Civics 101 (NHPR)
Explorez tous les épisodes de Civics 101
| Date | Titre | Durée | |
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| 09 Jul 2024 | Moyle v U.S.: Why did SCOTUS punt an abortion case? | 00:43:33 | |
The Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act, or EMTALA, says certain hospitals have to provide stabilizing care to patients. Until the Dobbs decision in 2022, that care included abortion if necessary. After Dobbs, though, states with strict abortion laws make it difficult if not impossible to abide by EMTALA. Idaho is one such state, the United States sued, and that case made its way to the Supreme Court. In June of 2024, however, the Court said it made a mistake. It never should have taken the case. So what happened? Hannah is inside the courtroom, Nick's waiting outside. Listen to our episodes on federalism, Roe v Wade and precedent for some extra context on what we talk about here. Finally, listen to Hannah's episode on what it was like to spend a day in the Supreme Court.
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| 24 Apr 2024 | The Constitution is not vegan! (D.C. field trip dispatch) | 00:18:57 | |
This week our team has hit the road to - where else - our nation’s capital, Washington D.C. While we’re here, we’ll be conducting interviews and gathering tape for future episodes, but we’re also doing something else: immersing ourselves in the sights and sounds of the seat of our federal government. That’s right, it’s a Civics 101 field trip! You can follow along on Instagram and on our brand-new TikTok channel. In this episode, listen to what it was like as we explored the city during our first full day in D.C. - where we walked, what we saw, and what made us curious. And one of those facts...yeah, it was about the Constitution. BUCKLE UP.
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| 25 Feb 2025 | NY Times v Sullivan: What if the press couldn’t tell the truth? | 00:23:01 | |
When it comes to the protection of a free and fair press, there is one landmark Supreme Court case that sits at the top, and it is New York Times Company v Sullivan (1964). This case redefined libel in the United States and is cited in almost every defamation suit since, but its origin is in the Civil Rights Movement, when newspapers were sued to the brink of collapse for covering protests in the south. Taking us through libel, defamation, and "actual malice" are Ang Reidell, Director of Outreach and Curriculum at the Annenberg Public Policy Center, and Samantha Barbas, professor at the Iowa College of Law and author of Actual Malice: Civil Rights and Freedom of the Press in New York Times v. Sullivan. Click here to watch a fantastic documentary from Annenberg on the case. Quick note to teachers! Our guests are collaborating today! The first fifty teachers who join the Civics Renewal Network will receive a free copy of Samantha Barbas's book, click here to sign up and get yours today!
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| 14 Jan 2025 | What are Trump's Climate Plans? | 00:38:17 | |
What has Donald Trump claimed he would do when it comes to environmental policy in the U.S.? What happened during his last administration? And what are the limits on executive powers when it comes to treaties and global agreements? Elizabeth Bomberg, Professor of Politics at the University of Edinburgh, tells us what we can expect when it comes to emissions regulations, drilling, climate research, the Paris Agreement, and so much more.
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| 27 Feb 2024 | What's Going On With Civics Education? | 00:55:43 | |
Listen to our full, two-part series from 2023 on the history of civics education, and the current legal and ideological debates around social studies happening in across the country today.
Walking us through the past, present, and future of social studies and civic education are Danielle Allen, James Bryant Conant University Professor at Harvard University, and Adam Laats, Historian and Professor of Teaching, Learning and Educational Leadership at Binghamton University. We also hear from Louise Dube, Executive Director of iCivics and member of the Implementation Consortium at Educating for American Democracy, Justin Reich, Director at MIT Teaching Systems Lab and host of the TeachLab podcast, and CherylAnne Amendola, Department Chair and teacher at Montclair Kimberly Academy and host of the podcast Teaching History Her Way.
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| 04 Jul 2023 | What Is "The Shadow Docket?" | 00:22:46 | |
A law in Texas banning abortions after six weeks. The blocking of a majority-Black congressional district in Alabama. OSHA regulations requiring vaccinations or a negative COVID test result. All of these controversial issues were decided not through the tried-and-true method of a hearing in the Supreme Court, but rather through a system called "the shadow docket," orders from the court that are (often) unsigned, inscrutable, and handed down in the middle of the night. Professor Stephen Vladeck takes us through this increasingly common phenomenon. IF YOU LOVE OUR WORK, MAKE A DONATION TO SUPPORT CIVICS 101! This episode originally dropped in May, 2022.
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| 17 May 2022 | Freedom of the Press, Part 2 | 00:25:09 | |
A free press, ideally, learns what is happening in our democracy and passes that information on to us. How, then, do we learn the truth about this country when there’s so much misinformation, so many opinions, claims of fake news and widespread mistrust of the truth? Joining us again for part 2 are Melissa Wasser and Erin Coyle. This episode first aired in October of 2020.
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| 21 Jun 2022 | M, F & X: Gender Markers & Government Documents | 00:26:17 | |
The government issues IDs so we can prove who we say we are, and since the start, that’s included an expression of binary (male or female) gender. Now, some states - and even the federal government - are starting to change that. LGBTQ+ reporter Kate Sosin is our guide.
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| 28 Mar 2023 | Jury Duty: What To Expect When You Get That Summons | 00:42:54 | |
On this episode, you've been summoned to learn about jury duty. Do the reasons some people want to avoid jury duty have merit? How do you even get on a list to get summoned to begin with? What should you expect with you get summoned to serve? And should you embrace this particular opportunity to participate in the democratic process? (Spoiler alert: We really think you should!) Our guest is Sonali Chakravarti, professor of government at Wesleyan University and author of Radical Enfranchisement in the Jury Room and Public Life. Love the podcast? Make a donation to support it! Click here to chip in - we can't do what we do without listeners like you! Check out Outside/In presents: The Underdogs right here! Links:
Links related to the O.J. Simpson case:
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| 07 Jan 2025 | Secretary of Transportation with Pete Buttigieg | 00:24:21 | |
Transportation and infrastructure are massive (literally) undertakings here in the United States. So what does it mean to oversee it all? What is the Secretary of Transportation actually in charge of and what's going on with our roads, bridges, airports, etc.? We spoke with Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg to find out.
