Tag Archives: History

The Scholars’ Circle & Insighters Radio- July 28th, 2013

First, is the US House Speaker Newt Gingirch responsible for damaging the culture and productivity of the US Senate? An interview with Sean Theriault, author of,
The Gingrich Senators: The Roots of Partisan Warfare in Congress. [ dur: 27 mins. ]

  • Sean Theriault is an Associate Professor in the Department of Government at the University of Texas at Austin. He is the author of, The Power of the People: Congressional Competition, Public Attention, and Voter Retribution , Party Polarization in Congress, and his latest, The Gingrich Senators:The Roots of Partisan Warfare in Congress.

Then, on the Scholars’ Circle panel, the so-called “memory entrepreneurs” try to change how we remember the past to shape the future. Are they losing the Cold War memory fight? [ dur: 30 mins. ]

  • Ellen Schrecker, Prof. of History, Yeshiva Univ.. Author of No Ivory Tower: McCarthyism and the Universities
  • Jon Wiener, Prof. of History, UC Irvine; Author of How We Forgot the Cold War: A Historical Journey across America
  • Doug Becker, International Relations, USC.

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The Scholars’ Circle & Insighters Radio- Apr. 14th, 2013

First, we’ll begin with the surprising ways that Hollywood actors have shaped American politics and who have some of the most groundbreaking and influential on the body politic. [ dur: 27 mins. ]

Then, how do our experiences, our traumas, diets and lifestyles get coded in our genetic systems and passed on to our offspring and their offspring? How do they affect our health and our politics? [ dur: 28 mins. ]

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Insighters Radio- Mar. 10th, 2013

First, we speak with Nancy Gibbs, Time magazine editor and author of “The President’s Club: Inside the World’s Most Exclusive Fraternity “, on one of the world’s most exclusive and influential clubs. [ dur. 29 mins. ]

Then, did the sexual counter revolution polarize American politics? We speak with Nancy Cohen visiting scholar at UCLA and author of  “Delirium:How the Sexual Counterrevolution is Polarizing America”. [ dur. 27 mins. ]

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The Scholars’ Circle & Insighters Radio- Feb. 17th, 2013

Begin with, President Obama used the state of the union address to galvanize support for his agenda. How does his state of the union compare to those of his predecessors? [ dur. 12:51 ]

  • Ryan Lee Teten, Professor of Political Science at Univ. of Louisiana.  Author of  – Evolution of Rehtorical Presidency.

Then, for President’s Day, we’ll take a peek inside the strange political marriage of Presidents Eisenhower and Nixon and how their terms shaped US politics and policy. [ dur. 41mins. ]

  • Jeffery Frank, author, journalist;  Author of Ike and Dick of Strange Political Marriage.

Finally, we’ll revisit the 1920 founding of Black History Month and in advance of its 50th anniversary, the pivotal civil rights campaign in Birmingham. [ dur. 18 mins. ]

  • VB Franklin, Distinguished Prof. History at UC Riverside. Author of Education of Black Philidelphia.

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The Scholars’ circle & Insighters Radio- Jan. 20th, 2013

In this hour, can a breakthrough in DNA snipping lead to curing AIDS and other diseases?

  • Jennifer A. Doudna is Professor of Chemistry and Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology at UC, Berkeley. She is the author of numerous publications including, “RNA-programmed genome editing in human cells”, “A Programmable Dual-RNA-Guided DNA Endonuclease in Adaptive Bacterial Immunity” and “RNA-Guided Human Genome Engineering via Cas9.”

Then, the Postal Service is in dire straits. What is the future of US mail?

  • A. Lee Fritschler is a Professor in the School of Public Policy at George Mason University. He is the co-author of numerous publications and books including, “Closed Minds? Politics and Ideology in American Universities” ,  and “Smoking and Politics: Bureaucracy Centered Policy Making, Sixth edition”.

Finally, on the Scholars’ Circle, how will the Obama Administrations proposals to address gun violence fare with the congress and the supreme court?

