Hello and welcome to Background Briefing, available 24-7 at Background Briefing.org. I'm Ian Masters,

and today we'll look into a number of stories and issues in the news. We'll begin with

today's state funeral of President Jimmy Carter, who died recently at the age of 100, and was

celebrated today by his friend, President Biden, who eulogized him before a gathering of former and

future American presidents, Clinton, Bush, Obama and Trump. Joining us to discuss the moving ceremony and the life and legacy of the 39th president

is James Fellows, an award-winning author and national correspondent for the Atlantic.

He previously worked as President Carter's chief speechwriter and was editor of U.S. News

and World Report. His books on

media and politics include Who Runs Congress, Breaking the News, How the Media Undermine

American Democracy, Blind into Baghdad, America's War in Iraq, and China Airborne, The

Test of China's Future. And his latest book co-authored with his wife, Deborah Fellows, is Our Towns,

A 100,000 Mile Journey Into the Heart of America. And he blogs at fellows.substack.com,

where his latest article is, Jimmy Carter, President and Citizen.

Then we'll examine the extent to which climate change supercharged the wildfires that swept through areas of Los Angeles like a blowtorch,

causing an unprecedented loss of property, leaving thousands homeless.

Joining us to discuss how the dry summer, followed by a dry winter when rain normally falls,

along with up to 100 mile an hour winds, contributed to this ongoing

disaster, is Glenn MacDonald, the John Muir Memorial Chair of Geography, Director of the White

Mountain Research Centre, and a distinguished professor at UCLA. He is a former UC presidential chair

and former director of the UCLA Institute of the Environment and Sustainability.

His research focuses on climate change, its causes and its impact on the environment and society.

Then finally, with criticism from Republicans of Los Angeles Mayor and its fire chief underway, we will speak

...