New York Times bestselling author James McBride took a circuitous route to becoming a great American novelist. A communications major at Oberlin College and Conservatory, he also studied jazz with Wendell Logan, the influential founder of Oberlin’s jazz department. After graduating in 1979, McBride went to Columbia Journalism School, then onto bylines in the Boston Globe, Rolling Stone, the Washington Post and People magazine.McBride left a successful career in journalism to “pursue happiness,” as he puts it: playing sax full time in New York. But his life took another turn when he penned a memoir about the person he loved most. The Color of Water: A Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother became an “instant classic,” in the words of one reviewer, and an accidental author was born.In this episode of Running to the Noise, McBride—whose new book The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store was recently named Barnes & Noble’s Book of the Year—joins host and Oberlin President Carmen Twillie Ambar to discuss his writing process, the path to authentic creativity, and the pursuit of happiness through art.About James McBrideJames McBride is the author of Deacon King Kong, a New York Times bestseller and Oprah’s Book Club selection; the National Book Award-winning The Good Lord Bird; the American classic The Color of Water; the novels Song Yet Sung and Miracle at St. Anna; the story collection Five-Carat Soul; and the James Brown biography Kill ’Em and Leave. The recipient of a National Humanities Medal and an accomplished musician, McBride is also a distinguished writer in residence at New York University.Show Links:NPR Review: (7-minute listen) James McBride's 'Heaven & Earth' is an all-American mix of prejudice and hopeJames McBride’s website

Author and diplomat Richard Haass began his education at Oberlin College during a pivotal year for American democracy. It was 1970 and four college students were shot and killed at the neighboring Kent State University by the Ohio National Guard. This event propelled Richard into action as he and his peers filmed a documentary about Oberlin’s response to the shooting.After graduating from Oberlin in 1973, Richard continued to study American democracy and spent two decades heading the Council on Foreign Relations, a nonpartisan resource for American citizens across the political spectrum. Richard joins host Carmen Twillie Ambar, president of Oberlin College and Conservatory, to discuss his new book, The Bill of Obligations: The Ten Habits of Good Citizens, an invaluable roadmap to how we can begin to repair our fraying democracy. They also tackle tough questions of why our democracy has never before been so imperiled and how we can all work to strengthen it. Episode Quotes:On why this moment feels more critical for America than past times of conflict03:41 - “What's different now is what's at stake is the system itself, it's democracy itself. And the threat in that sense is much more fundamental. It's not simply about whether we should be doing what we're doing with Ukraine or abortion or this or that policy issue. It's much more fundamental. And people are beginning to do things that actually challenge the tissue, the fabric of American democracy, the system itself.”Richard’s views on the art and importance of compromise21:31 - “I'm not saying to compromise. I'm saying to stay open to it. It ought to be a choice. It ought to be something you consider. There might be certain situations where you say, well, if I compromise. Here are the consequences. So compromise may or may not be right for you under certain circumstances.”On the role higher education institutions should play in shaping citizens“I would think that one of the purposes of a college education, obviously we think about it to prepare people for life, and I would say here in the United States, one of our purposes ought to be to prepare people to be citizens in this democracy.”00:43 - “I have spent my career studying, practicing, writing about, and speaking on American foreign policy. And a question I frequently hear is, "Richard, what keeps you up at night?" Often, even before I get to answer, the person posing the question suggests potential answers. Is it China? Russia? North Korea? Iran, terrorism, climate change, cyber attacks, another pandemic? In recent years, I started responding in a way that surprised me and many in the room. The most urgent and significant threat to American security and stability stems not from abroad but from within. From political divisions that, for only the second time in U.S. history, have raised questions about the future of American democracy. And even the United States itself.”Show Links:Richard’s bio for the Council on Foreign RelationsRichard’s 1970 documentary on Oberlin’s response to the Kent State shootingsThe Bill of Obligations: The Ten Habits of Good Citizens

Before he starred in hits like The Hangover trilogy and The Office, Ed Helms was an “Obie”—a kid from Georgia with talent for jazz guitar who found his way to Oberlin College. Since graduating in 1996, Ed has used his success and platform to open doors of opportunity for others and support causes he believes in.Ed, now on the Board of Trustees of Oberlin College, joins Oberlin President Carmen Twillie Ambar to talk about his time at the college, his work diversifying the writer’s room for his show Rutherford Falls, his new podcast SNAFU and how to use your platform to change the world (or even just a little slice of it).Running to the Noise is a production of Oberlin College and is produced by University FM.Our show music is composed and arranged by Bobby Ferrazza, Oberlin Conservatory professor of jazz guitar. Ferrazza is also director of the Oberlin Sonny Rollins Jazz Ensemble, the student group that performed the music. Episode Quotes:On the diversity of Rutherford Falls’ writer’s room14:38 - “Oberlin really helped me try to think and appreciate broader perspectives. And so, I felt like I had a solid understanding of that in this process on Rutherford Falls in getting deeper in a really casual and fun and oftentimes very funny setting, which was our writer's room, hearing and just being with the experiences of a lot of these writers from very different backgrounds and a lot of Native American writers … And so hearing them reflect to each other, reflect off of us, me, other writers from other backgrounds. It just deepened my appreciation and commitment to having different voices involved.”How Ed’s exploring history with his podcast SNAFU 26:51 - “There's so much history that is powerful and meaningful that has been lost or pushed aside, or just kind of maybe muddied because of whoever was the dominant storyteller at the time. And, you know, they say history's written by the winners. That's reductive, but true. And so it’s interesting to look, well, maybe the losers have some really powerful, meaningful stories.”On finding mentors 31:20 - “Just look for lots of people who are doing cool things around you, things that you admire, and then just study them a little bit. You don't have to know them. If you do, great, then you can ask them directly.”Show Links:Represent UsEd Helms: Gerrymandering is like…really badSNAFU Podcast

Welcome to Running to the Noise, a podcast from Oberlin College and Conservatory hosted by President Carmen Twillie Ambar. Starting this fall, President Ambar will speak with all manner of influential people on and off Oberlin’s campus who are taking on some of the toughest problems and working to spark positive change around the world.Tune in for conversations surrounding a vast array of topics like diversity in Hollywood, repairing our democracy, and the repatriation of art. Running to the Noise with us starting September 28 and on the last Tuesday of every month after that. And subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.