TO THE BEST OF OUR KNOWLEDGE

Sunday      20 June 2010         1000 - 1359 (ET)

PROMO "The Responsibility of Intellectuals"
*Back in 1967, Noam Chomsky wrote a famous essay called "The
Responsibility of Intellectuals."  Chomsky was furious about what he
called "the deceit and distortion surrounding the American invasion of
Vietnam." And he urged intellectuals "to speak the truth and expose
lies." In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, what is the
responsibility of intellectuals?  We'll ask Noam Chomsky, Christopher
Hitchens, and others.

PROGRAM RUNDOWN:"The Responsibility of Intellectuals"

0:00 - 17:09        SEGMENT 1: (17:10)
            Noam Chomsky may be America's most prominent radical
            intellectual.  A renowned professor at MIT, a father of
            modern linguistics, it his view on politics that have
            made Chomsky much admired and much reviled.  His
            outspoken criticism of US policy in Vietnam led to a
            famous 1967 essay in which he urged intellectuals to
            speak the truth and expose lies.  He recently received
            the Lifetime Contribution to Critical Scholarship award
            from the Havens Center at the University of Wisconsin,
            and that gave Steve Paulson the opportunity to talk with
            him.  During the interview he states that Robert Siegel
            of NPR's All Things Considered has a policy preventing
            Chomsky from appearing on that program.  We asked Mr.
            Siegel and read his response saying that is just not
            true.
                         
            Segment One Outcue:  "...PRI - Public Radio
            International."

17:10 - 17:39  LOCAL OPTION with music bed (:29)

38:40 - 38:45       SEGMENT 2: (21:07)
            Academics are no longer just ivory tower analysts.  The
            Defense Department has recently hired civilian
            anthropologists and social scientists as on-the-ground
            advisors to soldiers in something called the Human
            Terrain System.  James Der Derian of Brown University
            talks to Anne Strainchamps about the controversy and his
            film "Human Terrain: War Becomes Academic."  Another
            documentary, "Examined Life," features eight prominent
            philosophers, including Cornel West, Peter Singer, Slavoj
            Zizek and others.  Jim Fleming talks with the filmmaker,
            Astra Taylor, who calls herself a "serious generalist"
            who likes to play with big ideas.
                         
            Segment Two Outcue:  "...PRI - Public Radio
            International."

38:46 - 39:15       LOCAL OPTION with music bed (:29)

39:16 - 53:00       SEGMENT 3: (13:43)
            Moral and political responsibility for philosophers is
            something that's been of interest to Christopher Hitchens
            for a long time.  His new memoir, "Hitch 22," follows his
            own involvement with controversies such as the Cuban
            Revolution, the Vietnam War, and the war in Iraq.  Steve
            Paulson talks with Hitchens abou the role of the
            intellectual.
                         
            Segment Three Outcue: PRI Audio Logo


For a copy of this hour, call 1-800-747-7444, and ask for program number
6-20-A.

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