The Arik Korman Show

Author and international journalist Putsata Reang talks about layers and levels of war, what it was like growing up in rural Oregon as a person from Cambodia, and how Putsata got over the idea that she owed her mother for saving her life. Putsata's debut memoir is Ma and Me.

Ruth Ben-Ghiat, internationally acclaimed historian, speaker, and political commentator for CNN and The Washington Post, discusses whether the strongman style of rule is becoming more prevalent around the world, whether strongmen have been intentional about the ways they chip away at democracy, and what happens when strongmen feel like their power is eroding. Professor Ben-Ghiat's latest book is S...

Documentary filmmaker Daniel Roher shares his impressions of Alexei Navalny as a person, how he was able to tell Navalny's story from so many angles, and what he predicts will be Navalny's future. Daniel's latest film, Navalny, opened this year's Seattle International Film Festival. Navalny is now streaming on CNN and broadcast, and will be available on HBO Max at the end of May.

Mark Follman, National Affairs Editor for Mother Jones, shares which warning signs could prevent mass shootings, how to keep bias out of the threat assessment process, and how to know when is the right time to intervene. Mark's new book is Trigger Points: Inside the Mission to Stop Mass Shootings in America.

Luma Mufleh, the founder of Fugees Family whose TED Talk on educational justice for refugee families has been viewed more than 1.7 million times, discusses what it's like being dropped into a classroom when you don't know English, what supports we should provide to students who are refugees, and how we can focus on the assets that refugees bring to our schools and our society. Luma’s new book is L...

Clive Thompson, longtime contributing writer for the New York Times Magazine and columnist for Wired, discusses the evolution of hackers, how bias is baked into our software systems, and how social media platforms started off with serious flaws because their programmers lacked diversity. Clive's new book is Coders: The Making of a New Tribe and the Remaking of the World.

Lawyer and art historian Amy Herman, who consults the New York City Police Department, the FBI, the French National Police, the U.S. Department of Defense, Interpol, the State Department, Fortune 500 companies, first responders, retailers, and the military, discusses how to use art to solve real-life problems, how art can help eliminate bias, and how art can boost our visual intelligence. Amy’s ne...

Pacific Northwest Ballet Principal Dancer Noelani Pantastico shares how you come down to earth after giving a world-class dance performance, what it was like living in Monte Carlo, and how it feels to wrap up a 25-year ballet career. See her star in Roméo et Juliette one last time streaming at PNB.org February 24-28.

Irish comedian Maeve Higgins shares what it was like transitioning from a small town in Ireland to living in New York City, how to talk to our kids about the importance of having friends and family in their lives, and how the pandemic helped her appreciate friends even more. Maeve’s new book is Tell Everyone on This Train I Love Them.

Dr. Nate Zinsser, Director of the Performance Psychology Program at the US Military Academy at West Point and a sport-psychology mentor for numerous elite athletes including two-time Super Bowl MVP Eli Manning, discusses how we can be our own best friend without being delusional about our abilities, how to handle failure, and how to trust that we actually CAN perform at a high level. Dr. Zinsser’s...

Molecular biologist Christopher Kemp talks about how complex navigation actually is, whether we should look at people who can't navigate as having a disability, and how we can change our navigational abilities. Christopher's new book is Dark and Magical Places: The Neuroscience of Navigation.

ABC News anchor and correspondent Diane Macedo shares tools to help us sleep better, why sleep is so important, and how to recognize if we, or our kids, have a sleep problem. Diane's new book is The Sleep Fix: Practical, Proven, and Surprising Solutions for Insomnia, Snoring, Shift Work, and More.

Book reviewer, essayist, and author Amy Gentry discusses whether a college student works for the professor or vice-versa, what we should tell our kids about the pressures of higher education, and how the graduate school environment encourages students to behave badly toward each other. Amy's latest novel is Bad Habits.

Historical fantasy novelist Nicole Glover talks about how the Underground Railroad worked, how to help our kids find an unbiased version of history, and when it's the right time to add fantasy to historical fiction. Nicole's debut novel is The Conductors.

Charles Wheelan, bestselling author of Naked Statistics and Naked Economics, shares how his family changed after traveling together for nearly a year, how travel shapes a child's worldview, and how the family worked through meltdowns. Charlie’s new book is We Came, We Saw, We Left: A Family Gap Year – Nine Months, Six Continents, Three Teenagers.

Dr. Giulio Boccaletti, a globally recognized expert on natural resource security and environmental sustainability, discusses how sustainable and stable our water infrastructure is in the face of climate change, what we can tell our kids about water, and whether democracies have been better at managing water than authoritarian regimes. Dr. Boccaletti’s new book is Water: A Biography.

Keith Boykin, CNN political commentator, New York Times best-selling author, and a former White House aide to President Bill Clinton, discusses whether the end of white supremacy in the United States is inevitable as demographics shift, how we can agree on what's real and what's not, and who we are as a country. Keith’s new book is Race Against Time: The Politics of a Darkening America.

Bobby and Cheryl Love share their remarkable true story of an escaped convict and his wife of thirty-five-plus years who never knew his secret and discuss how to steer our kids away from prison, how we can restructure our criminal justice system, and how they worked through Bobby's big secret. Bobby and Cheryl's new book is The Redemption of Bobby Love: A Story of Faith, Family, and Justice.

New York Times bestselling science author Mary Roach discusses whether an animal that harms a human always has to face capital punishment, how we can talk to our kids about appreciating nature without getting hurt, and how we can peacefully coexist with dangerous animals. Mary's new book is Fuzz: When Nature Breaks the Law.

Political journalist Eric Garcia discusses the many myths surrounding autism, why the right terminology is important, and how we can strike a balance between giving autistic people support to function in a neurotypical world and respecting who they are as individuals. His new book is We’re Not Broken: Changing the Autism Conversation.

Acclaimed writer Olivia Laing discusses how our bodies are full of power, how to talk to our kids about big issues like racial justice and climate change without putting the weight of the world upon them, and why physical protests in the streets are so important. Olivia's new book is Everybody: A Book About Freedom.

Carleton University professor Sarah Everts shares what our sweat reveals about us, how sweating became stigmatized, and why some of us sweat more... or less... than others. Sarah's new book is The Joy of Sweat: The Strange Science of Perspiration.

Award-winning editor and reporter Alastair Gee and writer Dani Anguiano discuss whether destructive fires like the one that leveled the California town of Paradise are the new normal, what actions we can take to prevent future devastation, and how these fires are related to climate change. Their latest book is Fire in Paradise: An American Tragedy.

Writer Gregory Brown shares why the story of the place where you live is so important, how to talk to our kids about creating a world where every culture is valued, and how to co-exist with the Indigenous community in a way that's equitable. Gregory’s debut novel is The Lowering Days.

Rob Barnett - headhunter, digital media innovator, and former president of programming at CBS Radio and senior executive at MTV, VH1, and Audible - shares how to figure out what you really want to do for work, how to know when it's time to move on to a new job opportunity, and how much to encourage our kids to pursue their dreams. Rob’s new book is Next Job, Best Job: A Headhunter's 11 Strategies...