WATCH: Adam Schiff on How Fiction Can Help Us Understand Political Turmoil
The California Congressman is Worried About American Democracy
Authors in the Tent is a professionally filmed series of interviews with established and emerging authors conducted in a tent Ona Russell purchased during the pandemic. Inspired by Boccaccio’s Decameron and the 1001 Arabian Nights, the tent—elemental, ancient, and ubiquitous—serves as a magical backdrop for literary conversation.
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On the last episode of our third season, Ona Russell talks with Adam Schiff about his book Midnight in Washington: How We Almost Lost Our Democracy and Still Could, his evolution as a writer, why he bookended his book around the January 6 Insurrection, leading the impeachment of Donald J. Trump, and the value of fiction.
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This series is in support of the charities Tents-4-Homeless, PATH, Alpha Project, and VVSD.
Ona Russell holds a PhD in literature from UC San Diego where she also taught for many years. She is author of three award-winning historical mysteries and the recently released Son of Nothingness: A Novel of Appearances.
Adam Schiff is the United States Representative for California’s 28th Congressional District. In his role as Chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, Schiff led the first impeachment of Donald J. Trump. Before he served in Congress, he worked as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in Los Angeles and as a California State Senator. He and his wife, Eve, have two children, Alexa and Elijah.
The Virtual Book Channel
Launched during the coronavirus pandemic as virtual literary communities began emerging in vital and unexpected ways, The Virtual Book Channel seeks to provide the best possible platforms for writers to reach their readers. The VBC (aka “The Veeb”) is a curated channel that archives live-streamed programming through partnerships with independent bookstores, literary festivals, authors' WFH spaces, and more.
