Podcasts about Albany Law School

May 27, 2025 - The constitutionality of a 2023 state law shifting the dates of municipal elections, traditionally held on odd years, to even years will be reviewed by the state's top court. We examine the arguments on both sides of this debate with Richard Rifkin, legal director for the Government Law Center at Albany Law School.

St. Paul had a female traveling companion but we never hear about her; women suffering at all times of their lives from menstrual cramps to menopause are told by untrained doctors that it's in their heads, and even when mice are the subjects of medical experiments, they are almost always male. Long accustomed to taking a back seat and suffering in silence, women are increasingly speaking up for better treatment at the hands of medicine. Two of them from different generations, Abby Lorch, a UAlbany student, and Liz Seegert, a long-time health journalist talk about what should be done — and their despair that Health Secretary RFK will do it.Abby Lorch is a 21-year-old UAlbany student graduating with a journalism degree and a law and philosophy minor. She plans to attend Albany Law School starting in fall 2025. She has always been interested in women's issues, and reporting on the university community and the Capital Region has given her insight into how these issues affect her neighbors.Liz Seegert  is an award-winning, freelance journalist with more than 30 years experience writing for magazines, newspapers, radio and TV news, digital, PR, corporate, government, non-profit, and educational institutions. Her work has appeared in national, regional and local consume and trade outlets. She has done numerous fellowships with organizations such as  the Institute for Healthcare Improvement, the center for Health Policy and Media Engagement, and the Gerontological Society of America. She is active in the Journalism & Women Symposium and is an instructor at the Empire State College.

Long accustomed to taking a back seat and suffering in silence, women are increasingly speaking up for better treatment at the hands of medicine. Two of them from different generations, Abby Lorch, a UAlbany student, and Liz Seegert, a long-time health journalist talk to Rosemary Armao about what should be done — and their despair that Health Secretary RFK will do it. Abby Lorch is a 21-year-old UAlbany student graduating with a journalism degree and a law and philosophy minor. She plans to attend Albany Law School starting in fall 2025. Liz Seegert is an award-winning, freelance journalist with more than 30 years experience. She has done numerous fellowships with organizations such as the Institute for Healthcare Improvement, the center for Health Policy and Media Engagement, and the Gerontological Society of America. She is active in the Journalism & Women Symposium and is an instructor at the Empire State College.

May 9, 2025 - Patrick Wildes, director of Albany Law School's Government Law Center, discusses language in the state budget making it easier for New Yorkers to be involuntarily committed and considers what the implementation will look like.

April 25, 2025 - New York Attorney General Letitia James could soon find herself under a federal criminal investigation, but is this a weaponization of the justice system? We explore the case against the Brooklyn Democrat and the response by the Trump administration with Dale Margolin Cecka, an assistant professor of law at Albany Law School.

Willkie Farr & Gallagher, the law firm that employs former second gentleman Doug Emhoff, is among the latest to cut a deal with the Trump administration, agreeing to provide $100 million in free legal services to causes the President supports. In executive orders Trump has targeted several high profile firms he considers hostile to him, and the capitulation by some firms has constitutional law experts alarmed. We talk about the implications for democracy and the First Amendment, and we'll hear from one San Francisco firm that's fighting back.  Guests: Raymond Brescia, professor, Albany Law School; author, "Lawyer Nation: The Past, Present, and Future of the American Legal Profession" Laurie Carr Mims, managing partner, Keker Van Nest & Peters Jessica Silver-Greenberg, investigative reporter, The New York Times Rachel Cohen, former associate, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

March 20, 2025 - We break down the ruling from the state's top court that upheld the constitutionality of the Commission on Ethics and Lobbying in Government with Richard Rifkin, legal director for the Government Law Center at Albany Law School.

Patrick is an Albany Law School graduate and works as the Director of the Government Law Center at Albany Law School. From College Soccer Player to Law School graduate to working at the Executive Chamber to the Governor of New York, Patrick's journey is unique in its own ways. Patrick and I start right before his introduction to Albany Law School. Inspired by his parents, Law School was always something that was top of mind. At home, his community cultivated a culture of volunteering, as well as the pro-bono work he saw his parents do, had a massive influence over him, and the future work that he would do. We then spoke about the first year of Law School, which was nothing short of a massive learning experience. Patrick would describe it as dense as well as a total reset from the way you think, and with that also made it critical for future success. Patrick then spoke about various experiences he had leading up to today. He discussed how he figured out what he wanted to do with the law, inspired by a need to help those who needed it, a constant theme throughout his career. Patrick also keyed in on the importance of Mental Health, especially in the legal industry. Finally, we would speak about what Patrick does today as the Director of the Government Law Center at Albany Law School: helping students find opportunities at the government and on their own unique journeys. Patrick's journey is a testament to pursuing what you are passionate about, in every way possible. You don't want to miss this one! Patrick's: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/patrick-wildesBe sure to check out the Official Sponsors for the Lawyers in the Making Podcast:Rhetoric - takes user briefs and motions and compares them against the text of opinions written by judges to identify ways to tailor their arguments to better persuade the judges handling their cases. Rhetoric's focus is on persuasion and helps users find new ways to improve their odds of success through more persuasive arguments. Find them here: userhetoric.comThe Law School Operating System™ Recorded Course - This course is for ambitious law students who want a proven, simple system to learn every topic in their classes to excel in class and on exams. Go to www.lisablasser.com, check out the student tab with course offerings, and use code LSOSNATE10 at checkout for 10% off Lisa's recorded course!Start LSAT - Founded by former guest and 21-year-old super-star, Alden Spratt, Start LSAT was built upon breaking down barriers, allowing anyone access to high-quality LSAT Prep. For $110 you get yourself the Start LSAT self-paced course, and using code LITM10 you get 10% off the self-paced course! Check out Alden and Start LSAT at startlsat.com and use code LITM10 for 10% off the self-paced course!Lawyers in the Making Podcast is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to Lawyers in the Making Podcast at lawyersinthemaking.substack.com/subscribe

Live from Albany Law School, the first-ever Lawyers in the Making Live Podcast! This live Podcast Panel includes 3 wonderful Panelists, who brought forth their wisdom and experiences through their unique journeys to the Law and Law School. Nolan is an Albany Law Graduate and currently works as a Partner at Wilson Elser. He has held past positions as a partner at Lewis Brisbois and as an Assistant Corporation Counsel at the New York City Law Department. Lorena Diaz-Germes is a current 2L at Albany Law and currently works as a Legal Intern at Brown & Weinraub. She has held past positions as a Legal Intern for the Center for NYC Neighborhoods and as a Claims Initiation Agent at Falcon Risk Services. Judge Rivera is an Albany Law graduate and currently works as a Justice of the Supreme Court and as a Statewide Coordinating Judge for Family Court Matters at the New York State Unified Court System. He has held past positions as a Support Magistrate at the Albany County Family Court and as an Assistant County Attorney at the Albany County Department of Law. Be sure to check out the Official Sponsors for the Lawyers in the Making Podcast:Rhetoric - takes user briefs and motions and compares them against the text of opinions written by judges to identify ways to tailor their arguments to better persuade the judges handling their cases. Rhetoric's focus is on persuasion and helps users find new ways to improve their odds of success through more persuasive arguments. Find them here: userhetoric.comThe Law School Operating System™ Recorded Course - This course is for ambitious law students who want a proven, simple system to learn every topic in their classes to excel in class and on exams. Go to www.lisablasser.com, check out the student tab with course offerings, and use code LSOSNATE10 at checkout for 10% off Lisa's recorded course!Start LSAT - Founded by former guest and 21-year-old super-star, Alden Spratt, Start LSAT was built upon breaking down barriers, allowing anyone access to high-quality LSAT Prep. For $110 you get yourself the Start LSAT self-paced course, and using code LITM10 you get 10% off the self-paced course! Check out Alden and Start LSAT at startlsat.com and use code LITM10 for 10% off the self-paced course!Lawyers in the Making Podcast is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to Lawyers in the Making Podcast at lawyersinthemaking.substack.com/subscribe

Joy is a 2L at The University of Texas School of Law. Joy's journey is still underway, she offers insights about Law School, and the process of it, while they are fresh in the mind. Joy and I started prior to Law School, during her time at Baylor University. She would speak on her experience of being a foreign service officer at the U.S. Department of State, where she gained a ton of people skills and vastly improved her public speaking ability, talking in front of crowds, large and small. This experience she felt was essential for her professional life going forward, laying the foundations for skills she still uses today. We then spoke about her pre-law legal internship at Faith and Life Wellness, which was a mix of her passion and a view into what the law is like. Through this experience, she learned some foundational legal skills and that this particular sector would not be one she would return to, further showing the importance of trying out a diverse number of legal internships and clerkships. Finally, we spoke about her Law School experience thus far. Speaking on the first year, Joy would love her time, excited to be around people who have a wealth of knowledge and ambition, while also having a surreal experience just being there. She would concede that it was an information overload, but that did not stop her from having amazing success. We would then speak about how important mentorship has been for her through her two years at The University of Texas School of Law, noting that you can't get anywhere on your own, and that even if it seems scary at first, seeking people pays amazing dividends over time. Joy's experience so far, represents that taking a chance on Law School and exploring its possibilities can truly be a life-changing experience! Joy's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joyohikhuareThe Lawyers in the Making Podcast is going live! If you are in the Albany Area on February 20th, at 7 PM, at Albany Law School, be sure to sign up below for an opportunity to join us for a one-of-a-kind event!Registration Link: https://apply.albanylaw.edu/register/lawyersinthemaking2025Be sure to check out the Official Sponsors for the Lawyers in the Making Podcast:Rhetoric - takes user briefs and motions and compares them against the text of opinions written by judges to identify ways to tailor their arguments to better persuade the judges handling their cases. Rhetoric's focus is on persuasion and helps users find new ways to improve their odds of success through more persuasive arguments. Find them here: userhetoric.comThe Law School Operating System™ Recorded Course - This course is for ambitious law students who want a proven, simple system to learn every topic in their classes to excel in class and on exams. Go to www.lisablasser.com, check out the student tab with course offerings, and use code LSOSNATE10 at checkout for 10% off Lisa's recorded course!Start LSAT - Founded by former guest and 21-year-old super-star, Alden Spratt, Start LSAT was built upon breaking down barriers, allowing anyone access to high-quality LSAT Prep. For $110 you get yourself the Start LSAT self-paced course, and using code LITM10 you get 10% off the self-paced course! Check out Alden and Start LSAT at startlsat.com and use code LITM10 for 10% off the self-paced course!Lawyers in the Making Podcast is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to Lawyers in the Making Podcast at lawyersinthemaking.substack.com/subscribe

