Suffering Does Not Necessarily Ennoble You.

People Don't Realize What A Brilliant Politician Lincoln Was. Looking Back, We Want To Ascribe A Level Of Providence To His Every Decision But He Was A Cunning And Calculating Politician; From The Cultivation Of His Image As A Hayseed From Illinois, To His Ability To Keep This Country Together Under Dire Circumstances.

Lincoln Would Love The Fact That Obama Is Such A Great Conciliator, Trying To Transcend Ideology.

My Producers And I Worked With These Consultants And Came Up With Seventy [stories] Which We Think Are Exemplary Of The Larger Arc Of African-american History Between 1513 And 2013. We Covered Half A Millennium, And It's Amazing.

I'd Say Imagine That You Wake Up One Morning When You're Going Through A Midlife Crisis. You're Getting Divorced. Your Kids Won't Speak To You. Their Faces Are Covered With Acne, And You Have To Decide Why You Should Get Out Of Bed. That's The Career You Should Pick. The One That Keeps You Going No Matter What, Even If Your Life Is Falling Apart. That's How I Feel About My Career.

Conspiracy Theories Are An Irresistible Labor-saving Device In The Face Of Complexity.