STORY IN THE PUBLIC SQUARE

#501 Ken Belson
Professional sports play a giant role in American public life—and their absence has been a much-discussed part of the pandemic. Ken Belson, ace sports reporter for The New York Times, talks about the business of sports and their role in American society and why racial issues in athletics matter.

#502 Maddie McGarvey
While the narrative history of 2020 will take some time to be written, Maddie McGarvey is among the photojournalists already capturing the images of this era and beginning to tell that story.

#503 Donald Warne, MD
The pandemic began as a disease of privilege—those whose employment and wealth enabled them to travel the world were the first Americans affected by the virus. Over time, the pandemic has come to ravage communities on the margins of American life, including Native Americans. Dr. Donald Warne discusses the impact of COVID-19 on indigenous populations and the status of Native Americans, more generally, in 2020.

#504 Mo Rocca
There are some really great dead people, as journalist, humorist, and author Mo Rocca might say. Rocca shares the stories of some of them from his book Mobituaries, while also discussing 2020—the year that feels like a decade.

#505 Hilary Levey Friedman
Whether you love them or hate them, beauty pageants continue to play a significant role in American popular culture. Hillary Levey Friedman argues that their evolution is part of the history of feminism in the United States.

#506 Robert Dallek
The history of the American presidency is full of accomplishments and compromises, successes and failures. Esteemed presidential historian Robert Dallek argues that the giants from both parties in the last 120 years draw a sharp contrast with the characteristics of the Trump presidency.

#507 Candace Fleming
If you grew up in a household that prized reading, you probably recall a book in childhood that shaped your view of the world. Candace Fleming is a children’s book author who educates young readers with works of fiction and non-fiction, alike.

#508 Paul Tremblay
Horror fiction often lets authors explore fantastic ideas found only on the margins of reality. When Bram Stoker Award Winner Paul Tremblay wrote his new novel about a deadly pandemic, he didn’t imagine it would be released in the middle of one.

#514 Gayani Desilva
In the midst of pandemic and social unrest, Americans of every age are coping with the mental health consequences of this era. Psychiatrist Gayani DeSilva cautions that the challenges of being a child or adolescent at this time pose special health risks.

#515 David Shimer
Over the last four years, Americans have heard a lot about Russian interference in our elections. In a new book, David Shimer says we haven’t heard the whole story about those efforts in the Cold War, 2016, or 2020.

#516 Ashish Jha
More than 200,000 Americans have been killed by COVID-19 with some projections saying that number will double by the end of the year. Dr. Ashish Jha explains the tragedy of those numbers in the simple things Americans could still do to more effectively fight the pandemic.

#517 Susan Eisenhower
In the pantheon of American presidents, perhaps none was better prepared for the job than Dwight D. Eisenhower. Respected scholar Susan Eisenhower describes the leadership skills of her grandfather and how they contributed to victory in Europe and his successful presidency.

#518 Kate Aurthur
The pandemic has changed a lot of habits—including the ways in which people around the world spend their leisure time and resources. Kate Aurthur tells us that the entertainment industry—literally built on storytelling—has been among the most effected.

#519 Maggie Smith
It is one of the cruel realities of life for every nation and every individual: we all suffer loss and disappointment. Award winning poet Maggie Smith offers wisdom—and hope—for anyone who knows that pain.

#520 Andrew Siemion
Science fiction is full of stories about communication and contact with civilizations beyond the stars. Dr. Andrew Seimion leads a multi-national effort to scan the heavens for indications of intelligent life.

#521 Lee Drutman
America’s founders worried about the idea of faction—or political parties—tearing at the seams in our union. Lee Drutman warns that today’s partisanship threatens the republic.

#522 Gina Brillon
There hasn’t been much humor in 2020. Gina Brillon, a rising, comic star, brings her Puerto Rican heritage to her standup comedy and talks about the power of laughter amidst so much tragedy.

#523 Gayle Kabaker
The uncertainty of a creative career—waiting for acceptance and dealing with rejection—can be an isolating experience. Gayle Kabaker turned artistic resilience into advice for coping through the pandemic.

#524 Evelyn Farkas
2020 began with presidential impeachment, has seen a global pandemic kill hundreds of thousands of Americans, and ends with concerns over the peaceful transfer of power in the United States. Evelyn Farkas looks back at the stories that made 2020 and helps announce the “Story of the Year.”

#525 Jen Schwartz
Change may be an essential part of human existence, but science journalist Jen Schwartz explores the dislocations in human society caused by the speed with which the world is changing around us.

#526 Alexis Wichowski
Less than a decade ago, information technology seemed wondrous in its ability to make modern life better. Alexis Wichowski discusses the good and the bad of technology’s penetration of our lives as private individuals, as public citizens, and, most broadly, as members of society.