Georgian journalist and media personality, Giorgi Isakadze, recounts the ups and downs of his country’s battle to throw off Russian influence and pull away from its Soviet past. 

Though Yugoslavia shared many of the iron fisted rules and government control that other socialist bloc nations endured, the nation didn't get caught in the USSR’s orbit. Over the course of three years in the 1990s Yugoslavia split into six different countries, which ushered in a period of instability, bloodshed and war. Journalist Viktor Vresnik recounts the days before, during and after everything in the region turned upside down.  Journalist Viktor Vresnik recounts the days before, during and after everything in the region turned upside down.Guest:Viktor VresnikJournalist, Jutarnji List

During the cold war, Soviet officials censored or banned music that didn’t pass censorship standards, labeling it decadent and culturally corruptive. Rocker Max Pokrovsky, leader of the band Nogu Svelo!, explains what it was like to break through into the music scene as those restraints eased, as well as how the Russian music scene blossomed into a thriving business before again showing signs of becoming a political tool.Guest:Max Pokrovsky Leader of popular Russian rock band Nogu Svelo!

When Ukraine declared its independence from the USSR in 1991, state-run media was still the norm. Thanks to media activists like Ukrainian-America Dora Chomiak, independent media began to gain a foothold in the fledgling nation. From her first encounter with Soviet life in 1989, to her current developmental work with her organization, Razom, Chomiak recounts her own experience of culture shock, the evolution of Ukrainian media, and the can-do, entrepreneurial mindset of the country’s younger generation.Guest: Dora ChomiakPresident, Razom; Managing Director at dPrism Advisors