Next Question with Katie Couric

Ursula Burns has had an impressive career that is often summarized by an historic achievement: that when she became the CEO of Xerox in 2009 she was the first every Black woman to head a Fortune 500 company. But there is so much more to Ursula’s career and life story, which is movingly detailed in her memoir, “Where You Are is Not Who You Are.” In it, Ursula gets very personal, sharing her childhood growing up in public housing in New York City, her Catholic-school days, her marriage, and, yes, her 30-year ascent to the tippy top of Xerox’s ladder. On this episode of Next Question with Katie Couric, Katie and Ursula talk about why writing that life journey was one of the most difficult things she has ever had to do, how she lead Xerox at a time when no one needed Xeroxing, and why we all need to continue to push the business world to diversify their ranks (and what corporations are missing out on if they don’t). You can find more about “Where You Are is Not Who You Are: A Memoir” and where you can buy your copy at HarperCollins.Interested in seeing Katie when she goes on her “Going There” book tour this fall? Find out when and where she’s heading and get your tickets at Ticketmaster.com. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In March 2020, as COVID-19 started to grip the nation, fitness entrepreneur Amanda Kloots was settling into a new city (Los Angeles) with her husband Nick Cordero and their new baby. By July 2020, Amanda would become a very public COVID widow. Some of what happened to Amanda and Nick during those four months played out in incredibly personal posts and videos on Amanda’s Instagram feed. But there is so much more to Amanda’s pandemic story and the improbable death of her young, fit Broadway star husband who was just 41-years-old when he died from COVID-19 complications. On this episode of Next Question with Katie Couric, Katie talks with Amanda about her new memoir, “Live Your Life: My Story of Loving and Losing Nick Cordero,” which Amanda wrote with the help of her sister Anna. Katie and Amanda talk about the writing process, about Nick and their marriage, about grieving live on Instagram and finding heartbreak and healing in a community of strangers. You can find out more about “Live Your Life” and find out where to buy your copy at HarperCollins. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you’re going to have a summer series on memoirs, there is truly no better person to begin with than the boss of memoir herself, Mary Karr. In 1995, Mary Karr published her debut memoir, “The Liar’s Club,” an engrossing, tragicomic telling of her childhood in a poor, industrial East Texas town. “The Liar’s Club” took the publishing world by storm and inspired a wave of confessional memoirs. Mary then followed it up with “Cherry” in 2000 and “Lit” in 2009. She also wrote a how-to book about the genre called “The Art of Memoir” and is now working on her fourth memoir. In addition to her memoir career, Mary is also the author of five celebrated volumes of poetry and is a longtime professor of English at Syracuse University. And on this episode of Next Question with Katie Couric, Katie and Mary dive into it all: the writing process, books that impacted her life and career, her faith, aging gracefully (or not), even cherished Winnie-the-Pooh poems. It’s such a fun, hilarious and absorbing conversation and a real treat to kick off the summer. Enjoy and make sure to check out Mary Karr’s oeuvre. Links below. The Liar’s ClubCherryLitThe Art of Memoir Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s summer! And here on Next Question with Katie Couric, Katie’s celebrating the shortest season with a fun series on books! But not just any books — memoirs!. Katie just finished writing her own memoir (which comes out this October — stay tuned!), so she wanted to spend time with other people who have shared their stories and put themselves on the page. She has a huge range of guests from actors Sharon Stone and Justin Baldoni to business leaders and entrepreneurs like former Xerox CEO Ursula Burns, Sarah Jakes and Amanda Kloots, and the memoir boss herself, Mary Karr. There’s so much to discuss, too: the pain of writing, the revelations of looking back on your life, and the triumphs of TMI. New episodes start July 1. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's Emmy season and on this bonus episode of Next Question with Katie Couric, Katie shares “The Handmaid's Tale” cast and creators panel she hosted for awards consideration. The dystopian Hulu drama just wrapped its dramatic, twist-heavy and pandemic-filmed fourth season, so be forewarned, there are spoilers ahead! There are so many talented people behind the ensemble show that the panel was split into two: the residents of Gilead and the refugees in Canada. The episode begins in Gilead with, in order of appearance, executive producer and showrunner Bruce Miller, Joseph Fiennes (Commander Fred Waterford), Yvonne Strahovski (Serena Joy Waterford), executive producer, director and star Elizabeth Moss (June Osborne/Offred/Ofjoseph), Madeline Brewer (Janine Lindo/Ofwarren/Ofhoward), Ann Dowd (Aunt Lydia Clements), Bradley Whitford (Commander Joseph Lawrence), McKenna Grace (Esther Keyes), and Max Minghella (Commander Nick Blaine). In the second half of the episode, Katie talks with the refugees in Canada including executive producer Warren Littlefield, Bruce Miller, Elizabeth Moss, O.T. Fagbenle (Luke Bankole), Alexis Bledel (Dr. Emily Malek), Samira Wiley (Moira Strand), Sam Jaeger (Mark Tuello), and Amanda Brugel (Rita Blue). This interview was organized by Hulu for its Television Academy FYC event for The Handmaid’s Tale. We are sharing a lightly edited version of the conversation. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this sponsored episode of Next Question with Katie Couric, Katie sits down with Dr. Julie L. Gerberding, the executive vice president and chief patient officer of the biopharmaceutical company Merck. As a company with a long legacy of research in infectious disease, Merck has been in the thick of the COVID crisis, mobilizing its scientific expertise to help address the pandemic. Katie and Dr. Gerberding talk about the waning months of this historic pandemic, the lingering concerns about vaccinations and variants, COVID’s lasting impact on public health and how we can better prepare for emerging diseases. Merck is a partner of Katie Couric Media. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dr. Ibram X. Kendi is one of the country’s leading anti-racist scholars. And, in fact, everything that Dr. Kendi does — as a professor, an author, a researcher, a podcast host, a human — attempts to reframe how we think about racism and how we fight it. In this episode of Next Question with Katie Couric, Katie talks with Dr. Kendi about his prolific anti-racism work, which encompasses his academic leadership and Center for Antiracist Research at Boston University, his multiple books, including “Four Hundred Souls: A Community History of African America, 1619-2019,” which he co-edited with Keisha N. Blain, the forthcoming online publication he’s launching with the Boston Globe called “The Emancipator,” and his new podcast, “Be Antiracist,” coming out June 9. They also touch upon the solemn anniversary of George Floyd’s murder and how far we have and haven’t come in this year of racial reckoning, as well as why it’s so important to start anti-racist discussions early, and how his devastating 2018 cancer diagnosis propels him.Find out more about Dr. Kendi’s work: Books Podcast: Be Antiracist The Emancipator The Center for Antiracist Research Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Stacey Abrams is known for a lot of things — her voting rights work, for flipping Georgia blue in 2020, for not winning the state’s gubernatorial race in 2018. But in addition to her political and advocacy career, she’s also a prolific author. She has written eight unapologetically steamy romance novels, under the pen name Selena Montgomery. And this month, she’s releasing her ninth work of fiction — her first under her own name — a political action thriller called, While Justice Sleeps. On this episode of Next Question with Katie Couric, Katie gets the chance to dive into the writerly side of Stacey Abrams to find out the inspiration for her books, how she builds characters and why she continues to write. But don’t you worry, Katie also asks Stacey to weigh in on the most pressing political issues, from growing concern over voting rights, party divisiveness, and the Supreme Court. This conversation was recorded as part of Stacey Abrams’ book tour, on a virtual stop at Powell Books in Seattle. Thank you to the Powell’s team for providing the audio for this exciting discussion. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

“This is never going to be on TV,” says Bowen Yang, reflecting on the now-viral Saturday Night Live sketch where he plays the iceberg that sank the Titanic. “It’s such a big swing.” It turns out, if anyone can knock an unexpected pitch out of the park, it’s the 30-year-old comedian who has quickly risen to fan-favorite in his short time on the show. On this episode of Next Question with Katie Couric, Katie gets the full Bowen picture, digging into his cross-national childhood, understanding what it was like to come out to his parents, going behind the scenes of his SNL audition process and getting the anatomy of some of his favorite sketches. Katie and Bowen also talk about the cult-favorite podcast he co-hosts, “Las Culturistas,” and where the talented and endearing young star goes from here. If you weren’t smitten with Bowen Yang before, you will be after this podcast. Check out some of the Saturday Night Live sketches mentioned in the episode:Sara LeeThe Iceberg on the Sinking of the Titanic Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Best-selling author Michael Lewis has a knack for extracting page-turning drama out of otherwise mundane and complicated subjects (hello, bond trading and baseball stats). Several of those books have been so good they’ve been turned into award-winning dramas starring half of Hollywood (hello, “The Big Short” and “Moneyball). And now, Lewis takes a crack at the pandemic realty still unfolding. His new book is called “The Premonition: A Pandemic Story.” In it, Lewis uses the first-hand accounts of three main characters to unravel the government’s gross mismanagement of the COVID response, which lead to nearly 600,000 deaths (among the world’s worst outcomes). On this episode of Next Question with Katie Couric, Katie and Michael Lewis talk about the CDC’s shocking downfall, the gaping holes in the public health system and the secret group of doctors (the so-called “Wolverines) helping to single handedly patch that system together. We also get to hear from one of those doctors, Dr. Joe DeRisi, a biochemistry professor at the University of California, San Francisco, and co-president of the Chan-Zuckerberg Biohub. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.