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What happens when a line cook falls in love with magazines—and refuses to choose between the stove and the story? We sit down with Chandra Ram, celebrated food writer, cookbook author and former editorial leader at Plate and Food & Wine, to chart a career built on craft, curiosity and a relentless commitment to serving readers as well as diners.

We dig into the early days that shaped her taste for pace and hospitality, the consulting and PR pivots that revealed how media really works and the unexpected phone call that led to years steering a chef-focused magazine. From there, Chandra explains how she helped a legacy brand honor icons like Julia Child while welcoming weeknight cooks who just want perfect pancakes and fewer half-used cans. You’ll hear how real-time traffic, search behavior and reader pain points inform recipe development, and why small choices—like using a full can of coconut milk—build trust.

We also confront the forces remaking food media: social platforms with shifting rails and AI that answers before a click. Chandra makes the case for direct relationships through newsletters, the enduring power of cookbooks you can smudge and dog-ear, and a smarter approach to inclusivity that goes far beyond token dishes. Expect candid insights on developing a strong writer’s voice, creating entry points that invite readers into a story, and trends worth keeping—hello, crunchy sauces packed with seeds and nuts.

If you care about where recipes come from, whose stories get told, and how to cook better tonight, this conversation is for you. Enjoy the episode, then subscribe, share with a friend who loves food media, and leave a review to help others find the show.

Mentioned in the Episode:

• Chandra’s Substack newsletter: Another Bite
• Chandra’s Instagram (@chandrasplate)
• Chandra’s LinkedIn
  
  
• Cookbooks by Chandra Ram
  – The Complete Indian Instant Pot Cookbook
  – Korean BBQ: Master Your Grill in Seven Sauces (with Bill Kim)
  – The Eiffel Tower Restaurant Cookbook (with Jean Joho)
  – Women in Food (contributor)
  – The Chicago Food Encyclopedia (contributor)
  
  
• Zuni Café Cookbook by Judy Rodgers
  
  
• Dianne Jacob's Will Write for Food

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Step past the velvet ropes and into the rooms where power becomes personal. Angela sits with bestselling author and journalist Kate Andersen Brower to trace a path from midnight shifts at CBS to Bloomberg’s White House beat and the books that reveal the people who keep the presidency moving. From riding on Air Force One to riding a helicopter that touched down on the Buckingham Palace lawn, Kate shares electric moments that shaped her view of leadership, access and the stakes of getting the story right.

We dig into the origin of The Residence and the staff whose names rarely make headlines but whose work steadies every administration—ushers who know first families as people, butlers who carry institutional memory and housekeepers who witness history at arm’s length. Kate unpacks the power and pressure of first ladies, the private grief that often underlies public composure and the ethical knots reporters face when truth, privacy and politics collide. She explains why some stories humanize rather than sensationalize, and how multiple credible sources guide what makes it to the page.

Kate also opens up about her work being featured on screen as The Residence inspired a Netflix series, why she chose to stay focused on writing over producing and what she misses—and doesn’t—about daily journalism. Looking ahead, she previews a forthcoming book with Norah O’Donnell spotlighting overlooked women who built America, and a deep dive into the presidential secretaries who sit just outside the Oval Office, balancing loyalty with duty. If you care about media, history and the people who keep institutions running when no one’s watching, this conversation will stay with you.

Links & Resources Mentioned in This Episode

• The Residence – Inside the Private World of the White House
  Kate Anderson Brower’s bestselling book offering a rare, behind-the-scenes look at the White House residence staff and the non-political professionals who serve presidents and their families.
• First Women – The Grace and Power of America’s Modern First Ladies
  An intimate portrait of modern first ladies, revealing the unseen pressures, influence, and complexity of a role with no formal job description.
• Team of Five – Former Presidents and Their Relationships
  A revealing look at how living former presidents interact, support, and sometimes clash behind the scenes.
• First in Line – The Lives and Power of U.S. Vice Presidents
  A deep dive into the often-overlooked role of the vice presidency and the individuals who have held it.
• Elizabeth Taylor: The Grit & Glamour of an Icon
  The first authorized biography of Elizabeth Taylor, tracing her extraordinary life, legacy, and activism.
• The Residence (Netflix)
  A murder-mystery series inspired by Kate’s book, produced by Shonda Rhimes and starring Uzo Aduba, using the White House residence as its dramatic backdrop.
• Kate Anderson Brower’s Website
  Learn more about Kate’s books, reporting, and current projects at katebrower.com.

Enjoyed the episode? Subscribe, share with a friend, and leave a quick review so more curious listeners can find the show.

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A chance assignment after the Gulf War put Jamie McIntyre inside the Pentagon at the very moment history refused to slow down. From Somalia to Haiti to Kosovo and Iraq, he learned that the defense beat isn’t just policy on paper—it’s operations, people and real-world stakes. Jamie shares how that era’s open access let reporters roam the halls, build sources, and pressure-test official narratives in real time, and why the shift to tighter control is more than an inconvenience—it’s a loss for the public.

We dive into how he rebuilt his reporting toolkit for a remote-first world: livestreamed hearings, transcript, and a carefully curated X feed that filters signal from noise. Then we compare that to an uncurated stream—an eye-opening look at how the platform can reward rage, rabbit holes and confusion. The takeaway is practical and urgent: your inputs shape your reality, and journalists now serve as both investigators and filters in an age that monetizes doubt.

Jamie also opens up about the hardest problem in the craft: convincing people to trust what’s true. He was in the Pentagon on 9/11 and later spent a decade engaging “truthers,” never changing a single mind. That experience informs a frank discussion on misinformation and identity, why facts alone often fail and how context-heavy reporting helps readers think more clearly. We wrap with candid advice for younger journalists, a look at Jamie’s book plans—either a study of disinformation or a Cold War-era memoir—and a measured sense of hope rooted in history’s long arc toward justice.

If you value clear, reality-based reporting on defense and national security, hit follow, share the show with a friend, and leave a quick review with the one insight you’re taking away today.

Links & Resources

• Daily on Defense – Jamie McIntyre’s weekday newsletter offering clear, experience-driven context on U.S. defense and national security. Sign up here.
• Elements of Disbelief – Jamie’s writing on misinformation, conspiracy theories, and why false beliefs persist, rooted in his academic research on 9/11.
• Jamie McIntyre – Washington Examiner – Read Jamie’s defense and national security reporting.