau Bell talks with journalism graduate student Chan’Cellore Makanjuola about race, storytelling, and the future of journalism.
Crosstalk is a two-part series of compiled conversations between City Arts & Lectures guests from the previous three years, discussing literary identity and the sometimes pleasurable, sometimes painful, act of writing.
Crosstalk is a two-part series of compiled conversations between recent City Arts & Lectures guests discussing literary identity and the sometimes pleasurable, sometimes painful, act of writing.
Co-founder of Impossible Foods Pat Brown and chef Traci Des Jardins talk about their efforts to address climate change by creating and use plant-based products that satisfy meat lovers.
London-based chef and author Yotam Ottolenghi talks about his latest book, “Ottolenghi Flavor”, which includes more than 100 plant-based recipes, and how the chef is feeding his own family during the pandemic.
Activist and writer Alicia Garza, co-founder of the Black Lives Matter movement, discusses her new book "The Purpose of Power: How We Come Together When We Fall Apart” with soccer star and activist Megan Rapinoe
A conversation with the legendary rock star Bruce Springsteen from 2016, just after the publication of his autobiography, Born to Run.
Disability activist Alice Wong talks with comedian and journalist W. Kamau Bell about the 35th anniversary of the ADA, the extra challenges faced by voters during the time of COVID-19, the importance of abled allies advocating for the disabled community.
Chanel Miller’s memoir, Know My Name, details her experience as the victim of sexual assault. It’s an exquisitely written examination of gender, power, and the failures of our criminal justice system.
Poet and essayist Claudia Rankine is the author of “Citizen: An American Lyric,” a book-length poem in which she recounts the experience of racism in the 21st century; her new book is “Just Us: An American Conversation.”
Yaa Gyasi talks about her new novel, Transcendent Kingdom, the story of a mother and daughter exploring the tensions between science and faith.
New Yorker staff writer Jill Lepore talks about her latest book, "If Then: How the Simulmatics Corporation Invented the Future"
This is an encore of a 2014 conversation on the neuroscience of music and creativity with Dr. Indre Viskontas, a cognitive scientist and opera singer.
From the City Arts & Lectures archives, a conversation with Trevor Noah originally recorded November 21, 2016, just after Donald Trump’s election.
From the City Arts & Lectures archive, a conversation from January of 1987 with actor and comedian Whoopi Goldberg
New Yorker writer Jeffrey Toobin discusses his new book "True Crimes and Misdemeanors: The Investigation of Donald Trump" with former US Attorney Preet Bharara
Buddhist thinker Jarvis Jay Masters, an inmate on Death Row on San Quentin, speaks with David Sheff, who has written a book about his transformation, and Rebecca Solnit.
Comedian Maria Bamford's hilarious and deeply personal material mines her lifelong struggles with anxiety and depression.
Steve Kerr, head coach of the Golden State Warriors, has a distinguished record as a player, broadcaster, and coach, and also as an activist and thinker on topics including foreign policy and gun control.
Charlie Kaufman, screenwriter and director of films that include Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and Being John Malkovich talks with Andrew Sean Greer about his debut novel, “Antkind.”
Neuroscientist Robin Carhart-Harris discusses how hallucinogens might provide relief to people suffering from conditions such as depression, addiction, and anorexia.
Anna Wiener's memoir of her time working in Silicon Valley, Uncanny Valley, reflects on the absurdities, excesses, and aspirations of the startup world.
One of the world’s leading theoretical physicists,Brian Greene is widely recognized for his groundbreaking discoveries in the field of superstring theory.
Hanif Abdurraqib is a poet and critic who often uses music as a vehicle to understand himself and the world. He talks with journalist and music critic Jeff Chang.
Sociologist Ruha Benjamin’s research into the social implications of science and technology reveals how racial inequality plays out in every corner of civic and scientific life.
Poet and memoirist Mary Karr and poet Kaveh Akbar will discuss breaking rules on and off the page, reclaiming their power through writing, and maintaining humor and grace in the hardest moments.
we present a conversation between two of today’s most incisive thinkers and creators: writer and activist Rebecca Solnit, and Brit Marling, star and creator of the television series, “The OA”
Two phenomenally smart observers of culture, Jia Tolentino and Jenna Wortham explore the logistics and emotional realities of life in self-isolation, and their new relationships to productivity.