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| 11 Apr 2023 | How Can The Government Ban An App? | 00:17:43 | |
A social media app with 150 million American users is under intense scrutiny by the U.S. government. The threat is "sell or be banned," but how and why can the government do that? What does this kind of business restriction look like? We talked to Steven Balla of George Washington University to get the low down on regulations and bans in the United States.
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| 15 Feb 2022 | Who Writes the President's Speeches? | 00:29:29 | |
The modern presidency includes giving upwards of 400 speeches a year. How does the president find time to do it? They don't. That's where the speechwriters come in. This is how the (ideally) inspiring, comforting, clarifying sausage gets made and former Barack Obama senior speechwriter Sarada Peri is giving us a peek behind the curtain.
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| 20 Feb 2024 | Extra Credit: How to Argue Against Disinformation; Trump Trials Update | 00:31:11 | |
When the cats are away...well...you know. In this special episode, Executive Producer Rebecca Lavoie and Senior Producer Christina Phillips follow up on some recent discussions sparked by our newsletter Extra Credit. How do you have a legitimate discussion with someone who has the facts wrong? And what's going on with all of these different trials involving former President Donald Trump? Click here to read Nick's essay on responding to someone who's wrong. Click here to subscribe to our newsletter! Click here to make a donation to Civics 101.
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| 08 Nov 2024 | How do presidential transitions happen? | 00:22:37 | |
In 2018, we did an episode on Presidential Transitions. Now that we have had an election, we decided to revisit it. There are nearly 4,000 positions that a president appoints after their inauguration. How do they do it? How long does it take? And why has Donald Trump repeatedly refused to sign the "memoranda of understanding" regarding the transition from the U.S. General Services Administration? Our guest is Max Stier, President and CEO of the Partnership for Public Service, which runs the Center for Presidential Transition. Our show started as an explainer of governmental systems in a transition such as the one we're in now. Send us an email at civics101@nhpr.org if you want us to explain any facet of how our democracy works.
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| 11 Oct 2022 | Nina Totenberg Live On Stage | 00:36:00 | |
In September 2022, Hannah sat down with NPR Legal Affairs Correspondent for a show called Writers on a New England Stage. This is an excerpt from their conversation. Nina discusses her new book, Dinners with Ruth, focusing on her career as a journalist and her relationship with late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. You can catch the whole conversation at nhpr.org.
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| 04 Oct 2022 | Taking the Fifth: When What You Say Could Be Used Against You | 00:45:11 | |
The Fifth Amendment's self-incrimination clause says that no person "shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself." Basically, it means that the government, or law enforcement, can't force you to talk to implicate yourself in a crime. However, what that looks like in practice... is a little more messy. When do you have a right to remain silent? When do you become a suspect? What does compulsion look like? Can your silence be used against you? We talk about how the Supreme Court has interpreted these questions, and how to exercise Fifth Amendment right when you are interacting with law enforcement, with Tracey Maclin, a professor of Constitutional law and Constitutional criminal procedure at the University of Florida's Levin School of Law, and Jorge Camacho, a clinical lecturer on law and policing at Yale University, where he is the policy director of the Yale Justice Collaboratory.
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| 19 Dec 2023 | The Politics of School Lunch | 00:33:08 | |
Federal and state dollars pay for so much of what goes into the American public school education of our kids, but it isn't so straight forward when it comes to keeping them fed on school grounds. What movements and laws lead to American school kids accessing lunch? What does it cost, and who has to pay? Jessica Terrell, journalist and host of Left Over podcast and Crystal FitzSimons, Director of School and Out-of-School Time Programs at the Food Research and Action Center are our guides to the first part of our two-parter on school meals in America.
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| 09 Apr 2024 | How to file your taxes | 00:37:38 | |
Most Americans need help to file our tax return each year - about 90% of people use technology like Turbo Tax, or hire a human tax preparer. Why does it feel like it takes degree in accounting, or the money to pay someone with a degree, or computer software, just to comply with the law? We revisit our explainers on why our tax system is the way it is, and how to comply with it, just in time for tax day. We talk about everything that goes into filing taxes, how some people game the system, why it's so complicated, and how to successfully file your taxes (and avoid paying more than you should to do it).
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| 01 Nov 2022 | American Myths Part Two: Progress | 00:22:22 | |
There are three American myths that define "Americanness." The frontier, the melting pot and the "self-made man." They're concepts that define how we are to think about transformation, progress and possibility in America. They also rarely hold up. Heike Paul, author of The Myths That Made America, is our guide to the stories we tell about how it is in this country (even when it isn't.)
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| 27 Dec 2022 | How the Government Makes a Holiday | 00:26:00 | |
How does something go from an annual tradition to a mandated day off? Who decides to make a holiday official? Today we're taking a look at everything from Christmas to National Walk Around Things Day, from our twelve official federal holidays to some day made up by a sock company. Our guides to the holiday season are Jeff Bensch, author of History of American Holidays, and JerriAnne Boggis, Executive Director of the Black Heritage Trail of New Hampshire.
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| 13 Aug 2024 | Go play a game. | 00:48:51 | |
Nick and Hannah both love board games. There I said it. So what are they doing in a Civics 101 episode? Well, from Student Council and Model UN to CIA intelligence acquisition scenarios, there is a fine line between games and simulation. We learn more about things when we pretend to do them. Today we talk to three designers about their civic-centric games; Tory Brown of Fort Circle Games discusses Votes for Women, Cole Wehrle of Wehrlegig Games breaks down John Company, and Non-Breaking Space explains Cross Bronx Expressway, an upcoming game from GMT.
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| 14 Dec 2021 | Federal Holidays | 00:26:34 | |
Of the hundreds of reasons to celebrate and reflect in this country, the United States government has made only twelve of them official federal holidays. What does that actually mean, how does it happen and who gets the day off? Our guides to the holidays are Jeff Bensch, author of History of American Holidays and JerriAnne Boggis, Executive Director of the Black Heritage Trail of New Hampshire.
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| 28 Feb 2023 | Who owns the sky? | 00:36:15 | |
If you own land in the United States, do you own the air above it, too? Justine Paradis, Senior Producer at Outside/In from NHPR brings us the airy truth of property rights in air and space in this special collaboration. The answer will take us from Ancient Rome (as it occasionally does) to the United States courts, from a world when air travel was science fiction to the world where we know there are valuable resources on the moon... and we all want them. Guests for this episode are Colin Jerolmack, Michael Heller, George Anthony Long, and Deondre Smiles.
