September 26, 2020

Discourse Disrupters
from Intelligence Squared U.S.

Newt Minow on American Presidential Debates

In a 1955 memo to his boss, attorney Newt Minow first suggested the idea of presidential debates. In the decades since, these debates have become some of the biggest and most influential moments in political history. And Newt, who serves on the commission that sponsors them, has watched them evolve first-hand.

What does the father of American presidential debate think about modern electoral politics?  In this program, Newt Minow offers a first-hand account of some of the nation's biggest political moments and just what role debate should play in our future.

September 19, 2020

The Nonviolent Path of Cesar Chavez

Known for his co-leadership of the United Farm Workers movement, Cesar Chavez is remembered for his commitment to nonviolent resistance in his campaigns for social, racial, and labor justice.

A conversational profile of Cesar Chavez featuring his United Farm Workers co-founder Dolores Huerta, Chavez scholar Jose-Antonio Orosco and Texas community organizer Juanita Valdez Cox. Together they tell Chavez' story and assess his influence to the causes of labor rights, civil rights and nonviolent conflict resolution.

September 12, 2020

Diaries of a Divided Nation 2020

Over the past year, a team of audio journalists have documented the lives of seven ordinary people with different views, living in different places, and with different stakes in politics. 

Our reporters captured their reactions as their lives were upended by the coronavirus pandemic and the nation's racial awakening. As they look ahead to November's election, they long for civility and fear social breakdown.

September 5, 2020

Barbecue: A Labor Day Special
from Constant Wonder

The word "barbecue" is not just used to describe a type of food, it represents a cultural institution. What if barbecue is truly first and foremost, something as big as an event; a cultural phenomenon? What if barbecue has more of a social aspect to it than simply a culinary sort of meaning? Celebrate with us as we delve into history and commentary of "barbecue" and it's social implications.