The Democracy Group (The Democracy Group)
Explorez tous les épisodes de The Democracy Group
| Date | Titre | Durée | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 13 Mar 2023 | Civic learning amid the culture wars | Democracy Works | 00:46:01 | |
More than ever, civic learning is needed to ensure each and every person across this country has the necessary tools to engage as members of our self-governing society. However, schools are also a growing part of the culture wars. According to a 2022 National Education Association Survey, nearly half of schools reported challenges teaching about race and racism and practices related to LGBTQ students in the classroom. As we've discussed before on the show, book bans, funding cuts, and teacher shortages are also making teaching anything — let alone civics — more difficult. At this critical juncture, Civic Learning Week unites students, educators, policymakers, and private sector leaders to energize the movement for civic education across the nation. This week's episode includes two experts who talk about the theory and practice of strengthening civics education in these polarizing times. Emma Humphries is Chief Education Officer and Deputy Director of Field Building for iCivics, the non-profit founded by Justice Sandra Day O’Connor to reinvigorate civics through free, interactive learning resources. Emma serves as iCivics’ pedagogical expert, ensures its resources evolve to a place of greater equity and deeper learning for all students, and advocates for more and better civic education across the country. Ashley Berner is Director of the Johns Hopkins Institute for Education Policy and Associate Professor of Education. She served previously as the Deputy Director of the CUNY Institute for Education Policy and as an administrator at the Institute for Advanced Studies in Culture at the University of Virginia. Her most recent book is Pluralism and American Public Education: No One Way to School. iCivics poling on bipartisan support for civic education Diffusing the History Wars: Finding Common Ground in Teaching America's National Story Additional Information | |||
| 19 Jun 2024 | The State of Progressive Political Tech with Micah Sifry | The Great Battlefield | 01:08:14 | |
Michael Sifry returns to The Great Battlefield podcast to discuss an article he recently published called "Living with VANxiety: The Present and Future of Progressive Movement Tech". Additional Information | |||
| 15 Jun 2022 | We're Less Divided Than We Think: Tony Woodlief | Let's Find Common Ground | 00:27:25 | |
Every day on social media and cable TV, in newspapers and magazines, we're told that we live in a red-versus-blue world of rigid divides. Our podcast guest, Tony Woodlief, begs to differ. "In reality, most people fall somewhere in the middle, or else have a complex blend of views from both sides of the aisle, Tony tells us. His new book "I, Citizen" uses polling data, political history, and on-the-ground reporting to make the case that party activists and partisans are attempting to undermine the freedom of Americans to govern themselves and make decisions that have a direct impact on their lives. Many people have fallen for a false narrative promoted by leaders of political parties, academia, media, and government, that we're all team red or team blue, he argues. In this episode, we learn a different perspective and discuss how all of us can find common ground in our local neighborhoods and national discourse. Additional Information | |||
| 14 Sep 2022 | Primaries and Polarization: Is The Whole System Broken? | Let's Find Common Ground | 00:23:33 | |
The primary election season in this midterm election year is now over in most states. Turnout was often very low— less than 20% of registered voters showed up in many places— while the partisan divide was as wide as ever. In this episode, we hear from leading political strategists, scholars, authors, and journalists about the American system for choosing candidates who will face each other in November's election. We hear criticisms of closed party primaries and look at other ways to pick candidates for public office. Proposals aimed at reducing polarization include the introduction of ranked-choice voting and open primaries, where independent voters, and those who are neither registered Republicans nor Democrats, can participate. Guests include Former Democratic Party Chair Donna Brazille, ex-Congressmen Will Hurd, David Jolly, and Barney Frank, Domestic Policy Council Director Susan Rice, constitutional law scholar Rick Pildes, author Tony Woodlief, and journalists Salena Zito, Christa Case Bryant, and Story Hinckley. Additional Information | |||
| 17 Jun 2024 | Take the Constitution Back from Originalism: Madiba Dennie | Future Hindsight | 00:39:50 | |
Madiba Dennie is Deputy Editor and Senior Contributor at the critical legal commentary outlet Balls and Strikes. Her debut book is The Originalism Trap: How Extremists Stole the Constitution and How We The People Can Take it Back. We discuss a fresh way to interpret the Constitution. Inclusive Constitutionalism interprets the Constitution in a way that makes inclusive democracy real. By contrast, originalism interprets the meaning of the Constitution as fixed in time in the 1800s. However, the Reconstruction Amendments that were enacted in the wake of the Civil War tried to address the status of newly freed, formerly enslaved people. The Amendments were designed to foster a multiracial democracy for the first time. In addition, the public has a role in articulating what it believes the Constitution means. Follow Madiba on X: Follow Mila on X: Additional Information | |||
| 09 Jan 2023 | Who Stole the American Dream? | Village SquareCast | 01:18:09 | |
Hedrick Smith, Pulitzer Prize-winning former New York Times reporter and editor and Emmy award-winning producer/correspondent, has established himself over the past 50 years as one of America’s premier journalists. His best-seller, “Who Stole the American Dream” is a startling and revealing portrait of the past 30 years of U.S. political and economic history, hailed both for its compelling stories and ”brilliant analysis.” In 26 years with The New York Times, Smith served in Saigon, Cairo, Paris, the American South and as bureau chief in Moscow and Washington. In 1971, he was a member of the Pulitzer Prize-winning team for the Pentagon Papers series and in 1974, he won the Pulitzer Prize for international reporting from Russia and Eastern Europe. His subsequent book The Russians was a No.1 American best-seller translated into 16 languages. Smith’s next book, The Power Game: How Washington Works, was bedside reading for President Clinton. Many members of Congress used it as a political bible. He has written three other best-sellers. For PBS, Hedrick Smith has created 26 prime-time specials and mini-series since 1989 on such varied topics as “Inside the Terror Network,” “Is Wal-Mart Good for America?” “The Wall Street Fix,” “Inside Gorbachev’s USSR,” “Can You Afford to Retire?” and “Rediscovering Dave Brubeck.” He has won most of television’s top awards including two Emmys, two national public service awards, and two Dupont-Columbia Gold batons for the best public affairs programs on U.S. television in 1991 and in 2002. Join us for this conversation with Hedrick Smith, facilitated by Mary Ellen Klas, Capitol bureau chief for the Miami Herald. Additional Information | |||
| 29 Jan 2024 | Election 2024 Breakdown with CPF Fellows | The Bully Pulpit | 01:11:07 | |
CPF Co-Directors Bob Shrum and Mike Murphy join Spring 2024 CPF Fellows, Douglas Brinkley, Jane Coaston, Ron Galperin, and Tim Miller for a lively discussion on the 2024 primary elections, presidential race, and campaigns. Featuring:
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| 04 Mar 2024 | Is the House broken? | Politics in Question | 00:36:35 | |
In this week's episode of Politics In Question, Lee and James ask Representative Chip Roy, R-Texas, if the House of Representatives is broken. Roy is a devoted husband and father of two, serving his third term in Congress representing Texas's 21st Congressional District. He serves on the House Judiciary, Rules, and Budget Committees and is the House Freedom Caucus Policy Chair. Roy previously served as First Assistant Attorney General of Texas under Ken Paxton, Chief of Staff to Sen. Ted Cruz, senior advisor to Texas Governor Rick Perry, Senate Judiciary Committee staff director under Sen. John Cornyn, and as a federal prosecutor. Prior to the public sector, he worked for nearly three years as an investment banking analyst. He holds a B.S. and M.A from the University of Virginia and a J.D. from the University of Texas. Is the House broken? What does a functioning House look like? What do lawmakers need to fix it? How does the House's institutional dynamic make it harder to form cross-party coalitions? Are cross-party coalitions the solution to what ails the institution? What is the "uni-party" and how is it preventing the House from addressing America's problems? These are some of the questions that Roy, Lee, and James ask in this week's episode. Additional Information | |||
| 17 Jan 2022 | Insurrection Reflection | Democracy in Danger | 00:32:13 | |
Jamelle Bouie and Nicole Hemmer return to the show this week for a special conversation looking back on the siege of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021 — and looking forward at the prospects for democracy in the post-Trump era. Both the country’s political leaders and the media, our guests say, have been reluctant to embrace a rhetoric of emergency to define the moment. And as lawmakers investigate the attack, the window is closing on enacting genuine reforms to ensure voting rights and fair elections. Additional Information | |||
| 08 Feb 2023 | Why We Misunderstand Independent Voters | Let's Find Common Ground | 00:29:29 | |
Independent voters make up more than 40 percent of the voting public. But you wouldn’t know that from media coverage, which focuses almost exclusively on red versus blue. Independents are often overlooked or seen as wishy-washy. Our guests on this episode say that’s a big misconception. In this show we look at a group of voters, including many young people, that is making up a growing slice of the US population. Our guests are Jackie Salit and John Opdycke. Jackie is the author of Independents Rising and president of Independent Voting, an organization dedicated to bringing respect, recognition and reform to independent voters. John Opdycke is president of Open Primaries, which campaigns for primary elections in which every American can vote, not just Republicans or Democrats. John and Jackie say that independents are not moderates: They envision a much less divisive political system than the current one, and they want to play a bigger role in American democracy. Additional Information | |||
| 08 May 2024 | Can Capitalism Save the Planet? | The Politics Guys | 00:31:10 | |
As a cross-interview with Sustainable Planet, Kimberly Weir, Professor Emeritus of Political Science at Northern Kentucky University and co-host of Sustainable Planet talks with Akshat Rathi, award-winning senior reporter for Bloomberg News and the host of Zero, a climate-solutions podcast for Bloomberg Green and author of Climate Capitalism: Winning the Race to Zero Emissions and Solving the Crisis of Our Age. Topics Kimberly & Akshat discuss include: How a misinformed campaign marketing slogan about ‘clean coal’ led Akshat into the year-long pursuit of uncovering the truth about climate technology Why economists feel the way to address climate change is to put a price on carbon How to achieve negative carbon emissions since zero emissions alone isn’t enough Why, when it comes to electric cars, you’ve never heard of Wan Gang, though Elon Musk is a household name Why the very industries that created lithium-ion batteries, solar cells, and carbon capture and storage are so resistant to employing that technology How private capital from billionaires like Bill Gates and anyone with a 401K plan is a key part of pursuing climate technology That climate justice is both ethically the right path but also reaps global economic benefits The need to shift from ‘shareholder’ to ‘stakeholder’ if we’re going to meet the less-ambitious Paris Conference climate change goals Listen to Part 2 of the interview on Sustainable Planet. Additional Information | |||
