History

Former marine Donovan Campbell led a platoon against insurgents in Iraq. His memoir of his experiences is Joker One: A Marine Platoon's Story of Courage, Leadership, and Brotherhood.

Simon Johnson, former research director of the International Monetary Fund, analyzes the bank bailout plan and its alternatives.

Ethan Bronner is the Jerusalem bureau chief for The New York Times. He joins Fresh Air host Terry Gross to discuss recent developments in Gaza.

In his new book, We Can Have Peace In The Holy Land: A Plan That Will Work, former President Jimmy Carter presents his strategy to end fighting between Israelis and Palestinians.

The New York Times foreign correspondent Dexter Filkins reports that the Taliban are waging an increasingly aggressive campaign in Afghanistan — a fact evidenced by a 40 percent increase in Afghan civilian deaths in 2008.

Journalist Jane Mayer expects that an upcoming Supreme Court case will force the Obama administration to clarify its policy towards fighting terrorism — and define its stance on preventative detention of suspected terrorists.

Kevin Rafferty's film Harvard Beats Yale 29-29 chronicles the famous 1968 football game between the two rivals. Rafferty's other movies include The Atomic Cafe and The Last Cigarette.

Washington Post senior correspondent Thomas Ricks says the Iraq war is likely to last at least another five to 10 years. He has written a new book about General David Petraeus and the Iraq war called The Gamble.

Maureen Corrigan reviews Brothers, Yu Hua's epic, 600-plus-page comedy that details life in a Chinese village from the early days of the Cultural Revolution to the giddy capitalist present.

Parkinson's disease is part of journalist Dave Iverson's personal history: His father had it, his brother has it and he has it. Now, a new PBS "Frontline" documentary, My Father, My Brother, and Me chronicles Iverson's attempt to understand the disease.

Critic-at-large John Powers reviews Harvard Beats Yale 29-29, the new documentary about the famous 1968 game.

Robot soldiers are no longer just the stuff of sci-fi fantasy. As technological warfare expert P.W. Singer explains in his new book, Wired For War, some military tasks previously assigned to humans are now being handled by machines.

Eric Foner, author of Our Lincoln, talks about the era following the Civil War in which former slaves were promised equal rights and citizenship. Foner is DeWitt Clinton Professor of History at Columbia University.

Ta-Nehisi Coates grew up in the post-civil rights era, son of a publisher and former Black Panther; he's a contributing editor and blogger for The Atlantic magazine and author of the memoir The Beautiful Struggle: A Father, 2 Sons, and An Unlikely Road to Manhood.

Macroeconomist Dean Baker sees opportunity in the current economic crisis. In a recent editorial for The Guardian, Baker recommended that President-elect Barack Obama boost the economy by spending on national health insurance.

N. Gregory Mankiw is skeptical that a stimulus plan centered around a large up-tick in government spending will effectively bolster the economy.

After 44 years as a newspaper man, former Washington Post executive editor Leonard Downie Jr. makes his debut as a fiction writer. His new novel, Rules Of The Game, features an investigative reporter on the beat of a hotly contested presidential election.

In his 2008 book, Torture Team, British lawyer Philippe Sands accuses the Bush administration of condoning harsh interrogation techniques.

The Homefront Collection, a new DVD set from Warner Home Video, showcases three World War II-era Hollywood musicals: This Is the Army, Thank Your Lucky Stars and Hollywood Canteen.