As the pandemic lays bare social, legal, racial and financial injustice in America, it is vital to examine how the system got its start. Kurt Andersen is a best-selling author and journalist whose latest book examines the origins of America’s hyper-capitalism. He speaks with Walter Isaacson about the genesis and propagation of the system--and the need to take a step back.

A historic choice in American presidential politics at a historic time in America: Sen. Kamala Harris becomes the first Black female vice presidential candidate in American history. Valerie Jarrett, former adviser to President Obama, responds to this development.

Upon filing a complaint about vote rigging on Sunday, Belarusian presidential candidate Svetlana Tikhanovskaya was arrested and held for seven hours by authorities. She then fled to neighboring Lithuania, citing concern for the safety of her children. Lithuania’s Foreign Minister played a role in ensuring safe haven for Tikhanovskaya. He joins the program to assess these alarming developments.

The world urgently needs an effective COVID-19 vaccine. Behind much of the research is Bill Gates, who is dedicating billions of dollars to helping ensure that when a vaccine arrives, it will be affordable and accessible to those most in need. He speaks with Walter Isaacson about his belief that much of the testing being done in America is a complete waste.

Andrei Sannikov was once Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko’s deputy foreign minister, but they are emphatically no longer allies. Sannikov ran against the president in 2010 and came in second, only to be jailed shortly afterwards and subjected to horrifying treatment. He joins the program from Warsaw, Poland, where he is living in exile.

President Trump, still fighting to hide his financial history, now demands that the Manhattan District Attorney reveal why he issued a subpoena for eight years of tax returns and other documents. Trump’s lawyers argue the president is being “harassed.” Christiane speaks with legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin to discuss this as well as Toobin’s new book on the Mueller Investigation.

Beijing’s crackdown on democracy in Hong Kong has re-escalated with the latest high-profile arrest under the new national security law. Claudia Mo spent 30 years as a journalist in the region and now serves as an independent pro-democracy member of the Legislative Council. She joins the show to discuss.

David Kaye served for six years as the United Nations’ Special Rapporteur on the Promotion and Protection of the Right to Freedom of Opinion and Expression, and he joins Hari Sreenivasan to discuss how the pandemic has prompted the newest tactic in the authoritarian leadership playbook.

To discuss the best way forward for the country’s ailing healthcare system, Christiane speaks with progressive Saikat Chakrabarti, who served as chief of staff to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and Jennifer Granholm, the former governor of Michigan.

Lebanon's economy and food security are at a breaking point, and calls for change have been years in the making. The same factions have ruled Lebanon for decades, and many accuse them of benefiting from corruption while ordinary people starve. Lebanon's Former Deputy Prime Minister Ghassan Hasbani joins the program to discuss.

Mona Fawaz is Professor of Urban Studies at the American University of Beirut and an active critic of the government in Lebanon. She and her family were in Beirut at the time of Tuesday's explosion. She joins Christiane to discuss her experience and assess the government's response to the situation.

Remember the name Theranos? It was touted as a revolutionary blood-testing start-up--until 2018, when it came crashing down and its founder, Elizabeth Holmes, was charged with fraud. Tyler Shultz worked at the company before becoming a whistleblower about the technology, which didn't actually work. He joins Hari to discuss lessons learned as it relates to the hunt for a COVID-19 vaccine.

A suit filed in Washington, D.C. raises stunning new allegations against Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman. Dr. Saad Al-Jabri, a former top Saudi intelligence official, claims Bin Salman sent an assassination squad to kill him just two weeks after the brutal murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. His son joins Christiane from Toronto for this exclusive interview.

New York Times Investigative Correspondent Mark Mazzetti is running down the latest allegations against the Saudi leadership, as well as new reports that Saudi Arabia may be moving toward developing a nuclear weapon. He joins Christiane from Washington to discuss.

In his new book, political strategist Stuart Stevens turns on his old party. Titled "It Was All a Lie: How the Republican Party Became Donald Trump," the book argues President Trump is the natural outcome of five decades of Republican hypocrisy and self-delusion.

What's at stake for voters when a president and his party drum up fears about an election's integrity? LaTosha Brown is a community organizer, political strategist and co-founder of the Black Voters Matter Fund, and Ari Berman is an author and senior reporter at Mother Jones. They tell Hari Sreenivasan what voters must watch out for this fall.

Christiane speaks with one of the few remaining survivors of Hiroshima: 88-year-old Setsuko Thurlow, who became an activist after surviving the bombing and received the Nobel Peace Prize on behalf of the international campaign to abolish nuclear weapons in 2017. She recounts the agonizing memories and explains why there is reason for hope.

This year, a historic British Vogue September issue highlights activists in the fight for racial justice. The cover was the work of Misan Harriman, the first Black photographer to shoot a September cover, backed by an all-Black team. The cover features soccer star and anti-poverty campaigner Marcus Rashford and model and mental-health activist Adwoa Aboah. Harriman tells Christiane about his work.

Oprah Winfrey says Isabel Wilkerson's book "Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents" is a game-changer and the most important volume she's ever chosen for her book club. Wilkerson was the first Black woman to win the Pulitzer Prize for journalism. Her latest book calls out America's obsession with the term "race."

Global pandemic notwithstanding, President Trump has launched an on-again-off-again verbal war against America's leading infectious disease expert: his task force adviser, Dr. Anthony Fauci. The president recently tweeted that Fauci was "wrong" that the surge in cases is due to the country's failure to shut down properly. Fauci joins Walter Isaacson to discuss the challenges facing the U.S.