| 05 Sep 2022 | Laura Gamboa on Opposition Strategies to Resist Democratic Erosion | Democracy Paradox | 00:40:32 | |
There's always another set of elections. So, let's set up for elections. Let's figure out how to mobilize people. Let's figure out how to engage them and answer the question, ‘Why they elected this person? What did we miss? What do we need to build? Which kind of program.’ I think using the streets is great, but definitely you need training… A lot of training.This is a long-term effort. It's not about calling you on Facebook for a demonstration and that's it. Preorder Laura Gamboa's new book Resisting Backsliding: Opposition Strategies against the Erosion of Democracy here. Laura Gamboa is an Assistant Professor of Political Science at the University of Utah. She is the author of the forthcoming book Resisting Backsliding: Opposition Strategies against the Erosion of Democracy. Key Highlights
Learn more about Laura Gamboa "The Peace Process and Colombia’s Elections" by Laura Gambia in the Journal of Democracy Resisting Backsliding: Opposition Strategies against the Erosion of Democracy by Laura Gamboa Additional Information | |||
| 01 Mar 2024 | Democracy's Good News: How Teachers Are Creating Future Citizens | 00:07:37 | |
Host Jenna Spinelle highlights the positive efforts of individuals and organizations working to build a healthier democracy in our short series, Democracy's Good News. Today we feature interviews with two civics teachers, Kimberly Huffman and Allison Sheridan, recipients of the 2023 American Civic Education Teacher Award. The teachers share their experiences and perspectives on teaching civics, civil discourse, and civic engagement. Kimberly Huffman, teaching in Ohio, discusses her personal connection to government assistance, which influenced her decision to become a civics teacher. She emphasizes the importance of civil dialogue, understanding diverse opinions, and appreciating the freedom to disagree in shaping informed citizens. Allison Sheridan, teaching in Florida, reveals her passion for teaching social studies to combat the lack of knowledge about government among Americans. She incorporates interactive activities and strives to equip students with skills to discuss politics civilly, especially in the age of new technology. Both teachers express a commitment to empowering students and instilling a sense of political efficacy. The episode encourages listeners to learn more about the movement to strengthen civics education in the U.S. by visiting icivics.org and participating in Civic Learning Week events. | |||
| 12 Jan 2022 | Trading the Public's Trust | Swamp Stories | 00:13:53 | |
In 2012, President Barack Obama signed into law the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Act, otherwise known as the STOCK Act. The intent was to ban insider trading from members of Congress — a subject that gained national media attention on both sides of the aisle in the months and years after the financial crisis. But the law did not do what it was supposed to. Weston unpacks the STOCK Act and where it falls short and talks with one of the members of Congress who’s leading a bipartisan effort to fix the law and put an end to insider trading by members of Congress. Guests:
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| 31 Aug 2022 | Can We Fix the Rage Machine? Ft. Tim Miller | Politics is Everything | 00:46:19 | |
Tim Miller is an MSNBC analyst, writer-at-large at The Bulwark, and the host of "Not My Party" on Snapchat. Tim was communications director for Jeb Bush’s 2016 presidential campaign and spokesman for the Republican National Committee during Mitt Romney’s 2012 campaign. He has since left the GOP and become one of the leaders of the “Never Trump” movement. He is author of Why We Did It: A Travelogue from the Republican Road to Hell that aims to explain why Washington DC politicos who knew better went along with Trump and he joins us on Politics is Everything to discuss his book and what we can do to fix the rage machine he helped to create. Additional Information | |||
| 10 Apr 2024 | Cancel Student Debt: Braxton Brewington | Future Hindsight | 00:46:35 | |
Braxton Brewington is the Press Secretary of the Debt Collective. We discuss the origins of the Debt Collective in the Rolling Jubilee and its history in canceling student debt. Their example is a powerful model for canceling student debt, which continues to be important for all Americans in this election cycle and beyond. Education is a public good, yet the cost of college over the past couple of decades has risen eight times faster than the average wages. The average student debt is $30,000-$35,000. Two thirds of student debt is owed by women, and a large number of student loan borrowers don't have a college degree. This means that they are paying down student debt on non-college degree wages. The Debt Collective started out as the Rolling Jubilee, which canceled tens of millions of dollars of debt and gave instant relief to borrowers. Canceling student debt creates millions of jobs, boosts the economy, and advances racial and gender justice. Although the Biden administration has canceled billions in student debt, it is only making a small dent in over $1.7 trillion worth of student loans. Follow Ken on Twitter: https://twitter.com/Team_Harbaugh Follow Mila on Twitter: Additional Information | |||
| 05 Jun 2023 | AI Revolution: Disaster or Great Leap Forward? Nathanael Fast | How Do We Fix It? | 00:30:31 | |
Generative Artificial Intelligence has the power to transform lives and change our jobs. In this episode, we discuss the potential for good and bad from large, creative AI models such as ChatGPT. Our guest is Nathanael Fast, who serves as Director of the Neely Center for Ethical Leadership and Decision Making and Co-Director of the Psychology of Technology Institute. Professor Fast teaches in the MBA, Ph.D., and Executive Education programs at USC Marshall in Los Angeles. ChatGPT reached over 100 million active users within two months of its release. Consumers have used it to write essays, take tests, crack jokes and write poetry in response to questions or prompts. We raise the questions we need to ask about rapidly changing forms of artificial intelligence. Should we be scared or excited… or both? With calls for new regulation, even from the industry itself, policy makers and the public need to gain a fuller understanding of the AI revolution. This episode introduces listeners to the meaning of large language models and generative AI. Nate Fast argues that if we want to understand and improve the future, we’ll need to focus on the adoption of technology and how AI, social media and other platforms shape human psychology. Additional Information | |||
| 23 Feb 2022 | When a State Treats Drug Addiction Like a Health Issue, Not a Crime | 70 Million | 00:37:30 | |
Oregon became the first state to decriminalize drug possession. The goal is to reverse some of the negative impacts of the War on Drugs by approaching drug use from a health-centered basis. We visit an addiction and recovery center in Portland that’s gearing up for what they hope will be an influx of people seeking treatment. Reported by Cecilia Brown. Find a resource guide and annotated transcript at our website here. Additional Information | |||
| 31 May 2024 | Introducing Make America Great For Everyone | TDG Fellowship | 00:42:30 | |
This week we bring you a special episode from Kayla Anderson, one of our 2024 Podcast Fellows. Make America Great For Everyone will take a deep dive into the American justice system through conversations with policemen, ex-prisoners and people who experienced the injustice firsthand. Host Kayla Anderson will talk about all of the different issues currently plaguing the American system that is supposed to be just, starting with a heartfelt conversation with her brother in the first episode. Anderson is a rising fourth-year political science major on the pre-law track at Ohio State. She currently serves as the vice president of the Undergraduate Black Law Student Association, treasurer of the Minority Collegiate Outreach and Support Team, and DEI committee co-chair for her Law and Society Scholars Program. Know a student interested in democracy and podcasts? Send them over to our fellowship to apply: https://www.democracygroup.org/fellowship | |||
| 25 Oct 2021 | An Effort to Hold Prosecutors Accountable | 70 Million | 00:32:58 | |
A legal matrix that incentivizes criminal convictions can motivate unethical prosecutors to bend or break the rules. In New York, a group of law professors is trying to curb that by pushing the system to discipline its own. Reported by Nina Sparling. Find a resource guide and annotated transcript at our website here. Additional Information | |||
| 09 Mar 2022 | Ukraine Series: War Come to Ukraine | Democracy in Danger | 00:34:59 | |
Jane Lytvynenko hasn’t slept much in two weeks. From her home in Toronto, she is watching Russian troops invade and bombard her native Ukraine, threatening loved ones and friends. And it’s rattling her nerves. But through all that, Lytvynenko, a freelance journalist, remains hopeful. Siva speaks with her about the failures of world leaders to stand up to Vladimir Putin. Plus, we revisit a couple of interviews from last year that help add context to the conflict. Additional Information | |||
| 21 Oct 2024 | The Officials: Beyond the Ballot ft. Wesley Wilcox and Tonya Wichman | Democracy Fix | 00:26:11 | |
Election officials have always played a critical role in ensuring that our votes are cast and counted fairly. But in recent years, the landscape of election work has dramatically changed. No longer seen as a quiet, behind-the-scenes service, election officials are now on the front lines of an increasingly toxic environment, facing harassment, threats, and a flood of misinformation. In this episode of Democracy Fix, two seasoned election officials, Tonya Wichman, Director of Elections in Defiance County, Ohio, and Wesley Wilcox, Supervisor of Elections in Marion County, Florida join Dr. Carah Ong Whaley and Angelina Clapp to discuss the evolving role of election administration, and how they’re standing up against the tide of misinformation and political interference to ensure the integrity of our elections. Both Tonya and Wesley are featured in the powerful new documentary, The Officials, which shines a light on the pressures and challenges they and their colleagues across the country face as they prepare for the 2024 presidential election. Links in this episode: The Officials film and companion toolkit Additional Information | |||
| 19 Dec 2022 | Best of 2022: Celebrating 100 Episodes: Past, Present and Future | Our Body Politic | 00:51:38 | |
We continue our Best of 2022 episodes with an episode from the Our Body Politic podcast, hosted by Farai Chideya. Our Body Politic celebrates its 100th episode. Host Farai Chideya reflects on some of the show’s most impactful moments of news and political coverage over the past two years with OBP regular contributors Karen Attiah, columnist for the Washington Post and Tiffany Jeffers, associate professor at Georgetown University Law Center. The trio examines the current political atmosphere, its origins, and reflect on how issues like reproductive rights, the COVID-19 crisis, and the aftermath of the Jan. 6 Insurrection could impact this year’s midterms elections and why cultivating hope and safeguarding democracy is more important than ever. Additional Information | |||
| 19 Apr 2023 | Ballot Blues | Democracy in Danger | 00:38:47 | |
The civil rights movement was a huge leap forward for voting rights, yet one group of the electorate remains largely on the sidelines: the poor. Legal scholar Bertrall Ross calls low turnout among the bottom 20 percent of American earners an insidious form of voter suppression, all but guaranteeing their interests won’t be served. And he offers some ideas on how to get political campaigns to court new voters. We also speak to Nevada’s new secretary of state, who defeated an election denier. Additional Information | |||
| 19 Jun 2023 | Isabel Kershner on Israel and its Divisions | Democracy Paradox | 00:51:37 | |
Isabel Kershner is a reporter at The New York Times and the author of a new book called The Land of Hope and Fear: Israel's Battle for Its Inner Soul.