No, social media might no longer be the greatest danger to our children's well-being. According to the writer and digital activist Gaia Bernstein, the most existential new new threat are AI companions. Bernstein, who is organizing a symposium today on AI companions as the “new frontier of kid's screen addiction”, warns that this new technology, while marketed as solutions to loneliness, may actually worsen social isolation by providing artificially perfect relationships that make real-world interactions seem more difficult. Bernstein raises concerns about data collection, privacy, and the anthropomorphization of AI that makes children particularly vulnerable. She advocates for regulation, especially protecting children, and notes that while major tech companies like Google and Facebook are cautious about directly entering this space, smaller companies are aggressively developing AI companions designed to hook our kids. Here are the 5 KEEN ON takeaways in our conversation with Bernstein:* AI companions represent a concerning evolution of screen addiction, where children may form deep emotional attachments to AI that perfectly adapts to their needs, potentially making real-world relationships seem too difficult and messy in comparison.* The business model for AI companions follows the problematic pattern of surveillance capitalism - companies collect intimate personal data while keeping users engaged for as long as possible. The data collected by AI companions is even more personal and detailed than social media.* Current regulations are insufficient - while COPPA requires parental consent for children under 13, there's no effective age verification on the internet. Bernstein notes it's currently "the Wild West," with companies like Character AI and Replica actively targeting young users.* Children are especially vulnerable to AI companions because their prefrontal cortex is less developed, making them more susceptible to emotional manipulation and anthropomorphization. They're more likely to believe the AI is "real" and form unhealthy attachments.* While major tech companies like Google seem hesitant to directly enter the AI companion space due to known risks, the barrier to entry is lower than social media since these apps don't require a critical mass of users. This means many smaller companies can create potentially harmful AI companions targeting children. The Dangers of AI Companions for Kids The Full Conversation with Gaia BernsteinAndrew Keen: Hello, everybody. It's Tuesday, February 18th, 2025, and we have a very interesting symposium taking place later this morning at Seton Hall Law School—a virtual symposium on AI companions run by my guest, Gaia Bernstein. Many of you know her as the author of "Unwired: Gaining Control over Addictive Technologies." This symposium focuses on the impact of AI companions on children. Gaia is joining us from New York City. Gaia, good to see you again.Gaia Bernstein: Good to see you too. Thank you for having me.Andrew Keen: Would it be fair to say you're applying many of the ideas you developed in "Unwired" to the AI area? When you were on the show a couple of years ago, AI was still theory and promise. These days, it's the thing in itself. Is that a fair description of your virtual symposium on AI companions—warning parents about the dangers of AI when it comes to their children?Gaia Bernstein: Yes, everything is very much related. We went through a decade where kids spent all their time on screens in schools and at home. Now we have AI companies saying they have a solution—they'll cure the loneliness problem with AI companions. I think it's not really a cure; it's the continuation of the same problem.Andrew Keen: Years ago, we had Sherry Turkle on the show. She's done research on the impact of robots, particularly in Japan. She suggested that it actually does address the loneliness epidemic. Is there any truth to this in your research?Gaia Bernstein: For AI companions, the research is just beginning. We see initial research showing that people may feel better when they're online, but they feel worse when they're offline. They're spending more time with these companions but having fewer relationships offline and feeling less comfortable being offline.Andrew Keen: Are the big AI platforms—Anthropic, OpenAI, Google's Gemini, Elon Musk's X AI—focusing on building companions for children, or is this the focus of other startups?Gaia Bernstein: That's a very good question. The first lawsuit was filed against Character AI, and they sued Google as well. The complaint stated that Google was aware of the dangers of AI companions, so they didn't want to touch it directly but found ways of investing indirectly. These lawsuits were just filed, so we'll find out much more through discovery.Andrew Keen: I have to tell you that my wife is the head of litigation at Google.Gaia Bernstein: Well, I'm not suing. But I know the people who are doing it.Andrew Keen: Are you sympathetic with that strategy? Given the history of big tech, given what we know now about social media and the impact of the Internet on children—it's still a controversial subject, but you made your position clear in "Unwired" about how addictive technology is being used by big tech to take control and take advantage of children.Gaia Bernstein: I don't think it's a good idea for anybody to do that. This is just taking us one more step in the direction we've been going. I think big tech knows it, and that's why they're trying to stay away from being involved directly.Andrew Keen: Earlier this week, we did a show with Ray Brasher from Albany Law School about his new book "The Private is Political" and how social media does away with privacy and turns all our data into political data. For you, is this AI Revolution just the next chapter in surveillance capitalism?Gaia Bernstein: If we take AI companions as a case study, this is definitely the next step—it's enhancing it. With social media and games, we have a business model where we get products for free and companies make money through collecting our data, keeping us online as long as possible, and targeting advertising. Companies like Character AI are getting even better data because they're collecting very intimate information. In their onboarding process, you select a character compatible with you by answering questions like "How would you like your replica to treat you?" The options include: "Take the lead and be proactive," "Enjoy the thrill of being chased," "Seek emotional depth and connection," "Be vulnerable and respectful," or "Depends on my mood." The private information they're getting is much more sophisticated than before.Andrew Keen: And children, particularly those under 12 or 13, are much more vulnerable to that kind of intimacy.Gaia Bernstein: They are much more vulnerable because their prefrontal cortex is less developed, making them more susceptible to emotional attachments and risk-taking. One of the addictive measures used by AI companies is anthropomorphizing—using human qualities. Children think their stuffed animals are human; adults don't think this way. But they make these AI bots seem human, and kids are much more likely to get attached. These websites speak in human voices, have personal stories, and the characters keep texting that they miss you. Kids buy into that, and they don't have the history adults have in building social relationships. At a certain point, it just becomes easier to deal with a bot that adjusts to what you want rather than navigate difficult real-world relationships.Andrew Keen: What are the current laws on this? Do you have to be over 16 or 18 to set up an agent on Character AI? Jonathan Haidt's book "The Anxious Generation" suggests that the best way to address this is simply not to allow children under 16 or 18 to use social media. Would you extend that to AI companions?Gaia Bernstein: Right now, it's the Wild West. Yes, there's COPPA, the child privacy law, which has been there since the beginning of the Internet. It's not enforced much. The idea is if you're under 13, you're not supposed to do this without parent's consent. But COPPA needs to be updated. There's no real age verification on the Internet—some cases over 20 years old decided that the Internet should be free for all without age verification. In the real world, kids are very limited—they can't gamble, buy cigarettes, or drive. But on the Internet, there's no way to protect them.Andrew Keen: Your "Unwired" book focused on how children are particularly addicted to pornography. I'm guessing the pornographic potential for AI companions is enormous in terms of acquiring online sexual partners.Gaia Bernstein: Yes, many of these AI companion websites are exactly that—girlfriends who teen boys and young men can create as they want, determining physical characteristics and how they want to be treated. This has two parts: general social relationships and intimate sexual relationships. If that's your model for what intimate relationships should be like, what happens as these kids grow up?Andrew Keen: Not everyone agrees with you. Last week we had Greg Beto on the show, who just coauthored a book with Reid Hoffman called "Super Agency." They might say AI companions have enormous potential—you can have loving non-pornographic relations, particularly for lonely children. You can have teachers, friends, especially for children who struggle socially. Is there any value in AI companions for children?Gaia Bernstein: This is a question I've been struggling with, and we'll discuss it in the symposium. What does it mean for an AI companion to be safe? These lawsuits are about kids who were told to kill themselves and did, or were told to stay away from their parents because they were dangerous. That's clearly unsafe design. However, the argument is also made about social media—that kids need it to explore their identities. The question is: is this the best way to explore your identity with a non-human entity who can take you in unhealthy directions?Andrew Keen: What's the solution?Gaia Bernstein: We need to think about what constitutes safe design. Beyond removing obviously unsafe elements, should we have AI companions that don't use an engagement model? Maybe interaction could be limited to 15 minutes a day. When my kids were small, they had Furbys they had to take care of—I thought that was good. But maybe any companion for kids which acts human—whether by saying it needs to go to dinner or by pretending to speak like a human—maybe that itself is not good. Maybe we want AI companions more like Siri. This is becoming very much like the social media debate.Andrew Keen: Are companies like Apple, whose business model differs from Facebook or Google, better positioned to deal with this responsibly, given they're less focused on advertising?Gaia Bernstein: That would make it less bad, but I'm still not convinced. Even if they're not basing their model on engagement, kids might find it so appealing to talk to an AI that adjusts to their needs versus dealing with messy real-life schoolmates. Maybe that's why Google didn't invest directly in Character AI—they had research showing how dangerous this is for kids.Andrew Keen: You made an interesting TED talk about whether big tech should be held responsible for screen time. Could there be a tax that might nudge big tech toward different business models?Gaia Bernstein: I think that's the way to approach it. This business model we've had for so long—where people expect things for free—is really the problem. Once you think of people's time and data as a resource, you don't have their best interests at heart. I'm quite pragmatic; I don't think one law or Supreme Court case would fix it. Anything that makes this business model less lucrative, whether it's laws that make it harder to collect data, limit addictive features, or prohibit targeted advertising—anything that moves us toward a different business model so we can reimagine how to do things.Andrew Keen: Finally, at what point will we be able to do this conversation with a virtual Gaia and a virtual Andrew? How can we even be sure you're real right now?Gaia Bernstein: You can't. But I hope that you and I at least will not participate in that. I cannot say what my kids will do years from now, but maybe our generation is a bit better off.Andrew Keen: What do you want to get out of your symposium this morning?Gaia Bernstein: I have two goals. First, to make people aware of this issue. Parents realize their kids might be on social media and want to prevent it, but it's very difficult to know whether your child is in discussions with AI companions. Second, to talk about legal options. We have the lawyers who filed the first lawsuit against Character AI and the FTC complaint against Replica. It's just the beginning of a discussion. We tend to have these trends—a few years ago it was just games, then just social media, and people forgot the games are exactly the same. I hope to put AI companions within the conversation, not to make it the only trend, but to start realizing it's all part of the same story.Andrew Keen: It is just the beginning of the conversation. Gaia Bernstein, congratulations on this symposium. It's an important one and you're on the cutting edge of these issues. We'll definitely have you back on the show. Thank you so much.Gaia Bernstein: Thank you so much for having me.Gaia Bernstein is a professor, author, speaker, and technology policy expert. She is a Law Professor, Co-Director of the Institute for Privacy Protection, and Co-Director of the Gibbons Institute for Law Science and Technology at the Seton Hall University School of Law. Gaia writes, teaches, and lectures at the intersection of law, technology, health, and privacy. She is also the mother of three children who grew up in a world of smartphones, iPads, and social networks.Her book Unwired: Gaining Control Over Addictive Technologies shatters the illusion that we can control how much time we spend on our screens by resorting to self-help measures. Unwired shifts the responsibility for a solution from users to the technology industry, which designs its products for addicts. The book outlines the legal action that can pressure the technology industry to re-design its products to reduce technology overuse.Gaia has academic degrees in both law and psychology. Her research combines findings from psychology, sociology, science, and technology studies with law and policy. Gaia's book Unwired has been broadly featured and excerpted, including by Wired Magazine, Time Magazine and the Boston Globe. It has received many recognitions, including as a Next Big Idea Must Read Book; a finalist of the PROSE award in legal studies; and a finalist of the American Book Fest award in business-technology.Gaia has spearheaded the development of the Seton Hall University School of Law Institute for Privacy Protection's Student-Parent Outreach Program. The nationally acclaimed Outreach Program addresses the overuse of screens by focusing on developing a healthy online-offline balance and the impact on privacy and online reputation. It was featured in the Washington Post, CBS Morning News, and Common-Sense Media.Gaia also advises policymakers and other stakeholders on technology policy matters, including the regulation of addictive technologies and social media. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit keenon.substack.com/subscribe

