And now, from the University of Chicago Institute of Politics and CNN, the Axviles, with your

host, David Axelrod.

I've been around political journalism all my life.

I've seen a lot of great reporters, print and broadcast over those years.

John Dickerson really belongs in that class of great, thoughtful, insightful reporters.

That was true when he was at Time Magazine.

For 12 years, it's been true in his work for Slate.

And now, as host of Face the Nation, he's also the host of Slate's political gabfest,

a very popular podcast.

And one of his own called Whistle Stop, that goes into the history of some of America's

most interesting presidential campaigns.

And now, he's turned that into a book by the same name, which comes out in August.

I had a chance to sit down with John at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia

to talk about this current campaign, his career, and his upcoming book.

John Dickerson, welcome.

In reading your story, I saw echoes of my own life because we both had, in different

realms.

Others who were successful, pursued careers single-mindedly.

And maybe sometimes to the detriment of kids.

And my mother named me, she says, because she thought it would look good in a byline,

which was embarrassing to me later when I actually became a reporter, because I didn't

want to feel like it was, I was fulfilling her destiny.

...