Milt Rosenberg

When most people hear the name of the town Salem they immediately think, Witches! To be sure, that is the legacy of Salem in the minds of the masses. But beyond the wrongful execution of some young women for practicing witchcraft and sorcery, most people know nothing.

Stacy Schiff is a Pulitzer Prize-winning author and a master storyteller. She has turned her attentions to Salem, 1692 to bring to life the real people behind the legend and to investigate how hysteria gripped a town and a nation. Not only were women the focus of the investigations--an inquisition, really--but there were men also. Families turned their backs on each other. Educated people left their senses--certain the devil was at work--and became complicit in murder.

The Wtiches: Salem, 1692 is a certain bestseller and a welcome inquiry into a story and a time that have had, unfortunately, only the most rudimentary understanding in American history.

Here we continue with our series on American music. Today we examine Gospel music. Joining in studio are Bob Marovich, founder and editor-in-chief of the Journal of Gospel Music and the author of the recently published A City Called Heaven: Chicago and the Birth of Gospel Music.

Our second in-studio guest is the esteemed Dr. Charles Clency, who recently retired as the professor of music and director of choirs at the College of Lake County. Dr. Clency has had a distinguished career as a musician and toured with many legends of Gospel.

With too many quotes to possibly pick one that would sum up his greatness, we wont try. Instead we present this delightful talk on Mark Twain, his work, his legacy, his wit and his wisdom with two local professors who have studied Twain in depth. Larry Howe teaches Twain in his English courses at Roosevelt University and has also written a book about him, and Loren Ghiglione of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern even traveled Twains routes of several books. He documented the journey on a website that expresses his affection for Mark Twain while recounting that trip he took along with two students.

A bonus here are some readings that most people wont have heard from selections most dont know. They show you just how creative Twain was and how he was never off his game.

Theres much going on in the world at the moment, and instead of bringing you a themed show, we thought wed look to those whose writings on it we admire. And, of course, a little music.

First up to join is Bret Stephens, the Pulitzer Prize-winning foreign-affairs columnist at the Wall Street Journal. His latest book, America in Retreat, has been quite influential. He and Milt talk about The Tyranny of a Big Idea.

Edward Klein has been keeping up with Hillary Clinton, and writes about the many scandals beyond Benghazi and a private email server. His newest book is Unlikable, about the sure-to-be Democrat candidate in 2016.

Finally, Reuel Marc Gerecht, a former CIA man and senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, examines the oft-employed diplomatic tool of soft power. When does it work, when does it fail and, more important, how is it failing us in the Middle East at present? His fine contribution to the Weekly Standard titled Victory without Soldiers is a scathing review of how we engage with militant jihadists.

If Chicagos the Second City, New York is the first to be sure. So where does that leave Washington, D.C.? Without it, what would we be? But were not so concerned with prestige on this particular program as we are with what events, characters, considerations and compromises gave birth to these two superpowers of influence and, being based in Chicago as we are, naturally our own city is the measuring stick for comparing them both.

In hour one we are joined by Tom Lewis, professor emeritus, English at Skidmore College. Hes written extensively on the mid-Atlantic states and, for an aside, an absolutely superb history of our business of radio. In Washington: A History of Our National City, we learn of just what Washington the man had to overcome to give us a seat of government.

In hour two (begins at 49:02), Gerard Koeppel joins us. Koeppel is no stranger to radio himself, having a distinguished career with CBS in addition to historical writings on his city, New York. Today the basis for our broadcast is the shape of New York, that, to newcomers and tourists is a confounding street system. To New Yorkers it makes perfect sense, and here youll learn of the simple wisdom that gave birth to that system, and how that simplicity gave the city many of its problems yet many of the characteristics that are so endearing. If Washington D.C. is the seat of government, surely New York is the seat of finance. Milt knows it well, having spent many early years there. Koeppel gives us a fine history and backstory to the Big Apple with his latest, City on a Grid: How New York Became New York.

By most accounts, the third GOP debate was a circus which strangely pitted the Republican candidates banding together to fend off their foes--not the Democrats, but rather their moderators from CNBC.

To shed light on the proceedings--if there was any of political value--we turn to a fine panel. In studio, Richard Baehr and Ed Lasky of American Thinker, Larry Sabato of the Center for Politics and Sabatos Crystal Ball, and Jonathan Last and Fred Barnes of the Weekly Standard.

English. Our mother tongue. Recently we tackled the Great American Novel, so naturally it merited occasion to look toward Britain. In this episode we discuss the periods from medieval British Literature to the Victorians. Our panel here is a delightful trio from academia, namely Micael Clarke of Loyola, Lesley Koredecki from DePaul, and Regina Schwartz of Northwestern. Bonus points if you can follow along with the Old English.

Sometimes there are too many moving parts to a program and we need to digress and decompress. Philosophy is a vast field, with limitless options for study and discussion. One person with whom weve been meaning to sit down with is Dr. Sanford Goldberg, the Chairperson of Philosophy at Northwestern. So at first opportunity, we brought him in to journey through the minds and writings of some of Philosophys greatest. From Aristotle to Bullsh*t, comedians to film directors, theres much of the stuff of life and thought.

As you know we are always keen to keep abreast of all of the latest political news. One member of our Political A-Team is Joseph Morris, former U.S. Assistant Attorney General and all-around polymath. We brought him to the show to discuss the upcoming election and the candidates on both sides, the troubles in the Middle East, and a vast range of other topics.

Its no secret that Russia is and has always been a propaganda state. Their efforts to control information and influence public opinion at home and abroad are are aggressive and extensive. But Putins Russia has a greater goal: to control the internet--the greatest tool in bringing about a total surveillance state.

But theres another side to Big Comrade. Its a legion of brilliant programmers and hackers who serve as a counterbalance to Putins goal of totalitarianism. Its an epic struggle waged not with guns and bombs, but with mouse clicks and websites, disinformation, misinformation and leaks.

Irina Borogan and Andrei Soldatov are in a tenuous position. They are journalists in a nation where there really is no clear delineation between freedom of the press and when its better for your health to stop looking. Despite that uncertainty, they have investigated this fascinating interplay of technology, intelligence, commerce and freedom in brilliant style. Heres their story: The Red Web: The Struggle Between Russias Digital Dictators and the New Online Revolutionaries. Follow their work in Russian or in English here.