Tristan Harris talks with Jacob Ward about the profound negative effects of tech companies’ unmitigated race for our attention - from shortened attention spans to increased mental health issues..
Designers Camilla Carper and Janelle Abbott discuss FEMAIL Forever, their fashion collaboration dedicated to sustainability and zero waste
Miranda July is a multi-disciplinary artist with enormous output who has honed an entirely unique voice, in books such as "The First Bad Man" and films such as "Me and You and Everyone We Know"..
The late writer and neurologist Dr. Oliver Sacks is remembered by friends and colleagues Kate Edgar, Temple Grandin, and Steve Silberman.
Peggy Orenstein talks about her new book, "Boys & Sex: Young Men on Hookups, Love, Porn, Consent, and Navigating the New Masculinity”.
Carmen Maria Machado, author of In The Dream House, talks with Namwali Serpell, author of The Old Drift, about upending formal literary conventions, writing queer villains, and rendering a post-pandemic world before experiencing one.
.labor organizer Dolores Huerta and Chef Alice Waters talk about the urgency of protecting farmers and farm workers, and how they are finding sustenance and solidarity in this time of crisis.
Former Secretary of Labor Robert Reich believes the coronavirus pandemic is a public health emergency, but not an economic crisis.
Poet Ocean Vuong and novelist Tommy Orange talk about making art, the power of language, and what it means to be an American.
Ottessa Moshfegh, author of "My Year of Rest and Relaxation", talks about the pressure to create likeable characters and her own path to becoming a novelist.
Dan Pfeiffer, a former Communications Director and Senior Advisor in the Obama White House, is now the co-host of "Pod Save America", whose new book is "un-trumping America".
Irish novelist Sally Rooney has quickly amassed an international following for her nuanced depictions of complex characters.
Author, screenwriter, and cultural critic Adam Mansbach and political comedian Kamau Bell swap stories about writing, raising kids, and getting vasectomies.
Our guest is Raphael Bob-Waksberg, creator of the darkly funny animated series “BoJack Horseman”
Novelist, poet, and advice columnist Melissa Broder performs a live episode of her podcast “Eating Alone in My Car”, where she rants about everything from morality to tuna fish
Historian Ibram X. Kendi and New Yorker writer Jelani Cobb talk about what it takes to become an anti-racist.
Ben Lerner and Maggie Nelson are two of the foremost writers working at the intersections of poetry, nonfiction, and memoir.
Mo Rocca, humorist, history buff, and a regular panelist on NPR's Wait Wait Don't Tell Me!, is also fascinated by obituaries
Writer, activist, and feminist icon Gloria Steinem talks about today’s political climate, the importance of organizing across generations, and her lifelong wish to be a stand-up comic.
Author, entrepreneur, and co-founder of Facebook, Chris Hughes talks about his early involvement and eventual departure from Facebook, and why he believes the company needs to be broken up.
indie rock icon Liz Phair sits down with photographer Tabitha Soren for a candid conversation about Phair’s sudden ride to fame, and the less discussed experiences of shame and fear common to us all.
Andre Aciman and Andrew Sean Greer talk about writing love stories where the protagonists are both men, about how they write, and about what they read.
Actor, artist, and now published poet John Lithgow talks with New Yorker staff writer and humorist Calvin Trillin about a career that spans film, stage, and now satirical verse.
Zadie Smith, author of "White Teeth", "On Beauty", and "The Autograph Man", talks about her debut short story collection "Grand Union".
Ta-Nehisi Coates' debut novel, “The Water Dancer,” merges the slavery narrative with fantasy, and draws on themes, stories, and research from his past non-fiction.
Ta-Nehisi Coates' first novel “The Water Dancer” merges slave narrative and fantasy, drawing on historical research.
Although he's known as a travel writer, Pico Iyer is not so much a guide to foreign lands as he is a sage interpreter of our interior lives.
The activist, writer, and critic Susan Sontag is still enormously influential 15 years after her death, as a new biography shows.
