Letter from America by Alistair Cooke: The Clinton Years (1993-1996)
206 episodes - English - Latest episode: over 27 years ago - ★★★★ - 8 ratingsBill Clinton’s first term encompassed controversies from the Israeli-Palestinian Oslo accords and gays in the military to the North American Free Trade Agreement and an attempt at healthcare reform. A fascinating social, cultural and political history of American life, through the words of British-American journalist and broadcaster, Alistair Cooke (1908 – 2004).
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Episodes
Freezing weather and earthquakes in 1994
January 21, 1994 21:00 - 13 minutes - 12.6 MBThe exceptionally cold weather scouring America, the earthquake in southern California and the conclusion of the Iran-Contra affair investigation are discussed by Alistair Cooke.
Tip O'Neill
January 14, 1994 21:00 - 13 minutes - 12.6 MBThe life and career of 'essential Boston Irish Catholic Democrat' and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Thomas Phillip "Tip" O'Neill (1912- 1994).
New Year's Resolutions
January 07, 1994 21:00 - 13 minutes - 12.7 MBAlistair Cooke looks at the changing fashions in New Year's resolutions, and the success of Alcoholics Anonymous.
Christmas, and Alistair Cooke meets a computer
December 30, 1993 21:00 - 14 minutes - 13.1 MBA 1940s style flight to Vermont brings Alistair Cooke to his family and a computer which has swallowed several libraries, a few archives and already knows all about him.
The constitution and religious festivals in America
December 24, 1993 21:00 - 14 minutes - 13.2 MBThe difficulty of celebrating a religious festival in America without behaving unconstitutionally, A Christmas Carol, Washington style and the Park Lane Christmas trees.
The GATT agreement and peace talks in Northern Ireland
December 17, 1993 21:00 - 13 minutes - 12.8 MBThe GATT Trade Agreement, the prospect of peace in Northern Ireland, electoral defeat for Russian authoritarian Vladimir Zhirinovsky and nuclear weapons in North Korea.
The Long Island train shootings and gun control
December 10, 1993 21:00 - 13 minutes - 12.4 MBA random multiple murder on a Long Island train, America's problem with guns, the future for gun control and the failure of the 'Brady Bill'.
The first World AIDS Day
December 03, 1993 21:00 - 13 minutes - 12.7 MBThe first World AIDS Day, reaction to the disease from sufferers and the public and an interruption to an unusually heartfelt speech by President Clinton.
Thirtieth anniversary of Kennedy assassination, 1993
November 26, 1993 21:00 - 14 minutes - 13.1 MBSearching for a fair evaluation of John F Kennedy's life, 30 years after his assasination and how the significance of anniversaries is transformed by historical revisions.
Personality in politics
November 19, 1993 21:00 - 13 minutes - 12.3 MBExamining the surprising result of a debate between the 'boring' Al Gore and 'sassy' Ross Perot and how the reputations of politicians are formed by their public personas.
The 'Brady Bill' and the New England fall
November 12, 1993 21:00 - 13 minutes - 12.5 MBA blazing New England fall offers relief from the violence and disaster of the television news and Congress passes the 'Brady Bill' for gun control.
Balancing domestic and foreign policy
November 05, 1993 21:00 - 14 minutes - 12.9 MBPresident Clinton's struggle to balance the demands of foreign and domestic policy, war in Bosnia and Somalia, free trade and healthcare in an complex post-Soviet world.
America's problem with gun ownership
October 29, 1993 21:00 - 13 minutes - 12.6 MBThe problem of US gun ownership, why the constitution doesn't actually guarantee a right to bear arms and the increased likelihood of a 'Brady Bill' for gun control.
The social effect of TV violence
October 22, 1993 20:00 - 14 minutes - 12.9 MBThe Senate Committee considering the social effect of television violence, the history of concerns about the influence of immorality in the media and its ramifications today.
Aphasia and studying the human brain
October 15, 1993 20:00 - 13 minutes - 12.8 MBA study examining the effect of Mozart on intelligence and how people affected by aphasia offer revelations about the way in which the brain deals with words.