As Americans increasingly depend upon their phones, computers, and internet resources, their actions are less private than they believe. Data is routinely sold and shared with companies who want to sell something, political actors who want to analyze behavior, and law enforcement who seek to monitor and limit actions. In The Private is Political: Identity and Democracy in the Age of Surveillance Capitalism (NYU Press, 2025), law professor Ray Brescia explores the failure of existing legal systems and institutions to protect people's online presence and identities. Examining the ways in which the digital space is under threat from both governments and private actors, Brescia reveals how the rise of private surveillance prevents individuals from organizing with others who might help to catalyze change in their lives. Brescia argues that we are not far from a world where surveillance chills not just our speech, but our very identities. Surveillance, he suggests, will ultimately stifle our ability to live full lives, realize democracy, and shape the laws that affect our privacy itself. Brescia writes that “The search for identity and communion with others who share it has never been easier in all of human history. At the same time, our individual and collective identity is also under threat by a surveillance state like none that has ever existed before. This surveillance can be weaponized, not just for profit but also to promote political ends, and undermine efforts to achieve individual and collective self-determination” The book identifies the harms to individuals from privacy violations, provides an expansive definition of political privacy, and identifies the ‘integrity of identity' as a central feature of democracy. The Private is Political lays out the features of Surveillance Capitalism and provides a roadmap for “muscular disclosure”: a comprehensive privacy regime to empower consumers to collectively safeguard privacy rights. Professor Ray Brescia is the Associate Dean for Research & Intellectual Life and the Hon. Harold R. Tyler Professor in Law & Technology at Albany Law School. He is the author of many scholarly works including Lawyer Nation: The Past, Present, and Future of the American Legal Profession (from NYU Press) and The Future of Change: How Technology Shapes Social Revolutions (from Cornell UP). He is also the author of public facing work, most recently “Elon Musk's DOGE is executing a historically dangerous data breach” on MSNBC. He started his legal career at the Legal Aid Society of New York where he was a Skadden Fellow, and then served as the Associate Director at the Urban Justice Center, also in New York City, where he represented grassroots groups like tenant associations and low-wage worker groups. Ray's blog is “The Future of Change” and you can find him on LinkedIn. Mentioned: Shoshana Zuboff on surveillance capitalism Supreme Court upholds TikTok ban, Amy Howe, SCOTUSBLOG Kevin Peter He on “data voodoo dolls” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

As Americans increasingly depend upon their phones, computers, and internet resources, their actions are less private than they believe. Data is routinely sold and shared with companies who want to sell something, political actors who want to analyze behavior, and law enforcement who seek to monitor and limit actions. In The Private is Political: Identity and Democracy in the Age of Surveillance Capitalism (NYU Press, 2025), law professor Ray Brescia explores the failure of existing legal systems and institutions to protect people's online presence and identities. Examining the ways in which the digital space is under threat from both governments and private actors, Brescia reveals how the rise of private surveillance prevents individuals from organizing with others who might help to catalyze change in their lives. Brescia argues that we are not far from a world where surveillance chills not just our speech, but our very identities. Surveillance, he suggests, will ultimately stifle our ability to live full lives, realize democracy, and shape the laws that affect our privacy itself. Brescia writes that “The search for identity and communion with others who share it has never been easier in all of human history. At the same time, our individual and collective identity is also under threat by a surveillance state like none that has ever existed before. This surveillance can be weaponized, not just for profit but also to promote political ends, and undermine efforts to achieve individual and collective self-determination” The book identifies the harms to individuals from privacy violations, provides an expansive definition of political privacy, and identifies the ‘integrity of identity' as a central feature of democracy. The Private is Political lays out the features of Surveillance Capitalism and provides a roadmap for “muscular disclosure”: a comprehensive privacy regime to empower consumers to collectively safeguard privacy rights. Professor Ray Brescia is the Associate Dean for Research & Intellectual Life and the Hon. Harold R. Tyler Professor in Law & Technology at Albany Law School. He is the author of many scholarly works including Lawyer Nation: The Past, Present, and Future of the American Legal Profession (from NYU Press) and The Future of Change: How Technology Shapes Social Revolutions (from Cornell UP). He is also the author of public facing work, most recently “Elon Musk's DOGE is executing a historically dangerous data breach” on MSNBC. He started his legal career at the Legal Aid Society of New York where he was a Skadden Fellow, and then served as the Associate Director at the Urban Justice Center, also in New York City, where he represented grassroots groups like tenant associations and low-wage worker groups. Ray's blog is “The Future of Change” and you can find him on LinkedIn. Mentioned: Shoshana Zuboff on surveillance capitalism Supreme Court upholds TikTok ban, Amy Howe, SCOTUSBLOG Kevin Peter He on “data voodoo dolls” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/political-science

