Education Design Lab founder Kathleen deLaski, author of "Who Needs College Anymore?," questions if the U.S. higher education system, with its skyrocketing costs and declining enrollment, is currently suited to meet the needs of future generations of students. She talks about alternatives to the 4-year college degree, including educational bootcamps, skills-based learning, and apprenticeships.

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Sports journalist and academic Jane McManus, author of "The Fast Track," discusses the rise in popularity of women's sports since the early 1970s and the challenges female athletes have faced since then, including unequal pay and lack of media coverage. Prof. McManus talks about the experiences of Billie Jean King, Venus and Serena Williams, Caitlin Clark, Riley Gaines, and other female competitors.

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Technology reporter Nicole Kobie, author of "The Long History of the Future," talks about how technology evolves and discusses why many predicted technologies – including driverless and flying cars, smart cities, hyperloops, and autonomous robots – haven’t become a reality.

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Travel writer Rick Steves talks about his 1978 journey along the "Hippie Trail" and the 60,000-word journal he kept of the trip which he recently published as a book. During the 3,000-mile trek, the then 23-year-old Steves and a friend visited Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, and Nepal. He talks about the people he met along the way, the challenges of travelling in foreign countries in the 1970s, and the lifelong impact the trip had on him.

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Journalist and musician Lee Hawkins, author of "I Am Nobody's Slave," talks about the impact that slavery and Jim Crow have had on his family through multiple generations. Mr. Hawkins examines the relationship between the past violence experienced by family members, often at the hands of white people, and the way his parents raised and severely disciplined him.

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Author and writer George Will, whose nationally syndicated column has been running since 1974, discusses his life and career in the opinion business. Mr. Will talks about the impact of his work on U.S. politics over the past 50 years, conservatism in the age of Donald Trump, his love of baseball, and other topics.

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Activist and professor Loretta Ross, author of "Calling In," discusses the excesses of cancel culture and the need for a more inclusive way to hold people accountable in the age of social media. Prof. Ross, who was sexually abused as a child, also talks about her past work with convicted rapists and white supremacists.

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New York University journalism professor Meryl Gordon, author of "The Woman Who Knew Everyone," talks about the life of socialite and Democratic fundraiser Perle Mesta. Mesta, dubbed the "hostess with the mostest," was close to three U.S. presidents during the mid-20th century, and was known for throwing parties that brought political elites together. She served as U.S. envoy to Luxembourg following WWII, was an early activist for the Equal Rights Amendment, and was the subject of the Broadway musical and later movie, "Call Me Madam."     

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House Oversight Committee chairman Rep. James Comer (R-KY), author of "All the President's Money," talks about his committee's 15-month investigation into the business practices of then President Joe Biden and members of President Biden's family, including his brother James and son Hunter. Rep. Comer argues that the Bidens have benefitted financially from corrupt financial dealings involving Ukraine, China, and other countries.   

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National Geographic explorer Tara Roberts travels the world documenting underwater wrecks of some of the 12,000 slave ships that operated during the Atlantic slave trade. In her memoir, "Written in the Waters," Roberts talks about the training and preparation required to undertake the diving missions and the work done by the nonprofit organization that she dives with, Diving with a Purpose, which is primarily composed of African American divers.      

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