Terry Gross

He plays Josh Lyman, the Deputy Whitehouse Chief of Staff on the NBC drama The West Wing. The show's season finale airs Wednesday, May 16th. Whitford began his acting career on the stage. He has also appeared in many films including Scent of a Woman, Philadelphia, A Perfect World, Revenge of the Nerds II, and Billy Madison. He'll talk about his role on the West Wing, and what it's like playing a high-ranking staff member in a fictitious White House.

Journalist Michela Wrong is the author of the new book In the Footsteps of Mr Kurtz: Living on the Brink of Disaster in Mobutu's Congo. The book examines the 1960 CIA plot to murder Patrice Lumumba who was then leader of newly independent Congo. The plot led to Lumumba's removal from power and the ascension of Mobutu Sese Seko. Wrong is a staff reporter with The Financial Times.

Psychologist Daniel Schacter is the author of the new book The Seven Sins of Memory: How the Mind Forgets and Remembers. The book looks at memory loss and age, arguing that gaps in memory are normal if not necessary to a sharp mind. He's a Professor of Psychology at Harvard University.