Fresh Air Fresh Air

The secretive company Clearview AI scans unidentified faces, and finds a match in their database of billions of photos. The pics are scraped from websites and apps, including Google, Facebook, and LinkedIn, without the companies' permission. NYT tech reporter Kashmir Hill found that once your face is identified for a client, Clearview can quickly connect the client to a lot of information about you. Chances are your face is in Clearview's database, without your knowledge or permission. Clearview's clients include many police departments and some government agencies. Hill says it could spell the end of privacy. Her new book is Your Face Belongs To Us.

Russell talks and sings about the physical and sexual abuse she endured from her racist adoptive father — and about how she learned she was worthy of being loved. Her new album is The Returner.

Environmental journalist Ben Goldfarb says cars are killing animals, while highways cut off them off from their food sources and migration paths. His new book about road ecology is Crossings.Maureen Corrigan reviews C Pam Zhang's Land of Milk and Honey.

Award-winning actor and producer Kerry Washington was an adult when she learned that she had been conceived via artificial insemination and the man she considered her father was not her biological dad. Her new memoir about her journey of self-discovery is Thicker than Water. Also, jazz critic Kevin Whitehead celebrates Sam Rivers on what would've been his 100th birthday.

Today, we're bringing you a remarkable interview from nearly 30 years ago, even though there's no anniversary or birthday or new album release to tie it to. The incomparable singer, Etta James, spoke to Terry Gross in 1994, and they talked about James' career, her gospel influences and so much more. Hear the full Etta James interview here: https://n.pr/3sVvoa0. Listen to the full Fresh Air Archive, completely for free, at https://FreshAirArchive.org.

Casting director Allison Jones is considered one of the greatest comedy casting directors of our time. Her credits include films and TV shows like Freaks and Geeks, The Office, Veep, Curb Your Enthusiasm, The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Bridesmaids, and now Barbie. She spoke with Terry Gross about some of these projects. Maureen Corrigan reviews Lauren Groff's new novel, The Vaster Wilds. Also, NPR's Scott Simon gives the history of why jazz was banned in Hitler's Germany, and how it was repurposed as propaganda on shortwave radio. His new audiobook is Swingtime for Hitler.