Interview with David Mendell | Sound Authors Radio

October 29, 2008 | Leave a Comment

Dr. Kent: Welcome back to Sound Authors. Today is Friday October 24th, just a couple weeks until a huge election here in the history of the country and the whole world is watching after a ridiculously long period of vetting all of the candidates here. It’s my honor to welcome my next guest David Mendell. He’s the author of Obama: From Promise to Power. It’s a wonderfully written book; good looking and well written. He’s a native of Cincinnati, Ohio and began writing about urban issues in politics for the Chicago Tribune ten years ago. Welcome to the show David Mendell.

David Mendell: Well thanks for having me, I appreciate it.

Dr. Kent: Tell me about your experience I guess over the last year, having written this book and sort of being thrust into the spotlight that Obama has here.

David Mendell: Yes, it’s been quite a ride. It’s sort of like I hopped onto a rocket ship a few years ago and you’re just not sure when it’s going to land or where it’s going. You’re just trying to sort of hold on for dear life. I was with the Chicago Tribune in 2002-2004 when Obama ran for the US Senate and I was at the time to cover his US Senate campaign on the democratic side of the ticket.

So that’s where I entered the picture and I didn’t get too far into that race when I realized that perhaps there was a very important subject and I need to explore it with greater depth. So I went off after that election, after that year and spent the next couple of years researching his life and trying to keep up with his current methods at the time and his political trajectory and produced what I hope is a pretty objective biography of him.

Dr. Kent: What’s fascinating to me about Obama is that in a sense the people around him and you of course detail them very well in this book. The one that fascinates me the most is Michelle Obama and I just heard her speak via You Tube clip a couple of weeks ago and was just astounded at the depth of her intelligence and poise. Talk a little bit about her role in this book.

David Mendell: Oh yes, she is exceptionally important to Senator Obama’s career even though she wasn’t centrally involved in his political career until his movement for president. She provided numerous interview clearances and some counsel along the way actually as to places I should go and people I should talk to, to get at the essence of her husband. She told me I needed to get to Hawaii to interview relatives there and to just see how Hawaii added so much to his character. She is poised, charismatic and all those things.

What she brings to his character I think is sort of a skeptical nature that he found in his grandmother who he is now visiting in Hawaii who is gravely ill. Obama’s mother was a real dreamer, a romantic type of person. She really saw the good in people but his grandmother was very skeptical of people and Michelle fits in both categories. She can size people up pretty quickly and she has been a very good counsel to him in that regard. He seeks out her advice when he asks should I trust this person. What’s your feeling? And she’s also connected to the American community in a way that he hasn’t been historically in his growing up so she has a good radar when it comes to appealing to that community. So she has been exceptionally influential with him in his personal life and his professional life.

Dr. Kent: As one of just a tiny group of biographers of Obama, and this book of course is a Washington Post Bestseller, how have you seen this character Obama change? Of course, I myself over the last couple of years have been amazed to see Obama grow and change as have many of us that have watched but you’ve watched him much further and you’ve delved into his past and you talk about how his grandmother thinks about his political career and his wife. How have you seen him change and how has he changed to become this character?

David Mendell: Well I don’t think the core of him has changed; he’s really grown as a candidate from when I saw him. Of course he’s much more scripted and he sticks to his lines better now than he used to. He would, the voice I covered deeply as the senate race was a much more organic thing. He was pulling his ear at times and was very effective in that way because he could come across as authentic to reporters and to the general public, which they really enjoyed. He didn’t give any scripted speeches, it was something that was never written down, he just memorized it and would deliver it in different ways to different groups of people.

But I don’t think he really acted like a political candidate and I’m sure that he’s mentioned that he isn’t an extraordinarily skeptical person. I would imagine that he’s a little naïve primarily. He could be a little naïve about politics. There were a couple of debates in which some of his opponents kind of attacked him and he didn’t quite understand why but I think he’s got a much better conception of the politics than he did a few years ago.

So he’s a little less naïve and a little more polished; he’s much more polished as a political candidate because he’s grown in public debates very well. He wasn’t a very good debater. When I first started covering him he is a very talented orator meaning he can deliver a speech from beginning to end and have a theme throughout.

