Bill Clinton’s first term encompassed controversies from the Israeli-Palestinian Oslo accords and gays in the military to the North American Free Trade Agreement and an attempt at healthcare reform. A fascinating social, cultural and political history of American life, through the words of British-American journalist and broadcaster, Alistair Cooke (1908 – 2004).
Episodes available:
Indefinitely 
Fri, 27 Dec 96
Duration:
14 mins
Santa Claus or Father Christmas? The origin of the Patron saint of Christmas is explored. Plus, the surprising popularity of a Tickle Me Elmo toy has caused prices to skyrocket.
Fri, 20 Dec 96
Duration:
14 mins
A tribute to Mr Boutros Boutros-Ghali, former leader of the UN General Assembly, whose peacekeeping skills were put to the test during the Rwandan Genocide.
Fri, 13 Dec 96
Duration:
14 mins
Madeleine Albright becomes the first Secretary of State in America, and investigations reveal a possible chemical cause of Gulf War Syndrome.
Fri, 6 Dec 96
Duration:
14 mins
Cults of California, tolerance in San Francisco, and the permissive parenting backlash are discussed by Alistair Cooke in this week's Letter From America.
Fri, 29 Nov 96
Duration:
14 mins
From California, Alistair Cooke examines the un-politicised institution of Thanksgiving and the changing face of US politics.
Fri, 22 Nov 96
Duration:
14 mins
After public revelations of cases of sexual violence in the US Army and Navy Alistair Cooke examines the scandal of the sexual harassment of women in America's armed forces.
Fri, 15 Nov 96
Duration:
14 mins
US intervention in the Rwandan refugee crisis and the history of President Clinton's press conferences.
Fri, 8 Nov 96
Duration:
15 mins
The results of the presidential elections and how technology is turning busy television studios into silent cathedrals, as discussed by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 1 Nov 96
Duration:
14 mins
The history Halloween, the origin of the vampire myth and the roaring business performed by pumpkin farmers during the month of October.
Fri, 25 Oct 96
Duration:
14 mins
A season of disaster, forest fires, tornadoes, earthquakes and leads to a recollection of a vast storm in 1938 which descended on the Northern Atlantic coast.
Fri, 18 Oct 96
Duration:
14 mins
The science of electoral prediction and the possible pitfalls of keeping one ear to the ground following the Dole and Clinton debates.
Fri, 11 Oct 96
Duration:
15 mins
Vice-presidential responsibilities, the careers of Bob Dole, Dan Quayle and Jack Kemp, and the false predictions of Lord Kelvin, Albert Einstein and Arthur C Clarke.
Fri, 4 Oct 96
Duration:
14 mins
The first presidential debate between President Clinton and Mr Dole, and the unique election advantage gifted to incumbent presidents, the presidential halo.
Fri, 27 Sep 96
Duration:
15 mins
Boris Yeltsin's heart-bypass surgery and the cultures of secrecy that have surrounded the heath and governance of gravely ill leaders.
Fri, 20 Sep 96
Duration:
15 mins
As O J Simpson's civil trial begins Alistair Cooke considers what can be gained from a civil suit and examines the differences in the way the new trial is being run.
Fri, 13 Sep 96
Duration:
14 mins
The Defense of Marriage Act and the implications it has to same sex marriage, and news from Bob Dole's floundering presidential campaign.
Fri, 6 Sep 96
Duration:
14 mins
The US cruise missile strike in Iraq, the claims that the first Gulf War was left unfinished and the complexities of the first conflict, as discussed by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 30 Aug 96
Duration:
14 mins
The Democratic Party convention returning to Chicago, the history of the city and the 'circus within a plague' of the last, disastrous conference of 1968.
Fri, 23 Aug 96
Duration:
14 mins
The return of Ross Perot as a presidential candidate, the prohibition of third-trimester abortions, the proliferation of guns and the education of children about global warming.
Fri, 16 Aug 96
Duration:
14 mins
The history of the party nomination conventions, the switch to the primary election as the method of choosing a presidential candidate, and Bill Clinton's lead in the polls.
Fri, 9 Aug 96
Duration:
15 mins
The commercialisation and crass television coverage of the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, and the effect that an influx of money has on sport.
Fri, 2 Aug 96
Duration:
14 mins
The presidential race, US welfare and healthcare reform and the prurience and pressure surrounding the TWA flight 800 crash investigation.
Fri, 26 Jul 96
Duration:
14 mins
The TWA Flight 800 crash and the media coverage of the accident, the casino life of the financial markets and Bob Dole's reluctance to embrace the 1990s.
Fri, 19 Jul 96
Duration:
14 mins
The Helms-Burton bill, which penalises foreign companies doing business with Cuba, Senator Jessie Helms and tobacco , and the importance of Southern states to President Clinton.
