Kimberly Peirce

“I didn’t set out to be a political activist,” says the director of Boys Don’t Cry and Stop-Loss. “I’m just a human being who’s moved by certain things, and if certain things break my heart, I set out to fix them.”

Scott Ritter Interview

“We’ve never been at a greater risk of American military action against Iran,” says the former Marine and U.N. weapons inspector.

George Carlin Interview

George Carlin as political and social philosopher? Why not?

Sydney Pollack Interview

Director Sydney Pollack has been in show business for more than four decades.

Utah Phillips

Utah Phillips is a legend on the folk music circuit. A great storyteller and an unapologetic activist, Phillips sings about both current events and the old days of labor unions, hobos, trains, and tramping. Phillips, sixty-eight, has produced twelve albums and has appeared on seventy-three audio anthologies, doing both music and spoken word.

Jimmy Carter Interview

"The world community knows the basic principles of a solution.

Pulitzer Prize-winning Novelist Junot Diaz interviewed by The Progressive

Pulitzer Prize-winning Novelist Junot Díaz interviewed by The Progressive

Sara Paretsky Interview

“If I were elected President, the first thing I would do would be to set up a Department of Restoring the Bill of Rights,” says the feminist crime novelist.

Amy Goodman Interview

“The media acts as a megaphone for those in power,” says the executive producer and host of Democracy Now.Amy Goodman is one of the leading journalists of our time.

Elizabeth Edwards Interview

“The problem for me with the other candidates is I don’t know what it is that drives them. What is it they really believe in that makes them get up in the morning and want to do this?”

Al Franken Interview

September 2005 Issue

Al Franken dabbled in political subject matter as a writer—and performer during two lengthy stints on Saturday Night Live, as well as on his short-lived NBC sitcom, LateLine. He has also worked in film—most notably as co-writer and star of 1995’s Stuart Saves His Family, a spin-off of the Stuart Smalley character he’d created for SNL. But today, Franken’s politics overshadow his comedy at virtually every turn. Born in New York City, raised in a suburb of Minneapolis, and educated at Harvard, Franken has become a full-time political figure.

Linton Kwesi Johnson Interview

Lyricist Linton Kwesi Johnson was born in Jamaica but has become Britain’s most celebrated black poet.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Interview

“The Democrats are being led around by a nose ring by Karl Rove,” says the attorney and activist.

Gore Vidal Interview

“Bush is a thug. I think there is something really wrong with him,” says the writer.

Stephanie Miller Interview

"For as much as Bill O'Reilly can go and scream, 'Oh, liberal talk isn't working,' someone should ask him why Clear Channel and other huge companies are flipping a different station every week to progressive talk," says the funniest progressive radio talk show host in the land.