Talk Cocktail

The “Golden Dome” that Trump is promising is a fantasy at best. Back in February, on the WhoWhatWhy podcast, I explored the seductive dream of an impenetrable missile defense — and the sobering reality behind it. I spoke with Marion Messmer, a senior research fellow at Chatham House's International Security Program in London. She lays bare the hard truths behind the rhetorical hype of space-based defense systems. In an age of hypersonic weapons and artificial intelligence, she argues, no nation can truly construct an impenetrable shield against missile attacks  

In this latest podcast I talk with Emmy-winning journalist Gianna Tobani about "The Volunteer." Gianna Tobani takes me through the harrowing story of Scott Dozier, a death row inmate who volunteered for execution but was ultimately driven to suicide after the state repeatedly failed to carry out his sentence. Through intimate conversations with Dozier, Tobani unveils a broken death penalty system where pharmaceutical companies refuse to provide execution drugs, states resort to black market deals, and the condemned endure psychological torture in 9x5 foot cells. Dozier's story transcends debates about justice to expose a brutal truth: sometimes not being executed is worse than execution itself.

America once built highways and reached the moon. Now we can't even fix a bridge. The reason? The reforms meant to improve government have paralyzed it. In this recent WhoWhatWhy podcast I talk with Marc Dunkelman, whose recent book, Why Nothing Works: Who Killed Progress — and How to Bring It Back, uncovers the real reasons why America has lost its ability to build and manufacture. The culprit? A fundamental shift in progressive thinking itself. Dunkelman reveals how a deep distrust of and “cultural aversion to power” emerged in the 1960s and gradually transformed governance. What began as well-intentioned safeguards against political overreach has created a paralysis where anyone can veto almost anything. Progressives replaced discretionary authority with procedural obstacles — environmental reviews, endless community meetings, and litigation tools that allow virtually anyone to block progress.

In this WhoWhatWhy podcast, I talk with China expert Dinny McMahon who explains how Beijing is desperately racing to innovate its way out of demographic disaster — replacing construction-led growth with advanced manufacturing and automation. But as the collapsing property market exposes mountains of municipal debt, and rising global trade barriers threaten China's export-driven strategy, the sustainability of this economic pivot hangs in the balance. As factories across China operate in darkness — not because they've failed but because they're so automated they need no human presence — a profound contradiction emerges: a nation that produces one-third of the world's goods while consuming only 12 percent of them, simultaneously dominating global manufacturing while its aging population hurtles toward catastrophic decline. According to UN estimates, China's population could literally halve by the end of this century, creating a society where retirees will soon outnumber workers.

David Denby, long time New York Magazine film critic and acclaimed New Yorker writer, joins me to discuss his captivating new book "Eminent Jews." He examines how Leonard Bernstein, Mel Brooks, Betty Friedan, and Norman Mailer—all born within eight years of each other—wielded their Jewish heritage as a creative weapon in post-WWII America. In our conversation, Denby reveals how these boundary-breaking figures transformed American culture with their bold, unapologetic genius while embodying a new Jewish confidence.

In this recentWhoWhatWhy podcast, I talk with John Lechner, author of Death Is Our Business. He details how private armies increasingly blur the lines between state power and mercenary force. The prospect of billionaires and politicians commanding their own military forces is no longer just a dystopian idea. John Lechner's five-year investigation into Russia's notorious Wagner Group reveals a disturbing template for what privatized warfare could mean for America and the world.

Americans see Canada as that friendly neighbor up north. Canadians now see America as their greatest threat. How did we get here, and what does it mean for both nations? Joining me on this week's WhoWhatWhy podcast is veteran political analyst and Globe and Mail columnist Andrew Coyne. Trump's talk of annexation and punitive tariffs has profoundly transformed Canada's relationship with the US, creating a mixture of bewilderment, fear and, unexpectedly for Canadians, fierce national pride. For Coyne, author of the upcoming book The Crisis of Canadian Democracy, the impact goes far beyond politics: It's forcing Canadians to question basic assumptions about their sovereignty and security that have held firm since World War II. What was once unthinkable — the need to defend against US aggression — has become part of the national conversation.

