> ## Content Index
> Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.cascadepbs.org/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further.

# Our American Storytellers
- URL: https://www.cascadepbs.org/show/finding-your-roots/episode/finding-your-roots-our-american-storytellers/
- Published: 2024-04-02T23:11:42.000Z
- Updated: 2025-09-16T20:30:17.000Z
- Description: Learn about the lives of the forebears of Ken Burns, Anderson Cooper & Anna Deavere Smith.
- Author: Cascade PBS Staff
- Tags: Finding Your Roots, Season 2, Episode 3, #ZZZ_Episode_8cd4f6f2-d542-4120-b2ac-223865375cfd, #episode, #ZZZ_Show_855aaf88-37bb-4949-872a-c4646a613145, #v1.16

Three iconic American storytellers have spent their lives chronicling the lives of others, while knowing almost nothing about their own family history. Ken Burns confronts the reality of his southern ancestors’ role in the Civil War, including Confederate soldiers held captive and a slave-owning Virginian. Anderson Cooper, scion of one of America’s most storied families.