Eyewitness History

Christopher Hitchens remains one of the most influential and controversial writers of his generation. But before the books, the television appearances, the Oxford Union debates and the reputation as one of the great polemicists of his age, he was a young journalist finding his voice.
Steve Wasserman knew that Christopher Hitchens.
Wasserman is a writer, editor, publisher and literary agent who has spent decades at the center of American literary and intellectual life. Over the course of his career, he has worked with and known some of the most important writers and thinkers of the past half-century.
In this episode of Eyewitness History, Steve takes us inside that world.
We discuss Hitchens, including what he was like before he became famous, his extraordinary gifts as a writer and conversationalist, and the qualities that made him such a compelling intellectual figure.
But the conversation goes far beyond Hitchens. Steve and Josh also discuss the craft of writing, the art of editing, the relationship between writers and editors, and the changing world of literary journalism.
Steve also discusses his memoir, Tell Me Something, Tell Me Anything, Even If It's a Lie, and why he chose to tell the story of his life through essays and memories rather than a conventional autobiography.
And Josh discusses his own book, William F. Buckley Jr.'s Guide to Friendship in a Polarized Era, and the enduring importance of intellectual friendships across political and ideological divides.
Topics include:
Christopher Hitchens before he became famous

Hitchens as a young journalist

What made Hitchens such a remarkable writer

Hitchens's approach to writing and argument

The relationship between writers and editors

Steve Wasserman's career in publishing and literary journalism

The art of recognizing great writing

Tell Me Something, Tell Me Anything, Even If It's a Lie

Steve's memories of the literary world

The importance of intellectual curiosity

Writing, friendship and ideological disagreement

Steve's Book: https://www.heydaybooks.com/catalog/tell-me-something-tell-me-anything-even-if-its-a-lie/
HeyDay Festival: https://www.heydaybooks.com/harvest/
Josh's Book: https://www.amazon.com/William-Buckley-Guide-Friendship-Polarized/dp/1956454926
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Jennifer Batten was there. She played guitar beside Michael Jackson during the Bad, Dangerous, and HIStory tours and joined him for the legendary 1993 Super Bowl halftime show.
Now, she takes Eyewitness History inside the rehearsals, nerves, spectacle and extraordinary discipline behind Michael Jackson's greatest live performances.
Find out more about her at her website at https://www.jenniferbatten.com/
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Charles Murray has spent decades challenging Americans to think differently about some of the biggest questions facing society.
In this episode of Eyewitness History, Murray discusses his career as a social scientist, the controversies surrounding his work, and the ideas behind books like Losing Ground, The Bell Curve, and Coming Apart.
We also explore his relationship with William F. Buckley Jr., including his appearance on Buckley's legendary program Firing Line. Drawing from my book, William F. Buckley Jr.'s Guide to Friendship in a Polarized Era, we discuss Buckley's approach to debate, friendship, and engaging with those who held opposing views.
This is a conversation about ideas, controversy, intellectual courage, and the people who helped shape modern America.
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In this episode of Eyewitness History, I speak with Daryl Davis, an American R&B and blues musician, author, and race-relations activist whose life has uniquely bridged the worlds of music and social change.
Davis is widely known for an unconventional and controversial approach to combating racism: engaging directly with members of the Ku Klux Klan and other white supremacist groups through sustained personal dialogue. Over decades of outreach, he has persuaded dozens of Klansmen to renounce their affiliation, and he has documented these encounters in his book Klan-Destine Relationships: A Black Man’s Odyssey in the Ku Klux Klan as well as in the documentary Accidental Courtesy: Daryl Davis, Race & America (2016).
Before his activism gained national attention, Davis established himself as a respected professional musician. A gifted boogie-woogie and blues pianist and vocalist, he studied at Howard University and went on to perform with some of the most iconic figures in American music, including Chuck Berry, Jerry Lee Lewis, B.B. King, Muddy Waters, and Bo Diddley. His playing style reflects deep roots in traditional blues and early rock-and-roll piano, and he has been recognized within the Washington-area and national blues community for both his technical skill and stage presence.
His work is grounded in a belief in communication as a tool for dismantling prejudice, summed up in his view that dialogue, not avoidance, is the most effective response to ignorance and hate.
Here, Davis reflects on his unusual journey, the philosophy behind his outreach to the Klan, and the ways music, conversation, and personal encounter have shaped his understanding of human change.
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In this episode of Eyewitness History, we speak with Jo-Anne Berelowitz, author and art historian, about her captivating auto-fiction memoir Somewhere I Belong. Born in Durban, South Africa, Jo-Anne shares her journey through betrayal, family secrets, and the search for home, tracing her story from her father’s warnings of revolution to uncovering her Jewish grandparents’ history in Lithuania and Russia.
Jo-Anne discusses how identity, displacement, and resilience shaped her life, her career in art history, and ultimately her path to self-discovery. Her story is a poignant exploration of love, loss, and the universal quest to find where one truly belongs.
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