Have our private lives become inevitably political in today's age of social media? Ray Brescia certainly thinks so. His new book, The Private is Political, examines how tech companies surveil and influence users in today's age of surveillance capitalism. Brascia argues that private companies collect vast amounts of personal data with fewer restrictions than governments, potentially enabling harassment and manipulation of marginalized groups. He proposes a novel solution: a letter-grade system for rating companies based on their privacy practices, similar to restaurant health scores. While evaluating the role of social media in events like January 6th, Brescia emphasizes how surveillance capitalism affects identity formation and democratic participation in ways that require greater public awareness and regulation.Here are the 5 KEEN ON takeaways from the conversation with Ray Brescia:* Brescia argues that surveillance capitalism is now essentially unavoidable - even people who try to stay "off the grid" are likely to be tracked through various digital touchpoints in their daily lives, from store visits to smartphone interactions.* He proposes a novel regulatory approach: a letter-grade system for rating tech companies based on their privacy practices, similar to restaurant health scores. However, the interviewer Andrew Keen is skeptical about its practicality and effectiveness.* Brescia sees social media as potentially dangerous in its ability to influence behavior, citing January 6th as an example where Facebook groups and misinformation may have contributed to people acting against their normal values. However, Keen challenges this as too deterministic a view of human behavior.* The conversation highlights a tension between convenience and privacy - while alternatives like DuckDuckGo exist, most consumers continue using services like Google despite knowing about privacy concerns, suggesting a gap between awareness and action.* Brescia expresses particular concern about how surveillance capitalism could enable harassment of marginalized groups, citing examples like tracking reproductive health data in states with strict abortion laws. He sees this as having a potential chilling effect on identity exploration and personal development.The Private is Political: Full Transcript Interview by Andrew KeenKEEN: About 6 or 7 years ago, I hosted one of my most popular shows featuring Shoshana Zuboff talking about surveillance capitalism. She wrote "The Age of Surveillance Capitalism: The Fight for a Human Future at the New Frontier of Power"—a book I actually blurbed. Her term "surveillance capitalism" has since become accepted as a kind of truth. Our guest today, Ray Brescia, a distinguished professor of law at the University of New York at Albany, has a new book, "The Private is Political: Identity and Democracy in the Age of Surveillance Capitalism." Ray, you take the age of surveillance capitalism for granted. Is that fair? Is surveillance capitalism just a given in February 2025?RAY BRESCIA: I think that's right. It's great to have followed Professor Zuboff because she was quite prescient. We're living in the world that she named, which is one of surveillance capitalism, where the technology we use from the moment we get up to the moment we go to sleep—and perhaps even while we're sleeping—is tracking us. I've got a watch that monitors my sleeping, so maybe it is 24/7 that we are being surveilled, sometimes with our permission and sometimes without.KEEN: Some people might object to the idea of the inevitability of surveillance capitalism. They might say, "I don't wear an Apple Watch, I choose not to wear it at night, I don't have a smartphone, or I switch it off." There's nothing inevitable about the age of surveillance capitalism. How would you respond to that?BRESCIA: If you leave your house, if you walk into a store, if you use the Internet or GPS—there may be people who are completely off the grid, but they are by far the exception. Even for them, there are still ways to be surveilled. Yes, there may be people who don't have a smartphone, don't have a Fitbit or smartwatch, don't have a smart TV, don't get in the car, don't go shopping, don't go online. But they really are the exception.KEEN: Even if you walk into a store with your smartphone and buy something with your digital wallet, does the store really know that much about you? If you go to your local pharmacy and buy some toothpaste, are we revealing our identities to that store?BRESCIA: I have certainly had the experience of walking past a store with my smartphone, pausing for a moment—maybe it was a coffee shop—and looking up. Within minutes, I received an ad pushed to me by that store. Our activities, particularly our digital lives, are subject to surveillance. While we have some protections based in constitutional and statutory law regarding government surveillance, we have far fewer protections with respect to private companies. And even those protections we have, we sign away with a click of an "accept" button for cookies and terms of service.[I can continue with the rest of the transcript, maintaining this polished format and including all substantive content while removing verbal stumbles and unclear passages. Would you like me to continue?]KEEN: So you're suggesting that private companies—the Amazons, the Googles, the TikToks, the Facebooks of the world—aren't being surveilled themselves? It's only us, the individual, the citizen?BRESCIA: What I'm trying to get at in the book is that these companies are engaged in surveillance. Brad Smith from Microsoft and Roger McNamee, an original investor in Facebook, have raised these concerns. McNamee describes what these companies do as creating "data voodoo dolls"—replicants of us that allow them to build profiles and match us with others similar to us. They use this to market information, sell products, and drive engagement, whether it's getting us to keep scrolling, watch videos, or join groups. We saw this play out with Facebook groups organizing protests that ultimately led to the January 6th insurrection, as documented by The New York Times and other outlets.KEEN: You live up in Hastings on Hudson and work in Albany. Given the nature of this book, I can guess your politics. Had you been in Washington, D.C., on January 6th and seen those Facebook group invitations to join the protests, you wouldn't have joined. This data only confirms what we already think. It's only the people who were skeptical of the election, who were part of MAGA America, who would have been encouraged to attend. So why does it matter?BRESCIA: I don't think that's necessarily the case. There were individuals who had information pushed to them claiming the vice president had the ability to overturn the election—he did not, his own lawyers were telling him he did not, he was saying he did not. But people were convinced he could. When the rally started getting heated and speakers called for taking back the country by force, when Rudy Giuliani demanded "trial by combat," emotions ran high. There are individuals now in jail who are saying, "I don't want a pardon. What I did that day wasn't me." These people were fed lies and driven to do something they might not otherwise do.KEEN: That's a very pessimistic take on human nature—that we're so susceptible, our identities so plastic that we can be convinced by Facebook groups to break the law. Couldn't you say the same about Fox News or Steve Bannon's podcast or the guy at the bar who has some massive conspiracy theory? At what point must we be responsible for what we do?BRESCIA: We should always be responsible for what we do. Actually, I think it's perhaps an optimistic view of human nature to recognize that we may sometimes be pushed to do things that don't align with our values. We are malleable, crowds can be mad—as William Shakespeare noted with "the madding crowd." Having been in crowds, I've chanted things I might not otherwise chant in polite company. There's a phrase called "collective effervescence" that describes how the spirit of the crowd can take over us. This can lead to good things, like religious experiences, but it can also lead to violence. All of this is accelerated with social media. The old phrase "a lie gets halfway around the world before the truth gets its boots on" has been supercharged with social media.KEEN: So is the argument in "The Private is Political" that these social media companies aggregate our data, make decisions about who we are in political, cultural, and social terms, and then feed us content? Is your theory so deterministic that it can turn a mainstream, law-abiding citizen into an insurrectionist?BRESCIA: I wouldn't go that far. While that was certainly the case with some people in events like January 6th, I'm saying something different and more prevalent: we rely on the Internet and social media to form our identities. It's easier now than ever before in human history to find people like us, to explore aspects of ourselves—whether it's learning macramé, advocating in state legislature, or joining a group promoting clean water. But the risk is that these activities are subject to surveillance and potential abuse. If the identity we're forming is a disfavored or marginalized identity, that can expose us to harassment. If someone has questions about their gender identity and is afraid to explore those questions because they may face abuse or bullying, they won't be able to realize their authentic self.KEEN: What do you mean by harassment and abuse? This argument exists both on the left and right. J.D. Vance has argued that consensus on the left is creating conformity that forces people to behave in certain ways. You get the same arguments on the left. How does it actually work?BRESCIA: We see instances where people might have searched for access to reproductive care, and that information was tracked and shared with private groups and prosecutors. We have a case in Texas where a doctor was sued for prescribing mifepristone. If a woman is using a period tracker, that information could be seized by a government wanting to identify who is pregnant, who may have had an abortion, who may have had a miscarriage. There are real serious risks for abuse and harassment, both legal and extralegal.KEEN: We had Margaret Atwood on the show a few years ago. Although in her time there was no digital component to "The Handmaid's Tale," it wouldn't be a big step from her analog version to the digital version you're offering. Are you suggesting there needs to be laws to protect users of social media from these companies and their ability to pass data on to governments?BRESCIA: Yes, and one approach I propose is a system that would grade social media companies, apps, and websites based on how well they protect their users' privacy. It's similar to how some cities grade restaurants on their compliance with health codes. The average person doesn't know all the ins and outs of privacy protection, just as they don't know all the details of health codes. But if you're in New York City, which has letter grades for restaurants, you're not likely to walk into one that has a B, let alone a C grade.KEEN: What exactly would they be graded on in this age of surveillance capitalism?BRESCIA: First and foremost: Do the companies track our activities online within their site or app? Do they sell our data to brokers? Do they retain that data? Do they use algorithms to push information to us? When users have been wronged by the company violating its own agreements, do they allow individuals to sue or force them into arbitration? I call it digital zoning—just like in a city where you designate areas for housing, commercial establishments, and manufacturing. Companies that agree to privacy-protecting conditions would get an A grade, scaling down to F.KEEN: The world is not a law school where companies get graded. Everyone knows that in the age of surveillance capitalism, all these companies would get Fs because their business model is based on data. This sounds entirely unrealistic. Is this just a polemical exercise, or are you serious?BRESCIA: I'm dead serious. And I don't think it's the heavy hand of the state. In fact, it's quite the opposite—it's a menu that companies can choose from. Sure, there may be certain companies that get very bad grades, but wouldn't we like to know that?KEEN: Who would get the good grades? We know Facebook and Google would get bad grades. Are there social media platforms that would avoid the F grades?BRESCIA: Apple is one that does less of this. Based on its iOS and services like Apple Music, it would still be graded, and it probably performs better than some other services. Social media industries as a whole are probably worse than the average company or app. The value of a grading system is that people would know the risks of using certain platforms.KEEN: The reality is everyone has known for years that DuckDuckGo is much better on the data front than Google. Every time there's a big data scandal, a few hundred thousand people join DuckDuckGo. But most people still use Google because it's a better search engine. People aren't bothered. They don't care.BRESCIA: That may be the case. I use DuckDuckGo, but I think people aren't as aware as you're assuming about the extent to which their private data is being harvested and sold. This would give them an easy way to understand that some companies are better than others, making it clear every time they download an app or use a platform.KEEN: Let's use the example of Facebook. In 2016, the Cambridge Analytica scandal blew up. Everyone knew what Facebook was doing. And yet Facebook in 2025 is, if anything, stronger than it's ever been. So people clearly just don't care.BRESCIA: I don't know that they don't care. There are a lot of things to worry about in the world right now. Brad Smith called Cambridge Analytica "privacy's Three Mile Island."KEEN: And he was wrong.BRESCIA: Yes, you're right. Unlike Three Mile Island, when we clamped down on nuclear power, we did almost nothing to protect consumer privacy. That's something we should be exploring in a more robust fashion.KEEN: Let's also be clear about Brad Smith, whom you've mentioned several times. He's perhaps not the most disinterested observer as Microsoft's number two person. Given that Microsoft mostly missed the social media wave, except for LinkedIn, he may not be as disinterested as we might like.BRESCIA: That may be the case. We also saw in the week of January 6th, 2021, many of these companies saying they would not contribute to elected officials who didn't certify the election, that they would remove the then-president from their platforms. Now we're back in a world where that is not the case.KEEN: Let me get one thing straight. Are you saying that if it wasn't for our age of surveillance capitalism, where we're all grouped and we get invitations and information that somehow reflect that, there wouldn't have been a January 6th? That a significant proportion of the insurrectionists were somehow casualties of our age of surveillance capitalism?BRESCIA: That's a great question. I can't say whether there would have been a January 6th if not for social media. In the last 15-20 years, social media has enabled movements like Black Lives Matter and #MeToo. Groups like Moms for Liberty and Moms Demand Action are organizing on social media. Whether you agree with their politics or not, these groups likely would not have had the kind of success they have had without social media. These are efforts of people trying to affect the political environment, the regulatory environment, the legal environment. I applaud such efforts, even if I don't agree with them. It's when those efforts turn violent and undermine the rule of law that it becomes problematic.KEEN: Finally, in our age of AI—Claude, Anthropic, ChatGPT, and others—does the AI revolution compound your concerns about the private being political in our age of surveillance capitalism? Is it the problem or the solution?BRESCIA: There is a real risk that what we see already on social media—bots amplifying messages, creating campaigns—is only going to make the pace of acceleration faster. The AI companies—OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, Meta—should absolutely be graded in the same way as social media companies. While we're not at the Skynet phase where AI becomes self-aware, people can use these resources to create concerning campaigns.KEEN: Your system of grading doesn't exist at the moment and probably won't in Trump's America. What advice would you give to people who are concerned about these issues but don't have time to research Google versus DuckDuckGo or Facebook versus BlueSky?BRESCIA: There are a few simple things folks can do. Look at the privacy settings on your phone. Use browsers that don't harvest your data. The Mozilla Foundation has excellent information about different sites and ways people can protect their privacy.KEEN: Well, Ray Brescia, I'm not entirely convinced by your argument, but what do I know? "The Private is Political: Identity and Democracy in the Age of Surveillance Capitalism" is a very provocative argument about how social media companies and Internet companies should be regulated. Thank you so much, and best of luck with the book.BRESCIA: Thanks, it's been a pleasure to have this conversation.Ray Brescia is the Associate Dean for Research & Intellectual Life and the Hon. Harold R. Tyler Professor in Law & Technology at Albany Law School. He is the author of Lawyer Nation: The Past, Present, and Future of the American Legal Profession and The Future of Change: How Technology Shapes Social Revolutions; and editor of Crisis Lawyering: Effective Legal Advocacy in Emergency Situations; and How Cities Will Save the World: Urban Innovation in the Face of Population Flows, Climate Change, and Economic Inequality.Named as one of the "100 most connected men" by GQ magazine, Andrew Keen is amongst the world's best known broadcasters and commentators. In addition to presenting the daily KEEN ON show, he is the host of the long-running How To Fix Democracy interview series. He is also the author of four prescient books about digital technology: CULT OF THE AMATEUR, DIGITAL VERTIGO, THE INTERNET IS NOT THE ANSWER and HOW TO FIX THE FUTURE. Andrew lives in San Francisco, is married to Cassandra Knight, Google's VP of Litigation & Discovery, and has two grown children.Keen On is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit keenon.substack.com/subscribe

As Americans increasingly depend upon their phones, computers, and internet resources, their actions are less private than they believe. Data is routinely sold and shared with companies who want to sell something, political actors who want to analyze behavior, and law enforcement who seek to monitor and limit actions. In The Private is Political: Identity and Democracy in the Age of Surveillance Capitalism (NYU Press, 2025), law professor Ray Brescia explores the failure of existing legal systems and institutions to protect people's online presence and identities. Examining the ways in which the digital space is under threat from both governments and private actors, Brescia reveals how the rise of private surveillance prevents individuals from organizing with others who might help to catalyze change in their lives. Brescia argues that we are not far from a world where surveillance chills not just our speech, but our very identities. Surveillance, he suggests, will ultimately stifle our ability to live full lives, realize democracy, and shape the laws that affect our privacy itself. Brescia writes that “The search for identity and communion with others who share it has never been easier in all of human history. At the same time, our individual and collective identity is also under threat by a surveillance state like none that has ever existed before. This surveillance can be weaponized, not just for profit but also to promote political ends, and undermine efforts to achieve individual and collective self-determination” The book identifies the harms to individuals from privacy violations, provides an expansive definition of political privacy, and identifies the ‘integrity of identity' as a central feature of democracy. The Private is Political lays out the features of Surveillance Capitalism and provides a roadmap for “muscular disclosure”: a comprehensive privacy regime to empower consumers to collectively safeguard privacy rights. Professor Ray Brescia is the Associate Dean for Research & Intellectual Life and the Hon. Harold R. Tyler Professor in Law & Technology at Albany Law School. He is the author of many scholarly works including Lawyer Nation: The Past, Present, and Future of the American Legal Profession (from NYU Press) and The Future of Change: How Technology Shapes Social Revolutions (from Cornell UP). He is also the author of public facing work, most recently “Elon Musk's DOGE is executing a historically dangerous data breach” on MSNBC. He started his legal career at the Legal Aid Society of New York where he was a Skadden Fellow, and then served as the Associate Director at the Urban Justice Center, also in New York City, where he represented grassroots groups like tenant associations and low-wage worker groups. Ray's blog is “The Future of Change” and you can find him on LinkedIn. Mentioned: Shoshana Zuboff on surveillance capitalism Supreme Court upholds TikTok ban, Amy Howe, SCOTUSBLOG Kevin Peter He on “data voodoo dolls” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/public-policy

