Maggie Gyllenhaal, star of HBO’s “The Deuce,” joins Salon’s D. Watkins to talk about her new Netflix film “The Kindergarten Teacher,” and the common thread between many of her recent roles— “starving” women who are after something much more than the obvious paths that their lives present.

“I like it when the art I make, in general, just challenges things,” Gyllenhaal said. “I like playing a kindergarten teacher that’s all f**ked up. I like playing a porn director who totally has her eye on the prize and is clear and amazing. I love that those two things are out at the same time."

Listen to hear more about why Gyllenhaal is speaking out on Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation and encouraging others to speak their minds on politics, and how her perspective on sex work changed after starring in “The Deuce.”

About “Salon Talks”

Hosted by Salon journalists, “Salon Talks” episodes offer a fresh take on the long-form interview format, and a much-needed break from the partisan political talking heads that have come to dominate the genre. “Salon Talks” is a destination for information through conversation. Viewers can expect discussions with A-list actors, artists, authors, thinkers, and newsmakers as we explore the full range of the human condition. The show streams live on Facebook and Twitter and each episode is published in full on Salon.com.

Watch SalonTV, streaming live daily on Salon.com, and YouTube.

Subscribe to SalonTV on YouTube HERE: https://www.youtube.com/salontv

Like Salon on Facebook HERE: https://www.facebook.com/salon

Follow Salon on Twitter HERE: https://twitter.com/salon

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Greg Miller, a veteran national security reporter at the Washington Post and two-time Pulitzer winner (as part of a team on both occasions), is precisely the kind of mainstream journalist who believes in playing stories “down the middle” and avoiding an overtly partisan tone. 

He spoke with Salon’s Andrew O’Hehir about what life might be like in an alternate universe where Donald Trump had indeed pivoted to a more mainstream presidential tone, as briefly seemed possible in the immediate aftermath of the 2016 election.

That didn’t happen, and to some degree Miller’s painstakingly researched new book, “The Apprentice: Trump, Russia and the Subversion of American Democracy,” represents an attempt to explain why. 

About “Salon Talks”

Hosted by Salon journalists, “Salon Talks” episodes offer a fresh take on the long-form interview format, and a much-needed break from the partisan political talking heads that have come to dominate the genre. “Salon Talks” is a destination for information through conversation. Viewers can expect discussions with A-list actors, artists, authors, thinkers, and newsmakers as we explore the full range of the human condition. The show streams live on Facebook and Twitter and each episode is published in full on Salon.com.

Watch SalonTV, streaming live daily on Salon.com, and YouTube.

Subscribe to SalonTV on YouTube HERE: https://www.youtube.com/salontv

Like Salon on Facebook HERE: https://www.facebook.com/salon

Follow Salon on Twitter HERE: https://twitter.com/salon

Follow Salon on Instagram HERE: https://www.instagram.com/salonofficial

New York Magazine writer — and former Salon journalist — Rebecca Traister makes the case that women have used their rage to change the course of history in her new book, “Good and Mad: The Revolutionary Power of Women's Anger,” available now.

Women have been told that their rage is unattractive, unhealthy, overblown, and shrill, but, Traister argues, those claims are bad faith efforts to scare women into silence. She had the privilege to marinate in women’s anger for the four months it took to write the book, she says, and she slept well and felt healthy — perhaps the healthiest she’s ever been.

About “Salon Talks”

Hosted by Salon journalists, “Salon Talks” episodes offer a fresh take on the long-form interview format, and a much-needed break from the partisan political talking heads that have come to dominate the genre. “Salon Talks” is a destination for information through conversation. Viewers can expect discussions with A-list actors, artists, authors, thinkers, and newsmakers as we explore the full range of the human condition. The show streams live on Facebook and Twitter and each episode is published in full on Salon.com.

Watch SalonTV, streaming live daily on Salon.com, and YouTube.