Fri, 12 Jul 96
Duration:
15 mins
A reflection on the life and legal crusade of the flamboyant US celebrity lawyer Melvin Belli, self-proclaimed defender of the 'little helpless guy'.
Fri, 5 Jul 96
Duration:
14 mins
Boris Yeltsin's victory in the Russian presidential elections, the relative novelty of universal suffrage in the West and the need for democracy, as discussed by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 21 Jun 96
Duration:
14 mins
The death of Max Factor Jnr. and the origin of the word "make-up" are the subjects considered by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 14 Jun 96
Duration:
14 mins
With Bob Dole resigning from the Senate, Alistair Cooke examines the legislator's time as Senate leader and explores the uncertain future of the Republican Party.
Fri, 7 Jun 96
Duration:
14 mins
The death of Timothy Leary, the impact of LSD in the 1960s, and the need for each generation to rebel against the one before, as chronicled by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 31 May 96
Duration:
15 mins
Memorial Day, now indistinguishable from Veteran's Day, leads Cooke to consider on how recognition of military service has changed and, how Bill Clinton joined the US army.
Fri, 24 May 96
Duration:
14 mins
The unique power of single issue groups in American presidential elections and President Clinton's stance on gay marriage are discussed by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 17 May 96
Duration:
14 mins
The preparations for the upcoming presidential elections, and the resurgence of the legal and moral debate over assisted suicide in the US, as considered by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 10 May 96
Duration:
15 mins
The diplomacies of Wilson and Roosevelt, Ronald Reagan's Star Wars defence programme, and the American response to international elections, as detailed by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 3 May 96
Duration:
15 mins
The sale of President Kennedy's rocking chair, JFK's ailments and the discreetness of the press, as discussed by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 26 Apr 96
Duration:
14 mins
The life and work of columnist Erma Bombeck, "America's only woman humourist", and writer of "At Wit's End", is remembered by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 19 Apr 96
Duration:
14 mins
The University of South Florida's reaction to a bomb threat leads Alistair Cooke to consider the emergence and nature of America's new anti-terrorism laws.
Fri, 19 Apr 96
Duration:
14 mins
The University of South Florida's reaction to a bomb threat leads Alistair Cooke to consider the emergence and nature of America's new anti-terrorism laws.
Fri, 12 Apr 96
Duration:
14 mins
The rise of Montana's armed insurgents, their historical inheritance and their opposition in the FBI, as chronicled by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 5 Apr 96
Duration:
14 mins
Euthanasia, and the right to die for the terminally ill, the case of Karen Ann Quinlan, and Dr Jack Kevorkian, the Michigan doctor who has helped 27 dying people.
Fri, 29 Mar 96
Duration:
14 mins
Ross Perot and Pat Buchanan's challenge to Bob Dole in the race for the Republican presidential nomination and how a thief in the night may yet undo Bill Clinton.
Fri, 22 Mar 96
Duration:
14 mins
On the 50th anniversary of his Letter from America broadcasts Alistair Cooke re-presents the first talk, describing his return from an austere Britain to a bountiful New York.
Fri, 15 Mar 96
Duration:
15 mins
The Lockerbie bombing, the unpredictable threat of terrorism and the difficulty of making anti-terror laws compatible with constitutional rights, as discussed by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 8 Mar 96
Duration:
14 mins
Fifty years after Churchill's speech warning of Soviet ambitions in Europe, Alistair Cooke considers the new threat posed by communist China.
Fri, 23 Feb 96
Duration:
14 mins
Presidential candidate Pat Buchanan, divisions within the Republican Party and the greatest anxiety of "middle America" are discussed by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 16 Feb 96
Duration:
14 mins
The varied nature of democratic governments, the legal and political powers of state government and the arcane operation of the US tax system are considered by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 9 Feb 96
Duration:
14 mins
Phineas T Barnum, Hershel Geguzin and Ruldolph Walter Wanderone, three notable fraudsters, are all profiled by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 2 Feb 96
Duration:
14 mins
The importance of the New Hampshire primary election in the race to become president is the subject of a discussion by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 26 Jan 96
Duration:
14 mins
President Clinton's State of the Union Address and the origins and purposes of the grand jury system.
Fri, 19 Jan 96
Duration:
14 mins
The controversy surrounding Hilary Clinton's involvement in the presidency and the actions of Mrs Roosevelt and Mrs Adams, are the subject of a comparison by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 12 Jan 96
Duration:
14 mins
The New York blizzard of 1996, the great snowfall of 1947 and the "paralysing anxiety" during the blizzard of 1888, as chronicled by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 5 Jan 96
Duration:
14 mins
A halt on US Government services and the consequence of the refusal to pass a continuing resolution on the Budget Balancing Bill, as discussed by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 29 Dec 95
Duration:
15 mins
A Christmas spent in Vermont, the joy of experiencing absolute silence and the progress of the federal government shutdown are discussed by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 22 Dec 95
Duration:
15 mins
The adaptability of American soldiers, the debate in Congress over the reading of prayers in schools, and what makes a good government are discussed by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 15 Dec 95
Duration:
14 mins
The arrival of the first America soldiers in Bosnia in December 1995, the harsh conditions they face and the position of the constitution on the declaration of war.