For over two centuries, the American experiment has weathered crises that would have toppled lesser democracies — a resilience celebrated as uniquely American. But what if this story of perpetual reinvention through adaptation has reached its limits, our Constitution stretched too thin by the democratic achievements we cherish most? In this WhoWhatWhy podcast, Yale professor Stephen Skowronek talks to me about his “adaptability paradox” theory: Our constitutional system functioned for centuries because it excluded many Americans, allowing a homogeneous elite to govern effectively. When the rights revolution of the '60s and '70s finally attempted to include everyone, the balancing act collapsed, leaving our institutions unable to manage diverse interests with competing demands.

There was a time when geographic mobility defined America — one-third of the population relocated each year, chasing better jobs and brighter futures. But today, historian and journalist Yoni Appelbaum argues in his new book, Stuck: How the Privileged and the Propertied Broke the Engine of American Opportunity, that America's once-robust engine of upward mobility is grinding to a halt. Appelbaum challenges the long-held belief that income alone dictates housing choices. Instead, he reveals how restrictive housing policies — exclusionary zoning, historical redlining, and modern NIMBYism — have dramatically limited the supply of new housing, effectively blocking the paths that families once took toward prosperity. Today, affluent neighborhoods, often proudly progressive, tout diversity while quietly building invisible walls against newcomers, turning geographic mobility into a privilege reserved mainly for the wealthy. The result is profound economic stagnation, deepening political polarization, and psychological harm — leaving millions trapped, angry, and increasingly cynical about the future. Yet despite the immense costs, estimated at $2 trillion annually, Appelbaum sees genuine hope.

What if Donald Trump's strange fixation on William McKinley isn't just historical trivia, but the key to understanding what happens next? On this WhoWhatWhy podcast, long-time journalist and author Chris Lehmann argues we're not necessarily headed for authoritarian collapse — we're rewinding to the Gilded Age. How might McKinley's transformation from economic nationalist to global imperialist more than a century ago foreshadow Trump's second term? Lehmann explores the forces that shaped McKinley's presidency and how similar dynamics are at play today, from the influence of wealthy backers to the quest for historical legacy.

The sports betting explosion has unleashed a $500 billion monster that engulfs everything game its path. Since the Supreme Court opened the floodgates in 2018, betting and its betting apps bombard fans during every game, turning each play into another chance to wager. As millions will trade their paychecks for the dopamine hit of a winning bet during March Madness, the same leagues that banned Pete Rose now cozy up to sportsbooks. States hungrily eye their cut while young men are scientifically targeted. Few understand this transformation better than my guest Jonathan D. Cohen, whose new book "Losing Big: America's Reckless Bet on Sports Gambling" takes us deep inside this revolution that happened so fast we barely had time to understand its implications.

How did America transform from a nation of self-aware optimists to one of angry cynics in less than two decades? In this recent WhoWhatWhy podcast I talk with political scientist Yascha Mounk, an associate professor at Johns Hopkins's School of Advanced International Studies. He witnessed this cultural metamorphosis first hand after arriving in the US in 2005; his insights on this podcast paint a startling picture of how our society has fundamentally changed, and not for the better.

  David Pakman, host of his eponymous podcast and program, joins me to talk about his book "The Echo Machine" and how right-wing extremism has methodically undermined America's shared information ecosystem over decades. Pakman and I discuss the deliberate fragmentation of media from talk radio through social media, explaining how this has eroded critical thinking and created parallel realities in American politics. Drawing from his position as both media practitioner and analyst, Pakman illuminates the economic and psychological forces that incentivize division. Our conversation explores the compelling case for changes in the way the left understands poltics and media in a post-truth environment.

Renowned evolutionary biologist Neil Shubin joins me for an epic journey to Earth's most extreme polar frontiers. The author of the new book 'Ends of the Earth, explains why scientists are willing to brave bone-chilling environments where flesh freezes in seconds. Shubin shares with me stories of daring historical expeditions, cutting-edge climate research, and how these frozen landscapes hold the keys to our planet's past and future. We discuss human courage, scientific discovery, and the urgent stories emerging from Earth's poles……and from Greenland.

