In 1956 Heffner began to produce & moderate The Open Mind,Ó public TV's longest running series of broadcast conversations. This book draws on those 5 decades of broadcast conversations. In chapters on politics & power, the law, the media, race, women's issues, medicine, & pop culture, Heffner has woven decades of provocative & thoughtful discussions into a unique & authoritative mosaic exploring the major issues of our time. With all the immediacy of a conversation & the benefit of historical hindsight, this book records the intellectual passage of a nation through a half century of hopes & disappointments, of revolution in thought & fashion, of constitutional challenges, recession, war & the unending battle for freedom & justice.