Where do Iranians who have stood up to their nation's ruthless regime get their courage? For answers, I reached out to Azar Nafisi, author of the internationally acclaimed memoir, Reading Lolita in Tehran, following Iran’s traditional 40-day mourning period for the thousands of people killed during January's nationwide demonstrations.
A rare opportunity to learn from Sanjay – veteran neurosurgeon and CNN’s Chief Medical Correspondent – when he’s removed from the rush of breaking news.
An uplifting and empowering Wavemaker Conversation with Professor Loretta J. Ross, about her alternative to “cancel culture.” It begins with her assignment as the “handler” of an Aryan Nations defector.
Robert Malley has been a U.S. negotiator in multiple Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, a U.S. Special Envoy to Iran, and a White House point person in the campaign against the Islamic State. He joined me for this insider's Middle East briefing ...
The New Yorker's Evan Osnos has spent years diving deep into the world of the ultra-rich. His jaw-dropping reporting, in The Haves and Have Yachts, sheds light on why so much wealth in America is concentrated in the hands of ...
Journalist Julia Ioffe, of Puck.News, began her American journey as a seven-year-old Soviet-Jewish refugee. Now a go-to expert on Russia, she joins me to unmask Vladimir Putin and more ...
The Atlantic’s Graeme Wood is an intrepid war reporter, a polymath, and a linguist, who goes “where everything’s a mess . . . and things are changing really, really fast.” We begin with him hitchhiking through Iraq ...
Imani Perry, National Book Award winner and Professor of African American Studies at Harvard, lives and writes at the intersection of dreams deferred and hope. After listening to her, hope prevails ...
Sebastian Junger, author of The Perfect Storm, war correspondent, and devoted parent, on his high-risk life journey to “escape the tyranny of self-interest.” ...
Ratings & Reviews ›
Don’t miss this podcast!
Anything Michael produces is worthy of your podcast time! While his topics vary from culture, art, sports, science and more the overriding themes are matters relevant to modern life. Keep up the good work Michael!!
Jbo99
Fresh and Intelligent
Wavemaker has opened my ears to podcasting. It is now my new routine when each episode is available. The conversations are intelligent and i know the takeaway i get from it is huge. Looking forward to the next edition
@bobbykDC
Hooked! Devouring Them All!
I’m hooked! I listened to the Sanjay interview last night and found it interesting as it combined my interest in science, the brain and strategies to make myself an informed, educated parent. Michael is a gracious host and his questions pulled out enlightening and engaging responses from Sanjay. I was left wanting more!
Cr7 goal7
Wavemaker is THE podcast for the Renaissance man or woman!
Every single topic Michael addresses answers all of MY unanswered questions! It’s like he has ESP, and knows what I want to know before I’ve even asked. Love it!
GailRStarr
ALL THE FEELS
Michael is a genius at finding interesting people I wouldn’t assume I had anything in common with, and then finding the universal truth in their stories. I’m always inspired and uplifted.
Deejmeister
Amazing
Michael is like that favorite teacher from childhood. He inspires us to think, grow and explore passionately. If Michael starts a cult of intellectualism, I am drinking the Koolaid.
Dr Yes 123
Outstanding
I was stuck in Atlanta traffic from the infamous bridge collapse. My head was about to burst. My 20-minute commute was taking two hours. I wondered: How am I going to last over the next couple months? I stumbled upon this wonderful podcast. Now, I look forward to the commute wondering what I might learn today. I bring a notepad, just in case I want to scribble down words of wisdom. The interviews are wonderful, wide-ranging, insightful and inspirational. Michael Schulder is masterful.
One of basketball’s all-time greats on what made his sky-hook unstoppable, battling cancer, writing children’s books, John Coltrane, and his first love ...
Unforgettable stories about football – and America -- from one of the great head coaches in college football and a center in 3 of the first 5 Super Bowls ...
The 8th Commissioner of Major League Baseball discusses the pivotal event in his life: a 4-story fall from his college dorm room window – and his mother’s advice, which reframed his future ...