Dr. Kent: That’s one thing that fascinates the world about him, whether conservative or liberal is his oration ability. I remember distinctly sitting with my folks actually I believe it was during the holidays and watching his Iowa acceptance speech on the TV live and we had just watched John Edwards and were moved by John Edwards and I remember evoking responses to Obama. I remember he would say things and I would speak back to the television. At the end of that speech my mother said, “He’s the next president of the united states.” I’ve never heard her say anything like that in my life, but that’s how powerful his oration is. What does it mean to be an orator today?

David Mendell: I think he’s the most inspiring political speaker we’ve seen in a long time. I saw flashes of that when I started covering him. There were some speeches where he would just really nail it and to see the audience reaction to him I would say I’ve never seen a speaker connect with an audience like this. But there were also speeches that were very flat and very dull. If he was not channeled in, it used to be that he could speak a little above people, he could be a little professorial but David Axelrod, his chief consultant, really instilled in him that you have to speak in terms of people in your speeches and their concerns and their lives.

Once Obama mastered that type of speech where he was talking more about people and less about policy, that’s when he became the speaker that you see today I think. He’s exceptionally gifted and something he’s obviously worked on endlessly. He told me that to be a good public speaker its just practice, practice, practice. He would go every Sunday to African American churches; three, four or five in a row and deliver a political speech. Those speeches and his talking to crowds one after another has really helped him in this campaign. He evolved into this masterful speaker where he doesn’t have the flat, dull moments like he used to.

Dr. Kent: Talk about David Axelrod; see this is something we don’t hear much about. I was a junkie for the television show with Martin Sheen and all of that about the White House; it sort of talked about behind the scenes and all of that. You rarely hear about David Axelrod’s role and the huge cadres that Barack Obama has built around himself to propel himself to this point. What kind of insight did you get into that sort of entourage?

David Mendell: He has 2,700 people working for his campaign now, it’s a huge operation and his advisors have expanded to some very polished, professionals from Washington and beyond. But there’s nobody who’s been more influential than David Axelrod. He is the premier political consultant here in Illinois who had worked on various national campaigns, senate campaigns and he is very adept at, he has a skill for (Axelrod does) selling a candidate in broader communities. That’s been some talent of his for sometime now.

He helped elect Michael White to be mayor of Cleveland and obviously Obama as a senator here in Illinois and perhaps now as president with this huge talent of his. He really understands racial dynamics especially when it comes to politics. What can sell in each community, what part of a candidate can sell in each demographic group? The counsel that he provided to Obama, he is the coach who really nurtured this young prime athlete into the professional who we see today.

They would spend hours on the phone each day when Obama would go over this kind of strategy or that kind of strategy and what he should say in the speeches, what he should deliver to the press, what messages he should deliver to the press, and David Axelrod was that guy of political ruler and he still plays that role although there are a lot more of them now. Another one who is key is Robert Gibbs, a communications director who came along a few years ago. He’s a tough guy who isn’t shy about beating up on the press and lobbying hard for his candidate. As Obama put it, if he’s over in a foxhole this is the guy he wants beside him.

These are people who you know, if you watch the Sunday talk shows and cable news you see David Axelrod but I cant mention enough how important these guys are to the development of Obama as a very skilled and practical politician.

Dr. Kent: I love at the very beginning of the book; it’s a shocking quote from Barack Obama, a kind of a neat one that frames his character. He’s a basketball player of course, we all know that and he says, “I’m LeBron Baby.” Talk about that.

David Mendell: That was sort of an unguarded moment. I spent a lot of time around his campaign and around him in that year in 2003, 2004 and got to know him very well and he really got quite comfortable with my presence. Occasionally something would slip out that he didn’t want to slip out but we were walking around outside of the Som Center in Boston after the 2004 democratic convention and he had about ten reporters following him. He and I had slipped through security before the rest and it was about three to four hours before he made his address to the convention.

