Contested Politics

Global poverty remains one of the largest international crises, especially considering the economic fallout from COVID-19. While many recognize global poverty as a major problem, solutions vary wildly. One commonly proposed solution is US foreign aid to humanitarian organizations. While critics say this promotes US imperialism, proponents argue that it is highly effective at raising the quality of life for millions. Clint Borgen from the Borgen Project joins us to break it all down. 

When QAnon supporters stormed the National Mall on January 6th, many people were left wondering how this could have happened. What would drive someone to adopt such a crazy conspiracy theory? In the era of instant connectivity and unlimited social media websites, it's not hard to find someone else who can push your beliefs in one way or another. The theory of radicalization via social media and the Internet is not new, but its impact is getting bigger and bigger. Ethan Guttermna explains how people fall in the rabbit hole and how to get out.

It's very easy to feel overwhelmed by the pace of computer development. In just the past few decades, we have gone from simple word processors to talking, learning machines with artificial intelligence. Artificial intelligence poses many questions, technical and not. To explore the developmental process, ethics, and questions surrounding artificial intelligence in the modern-day, I sit down with William Sepesi. From game theory to the possibility of a terminator-esque future, we cover it all.

In the past few years, the term "school-to-prison-pipeline" has been used more and more to describe racism in the American education system. Whether it be zero-tolerance drug policies or the lack of robust extracurriculars, many racial justice advocates point to failures in education as a reason for a booming prison population. While the two institutions seem unrelated, a breakdown of the policies at hand and their unequal application tells a fighting story. As French philosopher Michel Foucault points out, all of life is a prison.

In theory, at the heart of any democracy is winning a majority of the public's support. IAs such, elections are the most direct way for any citizen to influence politics. But in an era of hyper-partisanship, social media, and a global pandemic, running a political campaign has never been more challenging. To understand the ins and outs of how to run a progressive, grassroots campaign, I sit down with the host of The Youth Vote, Isaac-Goff Mitchell. For anyone considering running for office that isn't an establishment candidate, this episode is for you. The Youth Vote is a podcast that interviews young people running for office and what they've learned from it all. Please check it out and support the great work Isaac is doing!

The United States' criminal justice system is highly technical and complex. With various burdens of proof, appeals courts, and legal remedies, it seems odd that the president could simply bypass the whole system. Trump's presidential pardons have become a hot-button topic of late but many of the conversations ignore an important element: the purpose of pardons. To understand why pardons exist and how they function in American democracy, I sit down with UCLA professor Mark Greenberg. Some of his writing on pardons has been published in major news outlets and I highlight recommend you read those if you are interested in this topic. Stay tuned...

This past election day, Oregon passed an initiative to decriminalize all drugs. In general, drug decriminalization has become a staple ballot initiative, with many states across the nation now permitting marijuana usage of some kind. But what is drug decriminalization and how is it different than drug legalization? To answer all these questions, Matt Sutton from the Drug Policy Alliance explains what happened in Oregon and where the conversation about drugs goes from here.

The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is arguably the most sensitive geopolitical issue today. With both Israeli and Palestinian immigrants living in the US, American institutions are often forced to confront this issue head-on. And oddly enough, colleges and universities have become a primary battleground with the debate focusing on "BDS". Boycott, Divest, and Sanction has become the main tool used by Palestinian activists in the US to protest Israel. But what is BDS and what does it all mean? I sit down with Thomas Schramm to break down BDS, anti-semitism, and everything around the conflict.

By now, it's likely that you have seen some sort of political infographic on social media. It has a pastel background, a few words in a bolded font and claims to break down a political issue in just a few sliding pictures. It's effective spread of information often comes at the cost of reliability and truthfulness. So, is getting our news and information from social media a net good? We sit down with infographic creator Teddy Alvarez-Nissen to understand the process behind infographics and the way to treat them going forward.