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| 12 Jun 2023 | The 14th Amendment | 00:37:54 | |
The 14th Amendment granted citizenship to all persons born or naturalized in the United States. It also granted them equal protection under the laws and guaranteed due process of law. Those are considered its most important provisions today. That wasn't always the case, however. Why did it take so long for the Supreme Court to affirm these provisions of this significant Amendment, and what does that say about politics at the highest court in the land? Our guide to the 14th Amendment is Aziz Huq, professor of law at the University of Chicago School of Law.
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| 07 Mar 2023 | A Primary Battle | 00:42:18 | |
For decades, one state has had the privilege of going first in the presidential primary process. But New Hampshire’s “stranglehold” on the way we pick presidents could be losing its grip. The Democratic Party changed its presidential nominating calendar to give voters of color more sway. But New Hampshire isn’t backing down, setting up a major test of the stranglehold and its power. Today, we present that story from our colleagues in NHPR's newsroom, from the podcast "Stranglehold" Donate to support Civics 101 and NHPR's journalism right here.
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| 29 Aug 2023 | The Republican and Democratic Parties | 00:41:30 | |
Today we look at the creation and evolution of the two major parties in the US; the Republican Party and the Democratic Party. How did they come about? How did their ideals shift over the last 200+ years? And where might they go next? These episodes originally aired in 2020, and feature Keneshia Grant, George Will, Kathryn DePalo-Gould, Heather Wagner, Paddy Riley, and William Adler. Listen to all our episodes and support our show at our website, civics101podcast.org.
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| 06 Sep 2022 | Disinformation and Misinformation | 00:34:53 | |
In preparation for the upcoming midterms, we talk about lies. This is the true story of the fake world created in disinformation campaigns. The voting populace spreads it like there's no tomorrow, without ever knowing what's real. We tell you what it is and how to avoid it. Our guests today are Samantha Lai of the Brookings Institute and Peter Adams of the News Literacy Project.
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| 19 Oct 2021 | Government Shutdown | 00:21:42 | |
Congress agrees on a budget and the President signs it. Or… not. This is what happens when we don’t have a full and final budget or a continuing resolution. This is what happens when the government shuts down and how our idea of a shutdown has changed over time. Our guest this time around is Charles Tiefer, Professor of Law at Baltimore School of Law.
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| 14 Jun 2022 | What Does The 2nd Amendment Say? | 00:41:35 | |
27 words which have been interpreted and reinterpreted by historians, activists, judges, and philosophers. What did the 2nd Amendment mean when it was written? What does it mean right now? And what happened in between? Today's episode features Saul Cornell, professor of history at Fordham University and author of A Well Regulated Militia, Alexandra Filindra, professor of political science at University of Illinois Chicago and author of the upcoming Race, Rights, and Rifles, and Jake Charles, lecturing fellow and executive director of the Center for Firearms Law at Duke Law.
Click here to support our show, and you could win a $500 gift card from Airbnb!
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| 04 Mar 2025 | Who's running the country? (Part 1) | 00:26:36 | |
Meet your president's Cabinet. Who was appointed, by what margin, and a look at the backgrounds of the people filling these critical roles. In other words, who is running our country? Let's find out. This is the first part of a two-part episode.
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| 26 Dec 2023 | Can we fix school lunch? | 00:40:56 | |
Between the corporate interests, the politics, the infrastructure and the shaming, what can the grown ups in the room actually do to make the school cafeteria a safer, healthier place where kids want to be? Ross Wilson of the Shah Foundation, Jessica Terrell of the Left Overs podcast and Crystal FitzSimons of the Food Research and Action Center try to answer that.
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| 07 Nov 2023 | What powers does the Speaker of the House have? | 00:21:02 | |
In light of the recent kerfuffle regarding the many elections for a new Speaker of the House, we decided it was time to break down the powers and history of the second-most powerful job in DC. Dan Cassino of Farleigh Dickinson University tells us all about the Speaker; from fundraising to the rules committee to the steering committee to a self-proclaimed Beelzebub to what the repeated failed elections for a Speaker portends for Congress. Click here to listen to our episode on How A Bill (Really) Becomes a Law and click here to learn more about committees.
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| 31 Oct 2023 | The After School Satan Club | 00:22:46 | |
The tale of what happens when The Satanic Temple comes to Hellertown, PA. From dear teacher friend Jason Stern comes this lesson in First Amendment rights. It all started when the Saucon Valley School District got word that the After School Satan Club was coming to town.
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| 20 Dec 2022 | Is Santa a Criminal? | 00:23:25 | |
Today we answer this question from a listener, "Is Santa a criminal?" We get to the bottom of the myriad actions of the jolly old elf, and whether he could reasonably be tried for civil and criminal violations, including but not limited to trespassing, breaking and entering, voyeurism, stalking, surveillance, burglary, tax evasion, bad labor practices, emotional distress, and (in one instance) involuntary manslaughter. Taking us through this complex web of charges is Colin Miller, professor at University of South Carolina School of Law. Make your year-end (tax deductible!) gift to Civics 101 and support our show by clicking this link right here.
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| 06 Mar 2018 | IRL 2: The Flag and the Pledge | 00:27:54 | |
Today, our second IRL puts it up the flagpole and sees if anyone salutes it. Hannah goes into the history of the flag and the Pledge of Allegiance and how they've changed since their inception. Then Nick talks about four times behavior towards the flag and the pledge were the subject of Supreme Court decisions.
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| 16 Jan 2024 | How much do government employees get paid? | 00:22:12 | |
Government salaries vary an awful lot; from $100 a year to $11.5 million. So who makes what? Today we divide the issue of taxpayer-funded salaries in two. How much officials make, and then how much they really make. Why do so many politicians make money once they leave office? How much can you get from speaking at events? And how do lobbyists affect not only policy, but their career trajectory? Our guest is Anna Massoglia from Open Secrets, the "nation's premier research group tracking money in U.S. politics." Click here to get a hat and/or socks during our podcast fund drive!