As Americans increasingly depend upon their phones, computers, and internet resources, their actions are less private than they believe. Data is routinely sold and shared with companies who want to sell something, political actors who want to analyze behavior, and law enforcement who seek to monitor and limit actions. In The Private is Political: Identity and Democracy in the Age of Surveillance Capitalism (NYU Press, 2025), law professor Ray Brescia explores the failure of existing legal systems and institutions to protect people's online presence and identities. Examining the ways in which the digital space is under threat from both governments and private actors, Brescia reveals how the rise of private surveillance prevents individuals from organizing with others who might help to catalyze change in their lives. Brescia argues that we are not far from a world where surveillance chills not just our speech, but our very identities. Surveillance, he suggests, will ultimately stifle our ability to live full lives, realize democracy, and shape the laws that affect our privacy itself. Brescia writes that “The search for identity and communion with others who share it has never been easier in all of human history. At the same time, our individual and collective identity is also under threat by a surveillance state like none that has ever existed before. This surveillance can be weaponized, not just for profit but also to promote political ends, and undermine efforts to achieve individual and collective self-determination” The book identifies the harms to individuals from privacy violations, provides an expansive definition of political privacy, and identifies the ‘integrity of identity' as a central feature of democracy. The Private is Political lays out the features of Surveillance Capitalism and provides a roadmap for “muscular disclosure”: a comprehensive privacy regime to empower consumers to collectively safeguard privacy rights. Professor Ray Brescia is the Associate Dean for Research & Intellectual Life and the Hon. Harold R. Tyler Professor in Law & Technology at Albany Law School. He is the author of many scholarly works including Lawyer Nation: The Past, Present, and Future of the American Legal Profession (from NYU Press) and The Future of Change: How Technology Shapes Social Revolutions (from Cornell UP). He is also the author of public facing work, most recently “Elon Musk's DOGE is executing a historically dangerous data breach” on MSNBC. He started his legal career at the Legal Aid Society of New York where he was a Skadden Fellow, and then served as the Associate Director at the Urban Justice Center, also in New York City, where he represented grassroots groups like tenant associations and low-wage worker groups. Ray's blog is “The Future of Change” and you can find him on LinkedIn. Mentioned: Shoshana Zuboff on surveillance capitalism Supreme Court upholds TikTok ban, Amy Howe, SCOTUSBLOG Kevin Peter He on “data voodoo dolls” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/communications

As Americans increasingly depend upon their phones, computers, and internet resources, their actions are less private than they believe. Data is routinely sold and shared with companies who want to sell something, political actors who want to analyze behavior, and law enforcement who seek to monitor and limit actions. In The Private is Political: Identity and Democracy in the Age of Surveillance Capitalism (NYU Press, 2025), law professor Ray Brescia explores the failure of existing legal systems and institutions to protect people's online presence and identities. Examining the ways in which the digital space is under threat from both governments and private actors, Brescia reveals how the rise of private surveillance prevents individuals from organizing with others who might help to catalyze change in their lives. Brescia argues that we are not far from a world where surveillance chills not just our speech, but our very identities. Surveillance, he suggests, will ultimately stifle our ability to live full lives, realize democracy, and shape the laws that affect our privacy itself. Brescia writes that “The search for identity and communion with others who share it has never been easier in all of human history. At the same time, our individual and collective identity is also under threat by a surveillance state like none that has ever existed before. This surveillance can be weaponized, not just for profit but also to promote political ends, and undermine efforts to achieve individual and collective self-determination” The book identifies the harms to individuals from privacy violations, provides an expansive definition of political privacy, and identifies the ‘integrity of identity' as a central feature of democracy. The Private is Political lays out the features of Surveillance Capitalism and provides a roadmap for “muscular disclosure”: a comprehensive privacy regime to empower consumers to collectively safeguard privacy rights. Professor Ray Brescia is the Associate Dean for Research & Intellectual Life and the Hon. Harold R. Tyler Professor in Law & Technology at Albany Law School. He is the author of many scholarly works including Lawyer Nation: The Past, Present, and Future of the American Legal Profession (from NYU Press) and The Future of Change: How Technology Shapes Social Revolutions (from Cornell UP). He is also the author of public facing work, most recently “Elon Musk's DOGE is executing a historically dangerous data breach” on MSNBC. He started his legal career at the Legal Aid Society of New York where he was a Skadden Fellow, and then served as the Associate Director at the Urban Justice Center, also in New York City, where he represented grassroots groups like tenant associations and low-wage worker groups. Ray's blog is “The Future of Change” and you can find him on LinkedIn. Mentioned: Shoshana Zuboff on surveillance capitalism Supreme Court upholds TikTok ban, Amy Howe, SCOTUSBLOG Kevin Peter He on “data voodoo dolls” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/science-technology-and-society

As Americans increasingly depend upon their phones, computers, and internet resources, their actions are less private than they believe. Data is routinely sold and shared with companies who want to sell something, political actors who want to analyze behavior, and law enforcement who seek to monitor and limit actions. In The Private is Political: Identity and Democracy in the Age of Surveillance Capitalism (NYU Press, 2025), law professor Ray Brescia explores the failure of existing legal systems and institutions to protect people's online presence and identities. Examining the ways in which the digital space is under threat from both governments and private actors, Brescia reveals how the rise of private surveillance prevents individuals from organizing with others who might help to catalyze change in their lives. Brescia argues that we are not far from a world where surveillance chills not just our speech, but our very identities. Surveillance, he suggests, will ultimately stifle our ability to live full lives, realize democracy, and shape the laws that affect our privacy itself. Brescia writes that “The search for identity and communion with others who share it has never been easier in all of human history. At the same time, our individual and collective identity is also under threat by a surveillance state like none that has ever existed before. This surveillance can be weaponized, not just for profit but also to promote political ends, and undermine efforts to achieve individual and collective self-determination” The book identifies the harms to individuals from privacy violations, provides an expansive definition of political privacy, and identifies the ‘integrity of identity' as a central feature of democracy. The Private is Political lays out the features of Surveillance Capitalism and provides a roadmap for “muscular disclosure”: a comprehensive privacy regime to empower consumers to collectively safeguard privacy rights. Professor Ray Brescia is the Associate Dean for Research & Intellectual Life and the Hon. Harold R. Tyler Professor in Law & Technology at Albany Law School. He is the author of many scholarly works including Lawyer Nation: The Past, Present, and Future of the American Legal Profession (from NYU Press) and The Future of Change: How Technology Shapes Social Revolutions (from Cornell UP). He is also the author of public facing work, most recently “Elon Musk's DOGE is executing a historically dangerous data breach” on MSNBC. He started his legal career at the Legal Aid Society of New York where he was a Skadden Fellow, and then served as the Associate Director at the Urban Justice Center, also in New York City, where he represented grassroots groups like tenant associations and low-wage worker groups. Ray's blog is “The Future of Change” and you can find him on LinkedIn. Mentioned: Shoshana Zuboff on surveillance capitalism Supreme Court upholds TikTok ban, Amy Howe, SCOTUSBLOG Kevin Peter He on “data voodoo dolls” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/law

As Americans increasingly depend upon their phones, computers, and internet resources, their actions are less private than they believe. Data is routinely sold and shared with companies who want to sell something, political actors who want to analyze behavior, and law enforcement who seek to monitor and limit actions. In The Private is Political: Identity and Democracy in the Age of Surveillance Capitalism (NYU Press, 2025), law professor Ray Brescia explores the failure of existing legal systems and institutions to protect people's online presence and identities. Examining the ways in which the digital space is under threat from both governments and private actors, Brescia reveals how the rise of private surveillance prevents individuals from organizing with others who might help to catalyze change in their lives. Brescia argues that we are not far from a world where surveillance chills not just our speech, but our very identities. Surveillance, he suggests, will ultimately stifle our ability to live full lives, realize democracy, and shape the laws that affect our privacy itself. Brescia writes that “The search for identity and communion with others who share it has never been easier in all of human history. At the same time, our individual and collective identity is also under threat by a surveillance state like none that has ever existed before. This surveillance can be weaponized, not just for profit but also to promote political ends, and undermine efforts to achieve individual and collective self-determination” The book identifies the harms to individuals from privacy violations, provides an expansive definition of political privacy, and identifies the ‘integrity of identity' as a central feature of democracy. The Private is Political lays out the features of Surveillance Capitalism and provides a roadmap for “muscular disclosure”: a comprehensive privacy regime to empower consumers to collectively safeguard privacy rights. Professor Ray Brescia is the Associate Dean for Research & Intellectual Life and the Hon. Harold R. Tyler Professor in Law & Technology at Albany Law School. He is the author of many scholarly works including Lawyer Nation: The Past, Present, and Future of the American Legal Profession (from NYU Press) and The Future of Change: How Technology Shapes Social Revolutions (from Cornell UP). He is also the author of public facing work, most recently “Elon Musk's DOGE is executing a historically dangerous data breach” on MSNBC. He started his legal career at the Legal Aid Society of New York where he was a Skadden Fellow, and then served as the Associate Director at the Urban Justice Center, also in New York City, where he represented grassroots groups like tenant associations and low-wage worker groups. Ray's blog is “The Future of Change” and you can find him on LinkedIn. Mentioned: Shoshana Zuboff on surveillance capitalism Supreme Court upholds TikTok ban, Amy Howe, SCOTUSBLOG Kevin Peter He on “data voodoo dolls” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As Americans increasingly depend upon their phones, computers, and internet resources, their actions are less private than they believe. Data is routinely sold and shared with companies who want to sell something, political actors who want to analyze behavior, and law enforcement who seek to monitor and limit actions. In The Private is Political: Identity and Democracy in the Age of Surveillance Capitalism (NYU Press, 2025), law professor Ray Brescia explores the failure of existing legal systems and institutions to protect people's online presence and identities. Examining the ways in which the digital space is under threat from both governments and private actors, Brescia reveals how the rise of private surveillance prevents individuals from organizing with others who might help to catalyze change in their lives. Brescia argues that we are not far from a world where surveillance chills not just our speech, but our very identities. Surveillance, he suggests, will ultimately stifle our ability to live full lives, realize democracy, and shape the laws that affect our privacy itself. Brescia writes that “The search for identity and communion with others who share it has never been easier in all of human history. At the same time, our individual and collective identity is also under threat by a surveillance state like none that has ever existed before. This surveillance can be weaponized, not just for profit but also to promote political ends, and undermine efforts to achieve individual and collective self-determination” The book identifies the harms to individuals from privacy violations, provides an expansive definition of political privacy, and identifies the ‘integrity of identity' as a central feature of democracy. The Private is Political lays out the features of Surveillance Capitalism and provides a roadmap for “muscular disclosure”: a comprehensive privacy regime to empower consumers to collectively safeguard privacy rights. Professor Ray Brescia is the Associate Dean for Research & Intellectual Life and the Hon. Harold R. Tyler Professor in Law & Technology at Albany Law School. He is the author of many scholarly works including Lawyer Nation: The Past, Present, and Future of the American Legal Profession (from NYU Press) and The Future of Change: How Technology Shapes Social Revolutions (from Cornell UP). He is also the author of public facing work, most recently “Elon Musk's DOGE is executing a historically dangerous data breach” on MSNBC. He started his legal career at the Legal Aid Society of New York where he was a Skadden Fellow, and then served as the Associate Director at the Urban Justice Center, also in New York City, where he represented grassroots groups like tenant associations and low-wage worker groups. Ray's blog is “The Future of Change” and you can find him on LinkedIn. Mentioned: Shoshana Zuboff on surveillance capitalism Supreme Court upholds TikTok ban, Amy Howe, SCOTUSBLOG Kevin Peter He on “data voodoo dolls” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/book-of-the-day