I was trying to gauge whether he was, how he was going to do. I thought is this guy going to be a big star or is he going to be a big failure because he’s never had to deliver a speech like this so I was kind of trying to take his temperature and I said to him you do pretty well with the interviews this week, you’re really impressing a lot of people. And he just kept on walking in this sort of cocky stride that he has and that’s when it popped out, “Well, I’m LeBron baby! I got some game; I can play at this level.”

I just thought the quote was so apt to have this young talented politician rise into the national ranks and it really reflected how many skills he had himself and he uses them the best. LeBron James has become arguably the best player in the NBA and Obama has become arguably the best politician in the country. So I thought that quote really encapsulized who Obama is.

Dr. Kent: Let’s talk about the election coming up. Its silly season as Obama said and as one of my twitter friends says in NASCAR all the time. Obama is so far ahead in so many polls, but his side, including me, I support Obama and I’m terrified that he’s going to lose this thing because I think he’s such a fresh voice and amazing soul. What’s your take on this whole election and where it’s going?

David Mendell: If you look at the polls in the key states he looks to have a pretty safe advantage but you never know in an election. I never try to call an election, especially a national election this far in advance. There’s still many days here and things can happen in that period but all signs certainly point to him winning the key battleground states, pushing him ahead. But historically the democrats have elected in the last 30 years one president. So we have to wonder about that and I also have to think that race is a factor.

You probably can shave off a few points in a lot of these state polls in some of these states where race will play a factor. One in 20 people or one in 15 people who now say they’re supporting Obama may get in there and say gee, I’m not sure about electing a black man. I think we’ve come a long way on this issue in this country, but there’s still a strain on racism and so that’s a little bit of a wild card. He has put together a massive political operation with so much money and with the get out the vote effort is going to be very strong.

His grassroots work is very strong and I suspect in some of these states we’re going to see a massive turnout for Obama, especially by African Americans, something that’s probably unprecedented. And I think he’s going to have a lot of young people turn out in unprecedented numbers. The McCain campaign has all the looks of a failing operation at this point. So all things point his way but having said that, you never know in politics until the votes are counted.

Dr. Kent: One thing that amazes me is that the Chicago Tribune endorsed Obama; for the first time they’ve endorsed a democrat in their history. Is that right?

David Mendell: Yes it is. It’s a very republican paper but in the last generation or so its generation has gone mainstream; the reporting and news coverage has become very balanced. Its editorial pages have remained conservative or tilted towards the center-right, but even that’s balancing out. Chicago is a mostly democratic town, we’re a blue state here and I think the newspaper just has to start realizing what its audience is and not alienate its audience. I have always loved Barack Obama. I write in my book how he has met news editorial writers at the Chicago Tribune and David Axelrod was key to that.

Axelrod is a former Chicago Tribune writer who had a lot of influence with some key editors. They knew him very well so he was always lobbying for his guy and pitching his guy. The truth is Obama in his races a democrat was going to win in his legislative district and he seemed to be the most knowledgeable and best candidate in his democratic primary US Senate race. So the Tribune has been a fairly ardent supporter editorially of Obama over the course of his career and he’s their native son aspect to this for Chicago and Illinois to have him in the White House.

Dr. Kent: Let me ask you one last kind of tricky question here about the very first sentence on the back of the book on the copy on the cover. It’s published by Amistad Harper Collins but Barack Obama is arguably the most dynamic political figure to grace the American stage since John F. Kennedy and then of course the second sentence talks about your subtitle him rising from promise to power. How would you compare him to John Kennedy? The interesting thing is Obama is really poised to be a huge figure in the history of the country and the world. So how would you compare him to John Kennedy?

David Mendell: I don’t think we’ve seen a charismatic figure in the presidency since Kennedy. Clinton was charismatic but we know his presidency kind of had its difficulties. But Obama has an aura about him and his family has an aura; he has a very attractive family. As an African American voters are telling us that he’s our JFK. The first time I heard that was here in Illinois before it really sunk in that he probably would run for president one day. So he has that ability to inspire people with his speeches.

