Terry Gross

Republican pollster Frank Luntz advises politicians on the language they should use to win elections and promote their policies. Although he works on one side of the aisle, he says that what he does is essentially nonpartisan, seeking clarity and simplicity in language. His critics disagree, and have accused him of using language that misrepresents policies to "sell" them to the public. Frank Luntz is the author of Words That Work.

Singer, guitarist, and author Alex Kapranos is the frontman for the Glasgow-based indie rock quartet Franz Ferdinand. The band, best known for its single "Take Me Out," has produced two hit CDs. Kapranos has a new book about eating on tour, called Sound Bites. The book is compiled partly from his column in London's Guardian newspaper about his gastronomic adventures.

Journalist Zev Chafets is a former New York Daily News columnist and founding editor of the Jerusalem Report. In his new book, A Match Made in Heaven, Chafets explores American evangelical support for Israel.

On the occasion of his 60th birthday, we rebroadcast an excerpt of a 2002 interview with David Bowie. More than 30 years ago, Bowie created the gender-bending Ziggy Stardust, and produced the now classic album, The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars. With it, Bowie helped invent glam-rock. This interview originally aired on Sept. 4, 2002.

In his book, 31 Days: The Crisis That Gave Us the Government We Have Today, Journalist Barry Werth chronicles the days following Richard Nixon's resignation and leading to Gerald Ford's swearing-in as President of the United States. Werth's articles have appeared in The New Yorker, The New York Times Magazine and Outside. This interview originally aired on Apr. 13, 2006.

Writer/Director Richard Linklater's film, A Scanner Darkly, is now out on DVD. Based on the book by Philip K. Dick, about drug addiction, paranoia and surveillance, it stars Robert Downey Jr., and Keanu Reeves. Linklater is a self-taught director and his other films include Slacker, Dazed & Confused and The School of Rock. This interview originally aired on Jul. 10, 2006.

Novelist Robert Stone has written a new memoir that begins with a stint in the Navy in the late 1950s, continues through his work as a journalist in Vietnam and then includes his counterculture years in the 1970s, taking hallucinogenic drugs, cross-country road trips, and hanging out with Ken Kesey and the Merry Pranksters. His memoir is, Prime Green: Remembering the Sixties. Stone's novels include Dog Soldiers (which was adapted into the film Who'll Stop the Rain), and Outerbridge Reach.

Writer Stefan Kanfer. His new book is “Stardust Lost: The Triumph, Tragedy, and Mishugas of the Yiddish Theater in America.” It’s about the glory days of Yiddish theater in the late 19th and early 20th century. Kanfer was a writer and editor at Time magazine for 20 years and is the author of many books including biographies of Lucille Ball and Groucho Marx.

Journalist Jody Rosen. He’s put together an album called “Jewface” (Reboot Stereophonic Records). It’s the first anthology of Jewish minstrel songs. Tracks include “Cohen Owes Me 97 Dollars,” “I’m a Yiddish Cowboy” and other long lost hits from the vaudeville stage of the early 20th century. Rosen is the music critic for Slate.com and also writes for The Nation. He’s the author of the book “White Christmas: The Story of an American Song.”