The Best of ST in 2012: Jack Hitt and His "Search for the American Character"

On this "best of" edition of our show, we're listening back to a discussion we had by phone last year with Jack Hitt, who's a contributing editor to The New York Times Magazine, Harper's, and public radio's This American Life. We spoke with him about his then-recent book, "Bunch of Amateurs: A Search for the American Character." In this often funny and/or fascinating study, Hitt claims that amateurism is at the very core of the American identity --- it's a mindset that defines us, a method (or improvisational lack thereof) that drives us, and a means to understanding who we are as Americans. You can read a full description of this interview (and hear a free, on-demand "stream" of same) at this link.