Laughlin is primarily known for his romantic and surreal views of Southern architecture although he also photographed other topics, including Chicago buildings of the Victorian era.

With his book, "Neighbors: A Forty-Year Portrait of an American Farm Community," Archie Lieberman first took the photos of Scales Mound, Illinois. Because he felt something was missing, Lieberman, followed the residents around and then he added stories to his book. More often than not, Lieberman found out that the people of Scales Mound felt it was their duty to take care of the land.

The interview begins with Wright Morris reading from a essay he had presented at a conference on Arts in Public. Wright Morris, an American novelist and essayist , discusses how society no longer participates in consuming the arts, only skimming the surface by reading a review. Mr Morris argues that the bulk of society does not embrace or learn from the past mostly due to the fact there is no knowledge and a lack of curiosity to gain that knowledge.

Curators Jonathan Wordsworth, Robert Woof, and Michael C. Jaye discuss the exhibition “William Wordsworth and the Age of English Romanticism”, an exhibition of paintings, watercolors, manuscripts, and literature inspired by Wordsworth's Romantic Poetry. Jonathan Wordsworth reads an excerpt of lines from William Wordsworth’s “Lines Composed a Few Miles Above Tintern Abbey”, "To Toussaint L'Ouverture", and "The World Is Too Much With Us." Studs reads "My Heart Leaps Up" - William Wordsworth. Studs plays "Ça Ira" - Edith Piaf (1954) and "A Man's a Man for A'That" - Ewan MacColl (1959).

Anita Miller and Jeanne Madeline Weimann discuss their book, The Fair Women, published in 1981, a book that talks about the women's role in the World's Columbian Exposition, especially in the creation of the Women's Building.

Carol Wald's book, "Myth America: Picturing Women, 1865-1945", came about after she saw some pictures of women and how they were depicted. Wald asked herself if the images of the tacky, frail American women represented her. Various images like sheet music, postcards, and advertisement posters showed women as good girls, nice girls, pious and pure. Wald's point is women are not perfect angels nor are they angelic all the time.

Visual arts and literature are covered in Jane B. Katz's book, This Song Remembers: Self-Portraits of the Native Americans in the Arts. When talking to artists, Katz learns that they aren't just capturing their past, but that they're keeping their cultures alive for future generations.*Please note: some sections have been edited out from the original recording due to copyright considerations 

*Please note: some sections have been edited out from the original recording due to copyright considerations 

According to Cornell Capa, the best pictures of his book "Concerned Photographer" are the ones that deal with overpopulation. Capa hoped to make people aware of what's going on in the world and he further hoped people would do something about what they saw in the photographs.*Please note: some sections have been edited out from the original recording due to copyright considerations