Matt Taibbi

Rolling Stone Contributing Editor, Matt Taibbi, graduated from Bard College in New York in 1991; finished his studies at Leningrad Polytechnichal University in Russia.

Taibbi worked as a freelance reporter in the former Soviet Union, including a stint in Uzbekistan, from whence he was deported in 1992 after writing an article for the Associated Press that was critical of President Islam Karimov.

At the time of his deportation, Taibbi was also the starting left fielder for the Uzbek National baseball team.

He returned to the United States in 1994 and worked for a time as an investigator in a Boston-based private detective agency.

In 1995 he went back to Russia and played pro baseball for two Russian clubs, Spartak and the Red Army.

Subsequently he moved to Mongolia and in 1996-97 played professional basketball in the Mongolian Basketball Association, where he was the nation's leading rebounder, and was known as the "Mongolian Rodman."

He eventually resettled in Moscow, where he founded, with writer Mark Ames, an English-language satire newspaper called the eXile.

Among the paper's more notorious stunts was an incident in which it convinced Mikhail Gorbachev to take a job as an assistant coach to the New York Jets.

The paper also made headlines for throwing a cream pie made of horse sperm in the face of a New York Times reporter, and for convincing the caretaker of Lenin's corpse to design a museum display for the waterlogged foot of John F. Kennedy, Jr.  In between the jokes the eXile earned a reputation for hard-nosed reporting of corruption both in Russian government and the American aid community. The paper was the only publication to correctly predict the 1998 Russian financial crisis.

In conjunction with the Russian paper Stringer, for whom Taibbi wrote in Russian, the eXile also wiretapped the telephone of Kremlin Chief of Staff Alexander Voloshin in 2001.  Taibbi in his time in Russia produced a great deal of participatory journalism, working in a variety of jobs to show readers the reality of Russian life. He worked at various times as a bricklayer in Siberia, a migrant farm laborer, a moonshine dealer, a professional clown, a keeper in an elephant cage, a security guard, and a construction worker in an Orthodox monastery.

Taibbi returned to the U.S. for good in 2002 and founded the Buffalo-based newspaper The Beast.

He left that paper a year later to work as a columnist for the New York Press, and eventually as a contributing editor for Rolling Stone.

His Press column on George Bush's prewar press conference, "Cleaning the Pool," was included in the Best Political Writing 2003 anthology, and a year later he was named one of the 35 most influential New Yorkers under 35 by the New York Observer.

Prior to Spanking the Donkey, a collection of writings about the 2004 presidential campaign, Taibbi published one book, The eXile: Sex, Drugs and Libel in the New Russia (Grove, 2000).

He lives in New York City.

"Blonde on Blonde"

Deirdre Imus, Founder of the site devoted to environmental health, ImusEnvironmentalHealth.org, a resource for healthy green living where Deirdre shares tips on how to "green" the way you care for yourself, family and the planet. Everything from the food you eat, the clothes you wear, baby care products, cosmetics, and personal care products, you’ll find practical advice and tips for a healthier lifestyle. Deirdre is a vegetarian for life!

Deirdre is also President and Founder of The Deirdre Imus Environmental Health Center® at Hackensack University Medical Center and Co-Founder/Co-Director of the Imus Cattle Ranch for Kids with Cancer. It is the only vegetarian working cattle ranch for kids with cancer.   

Deirdre is a New York Times multiple best-selling author and appears weekly on Imus in the Morning's Blonde on Blonde and Psychos.

The Deirdre Imus Environmental Health Center® works to ensure children live the healthiest lives possible – today, tomorrow, and decades from now. In her quest to clean up the environment for our kids, Deirdre developed the award-winning Greening The Cleaning® program and product line, which replaces the hazardous ingredients commonly found in cleaning agents with environmentally-responsible, less toxic products wherever possible.  The program and products are used throughout the country in schools, healthcare facilities, and businesses.

Deirdre has been the recipient of numerous awards and honors for her impact as a leader in the field of environmental health, and for raising awareness about childhood chronic illnesses that are in epidemic proportions like autism, asthma, and obesity.  Deirdre serves on the boards of several children’s health organizations, including the National Autism Association, Safe Minds, Generation Rescue, SKIP of New York, East Harlem Council for Human Services, Inc., Boriken Neighborhood Health Center.

Tony Powell

What do you get when you cross the charisma of Eddie Murphy, the irreverence of Chris Rock, and the Old School charm of Bernie Mack? I have no idea, however, I do know that when you add a quick wit, great storytelling ability, and the performance chops of a seasoned pro you have Tony Powell.