Is China's unstoppable rise actually a carefully constructed illusion? In this recentWhoWhatWhy podcast, I talk with Timothy Heath, a senior international defense researcher at RAND Corporation who spent over 15 years in the US government analyzing military and political issues related to China. Heath peels back layers of propaganda to reveal a surprisingly fragile superpower wrestling with existential challenges.

As the embers go cold, the smoke clears and the ashes are carted off in Los Angeles a stark reality emerges: not just winds but climate change played a significant role in this deadly and destructive event. A new World Weather Attribution study found that human-caused climate change increased the likelihood of extreme fire conditions by 35 percent and intensified their severity. In this recentWhoWhatWhy podcast, Daniel Swain, a leading climate scientist at UCLA and the University of California's Agricultural and Natural Resources division, frames the January disaster not simply as a fire event, but as “an extreme weather event with fire embedded in it.” This distinction, he explains, is crucial for understanding how climate change is reshaping fire risks.

On a recent WhoWhatWhy podcast, I spoke with Princeton historian Julian Zelizer who offers a provocative argument from his new book In Defense of Partisanship. At a time when nearly a third of Americans view both major parties with disgust and many blame partisan loyalty for our democratic decay, Zelizer says that strong, disciplined political parties — not feel-good Biden-style bipartisanship — have historically been crucial to America's greatest achievements. The problem isn't that parties fight hard for their beliefs; it's that we've lost the guardrails that once transformed partisan combat into incremental but lasting progress.  

Brewster Kahle, founder of the Internet Archive, housed in a former San Francisco church with Greek columns that echo the ancient Library of Alexandria, discusses his three-decade mission to preserve humanity's digital knowledge and culture. Now facing unprecedented challenges, including a major cyberattack and legal battles with publishers over the site's distribution of copyrighted materials, Kahle reflects on the growing threats to digital preservation while reaffirming his commitment to universal access to all knowledge. We begin the year by looking back. 

When LA's hydrants failed during massive fires, misinformation spread. What really happened – and the hard truths about our urban water systems. In my latest WhoWhatWhy podcast, I talk to one of California's leading water experts who cuts through the noise to explain what really happened. Gregory Pierce — director of the UCLA Luskin Center for Innovation and of the Human Rights to Water Solutions Lab — delivers a masterclass in understanding this infrastructure crisis. The story that emerged about what led to this deadly failure has been animated by finger-pointing, misinformation, and political opportunism.

Oh, how the party has changed.  At a moment when the Republican Party has shifted dramatically from its Reaganite roots, I talk with Washington Post columnist Max Boot, whose definitive biography of Ronald Reagan arrives with particular resonance. Through a decade of research, Boot reveals a pragmatic leader who would likely be puzzled by today's GOP—a president who supported immigration reform, worked with Gorbachev to reduce nuclear weapons, and prided himself on compromise, getting "80 percent of what he wanted" rather than demanding everything. Boot shares with me a fascinating exploration of Reagan's true legacy.

What if we've been asking the wrong question about technology all along? Not “What can it do for us?” but “What is it doing to us?” In my recent WhoWhatWhy podcast we talk with Chris Colbert, former managing director of the Harvard Innovation Labs, to explore a provocative idea: that technology as we know it may be dead — and that's exactly what humanity needs to thrive. Drawing from his new book, Technology is Dead: The Path to a More Human Future, Colbert talks to me about how our obsession with innovation and productivity has eroded our connections, amplified our vulnerabilities, and left us more isolated than ever. 

In this WhoWhatWhy podcast, veteran journalist Sasha Abramsky reveals a striking paradox: Progressives, long suspicious of states' rights — once a  reactionary battle cry against civil rights and federal reforms — are now embracing state power as their best defense against growing authoritarianism.  As the federal government tilts rightward, blue states are forming unprecedented coalitions to preserve democratic values and progressive policies. But could these defensive measures actually accelerate America's political fracturing? 

In a world drowning in misinformation, we keep pointing fingers at those who create and spread false narratives. But what if the real story isn't about them — it's about us? In this recentWhoWhatWhy podcast I talk with professor Dannagal Goldthwaite Young, author of Wrong: How Media, Politics, and Identity Drive Our Appetite for Misinformation, we discover a surprising truth: Humans are naturally drawn to misinformation. It's not just about believing what we want to believe — it's about satisfying our fundamental needs for what Young calls “comprehension, control, and community,” even if that means embracing falsehoods.