I think he actually, having studied John F. Kennedy for researching this book, he perhaps has more political skills than Kennedy did. Kennedy hadn’t learned the business because his older brother Joe was really supposed to be the politician. Kennedy was somewhat of a shy guy; initially he would go into a function and sort of melt away. He didn’t glad hand people and he had to learn to give a good speech and with Obama it comes much more naturally to him. In a lot of ways he’s the head of John. I think his development as a politician is ahead of Kennedy. I think he may be even more intelligent man than Kennedy; Kennedy was smart but Obama is exceptionally bright.

He can absorb things around him faster than anybody; it’s like a quarterback studying the field. He picks up on things, he can remember things, little insignificant things that I would forget and they would still be lodged in there. He’s a very smart man so we’ll have to see how a potential Obama presidency would enfold. But I think there’s definitely a mystique and he’s a man who inspires people like Jack Kennedy in some small ways like Bobby Kennedy.

Dr. Kent: It’s been a real honor speaking with David Mendell. He’s a biographer of Barack Obama. His book is called Obama: From Promise to Power. Extraordinary writing; it’s a Washington Post Bestseller and it’s the winner of the NAACP Image Award for outstanding literary work. Thank you so much for being on the show.

David Mendell: Thanks for having me Dr. Kent; I appreciate it.

Dr. Kent: My next guest is another author who has written a biography of Barack Obama. It’s for children and it’s called Barack Obama: Son of Promise, Child of Hope. Nikki Grimes will be with me after this short break.

Posted by admin | Filed Under History, TRANSCRIPTS, Politics, AUTHOR INTERVIEW, PODCAST

Nuala Gardner | Autism & Dogs

October 29, 2008 | Leave a Comment

Interview with Nuala Gardner [10:20m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

We spoke with Nuala Gardner about her international bestseller “A Friend Like Henry.” More about the book from the Sourcebooks website: “The incredible story of a family with an autistic son, Dale, who conquers his disability thanks to the special bond he forms with Henry, a golden retriever puppy … This is a fascinating and inspiring real-life account.”

- Woman & Home

a friend like henryThe remarkable true story of an autistic boy and the dog that unlocked his worldWhen Jamie and Nuala Gardner chose a puppy for their son, Dale, they weren’t an ordinary family choosing an ordinary pet. Dale’s autism was so severe that the smallest deviation from his routine could provoke a terrifying tantrum. Family life was almost destroyed by his condition, and his parents spent most of their waking hours trying to break into their son’s autistic world and give him the help he so desperately needed. But after years of constant effort and slow progress, the Gardners’ lives were transformed when they welcomed a new member into the family, Henry, a gorgeous golden retriever puppy. The bond between Dale and his dog would change their lives …

“This touching story is an emotional rollercoaster.”- Book Review

“Emotionally charged, this is a story that raises powerful issues in a deeply personal and insightful manner.”- Irish Examiner

Posted by admin | Filed Under Science, Health, History, Motivation, AUTHOR INTERVIEW, Inspiration, PODCAST

Kelly Adair | Body for Life

October 28, 2008 | Leave a Comment

Interview with Kelly Adair [15:50m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

From the bodyforlife.com website:Kelly Adair’s problem was the same one many adults experience: procrastination. She knew she would one day make the effort to get back in shape—that day just never seemed to be today. Then, one day when she realized she was tipping the scales at 170 pounds, she decided today had arrived. She knew there was a body she could be proud of beneath the layers of baggy t-shirts and fat she had covered herself up with for so many years. In an effort to put a stop to her downward spiral of weight gain, Kelly joined a gym and accepted the Challenge. By the end, she lost 25 pounds of fat and went from a size 14 to a size 6. Her approach was simple: exercise consistently and eat three small, balanced meals and three snacks per day. ”I never knew what the word `focus’ meant until I made the decision to change my body and change my life,” Kelly says. “I knew I would achieve my goals … failing was not an option.” Now, five years after being named a 1998 Champion, Kelly’s plan is still going strong and she continues to be successful in her weight management. ”I’m proud of my initial success, but even more proud of the fact that I have continued to live a healthy lifestyle for the last five years since winning the Challenge,” Kelly says. “My biggest reward is how I feel. The program improved my physical condition, but more importantly it changed my attitude about myself. I feel empowered and confident. I’ll never go back to the way I was.” “I am proof that any carpooling, kid-totin’ `soccer mom’ in her 30s who has lost that twenty-something body can get it back!”