Like someone getting chocolate in your peanut butter or you getting peanut butter in their chocolate, accidents have a way of discovering pure artistry. While attending the University of Virginia, Tony Powell was asked to calm an unruly audience. Suddenly all those summer afternoons listening to Richard Pryor, and Bill Cosby albums seemed to have purpose. With his trademark quick wit, and clever impressions, Tony released the comedic genie trapped within to the delight of the unruly audience. Who knew at that moment in time that Powell was about to embark on a comedic odyssey that would lead to appearances on The Chris Rock Show , NBC's Showtime at the Apollo and two appearances on A&E's Comedy on the Road. Powell has made several appearances on The Comedy Channel. Powell has also opened for celebrity musical groups such as The Ojays and the Whispers. He has worked as the studio warm-up act for Bill Cosby and Nickelodeon's Keenan and Kel show. Since December of 2007 Tony has brought his comedic talents, as both a writer and performer, to the nationally syndicated radio program "Imus In The Morning;" heard weekdays from 6-10 AM EST and simulcast on the Fox Business Network..

As an actor, he has recently appeared on several national television commercials (Visa, Dawn Detergent, Ritz Crackers, Snuggle Brand Fabric Softener). Tony was also the radio voice of ''Mr. Chill'' for Miller Genuine Draft and the U.S. Army reserves. Powell’s voice talents have also been featured in national radio spots for Fila and Heineken. Powell is a college campus favorite as well. He has performed at over a hundred colleges and universities.

Growing up in East New York, Brooklyn, survival requires one of three things; you either have to be a great fighter, fleet of foot, or be a whole lotta funny. Let's just say, Tony Powell ain't no Ali or Usain Bolt, he is however, a whole lotta funny.

Colonel Jack Jacobs

Jack Jacobs was born in Brooklyn, New York. He holds Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from Rutgers University and entered the U.S. Army in 1966 as a Second Lieutenant through the ROTC program. He served as a platoon leader in the 82nd Airborne Division, executive officer of an infantry battalion in the 7th Infantry Division, and commanded the 4th Battalion 10th Infantry in Panama. A member of the faculty of the US Military Academy, Jacobs taught international relations and comparative politics, and he was a member of the faculty of the National War College in Washington, DC.

He was in Vietnam twice, both times as an advisor to Vietnamese infantry battalions, earning three Bronze Stars, two Silver Stars and the Medal of Honor, the nation’s highest combat decoration. Jacobs retired as a Colonel in 1987.

He was a founder and Chief Operating Officer of AutoFinance Group Inc, one of the firms to pioneer the securitization of debt instruments; the firm was subsequently sold to Key Bank. He was a Managing Director of Bankers Trust, where he ran foreign exchange options worldwide and was a partner in the institutional hedge fund business, raising more than $2 Billion. Jacobs subsequently founded a similar business for Lehman Brothers and retired again in 1995 to pursue investments.

He is a principal of The Fitzroy Group, a firm that specializes in the development of residential real estate in London and invests both for its own account and in joint ventures with other institutions. He serves on a number of charitable boards of directors and is the Co-Chairman of the Congressional Medal of Honor Foundation and Director Emeritus of the World War II Museum.

Jacobs holds the McDermott Chair of Humanities and Public Affairs at the US Military Academy and is an on-air analyst for NBC News, where he was a member of the team that produced the 2011 Murrow Award-winning  Nightly News segment “Iraq: The Long Way Out.”  Colonel Jacobs is also the co-author of the memoir, If Not Now, When?, published by Penguin and winner of the Colby Award. His second work of non-fiction is Basic, released by St. Martin’s Press in 2012.

Tracy Wolfson

Tracy Wolfson is the lead college basketball sideline reporter for CBS. She will be on the call through the championship game for the NCAA Division I Men’s basketball tournament.

Louis Nelson

Louis Nelson is a reporter for POLITICO.  He works with POLITICO's breaking news team, which he joined in the spring of 2016 after spending a year on the web team, where he was a producer and editor. Before coming to POLITICO, Louis worked at Washington's WJLA-TV as a web editor and at The Washington Post, where he covered high school sports and formatted the agate page for the sports section.  Louis is from Evanston, Illinois and is a graduate of George Washington University, where he was the sports editor of the school newspaper, The GW Hatchet. He is a GW men's basketball season ticket holder and a fan of the Chicago Cubs. He misses deep-dish pizza and lives in Arlington, Virginia, with his wife and their dog, Pepper.