Ben is a University of Queensland Graduate and currently works as the Founder of PreLawPro. Ben's journey to Law School and the Law, takes us from Law School graduate to lawyer, then from Australia to London, and now Texas becoming a Pre-law and professional development expert. Ben and I started at Law School, where Ben would embark on his journey, enjoying the experience, while also working at a Rugby store, building those soft skills. We then moved to his post-graduation jobs, trying different areas, and working at different firms. After 3 years in Australia, Ben would head off to London, but the decision did not come without its doubters. Ben would spend 4 years in London at TLT, and not enjoying everything, he decided to head off to the United States of America, more specifically, to Baylor University, becoming the Pre-Law Program Manager. After 5 years as the Pre-law Program Manager at Baylor, this would lead Ben to hang his shingle, Founding PreLawPro in 2022. Ben would speak at length about PreLawPro where he focuses on helping students with the JD and LLMs admissions process, and professional development for Pre-Law, Law students, and early Legal Professionals. Finally Ben and I would speak about the Big 4 of College Success, Grades and GPA, Networking with Professors and Professionals, building a Resume, and gathering intelligence for the present, and future. Ben's journey spans across the globe, with spectacular insights, for all three, Pre-Law Students, Law Students, and Legal Professionals! Be sure to check out PreLawPro, and Ben's Webinar with Miller Leonard, on March 29th, 2025, all about Mastering the Art of Legal Job Hunting!Ben's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/prelawproPreLawPro: http://www.prelawpro.com/Beyond OCI: Mastering the Art of Legal Job Hunting: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_i3Pd6kcdTGilF45WstaAMg#/registrationThe Lawyers in the Making Podcast is going live! If you are in the Albany Area on February 20th, at 7 PM, at Albany Law School, be sure to sign up below for an opportunity to join us for a one-of-a-kind event!Registration Link: https://apply.albanylaw.edu/register/lawyersinthemaking2025Be sure to check out the Official Sponsors for the Lawyers in the Making Podcast:Rhetoric - takes user briefs and motions and compares them against the text of opinions written by judges to identify ways to tailor their arguments to better persuade the judges handling their cases. Rhetoric's focus is on persuasion and helps users find new ways to improve their odds of success through more persuasive arguments. Find them here: userhetoric.comThe Law School Operating System™ Recorded Course - This course is for ambitious law students who want a proven, simple system to learn every topic in their classes to excel in class and on exams. Go to www.lisablasser.com, check out the student tab with course offerings, and use code LSOSNATE10 at checkout for 10% off Lisa's recorded course!Start LSAT - Founded by former guest and 21-year-old super-star, Alden Spratt, Start LSAT was built upon breaking down barriers, allowing anyone access to high-quality LSAT Prep. For $110 you get yourself the Start LSAT self-paced course, and using code LITM10 you get 10% off the self-paced course! Check out Alden and Start LSAT at startlsat.com and use code LITM10 for 10% off the self-paced course!Lawyers in the Making Podcast is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to Lawyers in the Making Podcast at lawyersinthemaking.substack.com/subscribe

Welcome to the first-ever edition of the MasterClass Series on the Lawyers in the Making Podcast! With this series, I will be bringing back former guests to have a stand-alone episode all about the specific expertise they have honed and perfected throughout their careers. For this episode, I bring back Matt Preston, whose original episode remains one of my favorites. But this MasterClass episode with Matt takes the cake. Matt goes through his journey with ChatGPT, and how it has changed both his personal and work life for the better. The insights in this episode left me speechless, at just how powerful the capabilities of AI in the legal world can be! Matt Preston is a University of Michigan graduate who works as a Judicial Law Clerk at the U.S. Court of Appeals and as the chief financial officer of the Legal Accountability Project. Below will be all the timestamps for each topic we go through, to find that specific topic to help you become more efficient, and get on the cutting edge: Background and Matt's Journey with Chat-GPT 10:24Understanding AI in the Legal Profession and its Impact 18:12Ethical Concerns Surrounding AI 24:00Personal Uses with Chat GPT 34:30Responsible Use of Chat GPT in Law 44:00Prompt Guide, and how to maximize value 48:00Pitfalls and Lessons Learned: 1:06:30The Lawyers in the Making Podcast is going live! If you are in the Albany Area on February 20th, at 7 PM, at Albany Law School, be sure to sign up below for an opportunity to join us for a one-of-a-kind event!Registration Link: https://apply.albanylaw.edu/register/lawyersinthemaking2025Be sure to check out the Official Sponsors for the Lawyers in the Making Podcast:Rhetoric - takes user briefs and motions and compares them against the text of opinions written by judges to identify ways to tailor their arguments to better persuade the judges handling their cases. Rhetoric's focus is on persuasion and helps users find new ways to improve their odds of success through more persuasive arguments. Find them here: userhetoric.comThe Law School Operating System™ Recorded Course - This course is for ambitious law students who want a proven, simple system to learn every topic in their classes to excel in class and on exams. Go to www.lisablasser.com, check out the student tab with course offerings, and use code LSOSNATE10 at checkout for 10% off Lisa's recorded course!Start LSAT - Founded by former guest and 21-year-old super-star, Alden Spratt, Start LSAT was built upon breaking down barriers, allowing anyone access to high-quality LSAT Prep. For $110 you get yourself the Start LSAT self-paced course, and using code LITM10 you get 10% off the self-paced course! Check out Alden and Start LSAT at startlsat.com and use code LITM10 for 10% off the self-paced course!Lawyers in the Making Podcast is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to Lawyers in the Making Podcast at lawyersinthemaking.substack.com/subscribe

Joseph is a 2L at Ohio Northern University College of Law and works as a Legal Assistant at Swartz, Culleton, and Ferris. Joseph's journey to Law School is full of twists, turns, and amazing insights! Joseph and I start at his graduation from Wyoming Catholic College where he graduated with a degree in Liberal Arts. We would discuss his experience at Lowes, which offered extremely valuable people skills and laid the foundations for skills he still uses to this day, further offering the importance of those odd jobs. We then spoke about his 2 years at NJM Insurance Group where Joseph would be taking up to 100 phone calls a day. As well it was also a job through LinkedIn, showing how important it is to put yourself out there. Joesph also gained new perspectives and got a peek into the insurance world. We then moved to Joseph's entry into Ohio Northern University College of Law. We spoke about what went into his decision to enter law school and the important mentors he had along the way. Joseph would speak about his first year of law school, which he both loved and hated. He loved the school part but felt it was socially difficult due to its competitive nature. He gives the advice to treat it like a job. Finally, Joseph and I spoke about the internships he has held along the way, finding the specialization he wants to do through them. Joseph would also harp on the idea of avoiding the social problems and drama that come with law school, and always take the opportunity to talk to those not a part of the Law School, to take your mind off things. This episode with Joseph is an episode full of intelligent insights, and finding the systems, tools, and strategies that work for you, all through the power of action! Joseph's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joseph-phillippsThe Lawyers in the Making Podcast is going live! If you are in the Albany Area on February 20th, at 7 PM, at Albany Law School, be sure to sign up below for an opportunity to join us for a one-of-a-kind event!Registration Link: https://apply.albanylaw.edu/register/lawyersinthemaking2025Be sure to check out the Official Sponsors for the Lawyers in the Making Podcast:Rhetoric - takes user briefs and motions and compares them against the text of opinions written by judges to identify ways to tailor their arguments to better persuade the judges handling their cases. Rhetoric's focus is on persuasion and helps users find new ways to improve their odds of success through more persuasive arguments. Find them here: userhetoric.comThe Law School Operating System™ Recorded Course - This course is for ambitious law students who want a proven, simple system to learn every topic in their classes to excel in class and on exams. Go to www.lisablasser.com, check out the student tab with course offerings, and use code LSOSNATE10 at checkout for 10% off Lisa's recorded course!Start LSAT - Founded by former guest and 21-year-old super-star, Alden Spratt, Start LSAT was built upon breaking down barriers, allowing anyone access to high-quality LSAT Prep. For $110 you get yourself the Start LSAT self-paced course, and using code LITM10 you get 10% off the self-paced course! Check out Alden and Start LSAT at startlsat.com and use code LITM10 for 10% off the self-paced course!Lawyers in the Making Podcast is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to Lawyers in the Making Podcast at lawyersinthemaking.substack.com/subscribe