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| 24 Nov 2021 | Featuring: To Build A Bridge | 00:36:12 | |
This week we bring you an episode from the To Build a Bridge Podcast and our partners at the Bridge Alliance, an organization dedicated to providing resources to non profits involved in democracy reform. Being Right-of-Center in the era of social justice has become unpopular and suppressive. All too often, the right wing is labeled as prejudiced, hateful and uneducated conductors of national misinformation. This unfortunately discourages many from openly sharing their outlook which is a direct contradiction to this country’s constitution. Bridge Alliance Deputy Chief of Staff, Shakira Mills is sitting down with Shoshana Weissmann of RStreet Institute, Stephanie Slade of Reason Magazine, Jeremy Garson and Michelle Dickson of Bridge Alliance to discuss the modern American polarized experience and what the right wing is really trying to accomplish. | |||
| 06 Dec 2023 | Best of 2023: Tim Miller on why Republicans stuck with Trump | Democracy Works | 00:37:54 | |
We continue our Best of 2022 episodes with an episode from the Democracy Works podcast, hosted by Jenna Spinelle, Christopher Beem, Michael Berkman. Chris Beem talks with former Republican political operative Tim Miller about the party's loyalty to Donald Trump and where it might go in 2024 and beyond. Miller is a writer-at-large for The Bulwark and the author of the best-selling book Why We Did It: A Travelogue from the Republican Road to Hell. He was previously political director for Republican Voters Against Trump and communications director for Jeb Bush 2016. He also appears on MSNBC and The Circus on Showtime. Miller's book is a reflection on both his own past work for the Republican Party and the contortions of his former peers in the GOP establishment. He draws a straight line between the actions of the 2000s GOP to the Republican political class's Trumpian takeover, including the horrors of January 6th. In this conversation, Miller and Beem also discuss alarming trends among young conservatives and how they may continue, or even exacerbate, some of what Miller observed after the 2016 election. | |||
| 19 Feb 2024 | Fundraising with AI with Hillary Lehr of Quiller | The Great Battlefield | 01:30:15 | |
Hillary Lehr returns to the Great Battlefield podcast to talk about her time at Higher Ground Labs and then joining Quiller as CEO where they help Democratic campaigns produce fundraising emails and other content through the use of AI. Additional Information | |||
| 24 Aug 2022 | Corey Nathan interviews hosts Liz Joyner and Vanessa Rowse | Village SquareCast | 01:12:35 | |
Join us as podcast host Corey Nathan of Talkin’ Politics and Religion without Killin’ Each Other flips the switch by interviewing The Village Square's Liz Joyner and Vanessa Rowse about how we make pigs fly. We were fast friends with Corey right from the start because of our shared goal to have constructive and respectful conversations about those taboo topics of politics and religion. Corey started TP&R to take back some of the airspace from the screamers who feed off our divisions. He says politics and religion are too important to be left only to the extremes, so he hosts engaging, provocative and fun conversations about the most pressing issues of our times. We (obviously) love his mission, we love the show, and we love hanging out with Corey, so we were thrilled when he invited us on the show. Now we're sharing that talk with you because we think you'll love Corey and his podcast too. From Corey, about this episode: "We get into all kinds of important, timely topics including:
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| 21 Aug 2023 | Winning campaigns through better messaging with Anat Shenker-Osorio | The Great Battlefield | 00:54:00 | |
Anat Shenker-Osorio, Founder and Principal at ASO Communications, joins The Great Battlefield to discuss how her background in linguistics informs her work as a political messaging consultant. She shares what her research and campaign experience has taught her about how to re-frame the debate to give progressives the advantage. Additional Information | |||
| 31 Jul 2024 | Living Constitutionally: A.J. Jacobs | Future Hindsight | 00:46:00 | |
A.J. Jacobs is a journalist and author. His most recent book is The Year of Living Constitutionally: One Man’s Humble Quest to Follow the Constitution's Original Meaning. We discuss how the Founding Fathers prized humility, experimentation, and a willingness to change their own minds. The heart of our democracy is for the community to come together and cooperate. One example is to advocate for democratic reforms, which are nonpartisan. Being apathetic or cynical helps the slide into autocracy. Resisting the allure of quick, hot takes and practicing slower thinking are also crucial to democracy. The founding fathers were deeply invested in balance, especially when it comes to the power of a president being balanced by Congress. A.J. reminds us that everyday citizens can control whether the sun is rising or setting on democracy. Follow A.J. on X: Follow Mila on X: Additional Information | |||
| 14 Apr 2025 | How Government Can Get Sh*t Done: Jim Townsend on Public Policy and Legislative Oversight | An Honorable Profession | 00:35:06 | |
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| 31 Jan 2022 | When religion and democracy collide | Democracy Works | 00:38:38 | |
Around the world, religion is being used to fuel "us vs. them" narratives and undermine the foundations of democracy. This week, we dive into what this means and how people of faith can chart a different path forward. Faith, Nationalism, and the Future of Liberal Democracy highlights the use of religious identity to fuel the rise of illiberal, nationalist, and populist democracy. It examines the ways religious identity is weaponized to fuel populist revolts against a political, social, and economic order that values democracy in a global and strikingly diverse world. The book is intended for readers who value democracy and are concerned about growing threats to it, and especially for people of faith and religious leaders, which is why we're excited to have author David M. Elcott on the show this week. Elcott is the Taub Professor of Practice in Public Service and Leadership at the Wagner School of Public Service at NYU and director of the Advocacy and Political Action specialization. Additional InformationMore shows from The Democracy Group Faith, Nationalism, and the Future of Liberal Democracy Democracy and the language of faith - article in Democracy Journal | |||
| 10 Aug 2022 | Making Government Work: Amanda Renteria | Future Hindsight | 00:44:37 | |
Amanda Renteria the CEO of Code for America, an organization of people-centered problem solvers working to improve government in a meaningful way. We discuss making government work better for everyday people by design. Good governance starts with getting the basics right, such as delivering clean water to all communities. Making government simple and accessible is also key. Currently it’s so complicated that many people have lost trust in the government's ability to respond to crises. Modernizing systems so that the government reaches folks where they are is an incredibly powerful tool to reimagining trust and rebuilding a government for, and by, us all. Follow Amanda on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AmandaRenteria Follow Mila on Twitter: Additional Information | |||
| 11 Mar 2024 | Dr. Jonathan Haidt on After Babel: "The Fragmentation of Everything" | Village SquareCast | 01:43:29 | |
What if, at a pinnacle of our civilization’s technological achievement, everything just broke — the institutions we’ve come to rely upon in navigating a modern complex world, the shared stories that hold a large and diverse democratic republic together, and even a common language through which to navigate the rising tide of crisis. According to renowned social psychologist and author Jonathan Haidt, this describes our current reality, one that he calls “After Babel.” In this new normal, we are scattered by a digital environment into feuding tribes that are governed by mob dynamics and driven by a minority of ideological outliers, made stupid at warp speed by group think, and — thanks to social media — armed with billions of metaphorical “dart guns” with which to immediately wound “the enemy” in ways that are hardly only metaphorical. What could go wrong? Our very special guest, Dr. Jonathan Haidt, will delve into the profound impact of social media on democratic societies, dissecting the intricate web of challenges it poses to civic trust and civil discourse. Don’t miss this chance to hear from one of the foremost thought leaders of our time — one who has generously given his counsel to The Village Square, and countless efforts like ours — on this existential challenge of our time. Read Why the Past Ten Years of American Life Have Been Uniquely Stupid in The Atlantic and learn more about Dr. Haidt by clicking the MORE button, below. The program includes a preview of Haidt’s highly anticipated upcoming book The Anxious Generation, available at the end of March. You’re not going to want to miss it. Additional InformationThe Democracy Group listener survey | |||
| 30 Oct 2023 | Combating Antisemitism and Hatred featuring Bob Shrum, Bret Stephens, and Zev Yaroslavsky | The Bully Pulpit | 01:11:07 | |
Download our free guide on 5 ways to take action! CPF's inaugural discussion of our Combating Antisemitism and Hatred Series features CPF Director Bob Shrum, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Bret Stephens, and former Los Angeles elected official Zev Yaroslavksy. The series explores the struggle against antisemitism in the context of countering hate, reducing violence, promoting empathy, and nurturing civil dialogue. Featuring:
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| 16 Jan 2023 | ‘Our democracy is really at risk’ ft. Sandra Garza | Politics is Everything | 00:29:20 | |
For the second anniversary of the violent attacks on the U.S. Capitol, we spoke with Sandra Garza, a clinical social worker, veteran, and partner of Private First Class Brian Sicknick, a U.S. Capitol Police officer who died of injuries sustained during the insurrection on January 6th, 2021. Ms. Garza shares her experiences attending the House Select Committee hearings and what more needs to be done to achieve justice and accountability. She says everybody has a responsibility to ensure this never happens again. Ms. Garza is the plaintiff on a lawsuit filed on January 5, 2023 in the United States District Court in the District of Columbia against Donald J. Trump, Julian Khater and George Tanios for the wrongful death of Pfc Brian Sicknick. The lawsuit includes claims for relief for 1) wrongful death; 2) conspiracy to violate civil rights; 3) common law assault against Khater and Tanios, 4) Negligence Per Se against all defendants; 5) Aiding and Abetting Common-Law Assault (against Trump). On January 6, 2023, PFC Sicknick was awarded the Presidential Citizens Medal for having made “exemplary contributions to our democracy” and shown “courage and selflessness” around the events of January 6, 2021. The medal is one of the country’s highest civilian honors, given to American citizens deemed to have “performed exemplary deeds of service for their country or their fellow citizens.” PFC Brian D. Sicknick served with the United States Capitol Police from July 2008 until his passing in the line of duty on January 7, 2021 due to injuries sustained during the attack on the United States Capitol. PFC Sicknick spent the majority of his career with the department’s First Responder Unit, where he served as a mountain bike officer as well as a member of the Civil Disturbance Unit. Links in this Episode:
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| 05 Dec 2022 | Best of 2022: How the NRA Radicalized America: Ryan Busse | Future Hindsight | 00:43:02 | |
We continue our Best of 2022 episodes with an episode from the the Future Hindsight podcast, hosted by Mila Atmos. “Democracy cannot exist at the barrel of a gun.” Ryan Busse is a former firearms executive, Senior Policy Advisor to Giffords, and author of Gunfight: My Battle Against the Industry That Radicalized America. We discuss how guns are intricately interwoven through our democratic division and radicalization in our everyday lives and in our politics. The assault weapons ban helped codify societal norms. In the years after the legislation lapsed, the culture of hatred, division, fear, and conspiracy became widespread. In fact, this culture became useful to the NRA to drive political outcomes. Legislation that re-establishes norms of responsible behavior is critical to controlling radicalization. Busse argues that we can start with outlawing open-carry armed intimidation across the nation. Follow Ryan on Twitter: https://twitter.com/ryandbusse Follow Mila on Twitter: Additional Information | |||
| 24 Jan 2022 | U.S. Democratic Decline in Comparative Perspective | Science of Politics | 01:02:11 | |
The anniversary of January 6th recentered concerns about U.S. democratic backsliding. Talk of election-related violence, insurrection, civil unrest, and irregular transitions has Americans asking where their democracy stands relative to those of other nations. Comparative political science has long seen U.S. trends as part of liberal democracy’s global problems. Pippa Norris joins the Science of Politics for a special wide-ranging conversation with Matt Grossmann about where America stands out from and reflects international trends. They discuss January 6th but move to consider the American party system, election integrity, populism, trust, and the possibility of electoral reforms. Guest: Pippa Norris, Harvard University Studies: Cultural Backlash; In Praise of Skepticism Additional Information | |||
| 20 May 2024 | Why Trump is Popular in Small-Town America: Salena Zito | Let's Find Common Ground | 00:27:21 | |
Unlike the vast majority of journalists who cover American politics, Salena Zito lives far away from the centers of power and wealth. She writes about small-town America and the parts of the country that much of the media doesn’t cover. Zito's commitment to understanding the heartland of America is evident in her frequent trips along the nation’s back roads. She drives thousands of miles, avoiding interstates and major cities, to grasp the pulse of rural and small-town America Additional InformationThe Democracy Group listener survey | |||
| 16 Mar 2022 | Ukraine Series: Defending democracy at home and abroad | Democracy Works | 00:43:10 | |