Fri, 8 Dec 95
Duration:
15 mins
The Pulitzer winning journalist James "Scottie" Reston (1909-1995) and the writer's transition from young sports commentator to respected political columnist.
Fri, 1 Dec 95
Duration:
14 mins
The relationship between church and state, the future of a monument to the Ten Commandments and the existence of freedom of speech in the classroom are explored by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 24 Nov 95
Duration:
14 mins
A possible end to the conflict in Bosnia, the role of the US in the peace treaty, and why the city of Dayton became the venue for the signing in November 1995.
Fri, 17 Nov 95
Duration:
14 mins
The federal government shutdown on November 14 1995, the events leading up to this national crisis, and an exploration of the history of US debt and the proposed solutions.
Fri, 10 Nov 95
Duration:
14 mins
General Colin Powell's electoral appeal, the apathy towards Republican candidates and a shift in political reporting are discussed by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 3 Nov 95
Duration:
14 mins
The formation of Quebec, the American and Canadian relationship with France and the possibility of a divided neighbour to the north, are explored by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 27 Oct 95
Duration:
14 mins
The visit of Yasser Arafat to New York City to meet with the United Nations in 1995, the traffic carnage caused in the city and his plea to reconstitute the Security Council.
Fri, 20 Oct 95
Duration:
14 mins
The importance of big business to President Clinton’s re-election campaign.
Fri, 13 Oct 95
Duration:
14 mins
The race issues surrounding the OJ Simpson trial, the emergence of the black middle class and the future for a divided America, as discussed by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 6 Oct 95
Duration:
14 mins
How do Americans feel about the OJ Simpson trial following the delivery of the verdict in October 1995?
Fri, 29 Sep 95
Duration:
14 mins
An examination of the increased rate change in America and the possible entrance of Colin Powell and Ross Perot to the Presidential race, as discussed by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 22 Sep 95
Duration:
14 mins
The dangers of an online America, the importance of considering a sentence before committing it to paper, and the possible return of the Luddites are considered by Alistair Cooke.
Thu, 14 Sep 95
Duration:
14 mins
The events which led to the resignation of Senator Robert Packwood, and what Packwood's diary tells us about the lobbying system are explored by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 8 Sep 95
Duration:
15 mins
Labor Day 1995, the continuation of the OJ Simpson murder trial, and President Clinton's promises for campaign for re-election in 1996. Share this page
Fri, 1 Sep 95
Duration:
14 mins
Senator Bill Bradley's decision to not run for re-election to the Senate, the 'broken' nature of American politics and the role of a third political party.
Fri, 25 Aug 95
Duration:
14 mins
As President Clinton takes his summer holiday, Alistair Cooke explores the way in which presidential vacations have become less about relaxation and more about public relations.
Fri, 18 Aug 95
Duration:
14 mins
The concept of local identity and blurring of state lines, the delivery of water to 19th century farmers and environmental policy are examined by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 11 Aug 95
Duration:
15 mins
A recollection of the events leading up to the use of the atomic bomb to end the Second World War, and an examination of the thirty year controversy that followed.
Fri, 4 Aug 95
Duration:
14 mins
As the American relationship with tobacco changes, should President Franklin D Roosevelt's memorial statue still include his omnipresent cigarette?
Fri, 28 Jul 95
Duration:
13 mins
A discussion on the difficulty of predicting the results of the 1996 election, and a recollection of the mistake that dashed the presidential hopes of Governor George Romney.
Fri, 21 Jul 95
Duration:
14 mins
The Smith-Corona Company application for bankruptcy, the demise of the manual typewriter, and the response of the American public to the conflict in Bosnia.
Fri, 14 Jul 95
Duration:
14 mins
United Nations intervention in Bosnia, the failure of Bill Clinton to act on the crisis, and the inspiration the president may draw from Roman Emperor Tiberius.
Fri, 7 Jul 95
Duration:
14 mins
The racial politics of George Gershwin’s 1935 opera Porgy and Bess.
Fri, 30 Jun 95
Duration:
14 mins
The ruling allowing a group of Boston war veterans to ban homosexuals and bisexuals from the St Patricks Day parade, and the division it has caused in America.
Fri, 23 Jun 95
Duration:
15 mins
How Field Marshall Jan Smutt and Lord Halifax were led astray by wild flowers at the first United Nations Conference in San Francisco, 1945.
