The Writing of the Inaugural Address

January 11, 2009
Ted Sorensen, Special Counsel to President Kennedy, reflects on the writing of President Kennedy’s inaugural address and discusses what to look for during the January 20, 2009 inauguration with historian and former Clinton speechwriter Ted Widmer.

Human Rights Challenges Facing the Next President

December 9, 2008
Jane Mayer , New Yorker writer and author of The Dark Side: The Inside Story of How The War on Terror turned into a War on American Ideals ; James McGovern , Chair of the Massachusetts Congressional Human Rights Caucus; Michael Posner, President, Human Rights First; and James Traub, New York Times Magazine writer and author of The Freedom Agenda, discuss future human rights challenges with John Shattuck, CEO of the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation and former Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights and Labor under President Clinton.

Same-Sex Marriage in MA

November 16, 2008
On the 5th anniversary of the landmark Massachusetts Supreme Court decision on the case that led to the legalization of same-sex marriage, lead counsel Mary Bonauto, Harvard Law Professor Laurence Tribe and Senator Marian Walsh reflect on the progress that has been made and the challenges ahead for gay rights. Editorial Page Editor for The Boston Globe Renee Loth moderates.

The Trials of Homecoming

November 11, 2008
Psychiatrist and MacArthur Fellow Dr. Jonathan Shay explains his treatment of combat trauma by using the ancient accounts of battle described in Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey. He is joined by former army captain James Meeks, who served two tours of duty in Iraq. Radio host Christopher Lydon moderates.

The Centennial of Martha Gellhorn

November 9, 2008
Gellhorn’s biographer Caroline Moorehead and war correspondent turned novelist Ward Just (2005 Pulitzer Prize finalist) pay tribute to the groundbreaking career of journalist and writer, Martha Gellhorn, with NPR special correspondent Susan Stamberg. Gellhorn was the third wife of Ernest Hemingway whose papers are archived at the Kennedy Library.

The Role of the Public Intellectual

October 12, 2008
On the centennial of John Kenneth Galbraith’s birth and the opening of his papers at the Kennedy Library, Gloria Steinem, and Professors Alan Wolfe and Sean Wilentz of Boston College and Princeton University respectively pay tribute to the public intellectual — particularly Galbraith and Arthur Schlesinger who served in the Kennedy Administration, and their intellectual nemesis yet personal friend, the late William F. Buckley. Harvard University Professor and Galbraith biographer Richard Parker moderates.

Running for President

October 5, 2008
George McGovern and Michael Dukakis, the 1972 and 1988 Democratic Presidential Nominees respectively, reflected on their own races and how presidential campaigns have evolved over time. Tom Oliphant, who covered both of their campaigns for The Boston Globe, moderates.

The Making of a President 2008

September 16, 2008
Veteran political reporters Jonathan Alter and Eleanor Clift of Newsweek and Mark Halperin of Time Magazine set this year’s presidential election in an historical context and focus on the factors that will determine who will be the 44th President of the United States.

Internet, Blogs, You Tube and Presidential Campaigns

September 11, 2008
Political reporters Matt Bai of The New York Times and Garrett Graff of Washingtonian Magazine (and the first blogger given a White House press pass); and, Joe Trippi, campaign advisor to Howard Dean (2004) and John Edwards (2008) examine how the internet has revolutionized politics with Tom Ashbrook, host of WBUR’s On Point.

Transformative Presidencies

September 8, 2008
What leadership qualities characterize Presidents who transform history? What kind of presidential leader does our country need now? Harvard Professor and author Joe Nye, (The Powers to Lead); columnist and author Robert Kuttner, (Obama’s Challenge: America’s Economic Crisis and the Power of a Transformative Presidency); and, Harvard Law Professor Cass Sunstein discuss these questions with ABC News White House correspondent Martha Raddatz.