Robert Kagan is a foreign policy expert who turned his focus to the United States last fall in a Washington Post column titled "Our Constitutional Crisis Is Already Here" that became one of the Post's most-read pieces of 2021. We're lucky to have Kagan with us this week to discuss the ongoing crises of democracy at home and abroad as Russia's war on Ukraine continues to unfold. Kagan has argued that there was nothing inevitable about the relatively peaceful liberal democratic order that followed World War II, and that there is nothing inevitable about the perseverance of American democracy. In fact, he says that because so many reject the 2020 presidential election, we are already in a constitutional crisis, and it will take deliberate actions by the public and members of both political parties to get us out. For too many politicians, a recognition of our condition, let alone a commitment to those actions, appears to be a long way off. Kagan is the Stephen and Barbara Friedman Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institute and a member of the Foreign Affairs Policy Board in the U.S. State Department. He is the author of The Jungle Grows Back: America and Our Imperiled World and The New York Times bestseller, The World America Made. Additional InformationMore shows from The Democracy Group | |||
| 02 May 2022 | Leveraging Financial Power to Build Equity; A Brief History of Black Education in America; PLUS Restorative Economics Creating Pathways to Prosperity | Our Body Politic | 00:51:55 | |
How do you harness the power of money for the greater good? This week, Farai speaks to philanthropist Mona Sinha, founder and CEO of the Insight Circle Fund, about what it means to make an impact as a woman of color in the worlds of finance and of giving. In the series “Our Body Politic Presents…” Aimée Eubanks Davis, host and creator of the podcast After 1954 speaks to author of Black Teachers on Teaching, researcher and professor Michele Foster about the rich past of Black education in the United States, specifically the effects of school desegregation on Black students following Brown V. Board. Then in our weekly segment, ‘Sippin’ the Political Tea’, Farai speaks about pathways to shared prosperity and innovative approaches to community and finance with Nwamaka Agbo, CEO of the Kataly Foundation and Managing Director of the Restorative Economies Fund; and Jessica Norwood, Founder of RUNWAY. Additional Information | |||
| 28 Aug 2024 | Anne Applebaum, Pulitzer-prize winning historian on AUTOCRACY, INC.: THE DICTATORS WHO WANT TO RUN THE WORLD | Talkin Politics & Religion | 01:06:48 | |
In the 20th Century, we had Cold War adversaries. In the early 2000s, George W. Bush talked about the Axis of Evil. But are those frameworks the most accurate way to understand the forces attempting to undermine not just democratic nations but democratic ideas? And to what degree have these antagonists - those that are fundamentally opposed to our core principles such as the freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom of assembly and basic human rights - pervaded U.S. politics? In this episode we welcome Anne Applebaum, Pulitzer-prize winning historian, staff writer at The Atlantic and senior fellow at the Agora Institute at Johns Hopkins University. After discussing her motivations, experiences, and insights into the autocratic regimes and their impacts on global democracy, we dive into Anne’s new book Autocracy, Inc.: The Dictators Who Want to Run the World. We explore how autocracies collaborate, ways the rest of the world is complicit in autocratic behaviors, and strategies to combat these influences. The conversation also touches on Anne's personal history and initial fascination with the history, literature, culture and politics of the “Borderlands,” a region that includes Poland, Belarus, Ukraine, Russia and beyond. Additional InformationThe Democracy Group listener survey Talkin‘ Politics & Religion Without Killin‘ Each Other Podcast | |||
| 18 Mar 2024 | Politics: Majority In The Middle. Shannon Watson | How Do We Fix It? | 00:30:22 | |
News coverage of Super Tuesday and other party primaries focused mainly on base voters— Democrats and Republicans. But most Americans are actually on the political sidelines or somewhere in the middle. Many have a mix of conservative and liberal views. This episode is about them. Our guest is Shannon Watson, the Founder and Executive Director of Majority in the Middle. Her Minnesota-based non-profit group works to give voters and elected officials a place to gather outside the extremes. "We try to elevate the people who are demonstrating the behavior we want to see", Shannon tells us. "When it's only the rabble-rousers who get the coverage then there is an incentive to be one of them." Majority in the Middle also promotes structural changes in governing that will remove barriers to cooperation across the political aisle. While the two parties have a stranglehold on many aspects of elections and governance, record numbers of Americans no longer register as Republican or Democrat. They prefer the label "independent". At the same time, the right and left have changed. Among pro-Trump conservatives, we see a decline in support for free trade and military spending to help traditional allies. The former president has also resisted calls to limit spending on Medicare and social security. Younger Democrats are much less likely to support Israel. The rise of identity politics has also pushed the party to the left. While we've always had partisan division the level of vitriol can obscure the fact that Americans are much more closely aligned on issues such as gun rights, abortion, and immigration than we are led to believe. "Not all Democrats agree with all Democrats, and not all Republicans agree with all Republicans," says Shannon Watson. Our podcast conversation mentions the Political Typology Quiz, conducted by Pew Research Center. Polling of more than 10,000 U.S. adults showed that while partisan polarization remains a dominant fact of political life, "the gulf that separates Republicans and Democrats sometimes obscures the divisions and diversity of views that exist within both partisan coalitions – and the fact that many Americans do not fit easily into either one." You can take the Typology Quiz here and see your personal views fit in with nine broad categories of left and right. Additional Information | |||
| 18 Apr 2022 | A Conversation with Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) | The Bully Pulpit | 00:38:01 | |
CPF Director Bob Shrum joins U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski to discuss her decades-long efforts to bridge partisan divides and promote sustainability efforts, and her thoughts on Supreme Court nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson. Featuring:
Additional Information | |||
| 01 Jul 2022 | Your Political Influence as a Consumer | TDG Twitter Spaces | 00:36:41 | |
A recording from our Twitter Space Event with Voting Smarter. Hosts
Guests
If you would like to listen and ask questions live, follow us @GroupDemocracy or subscribe to our newsletter are democracygroup.org/newsletter to be the first to know about upcoming events. | |||
| 27 Jun 2022 | The Asian-American Vote: Sung Yeon Choimorrow | Future Hindsight | 00:41:12 | |
Sung Yeon Choimorrow is the executive director of the National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum, whose mission is to elevate AAPI women and girls to impact policy and drive systemic change in the United States. We discuss age-old and hardened stereotypes, changing the narrative about who Asian-Americans are, and activating Asian communities to take civic action. The term model minority was coined by a white sociologist to pit Japanese Americans against Black Americans. Many Asian-Americans have used the model minority myth to protect them, though in the end it does not insulate them from discrimination and racism. In fact, the objectification of Asian women for entertainment persists, and Asian-Americans are perpetually seen as foreign. Follow Sung Yeon on Twitter: https://twitter.com/schoimorrow Follow Mila on Twitter: Follow Future Hindsight on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/futurehindsightpod/ Additional Information | |||
| 06 Jan 2025 | Introducing Dear Government | TDG Fellowship | 00:19:17 | |
This week we bring you a special episode from Claire Baek, one of our 2024 Podcast Fellows. In this episode of Dear Government, host Claire Baek and guests from Shansley High School's newspaper, The Purple Tide, analyze and discuss the unexpected results of the 2024 presidential election. The conversation dives into the electoral and popular vote outcomes that led to President Donald Trump's victory and the reactions of young voters. They also touch on the importance of the working class, the role of media and marketing in campaigns, the effectiveness of Kamala Harris's debate performance, and the value of voting in a democracy. Personal voting experiences and reflections on what democracy means to students are shared. 00:00 Introduction and Guest Introductions 01:06 Election Results and Initial Reactions 02:16 Trump's Appeal to the Working Class 04:12 Media and Marketing Strategies 05:01 Presidential Debate Analysis 08:27 Young People's Perspective on Voting 13:35 Defining Democracy and Student Involvement 18:49 Conclusion and Final Thoughts Know a student interested in democracy and podcasts? Send them over to our fellowship to apply: https://www.democracygroup.org/fellowship | |||
| 27 Oct 2021 | Tom Ginsburg Shares his Thoughts on Democracy and International Law | Democracy Paradox | 00:52:00 | |
At the end of the day, I am optimistic despite all the evidence. First of all, I think there are a lot of resources that democracies can use. A lot of areas of law, where as long as we recognize what it is we're fighting for, democracy is worth fighting for and have a common view as to what that means that we can advance it in many places, not just here but abroad. And this might sound a little hokey, but there really is a genuine human demand for freedom and that's not going away. Tom Ginsburg
Additional InformationMore shows from The Democracy Group Democracies and International Law by Tom Ginsburg Follow Tom Ginsburg on Twitter @tomginsburg How to Save a Constitutional Democracy by Tom Ginsburg and Aziz Huq | |||
| 02 Aug 2023 | Where do busy people find the time to participate in democratic self-government? | Politics in Question | 00:49:12 | |
In this week’s episode of Politics In Question, Kevin Elliott joins Lee and James to talk about how busy people can make democracy work for them. Elliott is a political scientist and Lecturer in Ethics, Politics, and Economics (EP&E) at Yale University. His main research interests are in political theory, particularly democratic theory, and focus on the ethics of democratic citizenship, political epistemology, and the normative justification and design of political institutions. He is the author of Democracy for Busy People (University of Chicago Press, 2023). Does democratic self-government demand too much of Americans? Can democracy work for people focused on meeting the everyday demands of life? Or do Americans need to rethink some of the ways in which they do democratic self-government? And what is “stand-by citizenship?” These are some of the questions that Kevin, Lee, and James ask in this week’s episode. Additional Information | |||
| 13 Jun 2022 | Can American democracy have nice things? | Democracy Works | 00:43:34 | |
In 100% Democracy: The Case for Universal Voting, E.J. Dionne and Miles Rapoport argue that all members of a democracy must participate in elections. Universal voting would be the surest way to protect against voter suppression and the active disenfranchisement of a large share of our citizens. And it would create a system true to the Declaration of Independence's aspirations by calling for a government based on the consent of all of the governed. The system works in Australia, but can it work in the United States? Would it become just another tool in partisan warfare? Can American democracy even handle something like universal voting? We explore those questions this week. Dionne is is a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, a syndicated columnist for the Washington Post, university professor at Georgetown University, and visiting professor at Harvard University. He is the author of Code Red: How Progressives and Moderates Can Unite to Save Our Country. Rapoport is the Senior Practice Fellow in American Democracy at the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation at the Harvard Kennedy School. He formerly served in the Connecticut state legislature and as secretary of the state. He also served as president of Demos and of Common Cause. 100% Democracy: The Case for Universal Voting Additional InformationMore shows from The Democracy Group Faith, Nationalism, and the Future of Liberal Democracy Democracy and the language of faith - article in Democracy Journal | |||
| 02 Jan 2023 | What Will We Fix in 2023? Jim & Richard's Predictions | How Do We Fix It? | 00:30:53 | |
2022 was another year of COVID-induced anxiety with widespread worries about democracy, polarization, climate change and threats to democracy. But in this new year special Richard and Jim say we have reached peak fear. America may well be calming down and headed towards a new sense of normal. Our co-hosts throw caution to the wind with a series of fresh outside-the-box forecasts for the twelve months to come. We make predictions about the retreat of COVID, the outlook for inflation, and the migration crisis on the southern border that threatens havoc for the Administration. Hear what could happen next in Ukraine's war against Russian aggression. We also look closely at China's new struggles with COVID, street protests, and slowing growth. In a special section on technology and science, we focus on stunning advances in cancer and Alzheimer treatments plus new innovations in AI and the likely impact of ChatGTP, the app that's just been released to the public and is already raising ethical issues for schools, universities, and employers. We promise to release a scorecard of how we did at the end of the year. Is Jim right when he says there is a real likelihood of a new energy crisis in 2023? Is Richard's forecast about the 2024 Presidential race on target? Jim and Richard also share their year-end hopes for the new year and recommendations. Additional Information | |||
| 18 Nov 2024 | How strong is support for democracy? | Democracy Works | 00:34:33 | |
