Now What? With Carole Zimmer

After Hamas fighters entered Israel on October 7, 2023 killing 1,200 people and taking 251 others hostage, Israel began a full-scale military invasion in Gaza. Universities across the U.S. erupted in protests which were split between support for Israel and pro-Palestinian rallies. Mahmoud Khalil, a graduate student who grew up in a refugee camp in Syria, became a leader of the pro-Palestinian faction at Columbia University. In 2025, Khalil, who has a green card and is married to an American citizen, was standing next to his pregnant wife Noor, when security officials arrested him. The Trump administration has ordered that Khalil be deported. He's appealing that decision to the Supreme Court. "Now What?" is produced with the help of Steve Zimmer, Lucy Little and Jackie Schwartz. Audio production is by Nick Ciavatta.

Rachel Eliza Griffiths always wanted to be a writer. She's written 5 collections of poems, a novel called Promise and The Flower Bearers," a memoir. This book tells the story of a young woman who has faced many bumps in the road including living with a mental health challenge that used to be called Multiple Personality Disorder. Griffiths has spent her life dealing with what she calls her alters or alternate personalities. She also has one relationship that has brought great joy into her life. Griffiths is married to writer Salmon Rushdie. Sitting on a couch in my living room on a sunny day this summer, I spoke with Rachel Eliza Griffiths about trauma, identity and what it's like to be best known as the wife of a famous author. "Now What?" is produced with the help of Steve Zimmer, Lucy Little and Jackie Schwartz. Audio production is by Nick Ciavatta.

We're a gun crazy country. There are more than 400 million guns in the U.S. That adds up to more guns than people. There are plenty of reasons for this. The Second Amendment protects the right of individuals to keep and bear arms. Firearms also served as practical tools for survival, hunting, and protection during the 1800s when American settlers pushed westward. Films like Dirty Harry, Rambo and The Terminator glorified super killers. Mike McIntire is a Pulitzer-Prize winning investigative reporter at the NY Times. McIntire's new book is called Ricochet: Guns, Greed and the American Way of Violence. We talk about gun ownership, mass shootings and who profits from the sale of firearms. "Now What?" is produced with the help of Steve Zimmer, Lucy Little and Jackie Schwartz. Audio production is by Nick Ciavatta.

His nickname is the Mooch and he gained a place in history when he became the shortest-serving Communications Director in White House history after being on the job for 10 days.  Scaramucci had known Trump for decades before joining the administration. Both were New Yorkers who traveled in prominent circles. Scaramucci had also made a fortune on Wall Street. The former White House Communications Director now considers Donald Trump a threat to democracy. He lays out his case in a new book called All the Wrong Moves. Anthony Scaramucci talks about his biggest mistakes, how his marriage nearly fell apart and what it means to have a moral core. That's all on the new episode of "Now What?" which is produced with the help of Steve Zimmer, Lucy Little and Jackie Schwartz. Audio production is by Nick Ciavatta.

I'm so sad I now live in a world without Gloria Steinem. Unlike many public personalities, Gloria was the real deal: modest, warm, smart, funny. She took her passion for equality, women's rights and human rights to a place that lit up the world. Gloria played a special role in my life: friend and mentor. She was the first guest on "Now What?" That was 11 years ago. We spoke in the brownstone she lived in since the '60s which is filled with objects she brought back from her travels around the world. Sitting in her living room, we chatted about her childhood, politics, feminism and Cathy, the elephant she rode in Botswana to celebrate her 80th birthday. Gloria wanted to live to be 100. She made it to 92. Her spirit lives on in this conversation. This episode of "Now What?" was produced with the help of Nellie Gilles, Allison Bernstein, Steve Zimmer, Lucy Little and Jackie Schwartz. Audio production is by Nick Ciavatta.

There's a new film out called Reading Lolita in Tehran. It's based on the best-selling book by Azar Nafisi who held a reading group in her home in Iran where female students met each week to read banned books like Madame Bovary and Lolita. Nafisi had gone back to the country where she was born in 1979, right after the revolution that deposed the Shah and installed the Islamic regime. She found herself teaching in a country where people who were opposed to the religious government were often imprisoned and executed. After 18 years, Nafisi and her family packed up their belongings and fled to the U.S. We talk about oppression, freedom and how books saved her life. "Now What?" is produced with help from Steve Zimmer, Lucy Little and Jackie Schwartz. Audio production is by Nick Ciavatta.

It's the lazy days of August. So, if you missed it, here's a second chance to listen to one of the best "Now What?" conversations of the year. Graydon Carter was the editor of Vanity Fair for 25 years. He's also a world class yenta (and I mean that in the best sense of the word). Graydon knows everyone and he's got dishy stories to tell about the most glamorous people. He was also sitting in the kingmaker seat in the golden days of glossy magazines ruling over a budget that could rival the gross national product of a small country. Black cars followed him everywhere. There were 2 martini lunches at the Four Seasons and hot-ticket Oscar parties. We talk about excess, celebrity and who's outrageous. "Now What?" is produced with the help of Steve Zimmer, Lucy Little and Jackie Schwartz. Audio production is by Nick Ciavatta.

Ada Ferrer was born in Cuba. Her father fled the country after Fidel Castro marched into Havana. When Ferrer was a baby, her mother also left the country to join Ada's father in NY. Ferrer grew up between two worlds in a family torn apart by the Cuban revolution. But she was lucky. She got a good education and became a Professor of History at Princeton University. In 2022, Ferrer was awarded a Pulitzer Prize for her book about the five centuries of U.S.-Cuba relations. Ferrer's memoir, Keeper of My Kin, explores separation,  trauma and the heartbreak of families broken up by politics. "Now What?" is produced with the help of Steve Zimmer, Lucy Little and Jackie Schwartz. Audio production is by Nick Ciavatta.

Novelist Siri Hustvedt knows a lot about grief. Two years ago, her husband, the writer Paul Auster, died. They had an extraordinary life together as parents, romantic partners, and authors who shared their work. Hustvedt was devastated by Paul's death. In her book Ghost Stories, she explores what happens when someone who has been your partner for more than 40 years disappears and how she remains haunted by his absence. Hustvedt also talks publicly for the first time about a family tragedy: the death of Paul's son and their young granddaughter. In her Brooklyn brownstone overlooking her garden, I talk to Siri Hustvedt about love, memory, healing and the things that make her laugh. "Now What?" is produced with the help of Steve Zimmer, Lucy Little and Jackie Schwartz. Audio production is by Nick Ciavatta.

I've always loved being a journalist and I'm excited to catch up with two of the best people in the business. Mary Alice Williams was there when CNN made history, becoming the first 24-hour news network. She was appointed CNN Vice president, making Williams one of the highest-ranking female executives in American television. Mary Murphy spent four decades at PIX 11 News reporting on mob hits, drug wars and the terror attacks on the World Trade center. The job of being a reporter has changed with the rise of social media. We talk about the importance of a free press and the contributions women have made to the business of covering the news. "Now What?" is produced with the help of Steve Zimmer, Lucy Little and Jackie Schwartz. Audio production is by Nick Ciavatta.