Former California Governor Jerry Brown - who was both the youngest and the oldest governor in modern American times - talks about environmentalism, faith, and criminal justice.
Poet, artist, and musician Patti Smith talks about her newest book "Year of the Monkey", friendship, loss, and her creative collaborations with artists from all walks of life.
Actress, producer, director and activist Demi Moore discusses her career and personal life in her new memoir, "Inside Out"
Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey are the New York Times reporters who first broke the Harvey Weinstein story. They’ll talk about Weinstein’s covert efforts to prevent their investigation, and the people and systems that aided and abetted this behavior.
MSNBC host Rachel Maddow talks about the oil and gas industry’s impact on democracy around the world, tying in Russia’s interference in the 2016 presidential election and the impeachment of Donald Trump.
Malcolm Gladwell talks about the dangers, including bias and miscommunication, that make talking to strangers difficult.
Dr. Jen Gunter is.known as "Twitter’s resident gynecologist" - she's intent on debunking myths surrounding women’s health. Her new book is The Vagina Bible.
A conversation about Privacy, Ethics, and Organizing in the world of technology, with Meredith Whittaker. co-founder of AI Now at NYU and the founder of Google’s Open Research Institute, and Kade Crockford, Director of the ACLU Massachusetts’ Technology and Liberty Program
Amor Towles talks about writing his immensely popular novel “A Gentleman in Moscow,” providing insight into characters that readers both loved and despised.
In his new book “Our Man: Richard Holbrooke and the End of the American Century,” George Packer writes about one of America’s greatest diplomats.
Jared Diamond discusses his new book "Upheaval: How Nations Cope with Crisis and Change"
Tom Sachs and Adam Savage discuss their love of outer space and the enduring legacy of NASA's lunar mission.
Anand Giridharadas, author of “Winners Take All: The Elite Charade of Changing the World”, argues that the corporate world's attempts at doing good often do great harm.
David Brooks talks about his new book, "The Second Mountain" and his religious and spiritual journey.
Bill McKibben and Mustafa Santiago Ali join May Boeve to discuss the future of climate activism, and the ways in which youth are leading the movement.
Chef and Netflix star Samin Nosrat and writer Lindy West discuss the joys and terrors of adapting their written work for television, finding their individual voices, and some of their favorite snacks.
Jelani Cobb, a staff writer for The New Yorker, discusses his work on topics of race, politics, history, and culture with fellow New Yorker writer Hilton Als.
Author Michael Lewis is a phenomenal storyteller with a penchant for colorful characters and iconoclasts of industry, Lewis is now applying his talents to the world of podcasting.
Jenna Wortham and Wesley Morris, co-hosts of the New York Times culture podcast Still Processing, talk about their early struggles and triumphs as journalists, and the alternative cultural realities they’d like to live in.
Stacey Abrams, who lost a hotly contested election for governor of Georgia in 2018, talks about her family, her desire to build a template for future Democratic campaigns, and the question of whether or not she will run for president.
Critic and writer Ruth Reichl talks about her time as Editor in Chief of Gourmet Magazine, as well as her thoughts on trends in cuisine and food writing..
Theoretical physicist and futurist Dr. Michio Kaku talks about living on Mars, the future of robots, and how Hollywood gets outer space wrong.
Rachel Cusk, author of the Outline Trilogy, talks about the ethics of writing from personal experience and the state of the contemporary novel.
Artist Nigel Poor and former inmate Earlonne Woods, co-hosts of the acclaimed podcast Ear Hustle, join us to talk about what it’s like to create audio inside San Quentin Prison.
Neurobiologist Daniel Siegel, a parenting guru and the author of “The Whole Brain Child,” talks about navigating the dueling worlds of psychiatry and medicine, and his own challenges as a father.
Author Rebecca Solnit shares hopes and fears for the Earth’s future, and talks about the importance of activist organizing.
Tommy Orange talks about his debut novel “There There”, a groundbreaking book about the urban Native American experience.
Preet Bharara, the former U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, talks about the consequences of not returning President Trump’s phone calls, the Mueller Report, and civic responsibility.
