Shows October 2008
Looking for a past show? You'll find Tavis' previous guests and special features below, with links to transcripts and complete audio versions of each program.
Looking for other months or guests? Use the index of Past Shows to search for shows by month or guest name.
Wednesday, October 1
Political journalist Ron Brownstein shares his opinion on the presidential candidates' bipartisan track records. Musician-activist Tom Morello discusses the cultural significance of an Obama presidency.
Thursday, October 2
60 Minutes creator Don Hewitt discusses how the first televised presidential debate impacted that year's election. Human rights activist Kerry Kennedy, author of Being Catholic Now, says even Jesus had a problem with the church.
Friday, October 3
Former national security advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski explains what an Obama presidency would mean in the world and weighs in on the winner of the first presidential debate. The Unit star Dennis Haysbert describes his first meeting with one of his idols—Sidney Poitier.
Monday, October 6
The New Yorker's Ryan Lizza discusses post-debate spin wars. Activists Rinku Sen and Fekkak Mamdouh explain what it means to be an "accidental American."
Tuesday, October 7
In a live broadcast, Tavis's guest panel—Rep. Maxine Waters, a member of the House Financial Services Committee, Slate columnist Mickey Kaus and L.A. Times columnist Gregory Rodriguez—reacts to and analyzes the second presidential debate and assesses its impact on the rest of the campaign.
Wednesday, October 8
Legendary singer-songwriter James Taylor describes the difficult process of cutting down his latest CD, "Covers," to 12 songs and explains why he doesn't like to listen to himself on the radio.
Thursday, October 9
Rapper-turned-Oscar-nominated actress Queen Latifah discusses her role in the new film, The Secret Life of Bees, and how she handles the role of matriarch in her career and life. NBA all-star Alonzo Mourning discusses how faith will help him through the disappointment if he's not able to return to basketball.
Friday, October 10
Wall Street Journal columnist Peggy Noonan, author of Patriotic Grace, explains why nationalism is not what the world needs. Actor Scott Glenn talks about portraying Donald Rumsfeld in the new film, W.
Monday, October 13
NBC News' Tom Brokaw, moderator of the second presidential debate, discusses the need for more people of color and women moderators. Actor-comedian Richard Belzer describes how his Law & Order: SVU character and the show have impacted his view of police officers, crime and victims.
Tuesday, October 14
Comedians Tim Reid and Tom Dreesen, co-authors of Tim & Tom, explain how they began their interracial comedy team. A cappella singing group Naturally 7 tell the story of how the group got together and also perform.
Wednesday, October 15
In a live broadcast, Tavis' guest panel—economist-author Ben Stein, the Southwest Voter Registration Education Project's Antonio Gonzalez and Los Angeles Times columnist Sandy Banks—reacts to and analyzes the final presidential debate and its impact on the remainder of the race for the White House.
Thursday, October 16
Former CIA officer Robert Baer, author of The Devil We Know, explains how the U.S. mangled its handling of relations with the Middle East . Rap artist T.I. says he has made the necessary adjustments in his life in order to expand and grow as a man and move forward.
Friday, October 17
Pioneering actress-singer Diahann Carroll describes what it was like becoming successful at a time when African Americans were not fully accepted in society, let alone show business.
Monday, October 20
Former secretary of state Madeleine Albright describes the most pressing issues that the next president will inherit and why the VP is so important for dealing with those issues. Environmental advocate Van Jones describes what the presidential candidates can do to advance the green collar movement.
Tuesday, October 21
New York Times columnist and '08 Nobel Prize-winning economist Paul Krugman explains what type of society he wants to live in and how America falls short. Travel writer Paul Theroux says although the U.S. is a multi-cultural society, the melting pot doesn't melt that much.
Wednesday, October 22
Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius places Gov. Palin's selection as the GOP vice presidential nominee in historical context. Comedian-actor David Alan Grier describes his new show, Chocolate News, as In Living Color with a graduate degree.
Thursday, October 23
Children Defense Fund founder Marian Wright Edelman discusses her battle with the Bush Administration on its use of the CDF trademark and describes the letter she wrote to Dr. King on his legacy in the 40 years since his assassination.
Friday, October 24
Rabbi David Wolpe explains why faith matters and what advice he gives to people who come to him for counsel about faith and happiness. Photographer Randee St. Nicholas discusses her collaboration with musician Prince on the 21 Nights project.
Monday, October 27
Time magazine's Washington correspondent Michael Scherer describes some of the things that could go wrong on Election Day. Actress Julia Louis-Dreyfus, star of The New Adventures of Old Christine, describes her childhood travels and what it was like to live in Sri Lanka, Colombia and Tunisia with her family.
Tuesday, October 28
Princeton professor Dr. Cornel West explains why he's okay with the Democratic Party being in the White House and controlling Congress. Singer-songwriter Raphael Saadiq explains how being a musician and having "the chops" must always come first; he also performs a track from his new CD.
Wednesday, October 29
Matthew Dowd, ABC News political contributor and former chief strategist for Bush-Cheney '04, weighs in on next week's general election. French chef Jacques Pépin explains how he fell in love with cooking, got started on TV and his friendship with Julia Child.
Thursday, October 30
Three-time Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist and best-selling author Thomas Friedman talks about the potential for unifying America around environmental issues.
Friday, October 31
Patti LaBelle, Nona Hendryx and Sarah Dash reflect on their separate career paths and talk about what brought about the long-awaited reunion of Labelle. They also perform a track from the group's new CD, "Back to Now."