  The recent election has sparked new discussions about changing demographics across America. Austin, Texas is no exception. Long celebrated as a liberal bubble in the heart of red Texas, this once magical and creative city is transforming dramatically. From the controversial new University of Austin, featured this past Sunday on 60 Minutes, to Elon Musk's growing presence with SpaceX, to the influx of tech giants like Larry Ellison and Oracle, along with characters like Joe Rogan and Alex Jones, the city's character is shifting. Add to this the mounting challenges of climate change making Austin hotter and drier than ever. Journalist Alex Hannaford, who lived in Austin for nearly two decades, talks to me aboutthis transformation and his eventual departure from a city that has changed beyond recognition. He writes about it in his new book “Lost in Austin.”

  While women have yet to shatter the ultimate glass ceiling of the White House, they've been steadily scaling the towering heights of Wall Street since the 1960s. The author of the groundbreaking book "She Wolves: The Untold History of Women on Wall Street," historian Paulina Bren talks to me about how these trailblazers navigated the male-dominated world of finance. From Muriel Siebert becoming the first woman to own a NYSE seat in 1967 to the waves of female graduates entering finance in the 1980s, women transformed the financial sector despite facing persistent discrimination. Bren explains how these pioneering women rose from secretarial pools to trading floors and executive suites, reshaping one of America's most powerful industries.

  What happened to women voters as Harris drew fewer of them than Biden in 2020? Even in pro-choice strongholds, economic concerns trumped reproductive rights. To examine this I'm was joined the morning after the election on this WhoWhatWhy podcast by Amanda Becker, a 2023 Nieman Fellow and Washington correspondent for The 19th. She is the author of the book You Must Stand Up: The Fight for Abortion Rights in Post-Dobbs America. She expalins that the great female firewall against Trump's return never materialized. In fact, it crumbled.  Vice President Kamala Harris actually performed worse than Joe Biden did in 2020, capturing just 54 percent of women's votes compared to his 57 percent.  Even more stunning: In states like Ohio and Kentucky, where women had recently mobilized to protect reproductive rights, the expected momentum vanished. What happened?  The answer challenges everything we thought we knew about women voters in post-Roe America. 

Journalist and presidential historian Jonathan Alter's new book 'American Reckoning: Inside Trump's Trial—and My Own' offers unique insights from inside the Manhattan courtroom where he sat just 25 feet from Donald Trump. While the political landscape has shifted dramatically since those summer days, Alter finds hope in the long view of history. Drawing on his experience covering nine presidents, the former Newsweek senior editor and NBC News analyst reminds us how other nations have successfully fought to restore their democracies. His deeply personal meditation on democratic accountability becomes a call to arms, arguing that American democracy, while challenged, has the resilience to prevail.

On a recent California Sun podcast I spoke with Sasha Abramsky, author of the new book “Chaos Comes Calling.” Abramsky talks to me about how America's deep polarization has cascaded from national politics down to local levels of governance. Abramsky reveals that even in small rural communities, once-mundane local issues like library policies, road repairs, and child care have become ideological battlegrounds. Abramsky illuminates how the pandemic, social media echo chambers, and talk radio amplified partisan voices, transforming school boards and city councils into microcosms of the broader red-blue divide. 

"Vigilantism” - it's a word that conjures images of lynch mobs and frontier justice. But today, both would be Presidents and state governments are not just turning a blind eye to vigilantes, they're actively encouraging them. From Virginia's tip line for parents to snitch on teachers, to Texas unleashing bounty hunters against abortion providers, to Florida encouraging drivers to run over protesters - vigilantism is becoming the new normal in American politics. My guest, Jon Michaels, argues in 'Vigilante Nation' that this represents a concerted effort by right-wing politicians, pundits, and preachers to subvert democracy and cement their hold on power. The pattern they expose should concern us all."

  On this California Sun podcast I talk with Los Angeles Times columnist Gustavo Arellano who dismantles the myth of a monolithic “Latino vote.” After 3,000 miles across the Southwest, Arellano finds Latino communities laser-focused on local issues & identity, not national politics The real power? It's in city halls, not DC.