  • David S. Law is Professor of Law and Political Science at Washington University in St. Louis, and currently Visiting Professor at Georgetown University Law Center. He is author of numerous publications and co-author with Mila Versteeg of, “The Declining Influence of the US Constitution” and “The Evolution and Ideology of Global Constitutionalism”.
  • Sanford Levinson holds the W. St. John Garwood and W. St. John Garwood, Jr. Centennial Chair in Law and is Professor of Government at the University of Texas at Austin. He is the author of numerous publications and books including, “Wrestling With Diversity” and most recently, “Our Undemocratic Constitution: Where the Constitution Goes Wrong (and How We the People Can Correct It)”.
  • Erwin Chemerinsky is the founding dean and distinguished Professor of Law at the University of California, Irvine School of Law, with a joint appointment in Political Science. He is the author numerous books most  recently, “The Conservative Assault on the Constitution”, “Enhancing Government: Federalism for the 21st Century” and “Interpreting the Constitution”.

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Insighters Radio- Nov. 25th, 2012

First, it’s been 50 years since the Cuban Missile Crises. What really happened? We’ll explore through newly declassified documents. Joining us is Peter Kornbluh, director of the Cuba Documentation Project and the Chile Documentation Project at the National Security Archive. He is co-author of “The Iran-Contra Scandal: The Declassified History,” and author of “The Pinochet File: A Declassified Dossier on Atrocity and Accountability.” [ dur. 21 mins. ]

Later, Lizz Winstead talks about the birth of the ‘Daily Show,’ the death of ‘Air America Radio,’ and the state of the media and comedy today. Lizz Winstead is co-creator and former head writer of The Daily Show and Air America Radio co-founder. After creating “The Daily Show,” Lizz Winstead formed ‘Shoot the Messenger Productions’ to create and develop other projects for television and theater and the web. She is also the author of, “Lizz Free or Die: Essays.”

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Insighters & Scholars Circle- Nov. 4th, 2012

First, last week we began our conversation with Michael Grunwald, award winning journalist and author of the New New Deal. He described the process of passing the President’s signature policies. We continue with part II of what he calls President Obama’s new new deal. [ Dur. 29 mins. ]

With Scholars’ Circle:  Since January 2011, at least 180 bills were introduced in 41 states in efforts to restrict or suppress voting, according to the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU. However, nearly all of the worst new laws were blocked or repealed, largely as a result of actions in the courts. Some measures that still remain could affect up to 5 million citizens this election. Some watchdogs have suggested that suppression efforts are becoming more sophisticated and difficult to control, given the current laws We’re joined by three experts. [ Dur. 27 mins. ]

  • Alexander Keyssar is Professor of History and Social Policy at Harvard. His book, “The Right to Vote: The Contested History of Democracy in the United States (2000),” was named the best book in U.S. history by both the American Historical Association and the Historical Society; it was also a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize.
  • Daniel Tokaji, is Professor of Law, Senior Fellow at Election Law @ Moritz at Ohio State University, co-author of “Casebook Election Law: Cases and Materials,” and co-editor of Election Law Journal.
  • Lorraine Minnite is Professor of Public Policy and Administration, and Director of undergraduate Urban Studies Program at Rutgers University. She is the author of, “The Myth of Voter Fraud,” and Coauthor of “Keeping Down the Black Vote: Race and the Demobilization of American Voters.”

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Insighters & Scholars’ Circle – April 8st, 2012

First, did the sexual counter revolution polarize American politics? With author Nancy Cohen ( UCLA ) author of the just released book. Delirium: How the Sexual Counterrevolution is Polarizing America. [duration: 29 min.]

Then, on the scholars’ circle, how might the power of ideas shape countries and international power structures. [duration: 25 min. ]

  • Liz Borgwardt, Univ. of Chicago, author.
  • Christopher McKnight Nichols, Univ. Of Penn.
  • Tim Lynch, Univ. of Melbourne.

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Insighters & Scholars’ Circle – April 1st, 2012

Our interview with scholars’ about following questions:

1) How much does the President drive US foreign policy and how much is driven by other factors?  [duration: 25 min.]

With:

  • Prof. Jeremy Suri, Univ. of TX, Austin. Author of  Liberty’s Surest Guardian: American Nation-Building from the Founders to Obama.
  • Prof. James D. Boys, Richmond Univ., London.

2) What are the issues that will determine our next president?
[ duration: 27 min. ]

With:

  • Prof. Thomas Holbrook, Univ. of WI. , author of Do Campaigns Matter? Contemporary American Politics.
  • Prof. Robert C. Smith, SF State Univ. , author of Conservatism and Racism, and Why in American They Are the Same.
  • Prof. Jan Leighley, American Univ. , author of  Strength in Numbers? The political Mobilization of Racial and Ethnic Minorities.

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