I haven't read the book, but I did watch the special on CNN. I have mixed feelings about it. On the one hand, I'm happy he's taking on the issue. It does need to be discussed. On the other hand, I found the program (and really his whole schtik) to be sort of shallow- I would have liked a deeper exploration of what's happening with the middle class. The format of this was very much: cutesy profile of sad family, Lou Dobbs talking, Dobbs asking experts brief questions, Dobbs commenting on the questions, audience asking questions, Dobbs commenting on the questions, experts answering, Dobbs commenting on the answer... In other words, it seemed to be a lot about him, who is one of the self-proclaimed out of touch media.