Next Question with Katie Couric iHeartRadio

This Thanksgiving week, just a few days shy of what would have been Matthew Shepard’s 45th birthday, Katie considers his lasting legacy. In 1998, Matthew, a college freshman at the University of Wyoming, was the victim of a brutal hate crime. His death quickly became a national story and a clarion call for gay rights that inspired a whole new generation of LGBTQ activists. “Matthew Shepard was a huge turning point,” says Alan Cumming. On this episode of Next Question with Katie Couric, Katie revisits the interviews she has done with Matthew’s parents, Judy and Dennis, over the years and examines the impact they have had on gay rights legislation as well as the huge cultural shift society, in general, has experienced over the decades. Jeff Mack, a friend of Matt’s from university, who is now the executive vice president of the Matthew Shepard Foundation guides us through Matt’s impact, explains why his death is considered the “second Stonewall,” and why his friend changes the course of his life forever. “It just means so much to be doing what I’m doing,” Mack says, “life has come full circle for me.” 
Find out more about the Matthew Shepard Foundation.
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Katie just wrapped up a whirlwind nine-city national book tour for her memoir, “Going There.” And when she was in Los Angeles she interviewed Tarana Burke, the activist, advocate and founder of the Me Too movement. It was a powerful conversation that Katie just can’t stop thinking about. So, on this special bonus episode of Next Question with Katie Couric, Katie shares her conversation with Tarana Burke in full. 
Get your copy of “Going There,” by Katie Couric.
Find out more about Tarana Burke and check out her new memoir, “Unbound.”
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When Alan Cumming had the gall to release his new memoir the same day as Katie’s, Katie had to invite him on the podcast. On this episode of Next Question with Katie Couric, an utterly delightful conversation with the ever charming, insightful and hilarious Alan Cumming. They talk about why Alan wanted to write a second memoir (this one is called “Baggage”), his mission to normalize the messiness of life, why he has always been so open about his sexuality, and how much has — and hasn’t changed — for the LGBTQ community. They also dive into his bestieship with Monica Lewinsky, some of the best famous-friends anecdotes and the time he got a tattoo of someone’s name on his groin after two weeks of knowing him. Alan Cumming’s new book is called “Baggage: Tales From A Fully Packed Life” and it’s out now. 
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Over the past two weeks, world leaders and delegates from nearly every country have gathered in Glasgow, Scotland, for COP26. This annual summit on climate change will attempt to update the 2015 Paris agreement with accelerated action, higher targets and more ambitious cuts to carbon emissions -- our “last and best chance” at fighting climate change. In this episode of Next Question with Katie Couric, Katie looks back at the big weather events she has reported on and talks to her friend and weather forecaster Dave Price about how coverage of and interest in climate change has shifted over the years. We also hear from two experts on the front lines of the climate crisis, Christiana Figueres and Tom Rivett-Carnac, co-founders of Global Optimism and co-hosts of the Outrage + Optimism podcast. Christiana and Tom were both integral in getting the seminal 2015 Paris agreement to an agreement and they share what’s at stake if we can’t curb emissions as well as practical actions we can all make right now. 
For more information on climate science, the climate crisis and what you can do, check out “The Future We Choose: The Stubborn Optimist’s Guide to the Climate Crisis,” by Christiana Figueres and Tom Rivett-Carnac, and listen to their podcast, Outrage + Optimism. Tri-staters, you can catch Dave Price at 11am and 4pm on your local NBC channel.
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This week on Next Question with Katie Couric, part 2 of Katie’s behind-the-scenes look at the making of her memoir, “Going There.” Last week introduced listeners to her book team, Lucy Kaylin and Adriana Fazio (if you haven’t listened to that episode yet, go check it out first for helpful context and some fun stories). This week, Adriana, Lucy and Katie dive into the tough stuff — like writing about the death of Katie’s husband Jay to cancer at just 42, and processing the downfall of Matt Lauer. They also talk about how writing the book in 2021 — during a pandemic and racial reckoning — shed some much needed light on past interviews and moments in Katie’s life. 
You can buy “Going There,” by Katie Couric, on Amazon, your local bookstore or wherever you like to buy books. You can also find out where Katie is stopping on her book tour and how to get tickets by going to Ticketmaster.com/goingthere. Happy reading!
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It’s finally here! To celebrate the release of Katie Couric’s memoir “Going There,” Next Question with Katie Couric is releasing the first of two very exciting, podcast exclusive, behind the book episodes! This week, part 1 of the making of “Going There.” Katie introduces you to her “Going There” team — Lucy Kaylin and Adriana Fazio — two incredibly thoughtful people so perfectly suited to this project, it’s almost weird. The three talk about how they all met, the writing and research process, holing up in Katie’s house during the pandemic and how some of the most personal (and controversial) moments of the book came to be. 
You can buy “Going There,” by Katie Couric, on Amazon, your local bookstore or wherever you like to buy books. You can also find out where Katie is stopping on her book tour and how to get tickets by going to Ticketmaster.com/goingthere. Happy reading!
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