Fri, 16 Jun 95
Duration:
14 mins
The evolution of medicine bottles, the problems affecting American farmers, and why private restaurants are a symbol of change in Cuba.
Fri, 9 Jun 95
Duration:
14 mins
The work of historian Edward Gibbon, the parallels between modern-day America and the fall of Rome, and Bob Dole's credentials as a presidential candidate.
Fri, 2 Jun 95
Duration:
14 mins
President Clinton's speech on the relationship between the American armed forces and NATO, and the public perception of the lack of a clear objective in a modern conflict.
Fri, 26 May 95
Duration:
14 mins
Great American inventions, Jackie Kennedy's overhaul of the official rooms of the White House, and the closure of Pennsylvania Avenue to the public in 1995.
Fri, 19 May 95
Duration:
14 mins
With the Encyclopaedia Britannica and the Rockefeller Centre both experiencing financial difficulties, Alistair Cooke looks at the problems faced by both institutions.
Fri, 12 May 95
Duration:
15 mins
The development of equality in New York City, and President Clinton's mission to dissuade President Yeltsin from sending nuclear aid to Iran, as discussed by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 5 May 95
Duration:
14 mins
The American press reports on the end of the war in Europe, and the comparatively minor celebrations in the US, as remembered by Alistair Cooke, fifty years after VE Day.
Fri, 28 Apr 95
Duration:
14 mins
The impact of home-grown terrorism, and the conflicts that arise when discussing the First Amendment, in the wake of the Oklahoma City bombing on 19th April 1995.
Fri, 21 Apr 95
Duration:
14 mins
Are taxes one of only two inevitabilities in life? Alistair Cooke explores how have they have been reduced and simplified in modern-day America.
Fri, 14 Apr 95
Duration:
14 mins
The passing of Franklin D Roosevelt (1882 -1945) and FDR's legacy 50 years after his death, the evolution of the breaking news story, and the first third-term in office.
Fri, 7 Apr 95
Duration:
15 mins
The role that the extreme Christian right play in American politics, and whether any religious group has the power to bring a politian down are explored by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 31 Mar 95
Duration:
14 mins
Why Americans are obsessed with the OJ Simpson trial, the viewing habits of a sequestered jury member, and the real winner of the Oscars, are discussed by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 24 Mar 95
Duration:
14 mins
School dinners, gangsters, snow ploughs and the other problems faced by the Mayor of New York City, Rudolph Giuliani, are explored by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 17 Mar 95
Duration:
14 mins
With a Republican majority in both houses of the Senate for the first time in 40 years, Cooke explores the parallels drawn between Newt Gingrich and President Roosevelt.
Fri, 10 Mar 95
Duration:
14 mins
The role of 'ringers' to gain unfair advantage in both sport and business, as the baseball strike continues.
Fri, 3 Mar 95
Duration:
14 mins
The beginnings of the American deficit and how the gap between the national income and outgoings has been allowed to widen are explored by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 24 Feb 95
Duration:
14 mins
What is the secret of longevity? Alistair Cooke investigates the factors that have been attributed to elongated lifespans and profiles the world's oldest woman Jeanne Calment.
Fri, 17 Feb 95
Duration:
14 mins
Senator William Fulbright (1905-1995) is remembered by Alistair Cooke, including his work as a tenacious young politian and as an ambassador for American students studying abroad.
Fri, 10 Feb 95
Duration:
14 mins
The events leading up to the 1994-95 baseball strike in America and the role that Congress could play in bringing the national pastime back from the brink.
Fri, 3 Feb 95
Duration:
15 mins
A tribute to director, theatre producer and playwright George Abbott (1887-1995).
Fri, 27 Jan 95
Duration:
14 mins
American dependency on red tape and the 'death' of common sense.
Fri, 20 Jan 95
Duration:
14 mins
During the week of Martin Luther King's birthday holiday, Cooke remembers his 1956 visit to meet with people from both sides of the Montgomery bus boycott prompted by Rosa Parks.
Fri, 13 Jan 95
Duration:
15 mins
The nature of reviewing the past and predicting the future, and musings on how abstract votes will affect the nomination of Democratic presidential candidate.
Fri, 6 Jan 95
Duration:
14 mins
Newt Gingrich becomes speaker of the US House of Representatives. American apathy towards foreign policy and Clinton's shift towards the centre are explored by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 30 Dec 94
Duration:
14 mins
Former Senator Barry Goldwater, the speech that won Ronald Reagan the Governorship of California and the state of the Republican Party in 1994 are assessed by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 23 Dec 94
Duration:
14 mins
Jimmy Carter's diplomatic efforts, the security problems faced by the White House and the size of Lyndon Johnson's handkerchief are mused over by Alistaire Cooke.
