In the last year, Story in the Public Square brought you scholars, journalists, novelists, movie makers and more. Some of the stories they shared made us laugh. Others caused us worry and even anger. All of them helped us understand public life in the United States today.

Since 2013, the Pell Center at Salve Regina University has announced a “Story of the Year,” the narrative that had the biggest impact on American public life in the preceding 12 months. This week we’re joined by, Evelyn Farkas, whose work in and out of government gives her special insight into this year’s top story.

The United States is engaged in nuclear brinksmanship with a reclusive despot whose regime is determined to develop nuclear weapons and the missiles to deliver them to the United States. Matthew Gault argues that the American public isn’t worried enough about these issues.

Professor Esther Schor, puts Emma Lazarus’ famous poem on the Statue of Liberty, “The New Colossus,” into a historic and contemporary context.

Higher education in the United States is a nearly-$600 billion per year industry that some observers describe as unsustainable and on the verge of a fundamental crisis. Charles Dorn argues those stories are overblown and that colleges and universities can still serve the common good.

Cosmetic surgery was a $16 billion industry in 2016. Abigail Brooks, says the explosive growth in cosmetic procedures is an outgrowth of deregulation in the healthcare industry, and it’s affecting the way we think about aging.

Among its many missions, the U.S. military also operates a system of schools that provide professional military education—or PME—to rising leaders in each service. Rear Admiral Jeffrey A. Harley has charted a new path for the U.S. Naval War College at a time of historic global challenges.

Speculative fiction, from the most fantastic science fiction to the bleakest dystopias, shines a light on current issues and the reality we know in the here and now. Guest, Christopher Brown uses narrative as a laboratory about governance, political violence, and even what it means to be American.