Videos

Georgetown University professor Brian Hochman detailed how law enforcement agencies have intercepted private correspondences throughout American history via telegraph, telephone, and electro…

Peter Richardson looked at the writing life of Hunter S. Thompson, from his early influences to his embrace of “gonzo” journalism. This was a virtual program hosted by City Lights Bookstore …

Electronic Frontier Foundation international activism director Jillian York discussed the future of free speech on social media platforms and data privacy. This virtual event was hosted by C…

Historian Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz argued that America is not a nation founded by and for immigrants, but rather is a product of settler colonialism and slavery. City Lights Books in San Francis…

Social-justice activist Tim Wise discussed racial touchpoints during the Obama and Trump administrations. This virtual program was hosted by City Lights Bookstore and Speak Out in San Franci…

New York University Professor Charlton McIlwain looked at the impact of social media and the internet on racial justice movements, including Black Lives Matter.

Samuel Woolley discussed the origins of online disinformation and laid out a plan to combat it in the future.

Jon Else, producer and cinematographer of the Civil Rights documentary Eyes on the Prize, talked about his book True South: Henry Hampton and “Eyes on the Prize,” the Landmark Television Ser…

Ben Tarnoff talked about his book, The Bohemians: Mark Twain and the San Francisco Writers Who Reinvented American Literature, in which he recounts Mark Twain’s residence in San Francisco in…

Trevor Aaronson talked about his book, The Terror Factory: Inside the FBI’s Manufactured War on Terrorism, in which he said that since September 11, 2001, the FBI had built up a network of o…

Author Robert Graysmith talks about his book, Black Fire: The True Story of the Original Tom Sawyer and of the Mysterious Fires That Baptized Gold Rush-era San Francisco, in which he recalls…

Richard Wolff and David Barsamian talked about the economic crisis and argued that it can be traced back to the 1970s, when the economic system shifted from benefiting a vast majority of Ame…

Historian John McMillian recounts the underground newspapers of the 1960s and their affect on the political movements of their time. The author profiles many of the publications, including t…

Ha-Joon Chang Chang takes a critical look at capitalism, which he says is the worst economic system in the world, except for all the others. He spoke at City Lights Bookstore in San Francisc…

In their book Crossing Zero The Afpak War at the Turning Point of American Empire (City Lights), Elizabeth Gould and Paul Fitzgerald take a critical look at U.S. policy towards Afghanistan a…

Author Tim Wise debates the racial meaning, if any, of the election of Barack Obama. He suggests that American society may be farther away from racial equity than many would think. The book …

Aaron Glantz talked about and read from his book The War Comes Home: Washington’s Battle Against America’s Veterans (University of California Press; January 15, 2009). The author looks at ho…

Mark Rudd talked about his memoir Underground: My Life with SDS and the Weathermen (William Morrow; March 24, 2009). Mr. Rudd recounts his role as the chairman of the Columbia chapter of Stu…

Trevor Paglen talked and presented slides about his book, Blank Spots on the Map (Dutton Adult; February 5, 2009). He profiles secret U.S. government installations that range from a weapons …

David Hilliard, founding member of the Black Panther Party, read selections from The Black Panther Party, which he edited. The book provides a detailed account of the social programs starte…