Fri, 16 Dec 94
Duration:
14 mins
A mass shooting on a Long Island commuter train, the OJ Simpson trial and the litigation involved in becoming a US citizen lead Cooke to discuss the legal process in America.
Fri, 9 Dec 94
Duration:
14 mins
The rise of cable television and the difficulty it creates when trying to find a truly local news story, discussed by Alistair Cooke in San Francisco.
Fri, 2 Dec 94
Duration:
14 mins
The erosion of San Franciscan water pipes, the continuing conflict in Bosnia and the American feeling that NATO is becoming a redundant entity are discussed by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 25 Nov 94
Duration:
14 mins
Newt Gingrich is installed as Speaker of the House of Representatives, Alistair Cooke examines his suggested amendments to the constitution, and the life of new legislation.
Fri, 18 Nov 94
Duration:
14 mins
President Clinton failure to deliver on welfare reform, the future of the North American Free Trade Agreement and the need for speculation in journalism.
Fri, 11 Nov 94
Duration:
14 mins
The Republican landslide Senate victory leads Alistair Cooke to critique Clinton's medical reform and recalls presidents who have triumphed in the face of adversity.
Fri, 4 Nov 94
Duration:
14 mins
The history of Halloween, how a rise in street crime has affected the celebration and the objections of the Christian right, are discussed by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 28 Oct 94
Duration:
14 mins
Senator Edward Kennedy and Mitt Romney's televised debate before the 1994 Congressional elections provides an opportunity to discuss the history of the Kennedy family.
Fri, 21 Oct 94
Duration:
14 mins
A new American ally is assessed by Alistair Cooke, following the donation of four billion dollars to North Korea to curb the production of nuclear arms.
Fri, 14 Oct 94
Duration:
14 mins
Senator Diane Feinstein's heroic effort to pass a bill in Congress for the protection of 6 million acres of Californian desert highlights the drama of congressional voting.
Fri, 30 Sep 94
Duration:
14 mins
North Korea's persistent nuclear development puts the UN in a tough situation; Cooke wonders whether Jimmy Carters diplomatic discussions or the UN Forces are the best deterrent.
Fri, 23 Sep 94
Duration:
14 mins
As American troops enter Haiti, Alistair Cooke chronicles President Clinton's motivations for intervening in the conflict and explains Jimmy Carter's role in the negotiations.
Fri, 16 Sep 94
Duration:
14 mins
How President Clinton's position will be affected by the upcoming congressional elections leads Cooke to recall the underdogs and upsets from the history of American politics.
Fri, 9 Sep 94
Duration:
15 mins
Employment in America, and attempts to define the modern working population are discussed by Cooke, following the cancellation of the Labour Day parade in New York.
Fri, 2 Sep 94
Duration:
14 mins
The Allied troop withdrawals from Berlin prompt Alistair Cooke to remember the division of Germany following the Second World War.
Fri, 26 Aug 94
Duration:
14 mins
The US role in the Cuban War of Independence and how America is housing Cuban refugees in the Guantanamo Bay facility are considered by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 19 Aug 94
Duration:
14 mins
Bank robber Johnny Madison Williams Junior's story, leads Cooke to explore the concept of the crook as a national hero, and anticipate the fallout from the OJ Simpson trial.
Fri, 12 Aug 94
Duration:
14 mins
The FBI's powers, the need for "community policing", and the history of protest at UC Berkley are discussed by Alistair Cooke following a riot in Harlem Heights.
Fri, 5 Aug 94
Duration:
15 mins
America's historic obligation to preserving the peace and protecting the innocent in Greater Serbia, discussed by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 29 Jul 94
Duration:
14 mins
Kathleen Bailey, a straight talking organiser shakes up a world conference at Livermore, with the renewal of the 1968 Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty high on political agendas.
Fri, 22 Jul 94
Duration:
14 mins
The Comet Shoemaker–Levy 9 collision with Jupiter leads Alistair Cooke to discuss the thinning of the ozone layer and the work of Arthur C Clarke.
Fri, 15 Jul 94
Duration:
14 mins
Clinton's desire for a stronger relationship with Germany, the history of Haiti and the latest developments in the OJ Simpson case are mulled over by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 8 Jul 94
Duration:
14 mins
How the OJ Simpson trial is being reported on either side of the Atlantic, and some parallels with the abdication of Edward VIII are discussed by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 1 Jul 94
Duration:
14 mins
Unceasing rumours surrounding the OJ Simpson trial make Alistair Cooke reflect on the American desire to know the verdict before hearing the facts.
Fri, 24 Jun 94
Duration:
14 mins
The state of sport in America is assessed by Alistair Cooke as the 1994 World Cup commences. And he commemorates the final allied troops leaving Berlin.
Fri, 17 Jun 94
Duration:
14 mins
The leadership of Clinton and Felipe Gonzalez of Spain is compared by Cooke, who explores how the public expectations of elected officials have changed.