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| 24 Apr 2018 | Presidential Transitions | 00:18:37 | |
On today's episode: what happens when the incumbent president leaves office and the president-elect enters? How is information shared? What laws or guidelines govern the transition of power? We talked with Max Stier, President and CEO of the Partnership for Public Service, on the written and unwritten rules of presidential transitions. We also explore our own transition, as hosting duties for Civics 101 transition from Virginia Prescott to Hannah McCarthy and Nick Capodice.
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| 01 May 2018 | The National Guard | 00:18:39 | |
Miranda Summers Lowe, Military Curator at the Smithsonian and active National Guard soldier, tells us the history of the Guard, the process for calling them out, and what sets them apart from other branches of the USAF.
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| 08 May 2018 | ICE | 00:17:32 | |
ICE, or U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, is one of the nation's youngest law enforcement agencies. It's also become one of the most controversial. But what does ICE actually do? Dara Lind, a senior reporter for Vox, walks us through how ICE got its start, some of its responsibilities today, and what we can expect from the agency moving forward.
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| 11 May 2018 | The White House Press Secretary | 00:15:23 | |
Mara Liasson, National Political Correspondent for NPR, has reported on White House press briefings for 3 administrations. She tells us about the role of the Press Secretary, and how the job has changed from president to president.
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| 17 Sep 2024 | The Mighty Mississippi | 00:24:12 | |
For more than two hundred years Americans have tried to tame the Mississippi River. And, for that entire time, the river has fought back. This week we present an episode of our sister podcast Outside/In. Journalist and author Boyce Upholt has spent dozens of nights camping along the Lower Mississippi and knows the river for what it is: both a water-moving machine and a supremely wild place. His recent book, “The Great River: The Making and Unmaking of the Mississippi River” tells the story of how engineers have made the Mississippi into one of the most engineered waterways in the world, and in turn have transformed it into a bit of a cyborg — half mechanical, half natural. In this episode, host Nate Hegyi and Upholt take us from the flood ravaged town of Greenville, Mississippi, to the small office of a group of army engineers, in a tale of faulty science, big egos and a river that will ultimately do what it wants. Featuring Boyce Upholt
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| 15 May 2018 | NASA | 00:18:11 | |
Space is big - like, insanely, incomprehensibly big - so it's understandable that NASA can seem divorced from the world of cabinet secretaries, White House press briefings, and presidential tweets. Amy Shira Teitel is the host of the YouTube channel Vintage Space and author of Breaking the Chains of Gravity: The Story of Spaceflight Before NASA. In this episode, she explains how despite its lofty aims, NASA is a lot more political than you might think.
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| 22 May 2018 | Freedom of Information Act | 00:15:24 | |
On today's episode: What exactly is the Freedom of Information Act, better known as FOIA? Can anybody use it to get their hands on... any public documents? What kind of government secrets have come to light as a result of FOIA? We talk shop with Jason Leopold, a senior investigative reporter for Buzzfeed News.
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| 29 May 2018 | Infrastructure – Water! | 00:16:41 | |
Drinking water in the United States is, according to the EPA, among the world's "most reliable and safest supplies." Its delivery involves a complex infrastructure of pipes, treatment facilities, aqueducts, dams, and reservoirs, and it operates on a local, state, and federal level. How did we get here? How is the U.S. public water system legislated? And, how is "potable" actually pronounced? We spoke with James Salzman, author of Drinking Water: A History. He is also a professor of environmental law at the UCLA School of Law and the Bren School of Environmental Science at UC Santa Barbara. This episode is part of our occasional series on American infrastructure. Listen to our first installment on roads.
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| 05 Jun 2018 | Police | 00:19:07 | |
Norm Stamper was a past-Chief of Seattle's Police Department and an officer with the San Diego PD. He joins us to talk about the history of modern policing, the role of police today, and how to make sense of controversial police killings.
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| 24 Sep 2024 | What is "Originalism?" | 00:27:29 | |
What does it mean if a SCOTUS justice is a self-proclaimed "originalist?" When was the word first used in that context? And what are we missing about the framers when we look only upon the recent interpretation of their words in the court? Today our guide is Mackenzie Joy Brennan; lawyer, media commentator, and author of the upcoming book The Original ‘Original Intent,’ Recovering the Lost Constitution of the Founders. Click here for more of Mackenzie's research on originalism, including Terry Brennan's essay in the Harvard Journal of Law and Public Policy. Click here for our episode on the Second Amendment.
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| 12 Jun 2018 | National Institutes of Health (NIH) | 00:13:46 | |
Hey folks! We're raising money to support this podcast. Please click this link and donate today! Remember the Human Genome Project? The massively complicated international undertaking that aimed to map the entirety of human DNA? It was funded and coordinated in large part by the NIH, or National Institutes of Health. The NIH is a part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and is the nation's foremost government funded medical research agency. So how does it work? What do they actually do? Do politics influence their research? To find out, we turn to Dr. Carrie Wolinetz, Associate Director for Science Policy at the NIH.
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| 19 Jun 2018 | The Federal Register | 00:11:06 | |
Show your support for Civics 101. Click here to donate: Today a listener opens up a rabbit hole, and we immediately jump down it. We're learning about the Federal Register, a dense, cryptic document published every single day that records all the activities of the Executive Branch. It's a lot. Joining us is Oliver Potts, the director of the Federal Register, along with Kevin Kosar of the R Street Institute and Nick Bellos of the Regulatory Review.
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| 26 Jun 2018 | The Draft | 00:20:14 | |
Do you believe in the power of an informed citizenry? Click this link to support Civics 101 today. When you hear 'the draft' you might think about the Vietnam War... but the history of compulsory military service goes all the way back to before the Constitution was written. In this episode, we start from the beginning: How did conscription change over the years? When was the first national draft law? Who was most likely to be drafted? And the big one: Will the draft ever come back? Answering those questions and more is Jennifer Mittelstadt: professor of history at Rutgers and the Harold K. Johnson Chair of Miltary History at The U.S. Army War College.
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| 03 Jul 2018 | Contest Winner: Unconventional | 00:21:39 | |
Adia Samba-Quee is the winner of our first ever student contest. She wrote, narrated, and cast a "Parks n' Rec-style mockumentary about the arguments surrounding representation at the Constitutional Convention in 1787."
