FRESH AIR
Sarah Palin’s abrupt resignation from her position as Governor of Alaska has sparked widespread speculation. Michael Carey, former editorial page editor and current columnist for the Anchorage Daily News, discusses popular reaction in the state to Palin’s announcement.
RELATED: [ABC’s] Snow also asked Palin whether, if she runs for president, she could avoid the “political blood sport” she cited as among the reasons she wanted to leave office. “I don’t think it will be the day after day after day of ethics violation charges that are frivolous, that are ridiculous. I think on a national level your department of law there in the White House would look at this, the things we have been charged with, and automatically throw them out, not make somebody hire their own personal attorney to get out there and fight.” There is no “department of law” at the White House, though Palin appears to have been referring to the White House counsel’s office. MORE
RADIO TIMES
Hour 1
Earlier this spring a homely British woman named Susan Boyle wowed the judges on a British talent show, the audience with her singing, and those of us who received the internet video and immediately send it off to our friends. As soon as we knew her name, she has largely disappeared from the internet and from the media. Our guest, BILL WASIK says this is an example of a nano-story and says the culture is full of them—how anyone on a computer can contribute to a viral spreading of the AIG bonus outrage and the naming of the Obama family dog. He explains that these stories are like living organisms that grow quickly but die out in a matter of days. BILL WASIK is a senior editor at Harpers Magazine and is author of “And Then There’s This: How Stories Live and Die in Viral Culture.”
Hour 2
On Monday Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned western countries to stay out of Iranian affairs. We get reactions to the recent events in Iran from two Iranian-American historians, FIROOZEH KASHANI-SABET, the Director of the Middle East Center at the University of Pennsylvania and JOHN GHAZVINIAN, a Carnegie Scholar.
THE WORLD CAFE
Steve Earle’s new album Townes is a tribute to his longtime friend and mentor, Townes Van Zandt.