Fri, 10 Jun 94
Duration:
14 mins
President Clinton's relationship with the military is explored by Alistair Cooke, who considers whether his lack of active service places him in a compromised position.
Fri, 3 Jun 94
Duration:
14 mins
The Polish contribution to the Normandy landings are examined by Cooke following the 50th D Day commemorations, including why recent allied operations have been less successful.
Fri, 27 May 94
Duration:
14 mins
Silent movie actress Pearl White (1889-1938), the case against Dan Rostenkowski and the latest allegations levelled against President Clinton are discussed by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 20 May 94
Duration:
14 mins
Clinton's controversial health bill, and the impact of the famous Brown v Board of Education case 1954, 40 years ago, including its unintended consequences.
Fri, 13 May 94
Duration:
14 mins
The American education system is examined by Alistair Cooke, who considers the rise of progressive schools and asks whether an increase in home schooling is a viable proposition.
Fri, 6 May 94
Duration:
15 mins
President Clinton's first 15 months in office and the challenges he faces both at home, and abroad including, the looming crisis in Haiti are reflected on by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 29 Apr 94
Duration:
15 mins
In his assessment of Richard Nixon, Alistair Cooke details the life of the only president to resign from office, including his work in China and the Watergate scandal.
Fri, 22 Apr 94
Duration:
14 mins
Following the detention of 18 year old Michael Fay, an American citizen in Singapore, Alistair Cooke looks at what Fay's treatment can tell us about Singapore.
Fri, 15 Apr 94
Duration:
14 mins
The manipulative power of magazines, President Clinton's reputation abroad and the public demand for representation are explored by Alistair Cooke in the wake of Whitewater.
Fri, 8 Apr 94
Duration:
14 mins
The retirement of Justice Blackman from the Supreme Court of Justice reminds Alistair Cooke of the good, the bad and the senile aspects of law making.
Fri, 1 Apr 94
Duration:
14 mins
The Whitewater investigation, the reaction to Hilary Clinton's controversial financial dealings and the workings of the commodities market are explained by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 25 Mar 94
Duration:
14 mins
Admiral William J Crowe, the newly appointed American Ambassador to the United Kingdom, is profiled by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 18 Mar 94
Duration:
14 mins
The uncertain future of America's tobacco industry and the growing problem of plea bargains after the trial of figure skater Tonya Harding are discussed by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 11 Mar 94
Duration:
15 mins
A 1930's tourist guide describing Boston's demographic make-up makes Alistair Cooke reflect on how immigrants survive and prosper in America.
Fri, 4 Mar 94
Duration:
14 mins
How the wistful sign off "and the rest you know." at the end of Alistair Cooke's letter on President Nixon's impeachment came about.
Fri, 25 Feb 94
Duration:
14 mins
President Clinton's concerns over US military intervention, a newfound resolve over the war in Bosnia and a bogeyman in the shape of a Russian bear are discussed by Alistair Cooke.
Sat, 19 Feb 94
Duration:
14 mins
The history of chocolate and how new research is re-defining it as an unlikely health food is considered by Alistair Cooke, on his travels to California.
Fri, 11 Feb 94
Duration:
14 mins
Bill Clinton's draft dodging during the Vietnam War is remembered by Alistair Cooke upon hearing that America's trade embargo on Vietnam is soon to be lifted.
Fri, 4 Feb 94
Duration:
15 mins
Reuben Mattus, the inventor of Haagen-Dazs ice-cream, reminds Alistair Cooke of other immigrants who have shaped America.
Fri, 28 Jan 94
Duration:
15 mins
Lorena Bobbitt's acquittal for cutting off her husband's penis causes Alistair Cooke to reflect on legal definitions of insanity in the state of Virginia.
Fri, 21 Jan 94
Duration:
14 mins
The exceptionally cold weather scouring America, the earthquake in southern California and the conclusion of the Iran-Contra affair investigation are discussed by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 14 Jan 94
Duration:
14 mins
The life and career of 'essential Boston Irish Catholic Democrat' and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Thomas Phillip "Tip" O'Neill (1912- 1994).
Fri, 7 Jan 94
Duration:
14 mins
Alistair Cooke looks at the changing fashions in New Year's resolutions, and the success of Alcoholics Anonymous.
Thu, 30 Dec 93
Duration:
15 mins
A 1940s style flight to Vermont brings Alistair Cooke to his family and a computer which has swallowed several libraries, a few archives and already knows all about him.
Fri, 24 Dec 93
Duration:
15 mins
The difficulty of celebrating a religious festival in America without behaving unconstitutionally, A Christmas Carol, Washington style and the Park Lane Christmas trees.