This is January 6 as you've never seen it before.  My guest on my latestWhoWhatWhy podcast is filmmaker Jon Long. Long has just completed Fight Like Hell, a documentary that offers a provocative, unfiltered, never before seen look at the day's shocking events, and the Stop the Steal movement's evolution. Long explains that what you will witness in this documentary may shock you, move you. You may have thought the talk of January 6 was old news, that the candidates and the country had moved on, but not so fast. What happened still matters a lot.   https://youtu.be/ZC-Wo9nJ3O4?si=DXoOaixFGafV34d0      

Steve Wasserman's journey from Berkeley radical to literary luminary is a testament to the enduring power of the written word. In our conversation, Wasserman reflects on a life shaped by books, ideas, and an insatiable curiosity that led him from tear gas-filled streets to the pinnacles of publishing. His friendships with intellectual giants like Christopher Hitchens and Susan Sontag honed his empathetic sensibility, while never dulling his capacity for outrage at injustice. Having navigated the literary landscapes of New York, Los Angeles, and the Bay Area, Wasserman offers a unique perspective on American culture and politics. His memoir, “Tell Me Something, Tell Me Anything, Even If It's a Lie,” serves as both a celebration of and a rallying cry for the life of the mind in our digital age.

In a time when democracy hangs in the balance, how do we turn political conviction into victory? My guest, Robert Creamer, argues it's all about execution - the nuts and bolts of political organizing.  With five decades of activism under his belt, from working with Saul Alinsky to helping pass the Affordable Care Act, Creamer has been at the forefront of progressive battles.  His new book, "Nuts and Bolts: The Formula for Progressive Electoral Success," offers a pragmatic handbook for today's political climate. In an era of base elections where undecided voters are rare, Creamer's insights on turning out voters could shape the future of America.

  In an age when our smartphones have become extensions of ourselves, allowing us to summon a ride, order dinner, or transfer money with a few taps, why can't we use the same technology to participate in the most fundamental act of democracy — voting? In my latest WhoWhatWhy.org podcast, I talk with Bradley Tusk, a venture capitalist, philanthropist, and political strategist. He believes voters, using a smartphone app, could cast ballots securely from anywhere, potentially increasing turnout. He explains that by engaging more moderate voters — especially in primaries — mobile voting could reduce political polarization and encourage more centrist policies and could also lead to a more responsive democracy. He details exactly how mobile voting would work

After the shocking 2016 election, it was Arlie Hochschild in her book "Strangers in Their Own Land," not "Hillbilly Elegy," that truly explained the power of populist appeal in Appalachia. In my recent conversation with Hochschild, about her new book “Stolen Pride: Loss, Shame, and the Rise of the Right,” the renowned sociologist continues this exploration, emphasizing the crucial need for what she calls cultural bilingualism to bridge America's political divide. Hochschild argues that understanding today's politics requires examining the role of emotions, particularly pride and shame. She introduces the "pride paradox" and explains how Donald Trump has masterfully manipulated these emotions to gain support. By transforming "lost pride" into "stolen pride," Trump channels feelings of loss and shame into blame, creating a powerful emotional narrative. Hochschild's work, based on deep, empathetic listening in Appalachia, reveals how economic decline and cultural shifts have reshaped political allegiances.

  AI's rapid advancement comes with a hidden human cost. Not just the vast number of jobs that may be eliminated, but the little known digital sweatshops that are crucial to the ongoing development of AI itself. In my recent WhoWhatWhy podcast, James Muldoon, associate professor of management at the University of Essex and co-author of Feeding the Machine, argues that the rapid advancement of AI technology comes with a significant human toll. Research by Muldoon and his colleagues exposes the often-overlooked exploitation of human capital in the Global South that lies behind the high-tech rollout of AI.

  America's sheriffs, often seen as small-town peacekeepers, are becoming a major threat to democracy.  My latest WhoWhatWhy Podcast examines what's happening. In a country where 80 percent of counties are red, and 90 percent of sheriffs are white, a shadowy world exists where these elected officials wield unchecked power, often aligning with far-right militias and potentially influencing the 2024 presidential election. Jessica Pishko, journalist, legal expert, and author of The Highest Law in the Land: How the Unchecked Power of Sheriffs Threatens Democracy, talks to me about the sheriffs group that believes their authority supersedes federal and state laws. It's a movement gaining traction across rural America. 