Democracy Works host Michael Berkman, director of the McCourtney Institute for Democracy and professor of political science at Penn State talks with Christopher Claassen, a political scientist at the University of Glasgow, about how to measure support for democracy across countries and across generations. Claassen grew up in South Africa and was 16 when the country held its first democratic elections. His interest in democracy continued through college and into his career as a political scientist. Today, he is a professor of political behavior at the University of Glasgow. One area of his research focuses on how to measure support for democracy. In a recent paper, he and colleagues developed 17 survey questions that cover all eight components of liberal democracy as defined by the V-Dem project in an effort to refine what people mean when they say the support or don't support democracy. Berkman and Claassen also discuss how support for democracy is part of the 2024 U.S. election. Note that this interview was recorded in late October 2024 before the election took place. Referenced in this episode: Additional Information | |||
| 11 Dec 2024 | Best of 2024: A Postelection Fight for Democracy | Democracy Decoded | 00:31:01 | |
We continue our Best of 2024 episodes with an episode from the Democracy Decoded podcast, with host Simone Leeper. In the end, the worst of everyone’s election fears — political violence, overt foreign interference or a razor-thin margin between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump leading to a hotly contested legal battle — did not come to pass. Instead, Donald Trump won a plurality of votes for president, and did so decisively. On January 20, 2025, he will once again become the country’s most powerful executive. His victory raises weighty questions for the experts at Campaign Legal Center. Trump ran explicitly on a platform of behaving like an authoritarian, promising to fire U.S. civil servants, threatening opponents with jail, and brandishing military force against would-be dissenters. As his return to power approaches, we grapple with a paradoxical election, in which voters declared their preference for the candidate who repeatedly threatened the American system as we know it. Joining Simone in this episode are Trevor Potter, CLC’s president and founder, and CLC senior vice presidents Paul M. Smith and Bruce Spiva. They offer their forecasts for the uncertain years ahead and explain what this election did (and did not) signify about the health of American democracy. Host and Guests: Simone Leeper litigates a wide range of redistricting-related cases at CLC, challenging gerrymanders and advocating for election systems that guarantee all voters an equal opportunity to influence our democracy. Prior to arriving at CLC, Simone was a law clerk in the office of Senator Ed Markey and at the Library of Congress, Office of General Counsel. She received her J.D. cum laude from Georgetown University Law Center in 2019 and a bachelor’s degree in political science from Columbia University in 2016. Trevor Potter is President at Campaign Legal Center. A Republican former Chairman of the Federal Election Commission (FEC), Trevor was general counsel to John McCain’s 2000 and 2008 presidential campaigns and an adviser to the drafters of the McCain-Feingold campaign finance law. To many, he is perhaps best known for his recurring appearances on The Colbert Report as the lawyer for Stephen Colbert’s super PAC, Americans for a Better Tomorrow, Tomorrow, during the 2012 election, a program that won a Peabody Award for excellence in reporting on money in politics. The American Bar Association Journal has described Trevor as “hands-down one of the top lawyers in the country on the delicate intersection of politics, law and money.” Trevor is the author of several books and manuals on lobbying regulation and disclosure, campaign finance and federal election law. He has provided testimony and written statements to Congress on federal election proposals, campaign finance regulation and, recently, the effects of the January 6th attack on our democracy. He has also taught campaign finance law at the University of Virginia School of Law and Oxford University, and he has appeared widely in national broadcast and print media. During the 2020 election season, Trevor was named to the cross-partisan National Task Force on Election Crises. Bruce Spiva is Senior Vice President at Campaign Legal Center. He is an attorney and community leader who has spent his over 30-year career fighting for civil rights and civil liberties, voting rights, consumer protection, and antitrust enforcement. Over the past three decades, he has tried cases and argued appeals in courtrooms across the country, including arguing against vote suppression in the United States Supreme Court in 2021. In 2022, in his first run for public office, Bruce mounted a competitive run in the primary election for Washington, D.C. Attorney General. In addition to founding his own law firm where he practiced for eleven years, Bruce has held several leadership and management positions as a partner at two national law firms. Most recently, Bruce served as the Managing Partner of the D.C. Office and on the firm-wide Executive Committee of Perkins Coie LLP, where he also had an active election law practice. He first-chaired twelve voting rights and redistricting trials across the country, and argued numerous voting rights appeals in U.S. circuit courts and state supreme courts during his tenure at Perkins. Paul M. Smith is Senior Vice President at Campaign Legal Center. He works directly with CLC’s talented team of litigators to protect and advance American democracy through innovative litigation strategies. Paul has four decades of experience litigating a wide range of cases. He has argued before the U.S. Supreme Court 21 times and secured numerous victories, including in the important cases advancing civil liberties and civil rights, Lawrence v. Texas, the landmark gay rights case, and Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Ass’n, which established First Amendment rights of those who produce and sell video games. In addition, Paul has argued several voting rights cases at the Supreme Court, including Vieth v. Jubelirer and Gill v. Whitford, involving partisan gerrymandering, LULAC v. Perry, involving the legality of Texas’s mid-decade redrawing of congressional districts and Crawford v. Marion County Election Board, involving the constitutionality of a voter identification law. He served as counsel for amici in several key campaign finance merits cases including McCutcheon v. FEC (on behalf of Democratic House members), Arizona Free Enterprise Club’s Freedom Club PAC v. Bennett (on behalf of the Committee for Economic Development) and Citizens United v. FEC (on behalf of the Committee for Economic Development). Additional Information | |||
| 08 Dec 2021 | Best of 2021: Why COVID-19 Goes from Jails to Communities | 70 Million | 00:36:54 | |
We continue our Best of 2021 episodes with an episode from the 70 Million podcast, a documentary podcast about criminal justice reform from LWC Studios. This special roundtable of experts looks at how policing and incarceration practices are impacting COVID-19 rates in BIPOC communities around the country. Because being jailed means an increased risk of getting COVID-19, those released might unknowingly bring the virus home, putting their loved ones and communities at risk. Our editor, Jen Chien, moderates the conversation with Nicole Lewis, senior editor of the jurisprudence section at Slate Magazine, Eric Reinhart, medical anthropologist, psychoanalyst and resident physician at Northwestern University, and Alicia Virani, former public defender and current professor at UCLA School of Law. Produced by Lisa Bartfai. Find a resource guide and annotated transcript at our website here. Additional Information | |||
| 25 Aug 2023 | How to Be a Phenomenal Podcast Guest on Political Podcasts | TDG Podcast Media Training | 00:34:10 | |
In this FREE training you'll learn:
Our podcast media training helps democracy experts to sharpen their media skills so they can share their key ideas and stories in podcast interviews. Want to take our training? Visit: https://www.democracygroup.org/podcast-media-training | |||
| 29 Dec 2023 | Best of 2023: Better Choices, Better Elections | Democracy Decoded | 00:26:55 | |
Download our free guide on 5 ways to take action! Across the country, voters are organizing to protect their right to elect candidates of their choice. In the final episode of Season 3 of Democracy Decoded, host Simone Leeper explores the changing landscape of state and local elections, and some of the initiatives that can help ensure voters can choose candidates who truly represent their interests. This forward-looking episode offers a glimpse into innovative reforms that hold the promise of strengthening democracy. Simone speaks with Susan Soto Palmer, a community advocate and plaintiff that Campaign Legal Center represented in a landmark discrimination case in Yakima County, Washington. Mark Gaber, Senior Director for Redistricting at CLC delves into the problems with at-large districts and how they dilute the voting power of communities of color. Then, the Executive Director of Alaskans for Better Elections, Juli Lucky, explains to Simone how Alaska has enacted ranked choice voting and why states around the country are using this tool to improve democratic elections. Alexandra Copper, Legal Counsel for Litigation at CLC, breaks down how ranked choice voting can ensure that voters' voices are being heard. Additional Information | |||
| 25 Nov 2024 | Best of 2024: Dr. Jonathan Haidt on After Babel: "The Fragmentation of Everything" | Village SquareCast | 01:43:19 | |
We continue our Best of 2024 episodes with an episode from the Village SquareCast podcast, hosted by the Village Square. We wanted you wonderful SquareCast listeners to know that we didn't plan for this episode to drop on Leap Day and we didn't plan on it being (we kid you not) Episode 100. But both things just happened. At the very least, we think that's a sign that you really ought to listen. Were we "the universe has a plan" maximalists, though, we'd say it means you need to quit your day job and follow bridge builders like Jon Haidt and The Village Square around like Jack Kerouac groupies. You pick. Here's our blurb to help inform your imminent life choice: What if, at a pinnacle of our civilization’s technological achievement, everything just broke — the institutions we’ve come to rely upon in navigating a modern complex world, the shared stories that hold a large and diverse democratic republic together, and even a common language through which to navigate the rising tide of crisis. According to renowned social psychologist and author Jonathan Haidt, this describes our current reality, one that he calls “After Babel.” In this new normal, we are scattered by a digital environment into feuding tribes that are governed by mob dynamics and driven by a minority of ideological outliers, made stupid at warp speed by group think, and — thanks to social media — armed with billions of metaphorical “dart guns” with which to immediately wound “the enemy” in ways that are hardly only metaphorical. What could go wrong? Our very special guest, Dr. Jonathan Haidt, will delve into the profound impact of social media on democratic societies, dissecting the intricate web of challenges it poses to civic trust and civil discourse. Don’t miss this chance to hear from one of the foremost thought leaders of our time — one who has generously given his counsel to The Village Square, and countless efforts like ours — on this existential challenge of our time. Read Why the Past Ten Years of American Life Have Been Uniquely Stupid in The Atlantic and learn more about Dr. Haidt by clicking the MORE button, below. Additional Information | |||
| 01 May 2023 | Solutions to the campus free speech woes: An interview with ALL IN Democracy Challenge's Stephanie King and JMU Debate | Democracy Matters | 00:42:46 | |
It feels like free speech has become the number one issue confronting higher education today. Campuses are now hotbeds of discontent. Students are sitting in, protesting questionable speakers on campus. State elected officials are dismantling diversity, equity and inclusion programming. So what is being done to address the campus free speech woes? Stephanie King, senior director of strategic initiatives for the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge, and Dannise Brown and Adonis Ortiz, members of the Madison Debate Society at James Madison University provide us with some answers to campus free speech issues. Additional Information | |||
| 01 Sep 2021 | Emotional Politics, with Omar Kholeif and Jonathan Sklar | On Opinion | 00:43:55 | |
Over the course of two seasons of On Opinion, we’ve looked at opinions through the lens of philosophy, psychology, social science, anthropology and evolution. But one area we’ve missed is that of feeling. Omar Kholeif and Jonathan Sklar take very different approaches to understand the world we live in, but both see emotion as something that can affect individuals and collective groups. Jonathan feels that you can transpose psychoanalysis, which is designed for the individual, to a culture and a moment in history. Omar is convinced not only that ‘ages’ have emotions, dominant leitmotifs of feeling that impact everyone around them, but also that today is a particularly emotional age - that our feelings are closer to the surface. Listen to Turi speak to Jonathan and Omar about:
Works cited include:
Read the Full Transcript Omar is a writer, curator, and cultural historian, and is Director of Collections and Senior Curator at Sharjah Art Foundation, Government of Sharjah, UAE. Trained as a political scientist, Kholeif’s career began as a journalist and documentary filmmaker before entering into the picture palace of museums. Concerned with the intersections of emerging technologies with post-colonial, and critical race theory, Kholeif’s research has explored histories of performance art; the visual experience of mental illness; the interstices of social justice, as well as the aesthetics of digital culture. Jonathan trained in medicine at the Royal Free, University of London in 1973, and then trained in psychoanalytic psychotherapy in the Adult Department, Tavistock Centre for four years with adults, children and adolescents. At the same time he trained at the Institute of Psychoanalysis and has been a psychoanalyst since 1983 and a training analyst since 1996. He is chair of The Independent Psychoanalysis Trust. Additional Information | |||
| 02 Nov 2022 | Homecoming: The Case for a Post-Global World with Rana Foroohar | How Do We Fix It? | 00:31:25 | |