Fri, 17 Dec 93
Duration:
14 mins
The GATT Trade Agreement, the prospect of peace in Northern Ireland, electoral defeat for Russian authoritarian Vladimir Zhirinovsky and nuclear weapons in North Korea.
Fri, 10 Dec 93
Duration:
14 mins
A random multiple murder on a Long Island train, America's problem with guns, the future for gun control and the failure of the 'Brady Bill'.
Fri, 3 Dec 93
Duration:
14 mins
The first World AIDS Day, reaction to the disease from sufferers and the public and an interruption to an unusually heartfelt speech by President Clinton.
Fri, 26 Nov 93
Duration:
15 mins
Searching for a fair evaluation of John F Kennedy's life, 30 years after his assasination and how the significance of anniversaries is transformed by historical revisions.
Fri, 19 Nov 93
Duration:
14 mins
Examining the surprising result of a debate between the 'boring' Al Gore and 'sassy' Ross Perot and how the reputations of politicians are formed by their public personas.
Fri, 12 Nov 93
Duration:
14 mins
A blazing New England fall offers relief from the violence and disaster of the television news and Congress passes the 'Brady Bill' for gun control.
Fri, 5 Nov 93
Duration:
15 mins
President Clinton's struggle to balance the demands of foreign and domestic policy, war in Bosnia and Somalia, free trade and healthcare in an complex post-Soviet world.
Fri, 29 Oct 93
Duration:
14 mins
The problem of US gun ownership, why the constitution doesn't actually guarantee a right to bear arms and the increased likelihood of a 'Brady Bill' for gun control.
Fri, 22 Oct 93
Duration:
15 mins
The Senate Committee considering the social effect of television violence, the history of concerns about the influence of immorality in the media and its ramifications today.
Fri, 15 Oct 93
Duration:
14 mins
A study examining the effect of Mozart on intelligence and how people affected by aphasia offer revelations about the way in which the brain deals with words.
Fri, 8 Oct 93
Duration:
14 mins
Alistair Cooke examines some of the foreign policy issues that the Clinton administration has found itself involved in, less than a year into his presidency.
Fri, 1 Oct 93
Duration:
14 mins
The progress of a major health reform bill, the extensive involvement of Hilary Clinton and ex-ambassador George F Kennan's opinions on US foreign policy in Russia and Somalia.
Fri, 24 Sep 93
Duration:
15 mins
The Miss America Pageant, the progress of feminism in the US, 25 years of Betty Friedan's The Feminine Mystique and the problem of sexual harassment.
Fri, 17 Sep 93
Duration:
15 mins
Florida stops all tourism advertising after the deaths of 9 foreign visitors in 1992, Alistair Cooke considers the scale of the threat and the amplifying effect of television.
Fri, 10 Sep 93
Duration:
15 mins
The replacement of American unity with old world identities in immigrant communities old and new and the decision to re-route New York's jets for the sake of a tennis match.
Fri, 3 Sep 93
Duration:
15 mins
The history of Labor Day and why hundreds of thousands of pupils in Chicago and New York won't go back to school after their summer holiday.
Fri, 27 Aug 93
Duration:
14 mins
The real reason the Russians never vetoed US military action in Korea and the media's interest in political holidays are examined, as Alistair Cooke answers listeners' letters.
Fri, 20 Aug 93
Duration:
14 mins
The meaning attached to the time presidents spend on vacation, recreation and playing sport in light of the Clinton family's holiday in Martha's Vineyard.
Fri, 13 Aug 93
Duration:
14 mins
Controversy over public art funding in the US, the struggles of the National Endowment for the Arts and the history of attempts to protect the public from obscenity.
Fri, 6 Aug 93
Duration:
15 mins
Examining an unseasonably hot San Francisco summer and why America's weather, drowning Missouri and parching Georgia, is in the wrong place and refusing to budge.
Fri, 30 Jul 93
Duration:
15 mins
The death of General Matthew Ridgeway, his rise to prominence during US intervention in Korea, his stance on nuclear weapons and the nature of 'good war'.
Fri, 23 Jul 93
Duration:
14 mins
How will President Clinton pay for his Mississippi flood relief package in a time of austerity? How Reganism and Thatcherism are still powerful forces in policy making.
Fri, 16 Jul 93
Duration:
15 mins
President Clinton's planned replacement of Raymond Sites with Admiral William Crowe as ambassador to London and the sometimes dubious history of US diplomatic appointments.
Fri, 9 Jul 93
Duration:
14 mins
The activities of the 1992 G8 summit in Tokyo and the ways in which governments through history have dealt with the problem of unemployment.
Fri, 2 Jul 93
Duration:
14 mins
Tennis player Goran Ivaniševic's demand to be recognised as Croatian, the escalating failure of US foreign policy in Bosnia and a puzzling missile attack on Baghdad.
