Franken, Frank, and Bowling Alone With Other Harvard-Types

This afternoon Al Franken rocked Air America’s AM airwaves* from right here in the Hub. As part of a nation-wide book tour Franken made his appearance in Boston and coupled it with a broadcast of his three hour program from the Wilbur in the Theatre District. Harvard alum Franken pulled on the alumni network to fill his show's time slot. Robert Putnam from the Kennedy School of Government, Laurence Tribe from Harvard Law School, Julius Richmond and Rashi Fein form Harvard Medical School, Atul Gawande from the Harvard School of Public Health joined Franken and Harvard College and Harvard Law School grad and current Congressman Barney Frank for conversations. Boston, "a seat of academic, political and cultural liberalism in America,” according to Senator Santorum, was home to the progressive talk show and a half dozen of those liberal elites from that little school across the river, Harvard. Franken’s “zero spin zone” conversed with some intelligentsia before Franken hopped ~~the red line~~ into his hired car service on his way back up to Cambridge where he read from his new book The Truth (with jokes) at the Charles Hotel in – wait for it – Harvard Square. Bostonist doesn’t really have a problem having that prestigious University across the river, but it seems like Franken focused a bit too much “in the community” and overlooked some of the gems that Boston has to offer. Just think what he could have done with Mitt on the radio. It was nice to have you back in the Hub, Al, even if you were just promoting Ve Ri Tas (with jokes).