Marlon James, author of “A Brief History of Seven Killings” talks about his new novel “Black Leopard, Red Wolf", an epic fantasy rooted in African legend
Michael Tubbs, the mayor of Stockton, CA, talks to Dan Pfeiffer about the city’s universal basic income pilot program.
Jad Abumrad, creator and host of Radiolab, talks about the art of storytelling, objectivity, and journalism in the age of Trump.
Rebecca Traister, author of “Good and Mad: The Revolutionary Power of Women’s Anger” talks about how female rage, historically mocked and feared, can instead be a source of political power.
Novelist Meg Wolitzer talks about her work and reads from her newest novel, “The Female Persuasion.”
Palliative care physician BJ Miller promotes a model of care that embraces dying not as a medical event, but a universally shared life experience.
Jeff Tweedy, founder of the seminal alt-country band Wilco, talks with writer George Saunders, author of “Lincoln in the Bardo.”
Activist and scholar Angela Davis and historian Ibram X. Kendi talk about the connections between racism, sexism, and capitalism.
Legal scholar and author James Forman Jr. has devoted his life to fighting institutional racism.
Pediatrician Nadine Burke Harris talks about how exposure to violence and stress affects the developing brains and bodies of children.
Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) talks about her Senate experiences and her new children's book "Bold and Brave".
Author Jonathan Franzen discusses climate change and reads from his new collection, “The End of The End of The Earth.”
Our guest is comedian Al Madrigal, the former "Senior Latino Correspondent" for The Daily Show, and co-founder of the podcast network "All Things Comedy".
"Wait Wait...Don't Tell Me!" host Peter Sagal talks about putting the show together and his love of running.
Eileen Myles reads from a new poetry collection, and talks to Stephen Best about struggling to be a writer in 1970s New York, and her 1991 campaign for president.
Comedian and author Abbi Jacobson talks about the cross-country road trip she took to get over a devastating break-up.
Kate Crawford, founder of the AI Now Institute at New York University, discusses discrimination on digital platforms and the biases of artificial intelligence.
Jill Soloway celebrates the publication of their new book with a gathering of feminist thought leaders.
Director, producer, and writer Barry Jenkins talks about making his 2016 film Moonlight and the soon-to-be-released If Beale Street Could Talk.
Susan Orlean's latest work, The Library Book, is the story of the legendary Los Angeles Public Library fire and a meditation on the role of libraries in our lives.
Doris Kearns Goodwin's specialty is Presidential history, and her latest book explores four past Presidents' "Leadership in Turbulent Times".
The New York Times Opinion Live features comedy, conversation, and current events with Roxane Gay, Michelle Goldberg, Jennine Capó Crucet, and Rachel Dry.
Essayist and social commentator Fran Lebowitz reflects on politics, civility, art, nostalgia, and playing a judge on Law & Order.
Sally Field talks about how her love of acting helped her find her way out of a difficult childhood.
The host of the New York Times podcast The Daily, Michael Barbaro, the show’s producer Annie Brown, and frequent guest Kevin Roose, discuss how they create the show and the role of social media.
Writers Mohsin Hamid and Pico Iyer talk about the space where art and politics converge.
Novelist Gary Shteyngart reads from his latest book, "Lake Success", and talks with Isabel Duffy about his writing methods, his love of luxury watches and roadside diners, and Soviet humor.
Questlove and Boots Riley join us for a conversation about art, activism, and the creative process.
Hilton Als in conversation with Stephen M. Best
Frances Moore Lappé
September 19, 202159min 31sec
This week, we’ll hear from Frances Moore Lappé, whose groundbreaking book “Diet for a Small Planet” was controversial when it first came out in 1971. World hunger was a major news topic and a genuine concern; many believed there simply wasn’t enough food to feed the planet. But Lappé argued that hunger wasn’t caused by a scarcity of food, but a scarcity of power among those who go hungry. She believed democracy – and a plant-centered diet – could solve the problem. On September 9, 2021, Frances Moore Lappé spoke to her daughter, Anna Lappé, about what drove her to write the book, and what she’s learned in the intervening 50 years. Anna Lappé is also an author and an advocate for sustainability and food justice.