Ken Burns on love and grief (Part 2)
Ken Burns on love and grief (Part 2)  
Podcast: ReThinking
Published On: Tue Jan 13 2026
Description: Ken Burns is a documentary filmmaker who has produced works about Mark Twain, Jackie Robinson, the American Buffalo, the Civil War, and now, in his latest work, the American Revolution. In this second part of their conversation, Adam and Ken move to more personal topics: Ken’s experience with fatherhood, the role of grief and loss in his work, and his hatred of careerism. Adam pitches some new ideas for upcoming documentaries, and Ken reflects on a time when the word “enthusiastic” was used against him.Host & GuestAdam Grant (Instagram: @adamgrant | LinkedIn: @adammgrant | Website: https://adamgrant.net/)Ken Burns (Website: https://kenburns.com/) Linkshttps://www.facebook.com/kenburnspbshttps://www.youtube.com/user/kenburnspbshttps://kenburns.com/films/the-american-revolution/Follow TED! X: https://www.twitter.com/TEDTalksInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/tedFacebook: https://facebook.com/TEDLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ted-conferencesTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@tedtoks Podcasts: https://www.ted.com/podcastsFor the full text transcript, visit ted.com/podcasts/rethinking-with-adam-grant-transcriptsReThinking is produced by Cosmic Standard. Our Senior Producer is Jessica Glazer, our Engineer is Aja Simpson, our Technical Director is Jacob Winik, and our Executive Producer is Eliza Smith. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.