New Yorker magazine
Pulitzer Prize-winning author and screenwriter, and staff writerfor The New Yorker; author of The Terror Years: From al-Qaeda to the Islamic State; former fellow at the Center on Law and Security at New York University
PROFILE
Lawrence Wright
Guest
FROM Lawrence Wright
To the Point
America and the threat of terrorism, 15 years after 9/11 The September 11 attacks on American soil changed the national consciousness by creating a new awareness about al-Qaeda and the threat of jihad. Pulitzer Prize-winner Lawrence Wright has written extensively about how much has changed in the past 15 years. He's collected ten essays he produced for the New Yorker magazine in the book The Terror Years: From al-Qaeda to the Islamic State .
To the Point
The Secret Civilian Effort to save American ISIS Hostages What would you do if a loved one were taken hostage overseas? For the families of five Americans held in Syria, the answer was "anything and everything." Then they ran up against American law. In May of last year, "Five American families, each harboring a grave secret, took their seats around a dining table… in Washington, DC." That's the beginning of a lengthy story on the web site of the New Yorker magazine about families whose children had been captured by terrorist groups in Syria. They felt that "US officials had abandoned them. So they secretly joined forces." Lawrence Wright is the reporter. Journalist James Foley with his one of his ISIS captors Photo by Elmar Eye Special thanks to Paul von Zielbauer for production assistance.
Press Play with Madeleine Brand
Thirteen Days in September Peace in the Middle East seems pretty hopeless most of the time. There was a moment, though, when it didn’t. In 1978, Egypt and Israel negotiated an historic peace agreement -- one that survives to this day. We hear from Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Lawrence Wright, who has written a behind-the-scenes look at the Camp David accords.
The Business
Scientology and Hollywood Lawrence Wright is a Pulitzer Prize-winning author and writer for The New Yorker magazine. His 2011 profile of former Scientologist and Oscar-winning screenwriter and director Paul Haggis led to the publication of Wright's new book, Going Clear : Scientology, Hollywood, and the Prison of Belief. Wright talks with Kim about the origin of the religion and its founder L. Ron Hubbard 's philosophy. They also discuss the close link that the Church and its leader, David Miscavige, has with Hollywood. Tom Cruise and John Travolta are the two most high-profile members. KCRW reached out to the Church of Scientology for comment. They sent a letter denouncing the contents of Wright's book. You can read that letter and hear the largely unedited version of the interview is at KCRW.com/Scientology .
To the Point
Scientology and Hollywood When L. Ron Hubbard founded Scientology , he hoped to recruit such figures as Walt Disney, Marlene Dietrich and Jackie Gleason. A new book reports on the church and its relationship with Hollywood. Kim Masters, host of KCRW's The Business , recently sat down with Lawrence Wright, a Pulitzer Prize winner whose latest book is Going Clear : Scientology, Hollywood and the Prison of Belief. (In response to our request for comment, the Church of Scientology sent a four-page letter saying that Wright's book is "riddled with mistakes, unfounded statements and utterly false and unsupportable facts." The complete interview is available at KCRW.com/Scientology , where you can also find a transcript and the full text of the church's letter.)
Which Way, L.A.?
Settlements, War Crimes and Middle East Peace In Marrakesh, Morocco, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told Arab leaders the US will deliver on President Obama's promise of a "new start" with the Muslim world. But first she backed away from earlier statements denounced by some of those same leaders as threatening to set back the Israeli-Palestinian peace process by ten years.
To the Point
Settlements, War Crimes and Middle East Peace President Obama has promised a "new start" with the world's Muslims, but Secretary of State Clinton is finding again that's easier said than done. In Morocco, she told Arab leaders the US will deliver on President Obama's promise of a "new start" with the Muslim world, but first backed away from earlier statements denounced by some of those same leaders as threatening to set back the Israeli-Palestinian peace process by ten years. In the meantime, Congress is about to formally agree with Israel and denounce the UN's " Goldstone Report " about war crimes before and during the invasion of Gaza. We update US diplomacy in the Middle East and the prospects for getting peace talks started again.
To the Point
The Father of Radical Jihad Calls for Restraint Despite recent warnings about al Qaeda, CIA Director Michael Hayden has told the Washington Post the terrorist movement is "essentially defeated in both Iraq and Saudi Arabia and on the defensive through much of the rest of the world." This week's New Yorker magazine reports that radical Islam is "confronting a rebellion within its ranks." Lawrence Wright is a New Yorker staff writer.
Recommended
To the Point
The Trump agenda: where's the beef? President Trump says big things are happening. After celebrating a House bill on health care, he doesn’t yet have Senate agreement. With James Comey’s public testimony scheduled tomorrow, the President today tweeted his selection of a new FBI Director. Is the Chief Executive all style and no substance? Later, terror attacks in Iran and conflicting claims about who’s behind them.
To the Point
What is Trump's plan for Middle East peace? On his first foreign tour, President Trump has promised "peace" between Israel and the Palestinians. Are there any details for re-starting talks that have been stalled for the past three years?
To the Point
Is the threat from Russia missing from the Russia meddling probe? There's much being made about the Trump administration's possible ties with Russia. But the bottom line is Russia's effort to influence American democracy. Do the President and his aides care enough to take action before voters go back to the polls?