Clinton's foreign policy issues
October 08, 1993 20:00 - 13 minutes - 12.7 MBAlistair Cooke examines some of the foreign policy issues that the Clinton administration has found itself involved in, less than a year into his presidency.
The health reform bill
October 01, 1993 20:00 - 13 minutes - 12.6 MBThe progress of a major health reform bill, the extensive involvement of Hilary Clinton and ex-ambassador George F Kennan's opinions on US foreign policy in Russia and Somalia.
Feminism in American 1993
September 24, 1993 20:00 - 14 minutes - 13.1 MBThe Miss America Pageant, the progress of feminism in the US, 25 years of Betty Friedan's The Feminine Mystique and the problem of sexual harassment.
Deaths of tourists in Florida
September 17, 1993 20:00 - 14 minutes - 13 MBFlorida stops all tourism advertising after the deaths of 9 foreign visitors in 1992, Alistair Cooke considers the scale of the threat and the amplifying effect of television.
US immigrants and identity
September 10, 1993 20:00 - 14 minutes - 12.9 MBThe replacement of American unity with old world identities in immigrant communities old and new and the decision to re-route New York's jets for the sake of a tennis match.
Labor Day and school closures
September 03, 1993 20:00 - 14 minutes - 13.1 MBThe history of Labor Day and why hundreds of thousands of pupils in Chicago and New York won't go back to school after their summer holiday.
The Korean war and political holidays
August 27, 1993 20:00 - 13 minutes - 12.4 MBThe real reason the Russians never vetoed US military action in Korea and the media's interest in political holidays are examined, as Alistair Cooke answers listeners' letters.
Presidential recreation
August 20, 1993 20:00 - 13 minutes - 12.5 MBThe meaning attached to the time presidents spend on vacation, recreation and playing sport in light of the Clinton family's holiday in Martha's Vineyard.
Obscenity and public art funding
August 13, 1993 20:00 - 13 minutes - 12.7 MBControversy over public art funding in the US, the struggles of the National Endowment for the Arts and the history of attempts to protect the public from obscenity.
America's exceptional weather
August 06, 1993 20:00 - 14 minutes - 13.2 MBExamining an unseasonably hot San Francisco summer and why America's weather, drowning Missouri and parching Georgia, is in the wrong place and refusing to budge.
General Matthew Ridgeway
July 30, 1993 20:00 - 14 minutes - 13.3 MBThe death of General Matthew Ridgeway, his rise to prominence during US intervention in Korea, his stance on nuclear weapons and the nature of 'good war'.
Mississippi relief package
July 23, 1993 20:00 - 13 minutes - 12.8 MBHow will President Clinton pay for his Mississippi flood relief package in a time of austerity? How Reganism and Thatcherism are still powerful forces in policy making.
Choosing a US ambassador to London
July 16, 1993 20:00 - 14 minutes - 12.9 MBPresident Clinton's planned replacement of Raymond Sites with Admiral William Crowe as ambassador to London and the sometimes dubious history of US diplomatic appointments.
The Tokyo G8 summit and unemployment
July 09, 1993 20:00 - 13 minutes - 12.8 MBThe activities of the 1992 G8 summit in Tokyo and the ways in which governments through history have dealt with the problem of unemployment.
US foreign policy in Bosnia
July 02, 1993 20:00 - 13 minutes - 12.8 MBTennis player Goran Ivaniševic's demand to be recognised as Croatian, the escalating failure of US foreign policy in Bosnia and a puzzling missile attack on Baghdad.
The Haitian refugees enter America
June 25, 1993 20:00 - 13 minutes - 12.7 MBThe US government allows the Haitian refugees held at Guantanamo Bay to enter the US and considering the chequered history of immigration into New York.
President Clinton's alcohol and tobacco taxes
June 18, 1993 20:00 - 13 minutes - 12.7 MBThe ramifications of President Clinton's attempt to introduce 'sin taxes' on alcohol and tobacco.
The future of advertising
June 11, 1993 20:00 - 13 minutes - 12.7 MBA dystopian future for advertising and the people planning to put messages on animals, the wind and the edge of space.
