Friday, October 18 – Friday, October 25

The Republican Party lost its fight to defund Obamacare this week, but did it gain some political capital in the process? Ari Berman, contributing writer at “The Nation” magazine, explains the “Southernization” of the Republican Party and how the GOP’s nullification strategy could rise again.

Author Jesmyn Ward discusses her new memoir, “Men We Reaped”, which focuses on her life in the rural town of DeLisle, Mississippi, where she lost five men, including her brother, to death from drug use, accidents, suicide and, ultimately, the devastating stress of poverty and racism.

Elizabeth Gilbert became internationally famous with her 2006 memoir, “Eat, Pray, Love”, which chronicled her travels around the globe as she sought to come to terms with a difficult divorce. Now, after a decade of personal exploration through her writing, she has returned to fiction with a new novel, “The Signature of All Things”.

George Johnson weighs in on the controversy over the Washington Redskins name in his 3-minute sports drill.

There’s already talk of an Oscar nomination for Lupita Nyong’o for her film debut as the physically and emotionally tortured Patsey in “12 Years a Slave”. She discusses the graphic and taxing role that has brought her international acclaim.