David speaks with blues field recorder, George Mitchell about his experience traveling across the country, in particular the south, in search of blues artists otherwise unknown to the broader american public. George Mitchell is credited with making the first ever recordings of the Mississippi blues man R.L. Burnside. A seven CD box set of his recordings is available on Fat Possum records and is titled simply The George Mitchell Collection.

David speaks with New York Times correspondent Jeffrey Gettleman. Gettleman was formerly stationed here in Atlanta but now serves as the East Africa bureau chief for the NY Times. For the past two years, he has been reporting from Africa where he his beat includes the Sudan, the Congo, Kenya, etc. In this conversation, he discusses with David the current political unrest in Somalia

David speaks with former CIA case officer and analyst, John Kiriakou about his book The Reluctant Spy: My Secret Life in the CIA’s War on Terror. Kiriakou worked extensively in Afghanistan and Pakistan and helped lead the capture and interrogation of Abu Zubaydah. He was also the first CIA officer to admit to the use of waterboarding by the US as an interrogation technique.

Ryan Gravel is the man credited with first coming-up with the idea for Atlanta’s Beltline project. He actually first conceived of the idea for his master’s thesis at GA Tech but it would later be championed by a wide range of government, community, and business groups. He will speak to David about the genesis of the Beltline and it’s current status.

David speaks with legendary unauthorized biographer Kitty Kelley. In the past, she has written about subjects as diverse as Frank Sinatra, the British Royals, Elizabeth Taylor, Jaqueline Onassis etc. But most recently, she has penned what may in fact be her most controversial work, or at least most unwelcome, a biogrpahy of Opera Winfrey.

Newsweek columnist Johnathan Alter speaks with David Lewis about his newest book The Promise: President Obama Year One. The book follows the first year of Obama’s presidency and what he did and didn’t accomplish. The book includes interviews with all the members of Obama’s administration and cabinet.