The best-selling author’s investigation into the most common regrets shared by people around the world, and how “looking backward moves us forward." ...
This conversation with The Chopra Brothers, who took very different paths in medicine, begins with a physician in India who had amazing ears: Their father ...
Backstage with the pianist who has been called “the hottest classical artist on the planet” – Lang Lang. Featuring an emotional appearance by his mom, whose sacrifice launched him on his difficult journey of a thousand miles ...
He signed Janis Joplin, Bob Dylan, Whitney Houston, Barry Manilow, Alicia Keys, Patti Smith, to name a few. He tells me: “I didn’t specialize... I approached music just being open to what moved me.” ...
As a child raised in a strict Baptist community, he was directed, with a red leather Bible in hand, to find lost souls and save them. Some upbringing for one of the great horror film directors ...
Tyrese tells me how he “dreamed beyond the reality I was living in.” Rev Run, a founding father of Hip Hop, shares how his highest moment became his lowest. Both have something to teach us ...
Mediation master William Ury, of Getting to Yes fame, provides an inside account of the the peace deal that ended Colombia’s civil war. The talks began with a high-risk secret move deep in the jungle ...
Beah's best-selling memoir led a NY Times reviewer to wonder "how anyone comes through such unrelenting ghastliness and horror with his humanity and sanity intact." This conversation provides some answers ...
The former First Lady and I discuss the roots of her fierce advocacy for mental health coverage, the opposition to women’s rights that she encountered on Capitol Hill, her full partnership with Jimmy, and more ...
The former Hardball anchor and I had this conversation in August 2022. He sure saw the warning signs for Democrats in 2024. He also shared great stories from his days in politics ...
CNN’s founder reveals the backstory of how he became an Eco-Capitalist – redefining his bottom line. Plus, Turner the Classics lover recites a poem about a Roman soldier that inspires his approach to leadership ...
Testimonials ›
“Out of the hundreds of interviews I’ve had in the last six months, my conversation with Michael was unequivocally the very best one. While most of the folks who interviewed me trod upon the same ground, there’s stuff I said to Michael I haven’t said to anyone else before or since. He’d done his research. He made meaningful connections to other people’s work and pop culture topics related to mine. He had a logical structure yet the conversation was flexible and went into unanticipated places so we ended up with layers and nuance. It was intellectually rich but also very real, warm, and human. I could have talked with Michael for hours, and in the months to come often longed for a chance to have a Michael-like dialogue again.”
Julie Lythcott-Haims Author of the NY Times Best Seller, “How to Raise an Adult” and “Real American: A Memoir”
“When I listened to Michael’s piece on (music producer) Clive Davis in advance of my own interview, I suspected that I might be in for something special. The Davis interview was so extraordinary that I feared mine would not live up to it. While being interviewed by Michael, however, I began to understand why he brings the best out of his interviewees without my fully knowing how he is able to do that. Perhaps it has something to do with the following. His preparation and intellectual curiosity are both rare. His manner, which immediately put me at ease, is refined and genuine. I also felt as if he could discuss any topic. He shows genuine respect and understanding not only for his subject but for the subject matter under discussion. Like any fine craftsman the results reflect his skill and passion without his hand being so conspicuous — yet the end results are unmistakably his own.”
Geoffrey Fletcher Academy Award Winning Writer of Precious; Director of Violet & Daisy
“You made this conversation easy and profound at the same time.”
Clive Davis Legendary Music Producer
“Imagine a good friend stopping by for a visit and saying Talk to me! Tell me all about it! That’s what an interview with Michael Schulder is like. Charming and funny, sincere and insightful, Michael is a great conversationalist and his interviews are always a pleasure.”
Ed Falco Author of the The Family Corleone, the prequel to The Godfather
“You’re a great interviewer and a great conversationalist and I’ve had a very good time for this last hour, so how could I say no” to returning for another Wavemaker Conversation.
Dr. Irvin Yalom Psychiatrist and author of Staring at the Sun: Overcoming the Terror of Death; The Gift of Therapy; and much more.