My guest on this week's WhoWhatWhy podcast, David Daley, argues that the six weeks following Election Day 2024 could be more consequential than the entire campaign season. At a rally in Pennsylvania recently, Donald Trump said, “You know, they do polls on this stuff, and I'm at like 93 percent.  So why are we having an election? They didn't have an election. Why are we having an election?'” It's a scary question when we consider that the next president of the United States might very well be decided by an unelected conservative supermajority on the Supreme Court. Daley, author of the new book Antidemocratic: Inside the Far Right's 50-Year Plot to Control American Elections, foresees a looming crisis that could dwarf the chaos of the 2000 election. 

My latest WhoWhatWhy podcast focuses on how and why young voters, a potential deciding factor in the upcoming election, are shaped by the events of 9/11. Historian Matthew Warshauer offers a provocative perspective on how the attacks of 9/11 continue to shape American politics and the nation's youth. Warshauer — a professor of history at Central Connecticut State University and the author of Creating and Failing the 9/11 Generation — argues that those who came of age in the shadow of the attacks harbor a deep distrust in government and a pervasive sense of chaos that profoundly influences today's political landscape.

For nearly 30 years, Judge David Tatel served on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, often considered the second most important court in the nation. Tatel accomplished this while dealing with progressive vision loss, eventually becoming completely blind. Judge Tatel's author of the memoir, "Vision: A Memoir of Blindness and Justice," offers us a very intimate look at an extraordinary judicial career and personal journey. Our conversation explores Tatel's path from civil rights lawyer to respected jurist, his initial resistance to acknowledging his blindness, and how writing his memoir ultimately freed him to discuss his experiences more openly. An important part of Tatel's journey involves Vixen, his guide dog, who not only assisted him practically but also helped him become more comfortable discussing his blindness openly. Tatel reflects on the evolution of disability rights and the transformative impact of technology on his work and independence. He also expresses deep concern about the increasing politicization of the judiciary, particularly the Supreme Court, and its implications for democracy. Tatel's story is not just about overcoming personal obstacles, but also a thoughtful examination of the changing landscape of civil rights, the role of the judiciary, and the ongoing struggle for equality and justice in America.

Like a hand reaching up from the grave, the recent Supreme Court decision on presidential immunity represents the posthumous triumph of Richard Nixon, Robert Bork, and Antonin Scalia.  On thisWhoWhatWhy podcast I examine this constitutional crisis with Brown University law professor Corey Brettschneider, author of The Presidents and the People: Five Leaders Who Threatened Democracy and the Citizens Who Fought to Defend It.In a ruling that seems to place former presidents beyond the reach of criminal law, the court has breathed new life into Nixon's infamous claim: “When the president does it, it can't be illegal.” Brettschneider unravels how the ghosts of conservative legal titans have shaped a ruling that threatens the very foundations of American democracy.

  On this WhoWhatWhy podcast, I talk with Andrew R. Chow, author of Cryptomania: Hype, Hope, and the Fall of FTX's Billion-Dollar Fintech Empire. Chow guides us through the crypto landscape, from its original utopian dreams C Cryptocurrency defies conventional wisdom. Once a fringe element in volatile financial markets, it's now a campaign talking point, with Donald Trump surprisingly emerging as an enthusiast. As blockchain-based crypto goes mainstream, its growing influence on the global economy raises alarm bells. Is it an exciting tech revolution or a financial time bomb?

Billionaires. They're everywhere. But how did this obsession begin? In many ways, Bill Gates is patient zero in our collective fixation on billionaires, particularly those bred in the tech world. Before there was Bezos, Musk, Zuckerberg, or Thiel, there was Bill Gates. If Warren Buffett is the modern father figure of billionaires, Gates is undoubtedly the first son. Anupreeta Das, S. Asia  editor of The New York Times and author of the new book 'Billionaire, Nerd, Savior, King: Bill Gates and His Quest to Shape Our World.' has spent years covering the intersection of wealth, power, and influence, and her book offers a penetrating look at Gates and the world he both shaped and was shaped by.