For much of the past fifty years, American political leaders of both parties have assumed that globalization and free trade would lead to more opportunity, higher living standards and increased business efficiency. But our guest, author and Financial Times columnist, Rana Foroohar, argues that with supply chain disruptions and growing economic insecurity in much of the world, the long reign of globalization is coming to end. A shift to more resilient and local businesses is now at hand. We discuss the reporting and findings in the brand new book, "Homecoming: The Path to Prosperity in a Post-Global World." "I think the pendulum of the old way is tapped out," Rana tells us. "Cheap money is over. Cheap labor from China is largely over. Cheap energy from Russia is definitely over." The war in Ukraine and the political and economic chaos that followed have brought the fragility of the global economic and political system into sharp relief. We discuss the argument that our economy is far too financialized and that this is leading to greater mistrust, vast inequality and more populist autocrats. As we do in all of our shows, we hear potential solutions. Rana argues that place-based economics and a wave of technological innovations now make it possible to keep investment and wealth closer to home. She makes the case that our economic system needs to be transformed Additional Information | |||
| 03 Jul 2024 | Renée DiResta, INVISIBLE RULERS: The People Who Turn Lies into Reality | Talkin Politics & Religion | 01:05:40 | |
"Disinformation. Spam and Scams. Trolls." For those of us paying attention, one thing is clear: We got problems! Fortunately, Renée DiResta is helping with exactly that by studying online manipulation, and what we can do about it. And yeah, we get quite a primer on the concept of "bespoke realities." Renée DiResta is the Technical Research Manager at Stanford Internet Observatory. In this conversation we delve into the challenges of misinformation, online manipulation, and the impact of algorithmic curation on public discourse. Renée discusses her career journey, her work on election integrity, and the concept of "bespoke realities." The episode explores how media ecosystems shape our perception and the importance of fostering meaningful dialogue across differing viewpoints. Additional InformationThe Democracy Group listener survey Talkin‘ Politics & Religion Without Killin‘ Each Other Podcast | |||
| 15 Nov 2021 | Climate: Changing the Conversation. Katharine Hayhoe | How Do We Fix It? | 00:30:16 | |
As world leaders discuss the planet's future at COP26 in Glasgow, climate change remains a massive challenge and a source of fierce debate. While two-thirds of Americans think that the government should be doing more, it's tempting to throw our hands up in despair and think: "There's nothing I can do." Climate scientist Katharine Hayhoe begs to differ. She says the most important thing is to talk about it—and she wants to teach us how. In this episode, we discuss her hopeful, passionate case for enacting positive change from the ground up, and the finding of her new book, "Saving Us: A Climate Scientist's Case for Hope and Healing in a Divided World." Katharine shares the science of climate change, how to talk about it across the political divide, and personal stories about engaging highly skeptical audiences, such as when she spoke to a crowd of conservative business leaders in West Texas at a meeting of Rotarians. The outcome was remarkable! "If we want to change the system, the most important thing any of us can do is to use our voice to influence others to talk about why it matters, and what we can do together to fix it," Katharine tells us. "Wherever we are, we have a shadow not just a footprint, and our shadow can influence people to do things themselves too." Katharine Hayhoe is the Chief Scientist for The Nature Conservancy and a professor of political science and public law at Texas Tech University. She is also a well-known science communicator, principal investigator for the Department of Interior’s South-Central Climate Adaptation Science Center and the National Science Foundation’s Global Infrastructure Climate Network. Her research currently focuses on establishing a scientific basis for assessing the regional to local-scale impacts of climate change on human systems and the natural environment. Additional Information | |||
| 07 Nov 2022 | How Guilty Pleas Fastrack and Derail Justice | 70 Million | 00:41:25 | |
The US Constitution guarantees a right to trial to anyone accused of a crime, but less than 3 percent of criminal defendants get a trial. Instead, they’re regularly cornered into pleading guilty, sometimes admitting to a crime they didn’t commit. Reporter Mark Betancourt retraces one innocent man’s legal ordeal to explain why this happens. Find a resource guide and annotated transcript at our website here. Additional Information | |||
| 21 Feb 2024 | How to combat political extremism | Democracy Works | 00:37:40 | |
Cynthia Miller-Idriss, one of America's leading experts on the far right, joins us this week to discuss what draws people to political extremism online and offline — and what we can do to combat it. Miller-Idriss is the director of the Polarization and Extremism Research and Innovation Lab (PERIL) at American University and author of the book Hate in the Homeland: The New Global Far Right. As you'll hear, PERIL takes a public health approach to preventing violent extremism and provides tools and resources to help communities create resilient democracies. In the interview, Miller-Idriss discusses how extremism and political violence are linked to our desire for community. This dynamic means that extremist ideas can pop up in seemingly innocuous places from martial arts groups to online wellness communities. She says understanding this dynamic is key to moving people away from extremist spaces and into constructive communities. Miller-Idriss visited Penn State as part of the Mellon-funded Sawyer Seminar exploring the theme, "Birthing the Nation: Gender, Sex and Reproduction in Ethnonationalist Imaginaries." Additional Information | |||
| 27 Sep 2023 | Yascha Mounk, author THE IDENTITY TRAP ”...on democracry and its current torments...” | Talkin Politics & Religion | 01:10:09 | |
Download our free guide on 5 ways to take action! Yascha Mounk of Johns Hopkins University joined us for this conversation to discuss his latest book THE IDENTITY TRAP: A STORY OF IDEAS AND POWER IN OUR TIME. What is meant by the term “identity synthesis?” In recent years, terms like “identity politics,” “cancel culture” and being “woke” have been used to refer to the topics that are dealt with in the book. So with the urgency of fighting the dangers of right-wing authoritarianism, why address the identity trap? What advice is there for arguing and organizing against the identity trap? And is there reason to be optimistic? YASCHA MOUNK is Associate Professor of the Practice of International Affairs at Johns Hopkins University, Founder of Persuasion, an online magazine devoted to defending the values of free societies; he’s a Contributing Editor at The Atlantic, a Senior Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, he is the host of the Good Fight podcast, and the author, most recently, of The Identity Trap: A Story of Ideas and Power in Our Time. Additional InformationThe Democracy Group listener survey Talkin‘ Politics & Religion Without Killin‘ Each Other Podcast | |||
| 13 Feb 2023 | The Growing Crisis of U.S. Gun Violence | Our Body Politic | 00:34:56 | |
Farai interviews senior news writer and founding staffer at The Trace, Jennifer Mascia on the recent shootings in California, and what's going wrong with gun regulations in the US. Then, she speaks with the President of the American Psychological Association, Dr. Thema Bryant on how to identify individuals who are prone to committing acts of domestic terrorism, as well as how affected communities can heal from gun violence.
Additional Information | |||
| 09 Feb 2022 | Exhausted with Politics? | Village SquareCast | 01:03:57 | |
This program is part of the Created Equal and Breathing Free podcast series presented in partnership with Florida Humanities. Find this event online at The Village Square. A year-long project by More in Common came up with a description of most of America that a lot of us relate to: “the exhausted majority.” Everything has become political, high conflict, and seemingly inescapable as the electromagnetic suck of angry politics forces us to be either “us” or “them,” when most of us would rather do nothing of the sort. If we have ever needed one, now’s the time to chart a path forward that takes the higher ground. And is it even possible that by turning our attention to something else we might — unfathomably — be doing exactly what just might fix the political mess? We’ll find out together, with God Squad sherpas leading our way. Joining us are God Squad regulars Pastor Gary Shultz of First Baptist Church of Tallahassee, Dr. Dan Leshem of Hillel FSU, Betsy Ouellette Zierden, and guest Latricia Scriven of New Life United Methodist Church to guide us through this discussion. Check out the More in Common study here. Additional Information | |||
| 02 Oct 2023 | We Contain Multitudes | Democracy in Danger | 00:27:49 | |
Download our free guide on 5 ways to take action! Poets, painters, novelists, musicians — it turns out they are as crucial to sustaining self-government as politicians and pundits. In a wide-ranging conversation, our hosts speak with English professor Steve Parks about the likes of Walt Whitman, Woody Guthrie, Sinéad O’Connor and the Malian singer Fatoumata Kouyaté. What does their art have in common? Spoiler: an affective sense of democracy. Plus, Parks shares our plans for a new segment on international activists. We’re calling it “The Power of Many.” Additional Information | |||
| 23 Jan 2023 | Local Common Ground: Dinner and a Fight. Simon Miontlake, Ted Wetzel, Tom Hach | Let's Find Common Ground | 00:31:59 | |
Want to know one of the most exciting and innovative ways to find common ground? Get people out of their political bunkers and move them beyond rigid polarization in our divided nation. Consider local grassroots efforts, such as the one we profile in this podcast episode. Journalist Simon Montlake of The Christian Science Monitor tells us about his reporting on a lively grassroots effort in northeast Ohio to help people of all political stripes disagree constructively. Participants meet first over dinner at a community center and then debate a hot topic. The audience is invited to discuss a controversial proposition, listening to different points of view. It’s called Dinner and a Fight with the word "fight" crossed out and replaced by "dialog". Event organizers Ted Wetzel and Tom Hach explain how the evenings work and why they can be part of a broader effort to rebuild civic bonds. Ted is the founder and executive director of Fighting-To-Understand, a nonprofit group that encourages people to be more skilled at healthy disagreement. Former IT program manager and retired Navy Reservist Tom Hach is the Director of Ohio Freedom Action Network (OhioFAN). Additional Information | |||
| 07 Feb 2024 | Ideas For Everyone: The Virtues of a Liberal Education. Roosevelt Montás | How Do We Fix It? | 00:31:02 | |
What is the point of a good education? Do we need it to learn a narrow set of skills ro help us get ahead in the workplace, or should knowledge and learning to be used over a lifetime to acquire wisdom that enables us to think more deeply about our place in the world? This question has profound resonance at a time of angry divides over American politics and moral confusion at elite American universities. The President of Harvard, Claudine Gay, resigned after months of campus unrest and controversy. In December, Gay and two other university presidents faced widespread criticism for their testimony at Congressional hearings about antisemitism on their campuses. In this episode, we hear from an university educator who makes the case for liberal education that gives students the tools needed to have a deeper sense of purpose. Roosevelt Montás is the author of "Rescuing Socrates: How The Great Books Changed My Life And Why They Matter For a New Generation". He believes that the ideas and writings of Plato, Socrates, Shakespeare, Ghandi and many others aren't just for a few privileged students. They're for everybody, and that encountering these thinkers as a poor immigrant teenager changed his life. Montás is senior lecturer in American Studies and English at Columbia University, and director of the Center for American Studies Freedom and Citizenship Program, which introduces low-income high school students to primary texts in moral and political thought, as well as seminars in American Studies including “Freedom and Citizenship in the United States.” From 2008 to 2018, he was director of Columbia’s Center for the Core Curriculum. "There is a prevailing cultural attitude that liberal education— the study of literature and philosophy — is appropriate only to the elite," Roosevelt tells us. "That is a really pernicious idea." He argues that the students who benefit the most from the foundational wisdom in the "great books" come from poor and marginalized backgrounds. Recommendation: Richard watched and greatly enjoyed the Anglo-Japanese Netflix TV series, "Giri / Haji", — duty/shame in Japanese— a thriller about a Tokyo detective scouring the London underworld to find his allegedly deceased brother. The series was filmed in Tokyo and London. Additional Information | |||
| 02 Apr 2025 | The problem(s) with platforms | Democracy Works | 00:46:38 | |
Enjoying the show? Subscribe to hear the rest of Democracy Works' episodes! 👉 Subscribe here: https://pod.link/1358363335 | |||
| 13 Mar 2024 | Racism Renounced: A Black Man Talks With White Supremacists. Daryl Davis | Let's Find Common Ground | 00:29:19 | |
Acclaimed musician and recording artist Daryl Davis has interviewed hundreds of KKK members and other White supremacists and influenced many of them to renounce their racist ideology. We hear his brave and remarkable story. Daryl's personal quest began many years ago, after a concert when he was in a country music band. A card-carrying member of the Ku Klux Klan praised his piano playing. Daryl recognized that he had an opportunity to ask an important question about racism: “How can you hate me when you don’t even know me?” Daryl Davis is the author of "Klan-Destine Relationships"— the first book written about the Ku Klux Klan by a Black writer. His work in race relations has been highlighted in speaker series across the country. His documentary film, "Accidental Courtesy", features his process of conversation and understanding to bridge differences and promote racial reconciliation. Additional InformationThe Democracy Group listener survey | |||
| 05 Apr 2023 | Josh Chin on China's Surveillance State | Democracy Paradox | 00:41:23 | |
Josh Chin is the Deputy Bureau Chief for China at the Wall Street Journal and the coauthor with Liza Lin of the book Surveillance State: Inside China's Quest to Launch a New Era of Social Control.