Gary Graham and the death penalty
June 04, 1993 20:00 - 14 minutes - 12.9 MBTexas death row inmate Gary Graham, the vagaries of constitutional interpretation, state law and the legal complexities of the death penalty.
Hair Force One
May 28, 1993 20:00 - 14 minutes - 12.9 MBClinton's falling approval rating, accusations of cronyism, the importance of the trivial in presidential politics and what happens when a boy from Arkansas gets a $200 haircut.
The closing of the San Francisco Presidio
May 21, 1993 20:00 - 13 minutes - 12.7 MBAlistair Cooke reflects on the closing of the San Francisco Presidio, a historic military base that has been a garrison for over 200 years.
Racial tensions in New York
May 14, 1993 20:00 - 13 minutes - 12.4 MBThe history of racial tensions in New York, the gap between policy ideals and their reality and the chaos caused by the presidential visits to the city.
President Clinton's first 100 days in office
May 07, 1993 20:00 - 13 minutes - 12.8 MBThe successes and failures of President Clinton's first 100 days in office and how the Roosevelt presidency set the benchmark for judging a new President's progress.
Economic recession and military spending cuts
April 30, 1993 20:00 - 14 minutes - 12.8 MBThe possibility of the US sliding back into economic depression and the ramifications of Clinton's military spending cuts in California.
Rodney King trial
April 23, 1993 20:00 - 14 minutes - 13.2 MBExamination of Rodney King's second trial for civil rights violations after being beaten by police. His first trial acquitted the officers and caused the 1992 LA race riots.
Prisoner rehabilitation
April 16, 1993 20:00 - 14 minutes - 13 MBAlistair Cooke remembers reporting on the 100th Anniversary of the California gold rush and contemplates the pros and cons of prisoner rehabilitation.
The history of US-Russia summits
April 05, 1993 20:00 - 13 minutes - 12.8 MBYeltsin and Clinton meet in Vancouver and Alistair Cooke considers the eventful history of US-Russia summits and what purpose they serve after the Cold War.
Bill Clinton's Presidential Honeymoon
April 02, 1993 20:00 - 14 minutes - 13.2 MBExpensive Britain, Bill Clinton's Presidential Honeymoon and Screen Violence are examined by Alistair Cooke.
Ambassador Raymond G H Seitz
March 26, 1993 21:00 - 13 minutes - 12.5 MBRaymond G H Seitz becomes the first career diplomat to be appointed as United States Ambassador to the Court of St. James's.
The Irish in New York City
March 19, 1993 21:00 - 13 minutes - 12.8 MBAn attempt by the Ancient Order of Hibernians to ban the Irish Lesbian and Gay Organisation from New York's St. Patrick's Day parade is examined by Alistair Cooke.
David Koresh and Reverend Jim Jones
March 12, 1993 21:00 - 14 minutes - 13 MBAn FBI raid on David Koresh's religious camp in Mount Carmel reminds Alistair Cooke of the cult leader Reverend Jim Jones of the Peoples Temple, and their mass suicide in 1978.
World Trade Centre basement explosion
March 05, 1993 21:00 - 13 minutes - 12.6 MBAn explosion in the basement of the World Trade Centre, the resultant shock and speculation and the remarkable calm of people temporarily trapped inside the building.
James Baker and Clinton's deficit
February 26, 1993 21:00 - 13 minutes - 12.6 MBOutgoing cabinet member James Baker, President Clinton's failure to deliver on his campaign promise of a tax cut for the middle class, and the true cost of healthcare.
Zoe Baird and American childcare
February 19, 1993 16:35 - 14 minutes - 13 MBWhat the blocking of proposed Attorney General, Zoe Baird, reveals about US childcare, why Americans employ illegal immigrants and the fashion for government by phone-in.
Government waste and White House job cuts
February 12, 1993 21:00 - 14 minutes - 12.9 MBPresident Clinton's proposal to cut government waste, George Bush's dislike of broccoli, and a reduction in the number of staff in the White House, as discussed by Alistair Cooke.