A revolutionary perspective on American constitutional history with Alison LaCroix, author of "The Interbellum Constitution."  Our discussion challenges everything you thought you knew about federalism, originalism, and the foundations of our legal system. LaCroix unveils how the often-overlooked period between 1815 and 1861 profoundly shaped our modern constitutional debates, offering fresh insights into today's political struggles. She reveals how even James Madison rejected what we now call originalism, upending conventional wisdom about the Founders' intent.  As states and federal authorities clash over immigration, abortion, and more, LaCroix's exploration of historical federalism provides crucial context for our current crises. 

When people say their perception of the economy doesn't match the numbers, are they just ill-informed? It's a familiar refrain: stock markets soar, GDP rises, unemployment falls, yet many Americans feel left behind, struggling to make ends meet.  So what's causing this disconnect between the rosy numbers and people's lived experiences? Joining me for thisWhoWhatWhy podcast are two leading thinkers on reimagining how we measure economic health and well-being: Jacob Hacker, professor of political science at Yale, and Jonathan Cohen from the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

In my latest Califonria Sun podcast Sara Fenske Bahat, the former interim chief executive of San Francisco's Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, explores the interplay between art, politics, and institutional responsibility. Bahat explains the museum's mission and history leading up to a crisis involving pro-Palestinian protests, questions of free speech, and accusations of antisemitism that ultimately led her to step down. She reflects on that decision, her concerns about safety within the museum, and the broader implications for arts institutions nationwide.

As passion runs high on the extremes, so does apathy about this election, about democracy, and about any kind of participation in our civic life. This raises the question: Whose responsibility is it to ensure our civic participation? In this WhoWhatWhy podcast, I examine the reasons for diminished engagement in American democracy with Yale political scientist Kevin J. Elliott. Elliott argues in his book Democracy for Busy People that many well-intentioned reforms actually exclude and discourage potential voters, especially those struggling to make ends meet. He proposes a radically new approach, emphasizing accessibility, inclusivity, and flexibility, to ensure everyone has a voice in the political process.

When did giving the weather report become a political act worthy of death threats? For years, we got mad at TV weather forecasters if it rained on our picnic when they predicted a clear day. Today, just explaining the “why” behind the weather can get you fired — or even murdered.  In this recent WhoWhatWhy podcast I talk with Chris Gloninger, former chief meteorologist at KCCI-TV in Iowa, who faced this chilling reality when his climate change coverage sparked harassment and death threats. His story exposes a troubling trend: the erosion of respect for expertise and facts, even in realms as fundamental as weather reporting. 

The decision this week in the Purdue Pharma case emphasizes how the bankruptcy system protects some and fails others, and how the rich and powerful manipulate it to their advantage while perpetuating race, gender, and financial inequality. My guest Melissa Jacoby (author of "UNJUST DEBTS: How Our Bankruptcy System Makes America More Unequal") is a legal scholar focused on bankruptcy and debt. Jacoby reveals how the bankruptcy system not only falls short in providing basic debt relief to struggling families, but also how lawyers for big enterprises have transformed bankruptcy into a legal Swiss Army knife, impacting everything from sexual harassment, health care and police violence to employment discrimination and the opioid crisis.

The Battle of Seattle, the 1999 protests against the World Trade Organization, marked a major turning point not just for an anti-globalization movement, but for the way we would come to see the world between that protest and the rise of the populist right in 2015. The direct line between those protests and the election of Donald Trump 16 years later is indelible. It's a story full of enduring lessons about people and power in an age of ascendant corporate influence. Talking to me in this podcast is DW Gibson, an accomplished oral historian whose new book One Week to Change the World draws on over 100 original interviews with organizers, officials, observers, and more to bring those momentous days to vivid life.

The Supreme Court has been eroding democracy for decades. In my recent WhoWhatWhy conversation with Joshua Douglas (The Court v. The Voters: The Troubling Story of How the Supreme Court Has Undermined Voting Rights) he reveals that since the 1970s, the US Supreme Court has been actively destabilizing democracy in the United States.