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| 15 Mar 2022 | Election Security | 00:43:39 | |
Be it suspicion of voter fraud, fear of hackers or the general belief that something is amiss, legislators across the country have passed election laws designed to make our elections more secure. Those very same laws are widely criticized for making voting less accessible, especially to certain voting groups. So how insecure are our elections? What do election security laws really do? What is the best way to feel better about the state of elections in this country? Our guests are Jessica Huseman, Editorial Director of Votebeat and Justin Levitt, constitutional law professor and newly appointed White House Senior Policy Advisor for Democracy and Voting Rights.
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| 17 Jul 2018 | The Affordable Care Act | 00:18:25 | |
On today's episode, we tackle a defining law from the Obama administration, the Affordable Care Act -- better known as Obamacare. Some people love it, others hate it, but what did the law really do? Is American health care actually more, you know, affordable? And why is there so much talk of repealing the ACA? Our guide today is Julie Rovner, Washington correspondent for Kaiser Health News.
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| 24 Jul 2018 | The Equal Rights Amendment | 00:18:51 | |
The Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) is a proposed Constitutional amendment that would explicitly guarantee legal equality under U.S. law, regardless of sex. But almost a century after it was first proposed, the ERA has still not been ratified. What's the hold-up? Lillian Cunningham is a journalist at The Washington Post. She's also host and creator of the podcasts Presidentialand Constitutional.
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| 31 Jul 2018 | The Death Penalty | 00:19:25 | |
On today's episode we're looking into a practice that sets the U.S. aside from all other Western countries: Capital Punishment. So, is the death penalty a part of the constitution? How has the Supreme Court ruled on the issue? And ultimately, what can we learn about ourselves from the practice? Our guest today is Carol Steiker, Harvard Law Professor and author of Courting Death: The Supreme Court and Capital Punishment.
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| 02 Oct 2018 | Midterm Edition: 5 Things to Know about the Midterms | 00:21:18 | |
Today we launch our five-part series on the midterm elections! Keith Hughes, creator of Hip History, tells us the five things he thinks every American should know about midterms and why they matter. Each episode in this series concludes with a snapshot of an historic US Midterm election, delivered by Brady Carlson. Today, it's 1826: Good Feelings and Hard Feelings.
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| 26 Apr 2024 | "I see a temple that we built." | 00:34:46 | |
Host Nick Capodice talks to co-host Hannah McCarthy about what it's like having real access to the Supreme Court. (Spoiler alert: those chairs lean WAY back!) And then the pair pays a very emotional visit to the Lincoln Memorial.
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| 09 Oct 2018 | Midterm Edition: State and Local Elections | 00:21:52 | |
Midterm elections don't have the glitz or drama of presidential campaigning. They're full of aldermen and comptrollers, state senators and governors. These offices seem meager next to national government. But most of the time, it's state and local officials that have the most palpable impact on our lives and on our future elections. In episode two of our five-part series on the midterm elections, we're taking a good look at the state and local offices that have a big-time impact on your life.
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| 16 Oct 2018 | Midterm Edition: House v Senate | 00:25:08 | |
Two houses, both alike in...well, many things. But oh so different in many others. We go from absolute basics to the philosophical differences that exist in the Legislative branch. This episode features the opinions of former staffers from both chambers, Political Science professors, and political analysts. Also, Brady Carlson tells the tale of the biggest loss in midterm history, and its relation to a federal holiday.
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| 23 Oct 2018 | Midterm Edition: Campaigning | 00:29:06 | |
How do you stand out in a sea of lawn signs, or make yourself heard above the roar of a thousand ads? Campaigns are hard enough when the whole country is watching -- so what does it take to get the vote when most people couldn't care less? That's the mystery of the midterm campaign. We asked some experts to help us solve it. In this episode, you'll hear from Inside Elections reporter Leah Askarinam, CNN political analyst Bakari Sellers, politics professor Barry Burden and state house candidate Maile Foster. Plus, Brady Carlson walks us through a midterm of revolutionary proportions.
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| 30 Oct 2018 | Midterm Edition: Propositions | 00:25:55 | |
Regardless of how you choose to vote on Prop 1, you'll finish this episode knowing all about ballot measures. These are bills and amendments initiated by the people, and voted into law by the people. What could possibly go wrong when we sidestep our famously pedantic legislature?? Today's episode features our eminently quotable teacher and former California Assemblymember Cheryl Cook-Kallio, political correspondent at KQED Guy Marzorati, and frequent initiative proposer Tim Eyman.
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| 06 Nov 2018 | Midterm Edition: Why Vote? | 00:27:00 | |
We've told you that midterm elections matter. But the truth is, midterms only matter to you -- and you only matter to your legislators -- if you show up at the polls. It's the first step in making yourself heard. And once you have, you mean that much more to the people who make our laws. In this episode, you'll hear what voting actually does for you and your demographic. Plus, how to make sure your voice is heard, whether you're eligible to vote or not. Our experts this time around are Cheryl Cook-Kallio, Edgar Saldivar and Peter Levine.
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| 28 Nov 2023 | Term Limits for Congress? | 00:27:14 | |
Term limits for legislators, both in Congress and at the state level, are extremely popular among voters, and have been, since their heyday in the 1990s. And while we don't currently have term limits on members of Congress, they do exist in 16 states. What can we learn from the state legislatures that already have them? Do they deliver on their promises? We talk with Carlos Algara, assistant professor of political science at Claremont Graduate University, where he studies political parties, electoral accountability, and legislative behavior, and Jordan Butcher, assistant professor of political science at Arkansas State University, where she studies state legislatures. She is the author of the forthcoming book Navigating Term Limits.
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| 01 Feb 2022 | The President and the Price of Gas | 00:25:07 | |
When this episode was recorded, gasoline prices in the US averaged $3.28 a gallon. Stickers of President Biden saying "I did that" decorated gas pumps across the country. What handles, if any, does a president have to lower the price of gas? How responsible are they for high prices? Today we get to the bottom of the oil barrel with two specialists; Robert Rapier from Proteum Energy and Irina Ivanova from CBS News. They guide us through an economic, scientific, and historical analysis of the powers of the chief executive, from the 70s to now, to control the price of gasoline.