Posted by admin | Filed Under Sports, Health, Motivation, Inspiration, AUTHOR INTERVIEW, PODCAST

Erica Ferencik | Real Estate Comedy

October 27, 2008 | Leave a Comment

Interview with Erica Ferencik [11:54m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

We spoke with Erica Ferencik about her hilarious novel “Cracks in the Foundation.” More about Erica from her website:Erica Ferencik is a Boston-based novelist and screenwriter with an MA in Creative Writing from Boston University. She ghosted a novel in Katherine Applegate’s best selling young adult sci-fi series “Animorphs” called The Mutation (written under her maiden name, Erica Bobone.) Her thriller screenplay MAMA’S GIRL placed in four national screenwriting competitions; her feature comedy MOB DOT COM, co-written with Rick D’Elia, placed in two. She’s written sketch comedy and performed standup for over ten years at major venues in Boston and throughout New England. Most recently she wrote and performed several radio performances for WGBH on a program called Morning Stories, a popular podcast available via a recent Itunes acquisition. These pieces, among other recent ezine publications including Common Ties, are archived at her website: www.wakeupandsmelltheblog.com.

Posted by admin | Filed Under Fiction, AUTHOR INTERVIEW, PODCAST

Interview with Matt MacIsaac | Sound Authors Radio

October 27, 2008 | Leave a Comment

Dr. Kent: That was a little bit of a song by Matt MacIsaac from his latest album. He’s putting out a new album soon but this album is called Matt MacIsaac, The Piping Album. That song was called Dr. McInnis’ Family, Lynne Sutherland and the Drunken Landlady all put together. Welcome to the show Matt MacIsaac.

Matt MacIsaac: Hi there.

Dr. Kent: I heard you play with Natalie McMaster. How is that experience versus just sitting in front of the stage and playing a solo song like that?

Matt MacIsaac: Oh, well of course it’s different but it’s been fantastic playing with her you know. It’s a great bunch of musicians and lots of energy and stuff, it’s a great time. Where did you see us play?

Dr. Kent: I saw you play in Stonybrook New York out on Long Island.

Matt MacIsaac: Oh, cool.

Dr. Kent: It was a beautiful show. It could be a small stage and it felt as if we were in a room with you, which is I guess the place this kind of music is supposed to be done.

Matt MacIsaac: Yeah. The audience is almost sitting on the floor kind of thing? It went right down to the stage. Yeah, that was a fun show I had a great time there.

Dr. Kent: What is it you like most about this music?

Matt MacIsaac: I think it’s just the energy that comes out of it. I mean I grew up playing pipes and I sort of was born into it so I’ve always loved it I guess. It was something that was always around so I didn’t really have a choice. I don’t know, there’s just something about it. I appreciate the heritage of it and it speaks to my roots kind of thing.

Dr. Kent: You also play tons of other instruments, right? The banjo, guitar and things like that. Why do you like the pipes the best?

Matt MacIsaac: I guess because it was my first instrument. I enjoyed playing the other things too of course. The banjo is a lot of fun and I love playing the whistle. I’ve been playing that a lot more recently. I love playing the guitar too; I’ve been playing that lately too. But yeah, the pipes were always my thing, the thing that I guess I aspire to and competed with and that kind of thing. Again, it’s something that’s been in my family for generations so it’s been part of me since I was born.

Dr. Kent: Now are you from Cape Breton?

Matt MacIsaac: Yes, I’m from a little place called St. Peters in Cape Breton, which is on the east side of the island. I was born in Sydney which is the largest city in cape Breton but my family still lives there. My mother and father live there, my grandmother and most of my moms family are there too.

Dr. Kent: Do your parents like that you go on the road and play these big concerts or do they say you should come on home and do the small venues near home?

Matt MacIsaac: No I mean they’re proud of what I’m doing I guess and they love seeing me go onto different states and different countries and try and do as much music I can, just like any parent would I guess. But yeah, we don’t play that much at home so I sort of miss it. It’s a couple of years between gigs at home so they don’t see me that much, but no I think they’re pretty proud of what we’re doing.

