In Pursuit: Lessons of American Leadership
PBS Western Reserve (WNEO 45.1 / WEAO 49.1):
Tuesday, Oct. 27, at 10 PM
Wednesday, Oct. 28, at 3 AM
Based on More Perfect’s groundbreaking In Pursuit initiative — a curated series of essays by leading American public figures and scholars distilling one leadership lesson from each American president and several first ladies — the film weaves together new interviews and archival material with documentary storytelling to explore what we can learn from the past to inform a more perfect union. IN PURSUIT is part of PBS America @ 250, a multiyear celebration of U.S. history, culture, and programming marking America’s Semiquincentennial.
The In Pursuit essay series — published weekly on Substack throughout 2026 — features contributions from three former Presidents, three former First Ladies, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, and seven Pulitzer Prize winners, including President Barack Obama on Abraham Lincoln, President George W. Bush on George Washington, President Bill Clinton on Theodore Roosevelt, Michelle Obama on Jacqueline Kennedy, Hillary Clinton on Eleanor Roosevelt, Laura Bush on Lady Bird Johnson, and Ken Burns and Geoffrey Ward on Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Drawing from these essays and original interviews with the authors, the Retro Report special brings their reflections on presidential leadership, character, and democratic ideals to a national television audience.
The special and digital series feature segments inspired by the essays and interviews of some of the nation’s most respected voices, including: retired General Stanley McChrystal reflects on Ulysses S. Grant as a model of leadership grounded in service rather than personal ambition. Secretary of the Smithsonian Lonnie Bunch considers Martin Van Buren’s role in building the modern American political system. And documentary filmmaker Ken Burns reflects on Franklin Roosevelt’s empathetic leadership during the Great Depression and World War II.
Additional insights feature Chief Justice John Roberts on William Howard Taft, Judy Woodruff on Rosalynn Carter, Douglas Brinkley on Barack Obama, David Brooks on Ronald Reagan, Anita McBride on Bess Truman, Sean Wilentz on Bill Clinton, and Lindsay Chervinsky on John Quincy Adams.