Fri, 25 Jun 93
Duration:
14 mins
The US government allows the Haitian refugees held at Guantanamo Bay to enter the US and considering the chequered history of immigration into New York.
Fri, 18 Jun 93
Duration:
14 mins
The ramifications of President Clinton's attempt to introduce 'sin taxes' on alcohol and tobacco.
Fri, 11 Jun 93
Duration:
14 mins
A dystopian future for advertising and the people planning to put messages on animals, the wind and the edge of space.
Fri, 4 Jun 93
Duration:
15 mins
Texas death row inmate Gary Graham, the vagaries of constitutional interpretation, state law and the legal complexities of the death penalty.
Fri, 28 May 93
Duration:
15 mins
Clinton's falling approval rating, accusations of cronyism, the importance of the trivial in presidential politics and what happens when a boy from Arkansas gets a $200 haircut.
Fri, 21 May 93
Duration:
14 mins
Alistair Cooke reflects on the closing of the San Francisco Presidio, a historic military base that has been a garrison for over 200 years.
Fri, 14 May 93
Duration:
14 mins
The history of racial tensions in New York, the gap between policy ideals and their reality and the chaos caused by the presidential visits to the city.
Fri, 7 May 93
Duration:
14 mins
The successes and failures of President Clinton's first 100 days in office and how the Roosevelt presidency set the benchmark for judging a new President's progress.
Fri, 30 Apr 93
Duration:
15 mins
The possibility of the US sliding back into economic depression and the ramifications of Clinton's military spending cuts in California.
Fri, 23 Apr 93
Duration:
15 mins
Examination of Rodney King's second trial for civil rights violations after being beaten by police. His first trial acquitted the officers and caused the 1992 LA race riots.
Fri, 16 Apr 93
Duration:
15 mins
Alistair Cooke remembers reporting on the 100th Anniversary of the California gold rush and contemplates the pros and cons of prisoner rehabilitation.
Mon, 5 Apr 93
Duration:
14 mins
Yeltsin and Clinton meet in Vancouver and Alistair Cooke considers the eventful history of US - Russia summits and what purpose they serve after the Cold War.
Fri, 2 Apr 93
Duration:
15 mins
Expensive Britain, Bill Clinton's Presidential Honeymoon and Screen Violence are examined by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 26 Mar 93
Duration:
14 mins
Raymond G H Seitz becomes the first career diplomat to be appointed as United States Ambassador to the Court of St. James's.
Fri, 19 Mar 93
Duration:
14 mins
An attempt by the Ancient Order of Hibernians to ban the Irish Lesbian and Gay Organisation from New York's St. Patrick's Day parade is examined by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 12 Mar 93
Duration:
15 mins
An FBI raid on David Koresh's religious camp in Mount Carmel reminds Alistair Cooke of the cult leader Reverend Jim Jones of the Peoples Temple, and their mass suicide in 1978.
Fri, 5 Mar 93
Duration:
14 mins
An explosion in the basement of the World Trade Centre, the resultant shock and speculation and the remarkable calm of people temporarily trapped inside the building.
Fri, 26 Feb 93
Duration:
14 mins
Outgoing cabinet member James Baker, President Clinton's failure to deliver on his campaign promise of a tax cut for the middle class, and the true cost of healthcare.
Fri, 19 Feb 93
Duration:
14 mins
What the blocking of proposed Attorney General, Zoe Baird, reveals about US childcare, why Americans employ illegal immigrants and the fashion for government by phone-in.
Fri, 12 Feb 93
Duration:
15 mins
President Clinton's proposal to cut government waste, George Bush's dislike of broccoli, and a reduction in the number of staff in the White House, as discussed by Alistair Cooke.
Fri, 5 Feb 93
Duration:
14 mins
The limits of presidential power and two presidential attempts to reform the US military: Truman's racial desegregation and Clinton's attempt to allow homosexuals to openly enlist.
Fri, 29 Jan 93
Duration:
14 mins
Clinton's first week in office is marred by abandoned campaign promises, a bruising encounter with the military and a failed attempt to make Mrs Baird Attorney General.
Fri, 22 Jan 93
Duration:
14 mins
A costly inauguration for President Clinton, and the traditions of the ceremony as followed by Presidents Jefferson, Carter and Reagan.
Fri, 15 Jan 93
Duration:
14 mins
The search for Saddam Hussein's nuclear weapons by the United Nations, President Clinton's promise to concentrate on domestic affairs, and potential for war in the Far East.
Fri, 8 Jan 93
Duration:
15 mins
The diverse cabinet selected by President-elect Bill Clinton, and the problems posed to hospitals by the large range of languages spoken by their patients.
Fri, 1 Jan 93
Duration:
15 mins
A look back at the lives of the notable figures to die in 1992, including composer John Cage, politician Wilbur Mills and British Ambassador Oliver Franks.
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