In politics and government, it’s all about who has power, who has lost it, and what happens when it’s abused. Matthew Barzun explains this concept of power.

In Belarus, the editor-in-chief of a local news website was detained over the weekend while Russia cracks down on free speech. Journalists Alexey Kovalev and Hanna Liubakova share the latest.

Carol Anderson has devoted her career to investigating many such racial injustices that have scarred America. Now she turns her gaze to the Second Amendment in her new book.

Steven Johnson shares how through scientific advances, humans have gifted ourselves an extra life.

The pandemic has hit children in ways we may not yet be able to quantify. Clinical Psychologist Dr. Becky Kennedy studies these issues in her work.

History shows us that seemingly insurmountable obstacles can sometimes be overcome, and a new film offers a timely reminder of that. The hit play "Oslo" dramatized the genesis of the Oslo Peace Accords, which brought Israelis and Palestinians together in a bid for lasting peace. The play has now been adapted into a film.
Bartlett Sher directed “Oslo” for both stage and screen and joins the show.

More than 150 government agencies, think tanks and other organizations have been hit in a global cyberattack. According to Microsoft, the culprits are the same Russian-backed group that hacked U.S. federal agencies in the SolarWinds data breach last year. So far, the Kremlin says it has no information on the attack. Journalists Susan Glasser and Fintan O’Toole join the show to discuss.

You probably know John Green as the author of bestselling young adult novels like "The Fault in Our Stars," which was turned into a hit film. Also a prolific podcaster, Green has now adapted his podcast "The Anthropocene Reviewed" into a book of essays of the same name, covering everything from sunsets to Diet Dr Pepper to CNN – and ranking them all on a five-star scale.

Kathleen Kingsbury is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and this year took over as opinion editor for The New York Times. She speaks with Walter Isaacson about the modernization of opinion pieces in the digital age and how she decides what to print.

A U.S. intelligence report revealed that several researchers at the Wuhan Institute of Virology fell ill in November 2019. President Biden is now requesting a report into the origins of the virus, and Marc Lipsitch is one of a group of scientists calling for a thorough investigation.

If you ever wondered what might happen if Bach met Biggie Smalls, let us introduce you to the Grammy-nominated duo Black Violin. A classical/hip hop hybrid, they began their musical journey in the classroom, experimenting and pushing the boundaries of genre. Their mission: smashing stereotypes and assumptions about race through their art. They join the show to discuss and to perform.

Turning from the origins of the virus to the road ahead, one important question is: How will we emerge from the pandemic? Ed Yong has been chronicling COVID-19 extensively for The Atlantic, and in a recent piece he looks at “the pandemic’s mental wounds” and adds, “Things are getting better, so why don’t they feel better?”

Hala Alyan is a Palestinian-American writer and clinical psychologist who writes about the impact of generational trauma. She speaks with Michel Martin about how her experience as a Palestinian abroad has inspired her work.

Over the years, the Secret Service has been plagued by scandals and embarrassing missteps. Investigative journalist Carol Leonnig uncovers them in her book "Zero Fail." She joins the show to reveal what she found.

The EU has imposed new sanctions and cut aviation links to Belarus. Yet despite the mounting backlash, Lukashenko does have one important ally: Russian President Vladimir Putin, who will meet with the Belarusian lead in Sochi later this week.

A landmark ruling came out of the Netherlands, as a Dutch court ordered Shell to cut its greenhouse gas emissions nearly in half by 2030.

Democratic Congresswoman Katie Porter believes that the tax code should treat single parents the same way as married couples, so has proposed a bill to eliminate the single parent penalty. It’s a move spurred by her own personal experience, as a mom of three and one of the only single parents serving in the House of Representatives.

One year after George Floyd’s death, we look again at systemic racism in America with Elizabeth Hinton, who aims to put the current racial justice movement in historical context. Her new book “America on Fire” looks at Black rebellion in the 1960s and 70s, and she speaks with Michel Martin about how we got to where we are today.

Today President Joe Biden met with the Floyd family, having asked Congress to pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act by today. Negotiations are ongoing, and Bianna – in for Christiane – speaks with Congresswoman Karen Bass, who was lead author of the Act as passed by the House.

The EU will impose sanctions on Belarus for diverting and grounding a commercial flight for the purpose of arresting dissident journalist Roman Protasevich. What can be done, and what role might Russia play? Correspondent Matthew Chance joins the show from Moscow.