Subscribe to SalonTV on YouTube HERE: https://www.youtube.com/salontv

Like Salon on Facebook HERE: https://www.facebook.com/salon

Follow Salon on Twitter HERE: https://twitter.com/salon

Follow Salon on Instagram HERE: https://www.instagram.com/salonofficial

When she was a young actress starting out in Hollywood a famous agent assessed Lea Thompson's options for her. "She told me, 'Here's your career, Lea: Virgins, whores and mothers.'" Looking back on that moment, she told Salon's Mary Elizabeth Williams on “Salon Talks” how she got the last laugh. "And then I realized why “Back to the Future” is such a great part — because I got to play a virgin, a whore and mother all in one movie."

Yet in a career that's spanned over three decades, Thompson has survived in her notoriously difficult industry by not just being a versatile performer but branching out as a director and producer. It runs in the family — her husband of nearly 30 years is director Howard Deutch, and her daughters Madelyn and Zoey Deutch write, produce and compose. "It's a unique household," she says. And it's taught her a lot about endurance.

About “Salon Talks”

Hosted by Salon journalists, “Salon Talks” episodes offer a fresh take on the long-form interview format, and a much-needed break from the partisan political talking heads that have come to dominate the genre. “Salon Talks” is a destination for information through conversation. Viewers can expect discussions with A-list actors, artists, authors, thinkers, and newsmakers as we explore the full range of the human condition. The show streams live on YouTube and each episode is published in full on Salon.com.

Watch SalonTV, streaming live daily on Salon.com, and YouTube.

Subscribe to SalonTV on YouTube HERE: https://www.youtube.com/salontv

Like Salon on Facebook HERE: https://www.facebook.com/salon

Follow Salon on Twitter HERE: https://twitter.com/salon

Follow Salon on Instagram HERE: https://www.instagram.com/salonofficial

Should an actor's opinions on politics remain separate from their work? Former “Saturday Night Live” cast member Taran Killam, who played Donald Trump on the show before Alec Baldwin, explained to SalonTV why it’s often hard to balance his expression as an American citizen with his expression as an artist.

The actor also opens up about his role opposite Kevin Hart and Tiffany Haddish in the film “Night School,” in theaters September 28, and his upcoming ABC television comedy series “Single Parents,” where he plays an overly involved single dad who hasn’t been on a date in five years. The show premieres September 26.

About “Salon Talks”

Hosted by Salon journalists, “Salon Talks” episodes offer a fresh take on the long-form interview format, and a much-needed break from the partisan political talking heads that have come to dominate the genre. “Salon Talks” is a destination for information through conversation. Viewers can expect discussions with A-list actors, artists, authors, thinkers, and newsmakers as we explore the full range of the human condition. The show streams live on YouTube and each episode is published in full on Salon.com.

Watch SalonTV, streaming live daily on Salon.com, and YouTube.

Subscribe to SalonTV on YouTube HERE: https://www.youtube.com/salontv

Like Salon on Facebook HERE: https://www.facebook.com/salon

Follow Salon on Twitter HERE: https://twitter.com/salon

Follow Salon on Instagram HERE: https://www.instagram.com/salonofficial

Khaled Hosseini, author of the beloved novels "Kite Runner" and "A Thousand Splendid Suns," which tell stories set in the country he was forced to flee 38 years ago, Afghanistan, opens up on "Salon Talks" about why refugee stories are the central focus of his writing career.

Hosseini's latest project, "Sea Prayer,” an illustrated poetry book, tells one refugee’s story of displacement and serves as a window into the refugee crisis in the Middle East. 

Hosseini says he was motivated to write it after seeing the gut-wrenching photo of three-year-old Alan Kurdi, whose small body washed up on a Turkish beach in 2015, after his family attempted to flee Syria. "That photograph, as a father, just bludgeoned me," Hosseini tells Salon. 

About “Salon Talks”

Hosted by Salon journalists, “Salon Talks” episodes offer a fresh take on the long-form interview format, and a much-needed break from the partisan political talking heads that have come to dominate the genre. “Salon Talks” is a destination for information through conversation. Viewers can expect discussions with A-list actors, artists, authors, thinkers, and newsmakers as we explore the full range of the human condition. The show streams live on Facebook and Twitter and each episode is published in full on Salon.com.

Watch SalonTV, streaming live daily on Salon.com, and YouTube.