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| 12 Sep 2023 | Classified Documents | 00:32:02 | |
The government classifies millions of documents every year - secrets that can only be seen by certain people, and under certain conditions. Who decides what is secret, and what isn't? How well is the classification system working? And can a president declassify any secret, at any time, just by thinking it? We talk with Margaret Kwoka, law professor at Ohio State University, where she focuses on laws around government documents and access to government information. And if you want to learn more, check out our episode about security clearance.
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| 19 Sep 2023 | Did American Girl Dolls Do Right By History? (Part 2) | 00:48:56 | |
This episode of Civics 101 is the second chapter of a story about American Girl dolls, and what this beloved brand got right – and wrong – about the American experience. If you haven't heard part one yet, make sure to go back and take a listen! Guests include Marcia Chatelain Pulitzer Prize-winning author and the Penn Presidential Company Professor of Africana Studies at the University of Pennsylvania; Spencer Crew, former president of the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center and professor of history at George Mason University; Emily Zaslow, author of Playing with America’s Doll: A Cultural Analysis of the American Girl Collection; and Molly Rosner, author of Playing with History: American Identities and Children’s Consumer Culture.
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| 25 Jul 2023 | What Moore v Harper Means for Elections | 00:22:30 | |
In June 2023, the Supreme Court determined that states do not have independent and exclusive authority when it comes to federal election rules. By the time they issued the majority opinion, it no longer mattered in the state that started it all. So what happened in Moore v Harper? What is (or was) the Independent State Legislature Theory, and what other powers did the court vest in itself in this opinion? Carolyn Shapiro, founder and co-director of Chicago-Kent's Institute on the Supreme Court of the United States, is our guide.
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| 18 Feb 2025 | All The President's Lawyers | 00:50:30 | |
Have you ever wondered with the White House counsel does? Who it is? Whether that person is the president’s personal lawyer…or something else? And what about the Justice Department? Where do all those legal types fit in? Our guest is political science professor Nancy Kassop. She’s an expert on many things, but her extensive experience interviewing White House counsels helped us dig deep on this topic. We also dive into the legal norms and traditions that are being strained under the Trump administration. Civics 101 is hosted by Hannah McCarty and Nick Capodice. Christina Phillips produced and anchored this episode.
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| 12 Nov 2024 | Trump's "Day One" Promises | 00:19:43 | |
President Elect Donald Trump has said he won't be a dictator "except for day one." We take a look at all of the "day one" promises he's made over the course of his campaign and explain how he might get them done. Or not. For a sense of how many times Donald Trump made these promises, check out the Washington Post's data here. Click HERE to buy tickets for NHPR's Holiday Raffle! NHPR’s Holiday Raffle is open to any United States resident 18 years or older in any state where the Raffle is not prohibited by state, local or other laws. (States where raffles are not permitted: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Hawaii, North Carolina, and Utah.) (edited)
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| 05 Apr 2022 | US vs: Constitutions | 00:29:42 | |
The United States Constitution gets a lot of credit for being the first of its kind. The progenitor of democratic constitution making. The spark that started a global fire. Is that the long and short of it, or is there more to the story? Linda Colley, author of The Gun, The Ship and the Pen, weaves a longer, more complex narrative in this episode. We explore why constitutions (governmental limits, citizens rights and all) became necessary and who put pen to paper before 1787.
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| 13 Dec 2022 | The President & The 25th Amendment | 00:25:40 | |
When a monarch dies, power stays in the family. But what about a president? It was a tricky question that the founders left mostly to Congress to figure out later. Lana Ulrich, of the National Constitution Center, and Linda Monk, constitutional scholar and author of The Bill of Rights: A User's Guide, explain the informal rules that long governed the transition of presidential power, and the 25th Amendment, which outlines what should happen if a sitting president dies, resigns, or becomes unable to carry out their duties.
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| 23 Nov 2021 | Diplomacy | 00:27:54 | |
The United States charges nearly 8,000 people with being good at relationships. These are our diplomats, or Foreign Service Officers. These are the people who make us look good, make sure the world gives us what we want and need and try to keep tensions at a minimum. To try to understand how this nuanced job actually works, we speak with Alison Mann, Public Historian at the National Museum of American Diplomacy and Naima Green-Riley, soon-to-be professor of Politics and International Affairs at Princeton and former diplomat.
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| 27 Aug 2024 | Middle Class, Totally Relatable & Elite! (The Campaign Jargon Trivia Episode) | 00:49:40 | |
Why do very different political candidates say the same things over and over? Things like "middle class," "coastal elites" and "middle America?" What do those things even mean? That's what this episode is all about. Also...some civics and history trivia that's VERY much on-topic. Sort of.
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| 06 Jun 2023 | Supreme Court Ethics | 00:32:00 | |
Recently, news about Justice Clarence Thomas's decades-long friendship with a wealthy Republican megadonor, and the hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of gifts and generosity he's received from that friendship, has led to increased scrutiny into whether Supreme Court justices are as unbiased and uninfluenced as they claim. It's also revealed how, unlike most other federal officials, we rely on the good faith of the justices to hold themselves accountable. Helping us untangle this is Tonja Jacobi, professor of law and the Sam Nunn chair in Ethics and Professionalism at Emory University School of Law. Don't miss the reporting from ProPublica on Justice Thomas's relationship with Harlan Crow, called "Friends of the Court."
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| 10 Dec 2024 | What is authoritarianism? | 00:29:00 | |
Authoritarianism and autocracies take many forms. So how do you know it when you see it? Our guide to the erosion of choice, rights, truth and power is Anne Applebaum, author of several books including, most recently, Autocracy, Inc..
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| 09 Apr 2024 | Why do we pay income taxes, again? | 00:35:50 | |
We revisit our explainers on why our tax system is the way it is, and how to comply with it, just in time for tax day.
We haven't always had a federal income tax, and in the beginning, it only applied to the very richest Americans. So how did we end up with the permanent income tax we have today, with all its complicated rules about everything from pre-tax income to deductions and credits? And what does it actually pay for?