Key Links Surveillance State: Inside China's Quest to Launch a New Era of Social Control by Josh Chin and Liza Lin Additional Information | |||
| 30 Nov 2022 | Unsafe Harbor | Democracy in Danger | 00:31:08 | |
The United States hasn’t overhauled immigration policy since the 1990s, even though most Americans agree the system is failing. And for thousands fleeing violence in Latin America, the consequences of inaction in Washington are treacherous. Will and our colleague Debbie Kang speak this time with a scholar fighting for asylum cases to get a fair shake, especially for women and LGBTQ applicants facing gender violence. With a backlog of nearly 2 million petitions, it’s a mammoth task. Additional Information | |||
| 17 Jul 2023 | Hal Brands Thinks China is a Declining Power... Here's Why that's a Problem | Democracy Paradox | 00:54:26 | |
Hal Brands is the Henry A. Kissinger Distinguished Professor of Global Affairs at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies. He is the coauthor (with Michael Beckley) of Danger Zone: The Coming Conflict with China and the author of The Twilight Struggle: What the Cold War Teaches Us About Great-Power Rivalry Today.
Additional Information | |||
| 06 Nov 2023 | Collective Illusions: Conformity, Complicity and the Science of Why We Make Bad Decisions with Dr. Todd Rose | Village SquareCast | 01:25:05 | |
Download our free guide on 5 ways to take action! At the core of the deep societal divisions we navigate every day is an assumption that we share little with “those people” with whom we share a country—a belief that leaves us on dangerous ground as a nation. But author and entrepreneur Dr. Todd Rose says we’ve got that all wrong. According to Dr. Rose, not only do we agree more often than we think but we’re making terrible assumptions about what the people on our own side of the aisle think—then acting on those incorrect assumptions in a way that accelerates the divisions. Born of our highly social nature and hardwiring in our DNA, we so desperately want to protect our status and reputation inside our groups so we conform with what we think our group thinks—finding ourselves inside a “collective illusion” that is not only destabilizing society, it’s making us personally miserable. Dr. Rose offers his compelling and revelatory insights about human forces that are far too easily ignored in his most recent book: “Collective Illusions: Conformity, Complicity and the Science of Why We Make Bad Decisions.” We think his work is just so important that we’re delighted to bring him to Tallahassee to meet you (and we’ll be hosting book clubs to dive into “Collective Illusions” through the year). We don’t think you’ll ever see the world quite the same way again (trust us, that’ll be a good thing). Additional InformationThe Democracy Group listener survey | |||
| 03 Jun 2024 | Introducing Laws Across Borders | TDG Fellowship | 00:49:27 | |
This week we bring you a special episode from Simran Gupta, one of our 2024 Podcast Fellows. With Simran Gupta’s network of friends from all over the world, Laws Across Borders will explore educational topics like the school systems, technology or academic pressure and how they vary from country to country. The first episode will talk about school environments, touching on both the technological and academic sides.Gupta is a rising high school senior in Georgia She believes that life is all about learning new things, but interpreting information in a way that’s meaningful is difficult, especially in this day and age where news is readily available and shared whether it’s accurate or not. Know a student interested in democracy and podcasts? Send them over to our fellowship to apply: https://www.democracygroup.org/fellowship | |||
| 12 Mar 2025 | How the States are Doing DOGE with TX Representative Salman Bhojani | An Honorable Profession | 00:37:49 | |
Enjoying the show? Subscribe to hear the rest of An Honorable Profession episodes! 👉 Subscribe here: https://pod.link/1435970632 | |||
| 22 Sep 2021 | Afghanistan, Part I: Red Pill | Democracy in Danger | 00:39:09 | |
The forever war claimed 243,000 lives and cost $2.3 billion over two decades, before coming to a chaotic end with the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan last month. But what about the costs you can’t tally? In this first of a series on lessons learned from America’s longest conflict, Will and Siva speak with Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist Spencer Ackerman about the fallout on the home front. Ackerman says the war on terror — and the lies it was built on — utterly disfigured our political culture. Additional Information | |||
| 08 Sep 2021 | Kathryn Stoner on Russia’s Economy, Politics, and Foreign Policy | Democracy Paradox | 00:38:56 | |
Biden's current policy is, you know, we want Putin to calm down, be stable for awhile and turn our focus to restraining China. I don't think that's going to happen. That's not in his interest to do that. So, I think taking our eye off Russia, underestimating it, is the biggest concern for the U.S. currently. Kathryn Stoner
Additional InformationMore shows from The Democracy Group Russia Resurrected: Its Power and Purpose in a New Global Order by Kathryn Stoner | |||
| 29 Nov 2021 | Best of 2021: How To Take Direct Action Against Hate | Let's Find Common Ground | 00:29:36 | |
We continue our Best of 2021 episodes with an episode from the Let's Find Common Ground podcast, hosted by Richard Davies & Ashley Milne-Tyte. What steps are needed to cause people to leave white supremacist and other hate groups of their own volition? In this deeply personal podcast episode, we explore the tactics and commitment needed to be successful in this work. Daryl Davis, an award-winning Black musician, race reconciliator, and renowned lecturer, has used the power of human connection to convince hundreds of people to leave white supremacist groups. His fellow guest, Ryan Lo'Ree, a former white supremacist, is now an interventionist working to deradicalize people who have been lured into right and left-wing extremism. These two men, who came from very different backgrounds and belief systems, discuss their life experiences, lessons learned in their work, and what motivates them to convince people to change their convictions. Additional Information | |||
| 13 Nov 2024 | Tangle: Independent, Non-partisan News. Isaac Saul | How Do We Fix It? | 00:25:47 | |
Do you believe what you see in newspapers, websites and on TV? Most Americans don't trust the people who are supposed to truthfully report the news. A new Gallup poll says Americans have record-low trust in mass media. Only one-in-three adults has a "great deal" or a "fair amount" of confidence in the media to report the news "fully, accurately and fairly." More than 150,000 readers each day turn to Tangle, a website read by liberals, conservatives and independents. Every day Tangle tackles one current debate in American politics, and summarizes arguments from left, right, and center. All Sides Bias Checker gives Tangle a "middle" rating, which means the site neither leans left nor right. Our guest, politics reporter Isaac Saul, started Tangle in 2019 as an independent, ad-free, nonpartisan newsletter. He grew up in Bucks County Pa. — one of the most politically divided counties in America — where he was exposed to a huge range of political opinions and values. As a young journalist, Isaac learned the media ecosystem was broken when he found that he wasn’t being judged based on his writing, but where it was being published. On Tangle "you will encounter a wide range of views, including some you really disagree with," Isaac tells us. "We're trying to be a big tent news organization and we are succeeding at that... Our readership is split almost evenly between conservative and liberal readers." "I'm working from the premise that the reds and blues don't understand each other," he says. "I really do want to bring people under one roof with a shared set of arguments to analyze and talk about, and a shared set of facts to work from." About this show: Every couple of weeks we release a new episode hosted by Richard Davies about the work, the ideas, and the people of Braver Angels, a remarkable band of brothers and sisters who get together across political divides in person and online: Reds and Blues who do battle against toxic polarization. In this show we speak with a fellow traveler of this effort. Links to news sites that feature a range of opinions on a single issue: Tangle, All Sides, and Ground News. Additional Information | |||
| 20 Feb 2023 | Disunion Runs Deep | Democracy in Danger | 00:31:00 | |
America’s Constitution was meant to unify the new nation and help avert a civil war over the thorniest of divisions: slavery. Oops! In retrospect, that charter proved much too ambiguous, lending itself to both proslavery and abolitionist causes. In this season’s premiere, historian Liz Varon discusses the deep roots of polarization in the United States — with Will, Siva and an auditorium full of their students. The Union may have survived, Varon tells us, but its bloodiest war still echoes. Additional Information | |||
| 12 Dec 2022 | Best of 2022: Grand Juries, the Black Box of Justice Reform? | 70 Million | 00:43:00 | |
We continue our Best of 2022 episodes with an episode from the 70 Million podcast, a documentary podcast about criminal justice reform from LWC Studios. Grand juries are supposed to safeguard against the government charging people with a crime when it lacks sufficient evidence. But because prosecutors control what happens in grand jury proceedings, they almost always get an indictment. That is, unless the accused is a police officer. Reporter Mark Betancourt explores a case of police brutality in Dallas that evaporated after going before a grand jury. Find a resource guide and annotated transcript at our website here. Additional Information | |||
| 23 Oct 2024 | Braver Angels: Red and Blue Voters Together on Election Day | How Do We Fix It? | 00:24:57 | |
These final days before the election are tense times. Today’s toxic politics are hurtful and heart breaking for many of us. Maybe we all need a hope vaccine. An injection of kindness, curiosity and understanding for those who see the world differently than we do. In our latest report on the work, ideas, and people of Braver Angels, the nationwide citizen-led campaign against political polarization, we learn more about its Election Day Initiative: A volunteer-led effort to push back against political climate change— the hurricane of hate resentment and disdain that many on the left and right feel for the other side. Our guests in this episode are liberal Dorsey Cartwright and conservative Roger Haynes. They are two of many red/blue pairs of citizens who will sit and stand together outside polling places across America. M. Dorsey Cartwright is a retired marriage and family therapist in Austin, Texas. She travelled internationally leading workshops for couples, individuals, adult children and parents, as well as for communities. Valuing the healing of relationships, Dorsey has turned her attention to America’s political environment. First as an active member of No Labels and its mission to depolarize the House and Senate, and then Braver Angels, with its mission to depolarize our citizenship. Her politics lean blue. Red-leaning Roger Haynes is a retired Chief Master Sergeant with 23 years of active military service and he recently left a civil service appointment with the government. He has served in his community in various roles including HOA, City Commission, and is also active helping local Friends of NRA committees raise grant funding in areas such as youth education, women-focused clinics, law enforcement training, hunter safety, range improvement, firearms and marksmanship training and safety. He’s passionate about the First and Second Amendments. Additional Information | |||
| 31 Jul 2023 | A deep dive on parties and political reform | Democracy Works | 00:41:53 | |
Americans want electoral reforms so that they can have more choice in elections. Recent surveys show that 20 to 50 percent of Americans are open to a new electoral system, while demand for a third party has crept upward since Gallup began asking in 2003. More Americans now call themselves "independent" than identify with either of the major parties, but what happens when Americans try to reform their way out of a two-party system? This conversation, originally recorded in August 2022, looks back at the history of political reform and current movements like the Forward Party and the adoption of ranked-choice voting in Nevada and other states. As you'll hear, reform is easy to put into a slogan, but much harder to implement in practice. Additional Information | |||
| 14 Dec 2022 | Best of 2022: Kim Lane Scheppele on Hungary, Viktor Orbán, and its Democratic Decline | Democracy Paradox | 00:49:29 | |
We continue our Best of 2022 episodes with an episode from the Democracy Paradox podcast, hosted by Justin Kempf. So, I came back from that trip and said to one of my good friends back in Budapest, ‘I think I've met the most dangerous person I've ever met personally.’ And she said, ‘Oh Viktor, he's nothing. He's like a kid. He's in his thirties.’ I mean, he was an aspiring politician at this point. His party was at the bottom of the polls. It didn't look like he had any future. And I said, ‘No, this guy has something. It's hard to define what it is, but we're going to be hearing from him.’ Kim Lane Scheppele Kim Lane Scheppele is the Laurance S. Rockefeller Professor of Sociology and International Affairs and the University Center for Human Values at Princeton University. Key Highlights
Key Links Learn more about Kim Lane Scheppele "How Viktor Orbán Wins" by Kim Lane Scheppele in the Journal of Democracy 9/11 and the Rise of Global Anti-Terrorism Law: How the UN Security Council Rules the World edited by Kim Lane Scheppele and Arianna Vedaschi Additional Information | |||
| 05 Oct 2022 | Sarah Cook on China's Expanding Global Media Influence | Democracy Paradox | 00:40:36 | |
In country after country - we've counted over 130 news outlets of 30 countries that were republishing content that was produced by Chinese state media outlets or the Chinese embassy. So, these state media outlets are actually formally under the control of the Communist Party's propaganda department.