After days of waiting, it is now safe to say that Joe Biden will be the next president of the United States. While the win is easy to cheer or jeer on it's face, there is a lot to learned from this campaign cycle. From COVID-19 leading to record amounts of mail-in ballots to Georgia now being considered a swing state with Senate elections to come, Adam and Jared break down the lessons learned from the 2020 election.

Confused on the 12 propositions in California this year? We got you covered with a panel who breaks down every prop, covering what each measure does (and doesn't) do and who's funding it. Even if you have already sent in your ballot by mail or don't live in California, this conversation touches on some big issues and reveals nuances in the propositions you likely hadn't noticed before. A big thank you to Ari Stern, Jackson Downey, Thomas Schramm and Adam Hussain for joining me on this roundtable episode.

With the ever-growing threat of climate change, one of the most difficult environmental issues politicians have to deal with is fracking. Fracking, a form of natural resource extraction, causes clear environmental damage yet is an economic backbone for many places around the country. Presidential candidate Joe Biden has been very careful crafting his policy around this issue so that begs the questions, what is it and why do we use it? Daniel Raimi, a Senior Research Associate at Resources for the Future and author of The Fracking Debate, joins us to dive into the world of fracking and how it will change going into the future.

As the great author Toni Morrison said “The best art is political and you ought to be able to make it unquestionably political and irrevocably beautiful at the same time.” For today's show I sit down with someone who makes the unequivocally political yet beautiful art Morrison describes. Marissa Blum, who for the past few years has been compiling interviews on the Israeli/Palestinian conflict, is writing a play using the words from these interviews. This practice, called verbatim theatre, is rising in popularity thanks to works like The Laramie Project and the productions of Anna Deavere Smith. Have a listen if you want to learn more. NOTE: This episode was recorded and published prior to the announcement of the tragic passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. We at Contested mourn the loss of this true activist and legal scholar. Be on the lookout for more coverage of her replacement and the confirmation hearings from us both on the podcast and our blog. Thank you and may her memory be a blessing.

With California's housing crisis at the breaking point, the need for affordable housing is at an all-time high. However, even with monetary support from politicians, projects simply don't get built. The reason: NIMBYism. The ideology of NIMBY (Not In My Back Yard) has dominated American suburbs for decades, but it's widespread adoption is causing problems for government infrastructure everywhere. George Washington Professor Michael Hankinson joins us in this special episode to discuss what it is and why its so powerful.

One of the most important duties any person residing in America (not American citizen) can do, besides voting, is completing the Census every ten years. However, despite its importance, there is a consistent under-counting of the population which leads to a whole bunch of problems. To explore the importance and meaning of the Census, activist Gus Gress joins our show and breaks down what every person needs to do by the end of September. Also, to fill out the Census if you haven't done so already, visit contestedpolitics.com and navigate to the 'Resources" tab. To put it bluntly, everyone counts.

If you've ever heard Bernie Sanders speak, you're probably aware that he is not a fan of "special interests" and SuperPACs. In fact, over 90% of Americans are concerned with the influx of big money in politics. So, to understand how we got here and the path forward, I sit down with cof-founder of How is This Legal, Laz Meiman, and National Director of Wolf-PAC, Mike Monetta in two complementary acts. If you enjoy this episode, please check out @howisthislegal on Instagram and wolf-pac.com to learn more about campaign fiance reforms.

On our new segment, Second Look, we revisit some of the topics we recently covered on Contested, including the end of this year's Supreme Court term as well as developments in the Black Lives Matter protests. With so much going on in the news cycle, sometimes it's best to step back and take a "second look" at what is going on in the news.

Once a concept only to be found in science fiction movies, gene editing is now making its way into the realm of possibility. However, scientific discovery isn't the only part of the conversation when it comes to CRISPR editing; the bio-ethical questions surrounding gene editing are hardly settled. From the idea of customizing babies to what constitutes a disability, policymakers are torn on how to approach CRISPR. We sit down with Katie Mead to discuss both the scientific process behind CRISPR and the ethical dilemma overshadowing it.