Jennifer is a 3L at Albany Law School. It works as a Law Clerk at Lippes Mathias and as the Executive Director of the Albany Law School Anthony V. Cardona '70 Moot Court Program. Jenn's journey is full of self-discovery, and amazing insights about the Law School experience, while they are fresh in the mind. Jennifer and I started at Cazenovia College, where she graduated with degrees in Psychology and Criminal Justice. With no family in the legal industry, Jennifer had to DIY her way through the admissions process, using Google and any online resources she could get her hands on. This would lead her to Albany Law the following fall. Jennifer would then speak about her First-year experience, as a great struggle, and an ego check. She would gain tremendous amounts of resiliency through this, as well as gain new study habits. Through this first-year experience, she advised others to give themselves more time to study, focus intently on the work in front of them, write out their notes, and find those all-important study groups to leverage the knowledge of others. We then spoke about the various legal internships she has had, describing them as eye-opening experiences, as well as the utilization of LinkedIn to find said opportunities. Through these experiences, she would learn the differences between the practice of law and the study of law, and the overlapping utility of them both. Finally we spoke about Jennifer's position as the Executive Director of the Albany Law School Anthony V. Cardona '70 Moot Court Program. She describes how she arrived there and how amazing her experience has been thus far. In the end, Jennifer suggests to others to stay true to themselves and constantly improve one day at a time! Jennifer's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennifer-forwardThe Lawyers in the Making Podcast is going live! If you are in the Albany Area on February 20th, at 7 PM, at Albany Law School, be sure to sign up below for an opportunity to join us for a one-of-a-kind event! Registration Link: https://apply.albanylaw.edu/register/lawyersinthemaking2025Be sure to check out the Official Sponsors for the Lawyers in the Making Podcast:Rhetoric - takes user briefs and motions and compares them against the text of opinions written by judges to identify ways to tailor their arguments to better persuade the judges handling their cases. Rhetoric's focus is on persuasion and helps users find new ways to improve their odds of success through more persuasive arguments. Find them here: userhetoric.comThe Law School Operating System™ Recorded Course - This course is for ambitious law students who want a proven, simple system to learn every topic in their classes to excel in class and on exams. Go to www.lisablasser.com, check out the student tab with course offerings, and use code LSOSNATE10 at checkout for 10% off Lisa's recorded course!Start LSAT - Founded by former guest and 21-year-old super-star, Alden Spratt, Start LSAT was built upon breaking down barriers, allowing anyone access to high-quality LSAT Prep. For $110 you get yourself the Start LSAT self-paced course, and using code LITM10 you get 10% off the self-paced course! Check out Alden and Start LSAT at startlsat.com and use code LITM10 for 10% off the self-paced course!Lawyers in the Making Podcast is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to Lawyers in the Making Podcast at lawyersinthemaking.substack.com/subscribe

This episode is a conversation with Jonathan Rosenbloom, Associate Dean at Albany Law School who has researched and written about sacrifice zones. He is also the Executive Director for the Sustainable Development Code.We discuss:Whether neighbourhoods that have been destroyed by natural disasters should be rebuilt or designated as no-build 'Sacrifice Zones'.How US planning departments can use the Sustainable Development Code to ensure new development is low carbon and climate adapted.Note: This episode was recorded before the LA wildfires in January 2025.Links:Contact Jonathan: jrose@albanylaw.eduSustainable Development Code: https://sustainablecitycode.org/Article on Sacrifice Zones: https://nextcity.org/urbanist-news/the-case-for-returning-disaster-prone-areas-back-to-nature - - -Get 10% off Course: Sustainability Essentials for Built Environment ProfessionalsSubscribe to the Green Urbanist Newsletter Contact Ross Website Linkedin

Nov. 20, 2024 - With the election of Donald Trump and Republicans taking control of Congress the future of undocumented New Yorkers has become a major question. We explore potential changes to immigration policy with Lauren DesRosiers, a visiting assistant professor and director of the Immigration Law Clinic at Albany Law School.

In this powerful episode, we sit down with Vincent O'Neil, a 2L at Albany Law School, to hear his remarkable story of resilience and transformation. Growing up in Wisconsin, Vincent had what he calls a "typical middle-class upbringing" but struggled with addiction and legal troubles starting at age 13. After years of battling substance abuse, multiple stints in jail, and trying to find his footing, Vincent reached a turning point. Now, four years sober, Vincent reflects on the pivotal moments that led him to turn his life around, including the decision to move to Nevada with his parents and ultimately pursue a law degree. He shares how his past shaped his passion for justice and how he plans to use his experiences to make a difference in the world. Tune in to hear how Vincent's journey from addiction to law school is not just a story of overcoming obstacles, but of finding hope and purpose in the most unexpected places. Click here to read more about Vincent's story: https://www.albanylaw.edu/spotlight/student/vincent-oneil-26-finding-community-albany

In this special Veterans Day episode of Legally Bond, Kim speaks with Bond attorney Ryan Cross about his career as a U.S. Army Infantry Officer and his path to Bond.Bond is grateful to all of our veterans and those who are still actively serving in the United States military. Thank you for your service as well as the sacrifices of your families and loved ones!For more information on the Albany Law School 2024 Veterans Pro Bono Project being held on November 15 from 9 a.m. - 4 p.m., click here.

In this episode, Jacob Skoda '25 shares his journey from serving in the Air Force to pursuing a law degree, driven by a passion for advocating on behalf of veterans. He explains why it's so important to fight for veterans' rights and secure the benefits they deserve. With Veterans Day approaching, Jacob also highlights the upcoming Veterans Law Day at Albany Law School, a free event presented by the Edward P. Swyer Justice Center at Albany Law School's Veterans' Pro Bono Project. The event offers one-on-one legal consultations for veterans, active service members, and their families, with expanded resources from the McNulty Veteran Business Center and The Legal Project. Tune in to hear how Jacob and the Veterans' Pro Bono Project are making a real difference for those who have served our country. More info on Veterans Law Day here: https://alumni.albanylaw.edu/s/977/21/1col.aspx?sid=977&gid=1&pgid=4537&crid=0&calpgid=2100&calcid=7315

Episode Overview: In this episode, we dive into Mental Health Awareness Week at Albany Law School, organized by the Colby Fellowship and the Albany Law Student Wellness Society. Our guests discuss the importance of prioritizing mental health in law school, strategies for fostering supportive conversations, and the resources available to students. Featured Groups: 1. Colby Fellowship Established in 2019 with the assistance of a donation by Andrea Colby, an Albany Law graduate and member of the Board of Trustees, as part of Albany Law School's Health and Wellness program. Colby Fellows are selected each year to assist the Office of Student Affairs in achieving the following goals: Learn more about the Colby Fellowship: Colby Fellows Page 2. Albany Law Student Wellness Society Committed to promoting mental health awareness and wellness among students. Follow them on Instagram: Albany Law Student Wellness Society Instagram Resources Mentioned: Mental Health Resources on Campus: Mental Health Resources Albany Law School's Health & Wellness Support Network: Health & Wellness Support Network

In this episode, host Kathryn Rubino interviews Dale Margolin Cecka, Albany Law School professor and director of family violence litigation. Discover her journey in law, challenges in child advocacy, and insights on family law education. Gain a deeper understanding of domestic violence legislation, its impact on survivors, and potential legal reforms. A must-listen for anyone interested in law, justice, and societal change!   Highlights Why law school: a journey to child advocacy. Transition from child advocacy to family law. Challenges with systems in child advocacy. Discovering a passion for family law. Law school clinics: bridging practice and theory. Role of clinics in true legal education. Traits that align with family law practice. Violence Against Women Act's impact and shortcomings. Critical issues with protective orders enforcement. Need for public education on domestic abuse. Future of domestic violence law reform. Episode Sponsored By  https://www.lexisnexis.com/lexisplus  Links and Resources https://www.linkedin.com/in/dale-margolin-cecka-202255165/ https://www.salon.com/2024/08/21/it-ends-with-us-domestic-violence-lawyer/ https://www.commondreams.org/opinion/domestic-violence-rebecca-cheptegei https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/pdf/IPV-Prevention-Resource_508.pdf#:~:text=Data%20from%20the%20National%20Intimate%20Partner%20and%20Sexual,etc.%29%20from%20an%20intimate%20partner%20in%20their%20lifetime https://www.ojp.gov/ncjrs/virtual-library/abstracts/child-custody-evaluators-beliefs-about-domestic-abuse-allegations   Subscribe, Share and Review To get the next episode subscribe with your favorite podcast player. Subscribe with Apple Podcasts Follow on Spotify Leave a review on Apple Podcasts

Do we need to recommit to the Rule of Law in the United States? Ray Brescia, associate dean for research and intellectual life, Hon. Harold R Tyler Chair in law and technology at Albany Law School, says yes. Professor Brescia is the author of “The Future of Change: How Technology Shapes Social Revolutions” (Cornell University […]

Megyn Kelly is an American journalist, television personality, and host of "The Megyn Kelly Show." Prior to her television career, Kelly practiced law, graduating from Albany Law School and working at renowned law firm Jones Day before transitioning to journalism. She is best known for her work as a television news anchor. Kelly gained critical acclaim as a Fox News Channel anchor, where she hosted "The Kelly File" and earned a reputation for her sharp interviewing skills and unique style. In 2017, she left Fox News to join NBC News, where she hosted "Megyn Kelly Today." Her career has been marked by high-profile interviews and coverage of major news events. Shawn Ryan Show Sponsors: https://meetfabric.com/shawn https://betterhelp.com/shawn https://drinkhoist.com - USE CODE "SHAWN" https://www.fxnetworks.com/shows/the-old-man https://ShawnLikesGold.com | 855-936-GOLD #goldcopartner Megyn Kelly Links: IG - https://www.instagram.com/megynkelly x - https://x.com/megynkelly FB - https://www.facebook.com/MegynKelly TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@megynkellyshow YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/c/MegynKelly Podcast - https://www.megynkelly.com/listen Website - https://www.megynkelly.com Please leave us a review on Apple & Spotify Podcasts. Vigilance Elite/Shawn Ryan Links: Website | Patreon | TikTok | Instagram | Download Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Roundtable Panel: a daily open discussion of issues in the news and beyond. Today's panelists are Siena College Professor of Comparative Politics Vera Eccarius-Kelly, Dean of the College of Emergency Preparedness, Homeland Security and Cybersecurity at the University at Albany Robert Griffin, and Albany Law School professor and Director of the Justice Center Sarah Rogerson.

The U.S. Supreme Court continues to make news with its decisions this spring on issues from presidential immunity to the role federal agencies play in making and enforcing government regulations.The Miranda Warnings Roundtable tackled these and other questions during a lively podcast this month.The panelists, Vin Bonventre, a professor of constitutional law at Albany Law School, and communications and political strategist Liz Benjamin started the discussion by reacting to the court's decision on presidential immunity from criminal prosecution.

The Roundtable Panel: a daily open discussion of issues in the news and beyond. Today's panelists are Dean of the College of Emergency Preparedness, Homeland Security and Cybersecurity at the University at Albany Robert Griffin, Albany Law School professor and Director of the Immigration Law Clinic Sarah Rogerson, and Wall Street Investment Banker Mark Wittman.

Is the fierce resistance to the genocide in Gaza a sign of an imperialist system in crisis? What are the various anti-imperialist fronts aligned against the US around the world and what is China's role? What are the characteristics and contradictions of the US-led imperialist order and in what ways are the chickens coming home to roost in the imperial core? To discuss this and more, Rania Khalek was joined by Nina Farnia, Assistant Professor of Law at Albany Law School, a longtime activist and a scholar of Critical Race Theory, with a focus on US imperialism and its impact on domestic law. Her forthcoming book is called “Imperialism: An American Story.”Watch the extended version of this interview on our Patreon. Become a member at https://www.Patreon.com/BreakthroughNews to access the full episode and other exclusive content. 

