One of the few staples in my life has been watching Brian Lamb on C-Span every Sunday night at 8 p.m. First, it was for his hour-long author interview program called Booknotes. Each week it featured a different author and book; and Brian Lamb read them all. Then that program, in 2004, morphed into Q & A. It was still an hour-long program, but not necessarily with an author. “Every Sunday night, we introduce you to interesting people who are making things happen in politics, the media, education, and science & technology in hour-long conversations about their lives and their work.” That’s how C-Span describes Q & A.
Today, March 19, marks the 33rd anniversary of C-Span, and a surprise announcement. Brian Lamb, the CEO and founder of the Cable Satellite Public Affairs Network (C-Span), is stepping down. His efforts to bring more transparency to government by providing public access to the political process by offering live feeds from the House and Senate floors and congressional hearings, has transformed the landscape of political news coverage.
He also transformed lives. When I started down the biography path I knew no writers nor I had taken any writing classes. What Brian Lamb did through Booknotes, was bring authors to my living room. He not only asked them questions about their subject, but also their writing process. And what those authors shared gave me new ideas, and, often validated what I was doing. It was the best education one could get, and it was accessible and free.
Although Brian Lamb is stepping down from the C-Span helm, he plans to continue hosting Q & A. My Sunday night tradition will continue.
Six Degrees of Millicent 
Posted by Nancy Fatemi on March 20, 2012 at 9:35 am
Brian Lamb and C-SPAN have definitely been one of the top 10 best things to happen to America, and certainly to television, in the last 30 years. I remember when I was working in a Congressional office all those same years, and my mother back in NJ, would be watching all day, either Brian Lamb or the televised floor proceedings of the House. She would call and ask questions like, “Do you think the motion to recommit will be laid upon the table?” And pretty soon she knew more about the intricacies of what happened legislatively than I did. With all the forces working to the contrary, Brian Lamb has helped instill a respect and love for the the game of politics and government among all ages and most important, fuel the interest among those young people who get the bug.
Posted by The Pop History Dig » “Brian’s Song”C-SPAN on April 30, 2012 at 9:26 pm
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