Subscribe to SalonTV on YouTube HERE: https://www.youtube.com/salontv

Like Salon on Facebook HERE: https://www.facebook.com/salon

Follow Salon on Twitter HERE: https://twitter.com/salon

Follow Salon on Instagram HERE: https://www.instagram.com/salonofficial

Journalist April Ryan has built her career reporting from the White House, where she has covered Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barack Obama and now Donald Trump for over 20 years. The correspondent and Washington bureau chief for American Urban Radio Networks joined “Salon Talks” to set the record straight on her journalism career, which she says is under attack by the Trump administration. 

Ryan says Sarah Huckabee Sanders and Trump have changed the White House’s historic relationship with the press. “They don't want us knowing information. They don't wanna be transparent. There used to be a friendly adversarial relationship with the White House. Now, it's adversarial.”

--

About “Salon Talks”

Hosted by Salon journalists, “Salon Talks” episodes offer a fresh take on the long-form interview format, and a much-needed break from the partisan political talking heads that have come to dominate the genre. “Salon Talks” is a destination for information through conversation. Viewers can expect discussions with A-list actors, artists, authors, thinkers, and newsmakers as we explore the full range of the human condition. The show streams live on Facebook and Twitter and each episode is published in full on Salon.com.

Watch SalonTV, streaming live daily on Salon.com, and YouTube.

Subscribe to SalonTV on YouTube HERE: https://www.youtube.com/salontv

Like Salon on Facebook HERE: https://www.facebook.com/salon

Follow Salon on Twitter HERE: https://twitter.com/salon

Follow Salon on Instagram HERE: https://www.instagram.com/salonofficial

Activist DeRay Mckesson played a major role in documenting the Ferguson protests and the movement birthed to hold law enforcement accountable for the victims of police violence. 

Even though police officer Darren Wilson was never charged for killing Michael Brown, McKesson became a leading voice of Black Lives Matter, We the People and continues to fight for justice as a lecturer, television personality and author. 

He joined D. Watkins for an honest conversation around his harsh critics on Twitter, the future of protest and why he says police aren’t the only way to keep America safe.

About “Salon Talks”

Hosted by Salon journalists, “Salon Talks” episodes offer a fresh take on the long-form interview format, and a much-needed break from the partisan political talking heads that have come to dominate the genre. “Salon Talks” is a destination for information through conversation. Viewers can expect discussions with A-list actors, artists, authors, thinkers, and newsmakers as we explore the full range of the human condition. The show streams live on Facebook and Twitter and each episode is published in full on Salon.com.

Watch SalonTV, streaming live daily on Salon.com, and YouTube.

Subscribe to SalonTV on YouTube HERE: https://www.youtube.com/salontv

Like Salon on Facebook HERE: https://www.facebook.com/salon

Follow Salon on Twitter HERE: https://twitter.com/salon

Follow Salon on Instagram HERE: https://www.instagram.com/salonofficial

The punishments women receive for not appearing sufficiently deferential are steep. You can be the greatest athlete in the world, but if you're female and a woman of color, you will be penalized for behavior that your male counterparts get away with.

Yet activist and “Rage Becomes Her” author Soraya Chemaly has a reassuring message around anger. “There is joy and creativity and immense political power in understanding how to use it." 

About “Salon Talks”

Hosted by Salon journalists, “Salon Talks” episodes offer a fresh take on the long-form interview format, and a much-needed break from the partisan political talking heads that have come to dominate the genre. “Salon Talks” is a destination for information through conversation. Viewers can expect discussions with A-list actors, artists, authors, thinkers, and newsmakers as we explore the full range of the human condition. The show streams live on Facebook and Twitter and each episode is published in full on Salon.com.

Watch SalonTV, streaming live daily on Salon.com, and YouTube.

Subscribe to SalonTV on YouTube HERE: https://www.youtube.com/salontv

Like Salon on Facebook HERE: https://www.facebook.com/salon

Follow Salon on Twitter HERE: https://twitter.com/salon

Follow Salon on Instagram HERE: https://www.instagram.com/salonofficial