Just days before the landmark Supreme Court ruling that held that LGBTQ folks cannot be fired due to their sexual orientation or gender identity was released, GLSEN National Student Council Member and Supreme Court watcher Jessica Chiriboga gives her thoughts on the case and provides some historical context for previous interactions between the Court and LGBTQ community. During this time where civil rights and social movements are dominating the news, digging into the legal achieves reveals a lot on where we have been and where we are headed.

In the midst of news about BLM movements and Covid-19, Education Secretary DeVos' new Title IX guidelines about how to deal with reports of sexual assault and rape on college campuses has flown under the radar. While seemingly technical, these new rules can have a massive impact on college age students. We sit down with Ari Stern to dissect exactly what to expect sexual assualt complaints to look like going forward and the consequences for many young people.

After the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis, protests erupted nationwide to bring light to the longstanding issues of police brutality and systemic racism. However while many are quick to condemn the actions taken by police in Minnesota, protesting methods and policy options at large vary wildly. With some advocating to defund the police and others pushing for in-system reform, there seems to be no universal answer to this disturbing American problem. I sit down with Bayo Collins and Nick Catalano to have an holistic dialogue about how as a nation we can move forward.

Since the 1999 Columbine school shooting, gun violence has become an increasingly important issue for young and old Americans alike. However, polices and solutions to the ever-growing gun violence epidemic in America are polarized, with compromise among legislators being few and far between. So for this episode, we sit down with Ben Holtzman and Antonio Herrera to understand both sides of the gun control debate and find where the disagreements lie and where compromise is possible

The iconic trolley problem: a train at an unstoppable speed is headed toward 5 people. You have the ability to change its course, but kill only one person in the process. What do you do? The reason most people will divert the train yet want to open the economy at the risk of thousands all goes back to the moral philosophy of utilitarianism. Philosophy teacher Albert Fuentes gives the low-down on the most good for the most amount of people. Also, the link for my panel discussion on May 12th at 2pm is facebook.com/scottatlausd

When the stay at home order hit the Santa Clarita Valley, two teens saw a problem in their community and created a model charity in response. Fresh off their interview with CNN, I sit down with the founders of 6feet Supplies, Eric Luo and Zoe Monterola. If you are interested in their work, visit their website at 6feetsupplies.com

This episode picks up exactly where Part 1 left off. If you haven't listened to Part 1, please do so before listening to Part 2.

Unlike other episodes thus far, this episode is a straight recording of a conversation I had with Associate Dean of Students at Cal State Dominguez Hills, Zack Ritter. With everything from a Jewish lens on race to historical inequities in America and beyond, this free-flowing conversation has it all. Part 2 will be released next week.

International relations and diplomatic negotiation is regarded as one of the most strategic elements of politics. With many different tools and strategies at America's disposal, one stands out from all the rest: sports. Jad Soucar explains what sports diplomacy is and why it might be a foreign policy slam dunk.

With income inequality at a near all-time high and a recession brewing, the desire for a solution has led many to support a wealth tax. Jackson Downey explains everything from Elizabeth Warren to art galleries and its relation to the accumulation of wealth in America.

The often unknown yet widespread issue of FGM is broken down by Sarrah Hussain. From the scale to impacts of FGM, this detrimental practice is made easy to understand and act upon for both the expert and like me, the uninformed.

All jokes aside, veganism has been identified as an emerging solution to climate change, consistently successful diet and effective way to prevent animal cruelty. Sophia Ziskin explains it all and makes the argument: everyone should go vegan.

Welcome to Contested Politics! Whether you are here out of support or curiosity, we're glad to have you. Stay tuned for more content shortly.

The mass hoarding of toilet paper has been one of the oddest parts of the COVID-19 outbreak. Producer Adam Hussain makes the case for why toilet paper in general should be a thing of the past.