A celebration of the independent spirit. I talk with independent singer-songwriter Eleni Mandell, and with Lloyd Kaufman, the man behind Troma Films and movies like The Toxic Avenger and Poultrygeist: Night of the Chicken Dead.

A talk with Richard Zoglin, whose book Comedy at the Edge profiles the standup comics who in his view changed America in the 1970s. Then we’ll talk about the late Chris Farley with Tom Farley Jr, his brother and Tanner Colby.

This week it's a crash course in media literacy. I'll talk about getting inside the news with Brooke Gladstone and Bob Garfield from On the Media. Then I'll chat with ad man Terry O'Reilly, whose CBC show The Age of Persuasion is all about the history and practice of marketing.

The new Starz comedy Party Down is a show about failed actors working as cater-waiters. Jesse talks with three of the brilliant actors who play those failed actors -- Martin Starr, Jane Lynch and Adam Scott.