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| 01 Oct 2024 | How YOU can help preserve our democracy (really) | 00:50:57 | |
Why don't people "civically engage?" Because they're too busy! Politicians are busy! Or maybe...they don't care? In this special episode of Civics 101 recorded in front of a live audience, we hear from experts who break down what it means to participate in our democracy, how to break down barriers to participation, and how to be who you already are and make a VERY big difference. This episode was recorded at NHPR's Civics 101 Summit at Southern New Hampshire University. Learn more about that event right here.
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| 30 Jul 2019 | Starter Kit: Federalism | 00:24:20 | |
A tug of war, a balancing act, two dancers dragging each other across the floor. This is the perpetual ebb and flow of power between the states and the federal government. How can things be legal in a state but illegal nationally? Are states obstinate barricades to federal legislation? Or are they laboratories of democracy? Today's episode features Lisa Manheim, Associate Professor of Law at the University of Washington School of Law and co-author of The Limits of Presidential Power, and Dave Robertson, Chair of the Political Science department at the University of Missouri St.Louis.
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| 06 Aug 2019 | Starter Kit: How A Bill (really) Becomes a Law | 00:24:41 | |
We at Civics 101 adore Schoolhouse Rock and that sad little scrap of paper on the steps of the Capitol. But today we try to finish what they started, by diving into the messy, partisan, labyrinthine process of modern-day legislation. This episode features the voices of Andy Wilson, Adia Samba-Quee, Alizah Ross, and Eleanor Powell.
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| 29 Oct 2024 | US vs: Healthcare | 00:33:16 | |
The United States spends more than any other country on healthcare. And, unfortunately, that's just about the only place we come in first. Today we learn about the creation and maintenance of our unique public/private system with Sue Tolleson-Rinehart, Professor Emeritus at UNC, and Amélie Quesnel-Vallée, Canada Research Chair in Policies and Health Inequalities at McGill University. They break down how our system measures up to other wealthy nations; in cost to its citizens, efficacy, taxation, reproductive rights, and so much more.
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| 10 Oct 2023 | Separation of Church and State | 00:29:28 | |
What did Jefferson mean when he wrote about a "wall of separation" between the church and the state? How have we interpreted the pair of clauses in the 1st Amendment regarding religion? And finally, what is the current relationship between church and state when it comes to the Supreme Court, religious schools, taxes, and growing religious nationalism? Today we talk to Katherine Stewart, author of The Power Worshippers: Inside the Dangerous Rise of Religious Nationalism and Morgan Marietta, Chair of Political Science at the University of Texas, Arlington and founding editor of the SCOTUS Decisions Series.
Support our mission to explore how our government works. Donate $60 to our show today and receive a vintage Civics 101 hat.
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| 30 Aug 2022 | What's The Difference Between The House & The Senate? | 00:31:09 | |
The House and the Senate have mostly the same powers: they both propose and vote on bills that may become law. So why does the House have 435 members, and the Senate have 100? Why does legislation have to pass through both sides, and what kinds of power do each have individually? And finally: what role do you, as a voter, play in ensuring that Congress, and your Congressional delegation, is working in your best interests?
This episode features the opinions of former staffers from both chambers, Andrew Wilson and Justin LeBlanc, former member of the CA assembly, Cheryl Cook-Kallio, CNN political analyst, Bakari Sellers, and the inimitable political science professor from Farleigh Dickinson, Dan Cassino.
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| 25 Jun 2024 | What is the Smithsonian? | 00:39:12 | |
The Smithsonian is a heck of a lot more than its 21 museums. Today on Civics 101 Richard Kurin tells us all about about an institution that interacts with all three branches of government, has a budget of over a billion dollars, and is dedicated to "the increase and diffusion of knowledge" among all. So how did it start? How does it run? What does the Chief Justice have to do with all this? And, finally, why do we collect items in the first place?
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| 12 Mar 2024 | Can the Supreme Court save us from ourselves? | 00:24:20 | |
When the Supreme Court says something is or isn't constitutional, what does that really mean? What are the effects, or lack thereof, of their decisions? And what do we do if we don't agree with what they say? Today Linda Monk, author of The Bill of Rights: A User's Guide, walks us through four times in US History that the Supreme Court was not the be-all-end-all decision maker. Here are some links to shows we reference in the episode: Brown vs. Board of Education of Topeka
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| 07 Dec 2021 | Emergency Powers of the President | 00:22:11 | |
Emergency powers are designed for when plans need to change, and fast, by allowing the president to override certain Constitutional provisions in a time of crisis. So how has the national emergency gone from a rarity to a tool that presidents use dozens of times while in office? We look at what a president can (and cannot) do during a state of emergency, and how Congress has tried to put checks on that power, with help from Kim Lane Scheppele, author of Law in a Time of Emergency.
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| 24 Dec 2024 | Holiday Trivia: What's been on the White House Christmas menu? | 00:43:03 | |
In our latest edition of Holiday Trivia, a rundown of some of the quirky food, drinks, and celebratory ephemera at the White House during the most wonderful time of the year. Have an opinion on the pronunciation of "praline?" Send us an email!
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| 11 Feb 2025 | What is a Constitutional crisis? | 00:48:28 | |
It's a term thrown around quite a bit lately, but what does it actually mean? This is an episode about the basics of the Law of the Land, the three branches of government and what happens when they're don't work the way they're supposed to. Our guide is Aziz Huq, Professor of Law at the University of Chicago. His books include The Rule of Law: A Very Short Introduction, The Collapse of Constitutional Remedies and How to Save a Constitutional Democracy. If you want some extra context for this one, check out these other episodes: How Should We Govern the Algorithm?
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| 16 Aug 2022 | Everything You Need to Know About Midterms | 00:23:57 | |
Know your candidates and causes, find your polling place, have a plan! There are plenty of small steps you can take to be ready for the midterm election. But if you want to know what they're about and why they matter? Look and listen no further. Keith Hughes (with some help from Cheryl Cook-Kallio and Dan Cassino) tells us the five things you need to know about midterms.
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| 21 Mar 2023 | Who Writes Bills? | 00:23:36 | |
If you've learned about things like Separation of Powers and Checks and Balances, you know the tried and true notion that Congress makes the laws, the executive branch enforces them, and the judicial branch interprets them. But would it surprise you to hear that's not how it goes most of the time? Today we explore who really writes the majority of legislation in the US, and how it got to be that way. We talk with Dan Cassino of Fairleigh Dickinson University, who breaks down that first step of the legislative process. Here are links to our related episodes; How a Bill (Really) Becomes a Law and Citizens United. Click here to sign up for our newsletter, Extra Credit!
