Filmmaker Ryan White has made a dizzying array of unique documentaries, including “The Keepers,” about the unsolved murder of a Catholic nun, “The Case Against 8” about the fight for marriage equality, “Good Night Oppy,” which traces the journey of NASA’s Mars Rover and “Assassins,” about the murder of North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un’s half-brother. The Emmy-nominated director’s latest project, “Pamela, A Love Story,” is a raw look at the life of 90’s bombshell Pamela Anderson. It showcases a more vulnerable side of the actress and re-examines the major life events of the star – from her rise to fame to the infamous, stolen sex tape with her then-husband, Tommy Lee. Alec speaks with Ryan White about what he learned filming with Anderson, the impact the documentary had on her life and how he balances the light and the dark of his projects.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There is an important conversation happening regarding the rapidly-changing world of artificial intelligence and how it will affect us.  Alec speaks with two leaders in the tech community that have worked on the systems integral to today’s A.I. revolution. Blake Lemoine is a computer scientist and former senior software engineer at Google. He was working on their Responsible A.I. team when he went public with his claim that the A.I. was sentient. Lemoine was subsequently fired and now champions accountability and transparency in the tech sector. Jay LeBoeuf is an executive, entrepreneur, and educator in the music and creative technology industries. He is the Head Of Business & Corporate Development at Descript, an audio and video editing platform that uses “voice cloning” technology. Alec speaks with LeBoeuf and Lemoine about the many applications of A.I., what dangers we need to be aware of and what is to come next in this transformative space. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Last week, we lost the great singer-songwriter Gordon Lightfoot. In honor of his passing, Alec is sharing his 2016 conversation with the musician, one of his favorites in the history of the podcast: Over the course of a career that has lasted more than half a century, Canadian singer-songwriter Gordon Lightfoot achieved global stardom and exceptional influence. Bob Dylan’s a fan—he's said, “I can’t think of any [Lightfoot songs] I don’t like.” These songs—“Beautiful,” “Sundown,” “If You Could Read My Mind,” and many others—have been treasured by generations of popular musicians and listeners around the world. But Gordon Lightfoot was just one of many aspirants who moved to Toronto in the early 1960s to try their hand in the burgeoning folk music scene there. Lightfoot tells Alec about fitting a feeling to a melody, why he owes his first hit record to an exec's girlfriend, and how he wrote "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" by pulling lines straight from the newspaper.  You can listen to all of the music from this episode and other selections from Gordon Lightfoot in a curated playlist here.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Forty years ago, “Vietnam: A Television History,” the 13-part documentary series examining the Vietnam War, premiered on PBS. It served as a searing look into the background, cost and toll taken on the principal figures involved in the war, both at home and abroad. Judith Vecchione served as one of the producers on the series and joined Alec to speak about what went into creating such a wide-ranging and deep investigation of the conflict. The Emmy- and Peabody-winning Vecchione has served as an executive producer with Boston-based PBS station WGBH for the past 23 years, working on many ground-breaking projects, including the Civil Rights series “Eyes on the Prize.” Vecchione shares with Alec the weight of responsibility she felt in bringing “Vietnam: A Television History” to the public, what inspires her dedication to the important stories she produces, and how she mentors the next generation of documentary filmmakers.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

An area near the entrance to Death Valley National Park has the capacity to produce enough energy to power the entire planet if covered in solar panels. Yet for Nye County, Nevada residents, the question of what must be sacrificed – including the environmental and economic future of the area – and by whom, looms large. Hillary Angelo is the author of the Harper’s Magazine article, “Boomtown,” which explores the complexity of the solar land rush in the West. Angelo is an urban and environmental sociologist and Associate Professor of Sociology at UC Santa Cruz. Dustin Mulvaney, who was featured in the article, is a solar expert and Professor at San José State University. Alec speaks with Angelo and Mulvaney about the objections of residents, what spaces might be used instead, and how to rethink the future of energy.   You can find the article, “Boomtown,” here: https://harpers.org/archive/2023/01/boomtown-beatty-nevada-solar-farms-death-valley/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.