Key Links Read the report "Beijing's Global Media Influence 2022: Authoritarian Expansion and the Power of Democratic Resilience" Follow Sarah Cook on Twitter @Sarah_G_Cook Follow Freedom House on Twitter @freedomhouse Additional Information | |||
| 04 Dec 2023 | Best of 2023: Radical Acts of Justice: Jocelyn Simonson | Future Hindsight | 00:48:15 | |
We continue our Best of 2023 episodes with an episode from the Future Hindsight podcast, hosted by Mila Atmos. Jocelyn Simonson is Professor of Law at Brooklyn Law School, a former public defender, and the author of Radical Acts of Justice: How Ordinary People Are Dismantling Mass Incarceration. We discuss how certain radical acts of justice challenge the legitimacy of the criminal system and form the underpinning of a new collective legal thought. The four pillars of this work comprise of court watching, community bail funds, participatory defense, and people’s budgets. Bail funds are pulling the rug out from the system's justification for what it's doing. Defunding the system in this way shows that the combination of carceral and economic forces that we currently use to “do justice” is not inevitable. A big part of the power of these acts of justice is that they’re done collectively. Abolition has two sides: breaking down and building up. Jocelyn shared that “we need to simultaneously decarcerate, stop spending our resources, and start building it out.” Follow Jocelyn on Twitter: https://twitter.com/j_simonson Follow Mila on Twitter: Additional Information | |||
| 11 Aug 2021 | Swindled and Scammed | Swamp Stories | 00:12:53 | |
There is an emerging trend in the world of political fundraising — grifters preying on the elderly and others with fake campaigns. The worst part? There are barely any laws on the books to stop them. In this episode, Weston chats with Daily Beast reporter Roger Sollenberger about “scam PACs” and how they have been used to con unsuspecting Americans into contributing to fake causes and campaigns. | |||
| 06 Oct 2021 | Political Predisposition with John Hibbing | On Opinion | 00:55:16 | |
Twin studies have suggested that one third of our political orientation can be traced to our genes. But does that mean our politics are predisposed? John Hibbing is one of the greats of Political Psychology in the US. His work spans decades and has broken ground across multiple disciplines - from polling and representation, to the biology of political differences. John believes that knowledge of of this genetic influence can help us better understand each other.
Conservatives and Liberals evolved clear and distinct bedrock values deep in our collective past. Our views of the outsider, our perception of threat, our concern for order may be as innate to us as our sense of taste or our personality traits.
Recognising how our values differ, and the reasons why we have such different perspectives on what makes for a just and good society is fundamental to the democratic project. Because ultimately, we need both Left and Right to survive. Listen to John discuss:
Read the Full Transcript John Hibbing is an American political scientist and Foundation Regents University Professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. He is known for his research on the biological and psychological correlates of political ideology. He is the author of Predisposed: Liberals, Conservatives and the Biology of Political Differences Additional Information | |||
| 08 Apr 2024 | New Frontiers for Education Reform? | The Bully Pulpit | 01:01:52 | |
CPF Director Bob Shrum joins education experts, Pedro Noguera, Macke Raymond, and Dr. Darline Robles, for a conversation on education reform and policy. They discuss the politics of public education, the role of parental rights, why some public schools are failing, what makes some charter schools successful when others struggle, whether or not taxpayer funds should be used to provide vouchers to parents who send students to private schools or home school, and which educational reforms should be supported, studied, or rejected. In partnership with USC Rossier School of Education, USC Price Center for Inclusive Democracy, USC Political Union (a Bridge USA chapter), and USC Political Student Assembly. Featuring:
Additional Information | |||
| 29 Jul 2022 | 2022 Primaries and How to Improve Them feat. FairVote | TDG Twitter Spaces | 00:38:34 | |
A recording from our Twitter Space Event with FairVote Hosts
Guests
If you would like to listen and ask questions live, follow us @GroupDemocracy or subscribe to our newsletter are democracygroup.org/newsletter to be the first to know about upcoming events. | |||
| 27 Sep 2021 | The January Insurrection According to Rep. Pramila Jayapal, What Families Need to Know about Covid in Kids, and Our Roundtable Debates AOC’s Met Gala Moment | Our Body Politic | 00:51:25 | |
Farai Chideya talks with Representative Pramila Jayapal of Washington about her decision to have an abortion years ago, and her experience of the January 6th insurrection. Our Body Politic’s new economics analyst Jamila Michener of Cornell University discusses important policy changes that could benefit workers. Public health contributor Dr. Kavita Trivedi gives practical advice for families with unvaccinated children as kids go back to school. On Sippin’ the Political Tea, Errin Haines and Jess Morales Rocketto join Farai to talk about the week’s news, and of course, AOC’s “Tax the Rich” dress. Additional Information | |||
| 21 Dec 2022 | Best of 2022: How’s Biden Doing? What about the GOP? | The Bully Pulpit | 00:50:59 | |
We continue our Best of 2021 episodes with an episode from the The Bully Pulpit podcast, hosted by Bob Shrum and Mike Murphy For the 2022 Trojan Family Weekend, CPF Co-Directors and veteran political strategists Bob Shrum and Mike Murphy have a balanced and witty conversation about the latest political headlines. They discuss Joe Biden's administration, the state of the Democratic and Republican parties, and the midterm election and what it means for the 2024 general election. Additional Information | |||
| 16 May 2022 | What 100 Coffees can teach us about being human | Village SquareCast | 00:52:03 | |
100 Coffees. Coffee and people are two of the joys of Alex Workman’s life. He has a long-standing goal of trying to have coffee with someone he’s never met (or doesn’t know very well) once a week. In 2021, Alex embarked on a challenge to meet 100 people for coffee – he reached his goal by May and kept right on going. 163 coffees later he tells us what he learned. We think it will change your life. Countless dinner guests. Alex and Chelsea Workman are a husband-and-wife creative team in Tallahassee, FL who help individuals, businesses and organizations tell their story. By chance, they ended up with many political clients – on both sides of the aisle. Ignoring advice that they’d have to pick a side, they show us how we can chart our own path and make our community a better place along the way. Oh, and their signature move is to invite clients over for dinner. Intentional living. You can’t spend time with Alex and Chelsea without noticing that family is everything. Their marriage is strong; their kids are in tow; they revel in the journey. And just like they’re all-in with each other, they’re all-in with their community. They believe that instead of just complaining about how things are, we should work to make things better. And they do exactly that – check out their impressive list of community projects on their website. Aren’t they smart?! Alex & Chelsea’s way of life demonstrates how to put some of The Village Square’s best advice into action: spend time with people of various backgrounds and viewpoints; lead with relationships instead of issues; and connect in inviting social settings. (We must be soul mates because they didn’t even realize they were taking our advice.) The Workmans challenge each of us to “make our community a place where people are KNOWN instead of just being KNOWN OF!” Additional Information | |||
| 08 Jan 2025 | Introducing Town Hall Conversations | TDG Fellowship | 00:39:18 | |
This week we bring you a special episode from Sabrina Tomei Gonzalez, one of our 2024 Podcast Fellows. In this episode of Town Hall Conversations, Sabrina from Fairfield, Connecticut, interviews Jen Leeper, a state representative from the 132nd district of Connecticut. Jen shares insights into her background, journey to office, and passion for public policy. She discusses the importance of state government, outlines the process of how a bill becomes law, and responds to questions from Sabrina's classmates about her role and responsibilities. The conversation covers Jen's motivations, challenges, and achievements, including the significance of community engagement and young people's voices in shaping future policies. 00:00 Introduction to Town Talk Conversations 01:06 Meet State Representative Jen Leeper 02:50 Jen Leeper's Journey to Office 04:39 The Role and Responsibilities of a State Representative 06:29 The Legislative Process Explained 14:00 Community Engagement and Policy Priorities 30:58 Challenges and Reflections 38:29 Closing Remarks and Call to Action Know a student interested in democracy and podcasts? Send them over to our fellowship to apply: https://www.democracygroup.org/fellowship | |||
| 01 Jun 2022 | Scott Radnitz on Why Conspiracy Theories Thrive in Both Democracies and Autocracies | Democracy Paradox | 00:51:01 | |
There's something natural and organic about perceiving that the people in power are out to advance their own interests. It's in part because it’s often true. Governments actually do keep secrets from the public. Politicians engage in scandals. There often is corruption at high levels. So, we don't want citizens in a democracy to be too trusting of their politicians. It's healthy to be skeptical of the state and its real abuses and tendencies towards secrecy. The danger is when this distrust gets redirected, not toward the state, but targets innocent people who are not actually responsible for people's problems. Scott Radnitz
"Why Democracy Fuels Conspiracy Theories" by Scott Radnitz in Journal of Democracy Revealing Schemes: The Politics of Conspiracy in Russia and the Post-Soviet Region by Scott Radnitz Enemies Within: The Global Politics of Fifth Columns edited by Harris Mylonas and Scott Radnitz Additional Information | |||
| 22 Nov 2023 | Best of 2023: Finding Common Ground on the Politics of Climate | The Bully Pulpit | 01:25:41 | |
We continue our Best of 2023 episodes with an episode from the The Bully Pulpit podcast, hosted by Bob Shrum and Mike Murphy CPF Director Bob Shrum joins former U.S. Representatives Val Demings and Adam Kinzinger for a conversation on the politics of climate with the goal of finding common ground. They discuss political barriers to enacting climate action, climate legislation passed by Congress, and how environmental legislation can help achieve climate justice. Featuring:
Additional Information | |||