Filmed at New York's The Town Hall theater and hosted by best-selling author and comedian Baratunde Thurston, TED Talks: War & Peace explores the impact of war through the eyes of those who have experienced its every aspect: soldiers, journalists, doctors, mothers and more. Featuring thought-provoking ideas, short films and a special musical performance by Rufus Wainwright, TED Talks: War & Peace explores the complex issues surrounding conflict and how we can build a better future without it. The second in a series of three TED Talks television specials slated for 2016, TED Talks: War & Peace premieres Monday, May 30, 2016, 8:00-9:00 p.m. CT on OETA.
Featured speakers and performers include:
- Former Marine-turned-actor Adam Driver shares how the world of theater recreated the camaraderie he missed after the military, and how drama can be used to help returning veterans transition to civilian life;
- Journalist Sebastian Junger believes that the prevalence of PTSD may have more to do with the angry and fractured America that vets come home to than their actual combat experiences;
- Jamila Raqib promotes effective strategies of non-violent protest to people living under tyranny and shares encouraging examples of successful change around the world;
- Humanitarian Samantha Nutt has been to some of the most war-torn places on earth and draws parallels between conflict zones in the world’s poorest nations and the proliferation of cheap automatic weapons and small arms; and
- Christianne Boudreau conveys the emotional story of her son’s conversion to radical Islam and subsequent death while fighting for ISIS in Syria.
TED Talks: War & Peace also includes three original short films produced by ITVS: Talk of War, by Geeta Gandbhir and Perri Peltz, featuring parents and their children talking about the strain that deployment takes on military families; All Roads Point Home, by Michèle Stephenson and Joe Brewster, about Major General Linda Singh, Maryland’s highest-ranking soldier, who served in Afghanistan and Kosovo and was called upon to use her skills in the Baltimore riots of 2015; and Bionic Soldier, by Anna Bowers, Mark Mannucci and Jonathan Halperin, about new advances in biotechnology that allow severely wounded vets to once again lead active lives. Also featured is a musical performance by singer/songwriter Rufus Wainwright.
TED Talks: War & Peace is the second in a series of three TED Talks PBS specials scheduled for 2016: Science and Wonder premiered March 30 and Education Revolution will premiere later this year on PBS.
TED Talks: War & Peace is a co-production of TED and the Independent Television Service (ITVS) and is funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB).
TED Talks: War & Peace is curated by Chris Anderson and Juliet Blake. The executive producer is Juliet Blake and Allen Kelman is the producer. TED content director is Kelly Stoetzel. Executive producers for ITVS are Tamara Gould and Sally Jo Fifer. TED Talks: War & Peace is directed by Linda Mendoza.