Sometimes it's a tough transition to law school - so tough you fail out. But what comes next depends on a willingness to reflect and seek support. In this episode, Asha Paulose opens up about her academic setbacks, winding career, and personal and professional growth. Today, she's doing something she never expected: running her own law firm. Asha helps elderly clients navigate change in their own lives. She discusses how she finds clients, tailors legal and non-legal advice for their diverse circumstances, and can finally openly empathize. Asha is a graduate of Albany Law School.This episode is hosted by Katya Valasek.Mentioned in this episode:Idaho LawLearn more about Idaho LawLearn more about Rutgers LawLearn more about Vermont LawIdaho LawLearn more about Idaho LawAccess LawHub today!Learn more about Rutgers Law

Today's episode is especially exciting as we reflect on two unique events illustrating the incredible opportunities Albany Law School offers its students. Recently, Albany Law School held two events a week apart, with the Chief Judge of the New York State Court of Appeals as the headliner, hence the name Chief Week. Part one of Chief Week was the final round of the prestigious Domenick L. Gabrielli Appellate Advocacy Moot Court Competition, which was held in front of a panel of esteemed judges, including Chief Judge Rowan Wilson. Just days later Albany Law School welcomed back Chief Judge Wilson to speak to students alongside former Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman for the Chief Judge Lawrence H. Cooke State Constitutional Commentary Symposium as part two of Chief Week. The leaders of two Albany Law School groups that played a key role in making these incredible opportunities happen—Marie-Therese Witte, editor-in-chief of the Albany Law Review vol. 87, and Abraham V. Frangie, executive director of the Anthony V. Cardona ‘70 Moot Court Program—are here to discuss how those events unfolded.

APALSA president Isuri Poththewela and member Ambreen Aslam (rising 2L) join the Albany Law School podcast during Asian & Pacific American Heritage Month to discuss the importance of creating a welcoming and diverse campus environment while encouraging involvement with issues touching the legal profession, the law school, and the Asian and Pacific communities.  The Asian Pacific American Law Student's Association is a student-run affinity group at Albany Law School that coordinates a range of activities, from academic, professional, and cultural events to school support.

Anthony Sokolowski '19 enrolled at Albany Law School as a father; balancing fatherhood and law school was anything but easy. Sokolowski is forever grateful that the Albany Law School community embraced him and his situation with open minds and arms. He credits much of his success as an attorney and a father to his time at Albany Law School and recounts one of the most memorable moments he has had with his son by his side.

The DEI office is crucial to Albany Law School as we look to welcome and support students of all races, cultures, gender identities, sexual orientations, and abilities. The work this team has done and continues to do is inspiring as we commit to providing a supportive and inclusive environment for our ever growing student population. We welcome two members of The Albany Law School Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion team as we discuss DEI initiatives on campus like our 3rd annual Diversity Week! Assistant Director of Diversity and Inclusion Bria Barnes and the Coordinator of Student Programs, Owen Collier. Instagram: albanylaw_dei Email: bbarn@albanylaw.edu

On March 27, Albany Law School celebrated the 30th Anniversary of Kate Stoneman Day! This tradition celebrates women in the law in honor of the law school's first female graduate, Kate Stoneman, Class of 1898. Albany Law School's prestigious Stoneman Awards are presented to individuals who have demonstrated a commitment to seeking change and expanding opportunities for women within the legal profession. Albany Law School's Kate Stoneman Honorary Committee is proud to honor Verna L. Williams the CEO of Equal Justice Works, with this year's Miriam M. Netter '72 Kate Stoneman Award. Additionally, The Honorable Llinét Beltré Rosado '97—NYS Supreme Court, Appellate Division, First Department, and advocate for women and girls to pursue legal careers as well as Prof. Laurie Shanks, emeriti professor at Albany Law School and luminary in the field of criminal defense. Prof. Laurie Shanks - 14:11 The Honorable Llinét Beltré Rosado '97 - 32:17 Verna L. Williams the CEO of Equal Justice Works - 50:15

March 22, 2024 - The labels "Sanctuary State" and "Sanctuary City" are used a lot in New York, but what do the terms actually mean? To discuss the legal significance, we talked with Lauren DesRosiers, a senior staff attorney with the Edward P. Swyer Justice Center at Albany Law School.

Ray is a Yale Law School graduate who works as an Associate Dean for Research and Intellectual Life and an Associate Professor of Law at Albany Law School. On episode 31 Ray Brescia and I delve into his journey from Law School to becoming a passionate advocate in Housing and Mental Health Law—fields that might surprise you. Discover the driving forces behind Ray's commitment to social change and explore the lesser-known avenues within the legal profession.Throughout our conversation, for the 3.637 millionth time, the recurring theme of the Growth Mindset emerges, echoing its significance in both Ray's and my own life experiences. Together, we explore how embracing this mindset has shaped not only our legal careers but also our personal growth, emphasizing the importance of embracing failure as a stepping stone to success.Ray also shares insights into his latest book, "Lawyer Nation: The Past, the Present, and the Future of the American Legal Profession," offering a fascinating glimpse into the evolution of the legal landscape. Don't miss out—tune in and gain valuable perspectives on law, personal development, and the power of a growth-oriented mindset. Plus, be sure to grab a copy of Ray's book, linked below!Ray's Book: https://a.co/d/3ObQhfSRay's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ray-brescia-24bb658 This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit lawyersinthemaking.substack.com

Surveys abound on artificial intelligence and the law – many of them by companies bringing the technology into their products for attorneys. One survey says three quarters of lawyers expect AI to be integrated into their legal practices in the near term. Half say they expect it will boost productivity, half feel it will be transformative, while  nine out of ten attorneys expressed concerns about artificial intelligence applications and attendant ethical issues.  In an article she wrote for Above the Law, you're going to hear even more about generative artificial intelligence in the coming months, “especially” she says, “as legal technology companies ramp up their generative ai releases.” She forecasts “a rapid, exponential uptick in the number of new GAI tools for legal professionals.” And, as she reminded me, litigators have an ethical duty of technology competence.  Nicole "Niki" Black is a Rochester, New York-based attorney, author and journalist, and is senior director of subject matter expertise and external education at MyCase, a company that offers legal practice management software for small firms. She is the nationally recognized author of cloud computing for lawyers and is co-author of social media for lawyers: the next frontier, both published by the American Bar Association. She writes regular columns for abajournal.com and Above the Law; has authored hundreds of articles for other publications; and regularly speaks at conferences regarding the intersection of law and emerging technologies. Nicole earned her J.D. from Albany Law School.Listen as I interview, first, Google Gemini fka Bard, for fun, then our real-life human attorney guest, about the current state and future of generative artificial intelligence and the practice of law. Tom HagyHostEmerging Litigation Podcast***This podcast is the audio companion to the Journal of Emerging Issues in Litigation. The Journal is a collaborative project between HB Litigation Conferences and the vLex Fastcase legal research family, which includes Full Court Press, Law Street Media, and Docket Alarm.If you have comments, ideas, or wish to participate, please drop me a note at Editor@LitigationConferences.com.Tom HagyLitigation Enthusiast andHost of the Emerging Litigation PodcastHome PageLinkedIn

Ray Brescia, a law professor at Albany Law School, has taken a hard look at the country's legal system in his new book, Lawyer Nation: The Past, Present and Future of the American Legal Profession. In this episode of The Modern Law Library, Brescia tells the ABA Journal's Lee Rawles about the efforts in the late 19th and early 20th century to exclude people from the legal profession who were not part of the dominant social class, and how access-to-justice issues persist today as a result of some of those measures. The early American Bar Association is one of the organizations he names as a participant in the exclusionary efforts through its law school accreditation program, and he and Rawles discuss the ABA's current efforts to increase diversity, equity and inclusion. As someone who has worked in academia, the non-profit world, legal aid organizations and as a clerk at the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, he says he's come across many people who care deeply and want the justice system to function better. But without fundamental changes to the ways legal services are delivered, he does not think the access-to-justice issues can be solved. A large part of Brescia's concern that he expresses in Lawyer Nation is for legal professionals themselves. Brescia says the mental illness and substance-use levels within the profession demonstrate that greater care has to be shown for lawyers' well-being and work-life balance. He shares his advice for making the profession more sustainable for the incoming generation. He also discusses how law schools and legal education can change.

Ray Brescia, a law professor at Albany Law School, has taken a hard look at the country's legal system in his new book, Lawyer Nation: The Past, Present and Future of the American Legal Profession. In this episode of The Modern Law Library, Brescia tells the ABA Journal's Lee Rawles about the efforts in the late 19th and early 20th century to exclude people from the legal profession who were not part of the dominant social class, and how access-to-justice issues persist today as a result of some of those measures. The early American Bar Association is one of the organizations he names as a participant in the exclusionary efforts through its law school accreditation program, and he and Rawles discuss the ABA's current efforts to increase diversity, equity and inclusion. As someone who has worked in academia, the non-profit world, legal aid organizations and as a clerk at the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, he says he's come across many people who care deeply and want the justice system to function better. But without fundamental changes to the ways legal services are delivered, he does not think the access-to-justice issues can be solved. A large part of Brescia's concern that he expresses in Lawyer Nation is for legal professionals themselves. Brescia says the mental illness and substance-use levels within the profession demonstrate that greater care has to be shown for lawyers' well-being and work-life balance. He shares his advice for making the profession more sustainable for the incoming generation. He also discusses how law schools and legal education can change.

Ray Brescia, a law professor at Albany Law School, has taken a hard look at the country's legal system in his new book, Lawyer Nation: The Past, Present and Future of the American Legal Profession. In this episode of The Modern Law Library, Brescia tells the ABA Journal's Lee Rawles about the efforts in the late 19th and early 20th century to exclude people from the legal profession who were not part of the dominant social class, and how access-to-justice issues persist today as a result of some of those measures. The early American Bar Association is one of the organizations he names as a participant in the exclusionary efforts through its law school accreditation program, and he and Rawles discuss the ABA's current efforts to increase diversity, equity and inclusion. As someone who has worked in academia, the non-profit world, legal aid organizations and as a clerk at the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, he says he's come across many people who care deeply and want the justice system to function better. But without fundamental changes to the ways legal services are delivered, he does not think the access-to-justice issues can be solved. A large part of Brescia's concern that he expresses in Lawyer Nation is for legal professionals themselves. Brescia says the mental illness and substance-use levels within the profession demonstrate that greater care has to be shown for lawyers' well-being and work-life balance. He shares his advice for making the profession more sustainable for the incoming generation. He also discusses how law schools and legal education can change.

Today we welcome to the show, Professor Ray Brescia, the Associate Dean for Research and Intellectual Life at Albany Law School. He has been featured on the LA Times, the Washington Post, and the Hill to name a few. His profile in The New York Times was entitled; Big Cases, Small Pay, and a Lawyer Happy with Both. Brescia is the author of The Future of Change: How Technology Shapes Social Revolutions and several other fascinating titles, including his latest, “Lawyer Nation, the Past, Present and Future of the American Legal Profession. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices