Nicholas Thompson (CEO of The Atlantic) on AI, Ambition, and Running As a Metaphor

David Petraeus on Ukraine, Iran, China - and the Next Global Conflict

General David Petraeus is a soldier-scholar of extraordinary talent: a 4-star Army general, battlefield commander, West Point graduate, PhD from Princeton, author of books on warfare, creator of counterinsurgency strategies, and architect of the surge in Iraq. He was famous for building relationships with local populations in war zones. After service in Iraq and Afghanistan, Petraeus became Director of the CIA. He has held academic appointments at six universities. He is now an executive with the financial firm KKR. In 2023, Petraeus co-authored with historian Andrew Roberts Conflict: The Evolution of Warfare from 1945 to Gaza. It is a moment to consider a changing world as wars in Iran and Ukraine continue, the two most powerful leaders in the world met in May in Beijing, and ongoing tension in different nations remains over cost-of-living issues. We will talk of many things, including the wars in Ukraine and Iran, the competition between China and the United States, the threat of Russia to Europe, the ambition of Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin, and Benjamin Netanyahu, changes in how wars are engaged, the impact of technology including artificial intelligence, and always the global economy and the cost of living. We will ask about qualities of leadership and the lessons of our time.

The Rise of China and America's Response With Evan Osnos

Evan Osnos won the prestigious National Book Award for Nonfiction in 2014 for his book Age of Ambition: Chasing Fortune, Truth, and Faith in the New China. The rise of China has been a focus of his reporting career, along with American politics and the impact of our wealthiest individuals.Osnos graduated from Harvard and, since 2008, has been a staff writer for The New Yorker. Previously, he was a reporter for the Chicago Tribune, covering the Middle East.He worked in China for both The New Yorker and the Chicago Tribune and witnessed the country’s economic growth within the tight political control of the Communist Party. His subject was often the people impacted by the transformation.Evan Osnos has written several books that reflect his reporting. They are:• The Haves and the Have-Yachts • Wildland: The Making of America’s Fury • Joe Biden: The Life, the Run, and What Matters Now • Age of Ambition: Chasing Fortune, Truth, and Faith in the New China Evan Osnos was in Shanghai and Beijing for the summit meeting between Xi Jinping and Donald Trump.

David Ignatius on Trump, Iran, China, Russia, and the Thing That Worries Him Most

A Charlie Rose Global Conversation.David Ignatius is the internationally admired foreign affairs columnist and associate editor at The Washington Post.He joined the paper in 1986, later served as foreign editor, and has written his twice-weekly column since 1998.From 2000 to 2003, he was executive editor of the International Herald Tribune in Paris.Earlier in his career, he was a reporter for The Wall Street Journal, covering the State Department, the Justice Department, the CIA, and the Middle East.He is the author of twelve spy novels, including Body of Lies, which was adapted into a feature film starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Russell Crowe.Born into a family shaped by public service, educated at Harvard and King's College, Cambridge, and based in Washington for much of his professional life, he has had a front-row seat to America's actions around the world.He is frequently on a plane, traveling to observe events firsthand, meet personally with newsmakers, and gather insights from his extraordinary sources in the national security arena. He talks to the people who don't talk to the press.

Nicholas Thompson (CEO of The Atlantic) on AI, Ambition, and Running As a Metaphor

Nicholas Thompson has been one of the definers of thedigital revolution in all of its impact on our life. After graduating fromStanford and engaging in freelance writing, he became editor of NewYorker.com.Later, he became Editor-in-Chief of Wired as the power of social media becamemore pervasive. Now he is the CEO of The Atlantic as artificial intelligencebecomes more involved in our daily life. Thompson has written two books. The first was The Hawk andthe Dove about Paul Nitze, the hawk, and George Kennan, the dove. Nitze wasThompson’s maternal grandfather. The second, published in 2025, is The Running Ground aboutThompson’s life as a serious and successful marathon runner. It is much morethan a book about running. It is about his cancer struggle and the emotionalstory of his relationship to his father. Thompson makes running central to hisidentity and attitudes about competition, fear, ambition, and endurance.Nicholas Thompson has achieved great success, but in The Running Ground useshis success in running to explore not only the joy of victory but also itscost. As we learn more about the progress in artificialintelligence, it is a moment to consider its value and its risk. We will talk about many things with Nicholas Thompson,including running as a metaphor for life, his relationship with his father, thedigital revolution, social media, and the impact of artificial intelligence onall of us.

Barney Frank on Human Rights and Financial Regulation | An Appreciation

Barney Frank was described as legendary and the funniest person in Congress by liberals and conservatives for his actions in Congress from 1981 to 2013, as a smart, quotable, liberal, iconic representative from Massachusetts.He became a pioneer in human rights in 1987 as the first sitting member of the U.S. Congress to voluntarily disclose his sexual orientation, and for his legislative achievements as the co-author of the Dodd-Frank Bill, which overhauled financial regulations after the 2007–2008 financial crisis. Barney Frank died May 19, 2026. He was 86.After graduation from Harvard undergraduate and law school, Barney Frank entered politics as an assistant to the Mayor of Boston, became a state legislator, and then was elected to the U.S. Congress, where he served for 32 years from January 1981 to January 2013, becoming Chairman of the Financial Services Committee and an ally of Speaker Nancy Pelosi. While serving in Congress, Frank, in several instances, came under intense criticism for a couple of his social relationships.Barney Frank wrote about his life in his 2019 memoir:“Frank: A Life in Politics from the Great Society to Same-Sex Marriage.”Before entering hospice care in April 2026, where he died, Barney Frank wrote his final book, “The Hard Path to Unity.” It sent a message to all political combatants, but especially his colleagues on the left, to find common ground on intractable issues. His message adds to his legacy of finding a solution to difficult issues that all sides can accept.