Dr. Kent: How about the world has really embraced this music. It’s often put in the Celtic category; it is of course but it is such a unique brand of music coming from Cape Breton. Talk a little bit about your hometown.

Matt MacIsaac: Cape Breton music basically when the Scots came over during the Highland clashes they brought with them of course their fiddles and they brought pipes and stuff but now it seems almost that since Cape Breton is so isolated at the tip of Nova Scotia that its almost more Scottish than Scottish music is now because in Scotland I mean there’s lots of English and Irish influences in the music, a lot of jazz too.

When my friends and I talk about Scottish music it’s always sort of the same kind of style, like a lot of jazz chords and different arrangements and it’s really cool but I think Cape Breton has really stuck to what it’s always been and it is different from Irish music. It’s different from Croatian, it’s different from Scottish, from Appalachian and I’m not sure exactly why. It might be the style of the piano, the accompaniment that goes along with the music. I wouldn’t call it refined, although there are a lot of great players that come out of Cape Breton. It’s sort of a grittier sort of music I guess you could say.

Dr. Kent: What do you plan to do? It says that various places on the web that you want to put out a new album. Are you planning for that still?

Matt MacIsaac: Yeah I’m working on it now. It’s going to be a lot different. The piping you just heard of course is just piping, that’s why it’s called the Piping Album. I wanted to do something that was really stripped down and bare and traditional because a lot of the piping albums that come out now and you wouldn’t think there were a lot but there are quite a few, at least in the piping world. And it seems like everyone is trying to do something different, which is great for music but there were so many things coming out with different instruments and different styles.

I thought well I’m just going to go back and do something that no one has done for awhile which is just put out an album of straight pipe music. So the next album I’m going to do I’m going to sort of keep all that bottled up energy and creativity that I think I might have and put out an album with a bunch of different instruments. So I’ll play guitar, banjo, whistle and piano, and I’ll put pipes on it too obviously. I’d like to have cello and there’ll be some drums. I’m not playing those so there’ll be some guests on it, but yeah it’s something I’m working out and its going to come together I think.

Dr. Kent: So I have one question for you. My fiancé, her parents said that when she played the violin as a child she should keep the windows closed. What did your parents say when you were a kid practicing the pipes?

Matt MacIsaac: Well yeah bagpipes were sort of a different beast too but everyone loved it at home and I was really keen on practicing. I actually had been asking my parents since I was five to start playing the pipes so for five years they had to say no just because I was too small and not ready for them or whatever. When I finally picked them up everyone was sort of excited that there was going to be another piper in the family because at that point there was my three uncles and my two cousins in moms family that played so this was going to be six and everyone was excited, so they liked it when I was practicing and would invite people over and that kind of thing. I would be shy and shy away to my room but they were really cool and supportive and helped me get to where I am right now.

Dr. Kent: Well it sure has been a pleasure speaking with you. The album is called The Piping Album by Matt MacIsaac. You can see him on tour with Natalie McMaster. Are you going on tour anytime soon?

Matt MacIsaac: Well we just finished a really busy spring. We’ve been all over the states and we’re going to be a little quieter this summer so we get to spend some time at home and do some different things that we want to pursue. Then I think we go back to the states in October and then some stuff in November or December. Look for us on the west coast is where I think we’ll be playing mostly.

Dr. Kent: Where can we find your website online?

Matt MacIsaac: That’s a good question because I don’t have one at the moment. It’s basically if you want to look for the album you can get it at my parent’s website. They are kilt makers actually from Cape Breton in St. Peters. Great, beautiful garments but the website is called mackilts.com. You can get the album through there.

Dr. Kent: Well I’m looking forward to the new album, looking forward to seeing you play again with Natalie McMaster and the piping album is certainly very beautiful.

Matt MacIsaac: Thank you very much.

Dr. Kent: Thanks for being on the show and lets listen to just a little bit more of Rocking the Baby, Victoria Rode on Masons Apron from the piping album, thank you Matt.

[Music]

Posted by admin | Filed Under TRANSCRIPTS, Folk, MUSICIAN INTERVIEW, PODCAST

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