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| 08 Feb 2022 | How Does Security Clearance Work? | 00:25:19 | |
From "top secret," like the names and locations of intelligence agents, to "confidential," like the drinking habits of a prime minister, the federal government has a lot of sensitive information. What are the different levels of security clearance, and how does it all work? Helping us untangle this web is Juliette Kayyem, professor of international security at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government, and national security analyst for CNN. She formerly served as Assistant Secretary for Intergovernmental Affairs at the Department of Homeland Security under President Obama.
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| 30 May 2023 | What's the Debt Ceiling and the National Debt? | 00:23:26 | |
The federal government has always had debt. How much is too much, and how do politicians exploit it? This episode originally dropped in August 2022, but since the subject is in the news, we've been getting lots of questions about it! SUPPORT OUR WORK - DONATE TO CIVICS 101 TODAY! Since our nation's founding, the federal government has borrowed money from other governments, private investors, and businesses in order to operate. Over the last century, the debt ceiling, a Congressional cap on how much debt we can have, keeps getting higher and higher. We talk about how the national debt works, how it's been used as political leverage, and how that impacts the health of our economy. Louise Sheiner, senior economics fellow at the Brookings Institution, and Michael Dorf, Constitutional law professor at Cornell Law, help us make sense of trillions of dollars in debt.
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| 31 Jan 2023 | The Government and Housing: Policy | 00:25:00 | |
"Public housing" did not exist prior to the Great Depression. So it wasn't until Franklin Delano Roosevelt's New Deal that the government had the chance to impose segregation at the highest level. The effects of segregation policy in housing continue to this day in the United States. Akira Drake Rodriguez and Richard Rothstein are our guides to how and why the government did it.
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| 13 Feb 2024 | What Are Presidential Pardons? | 00:28:19 | |
The president has the power to release someone from prison, restore their voting rights, or stop a federal criminal investigation with little more than the wave of a hand. How did the president get this power, and are there any limitations? What would it mean for a president to pardon themselves? Brian Kalt, constitutional law professor at Michigan State University, helps answer these questions.
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| 15 Oct 2024 | Why does corruption matter? | 00:48:42 | |
Corruption in politics is a trope that's been around ever since we had politics. And it can feel inevitable. Regardless of anticorruption legislation and executive orders, it seems like it will never go away. David Sirota, editor in chief of The Lever and host of the podcast Master Plan, argues the opposite. Today on Civics 101 we learn about what corruption is, how it influences (or doesn't influence) policy, and what needs to be done to eradicate it from our political system.
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| 22 Mar 2022 | The Constitution and the Bill of Rights | 00:59:09 | |
Long before we could decide and insist upon what they mean to us, a handful of powerful men had to put pen to paper. We're revisiting two episodes from our Foundational Documents series: The Constitution and The Bill of Rights. This is the story of how these now-indispensable documents came to be during a time when independence and unity was new and highly vulnerable. Our understanding and interpretation of these documents has grown and changed in the hundreds of years since they were ratified and in the three years since these episodes were released. Take some time to get reacquainted. Understanding how and why we work is a lifelong practice here at Civics 101.
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| 08 May 2023 | Reconstruction: The Big Lie | 00:53:31 | |
Reconstruction has long been taught as a lost cause narrative. The true story is one of great force. The great force of a powerful activist Black community that strived to establish a multiracial democracy and achieved great successes and political power. The great force of a violent white community that exploited, abused and murdered those of that Black community who would assert their civil and human rights. The great force of a federal government that was there and then wasn't. This episode is your introduction to that true story. Our guides to this era are Dr. Kidada Williams, author of I Saw Death Coming and Dr. Kate Masur, author of Until Justice Be Done.
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| 19 Nov 2024 | What is the Cabinet? And how can appointments work? | 00:33:23 | |
Whenever there's an incoming administration, there's a big to-do about Cabinet nominations. So what does The Cabinet DO? How has it evolved since Washington's administration? What is the process for appointing someone to the cabinet? And finally, how could a president appoint someone without approval from the Senate? Taking us through all the cabinetry is Dan Cassino, professor of government and politics at Farleigh Dickinson University.
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| 27 Feb 2025 | A midwife's early American story | 00:38:37 | |
Ariel Lawhon discusses the real-life early American midwife at the center of her novel The Frozen River.
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| 21 Nov 2023 | What is the Order of Succession? | 00:23:14 | |
America's first congress debated it in the 1790s, and it's been debated about ever since. Who should step into the president's shoes if the offices of President and Vice President are simultaneously vacant? Today we talk about the many different Presidential Acts of Succession that we've had in the US, as well as designated survivors, the "football," and the recurring question of the constitutionality of such acts. Click here to listen to our episode on the Executive Branch, should you want to learn the mnemonic "See That Dog Jump In A Circle, Leave Her House To Entertain Educated Veteran's Homes."
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| 28 May 2024 | Why do we have the National Zoo? | 00:28:18 | |
The Smithsonian National Zoological Park in Washington, DC is sometimes called “the people’s zoo.” That’s because it’s the only zoo in the country to be created by an act of US Congress, and admission is free. But why did our federal government create a national zoo in the first place? Outside/In producer Felix Poon has the scoop – from its surprising origins in the near-extinction of bison, to a look at its modern-day mission of conservation, we’re going on a field trip to learn all about the National Zoo. Support our public radio show today and you can get our new misinformation/disinformation tote bag! Click here to take a peek at it.
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| 18 Jul 2023 | Civics Education 1: What Do We Teach? | 00:28:07 | |
Today is the first part in a series about the state of civic education in the US. In this episode, we gauge how we're doing civics-wise and then delve into the perpetually controversial history of history; have we ever agreed upon a narrative for our nation that we can teach students? Walking us through the past, present, and future of social studies and civic education are Danielle Allen, James Bryant Conant University Professor at Harvard University, and Adam Laats, Historian and Professor of Teaching, Learning and Educational Leadership at Binghamton University.
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