Aspen Ideas to Go

Hate groups are growing and the number of hate-fueled incidents is spiking in America. The latest incident was in Charlottesville, Virginia, where white nationalists violently clashed with anti-fascist groups and other protesters. In the first month after Donald Trump won the presidency, the Southern Poverty Law Center catalogued 1,051 acts of intimidation and hate. Is hate on the rise? How do the...

It’s been called the most perilous drug crisis ever and it was generated in the healthcare system. The epicenter of the opioid crisis is the United States, where overdose deaths have quadrupled since 1999. President Trump has pledged to step up law enforcement and prevention. In this episode, a panel of experts discuss what’s being done, what needs to be done, and what we know works and doesn’t. F...

In this episode, you’ll hear from the nation’s new White House Chief of Staff, John Kelly. Kelly spoke in July at the Aspen Security Forum. At the time, his job was Homeland Security Secretary. In his conversation with Pete Williams, justice correspondent for NBC News, Kelly talks about Putin’s Russia, cybersecurity, and immigration. You’ll also get a glimpse of his leadership style. How will it a...

The confluence of globalization and the information revolution has primed the United States, and the world, for a resurgence of populism. Fareed Zakaria, host of CNN’s “Fareed Zakaria GPS,” explains how the populist ideology helped President Trump win the White House. Trump’s message of cultural anxiety connected with voters. It’s not an unfamiliar ideology. In this episode, Zakaria opens the hist...

Millennials shoulder a lot of stereotypes. They’re called entitled and in need of instant gratification. They’re not committed to their work and expect a work-life balance at their very first job. Do these labels actually define them? Are they really any different than the generations before them? In this lighthearted and informative conversation, organizational psychologist Adam Grant and inspira...

What are the most pressing external and internal threats to the United States? Two former US Intelligence officials discuss Syria, Russia, ISIS, and President Trump’s embattled relationship with the Intelligence community. John Brennan, former CIA Director, and James Clapper, former US Director of Intelligence, sit down with CNN’s Wolf Blitzer. Their conversation was part of the Aspen Security For...

After many setbacks, a possible vote to overhaul of the Affordable Care Act is back on the table. President Trump is urging Senators to pass a bill that repeals and replaces the ACA. In today’s show, Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price talks about the efforts in Washington, and what it’s like to work with President Trump. In his conversation with Jeffrey Goldberg, Editor in Chief of The...

Democrats face an uphill battle: republicans control the House, Senate, and the White House. Democrats hold the lowest number of state legislative seats since the turn of the 20th century. And, the number of governors who are Democrats is at its lowest level since the 1920s. In this episode, New Jersey Senator Cory Booker, a Democrat, talks about the problems Democrats, and all Americans, need to...

Despite controlling both the White House and Congress, the Republican Party has had a bumpy ride in the first months of the Trump administration. Trump isn’t a traditional party standard-bearer. So, can the party and the White House get in alignment on priorities and core values? What impact will the divide over ideology have on the Republican Party? Featuring Bill Kristol, editor-at-large of The...

Over the past year, the United States has been described as profoundly divided. But are these divisions as deep and hopeless as we think? The journalists in today’s show have made careers out of asking questions and listening to American voices. What have they gleaned from their thousands of conversations and interactions with people across the US? Featuring Joshua Johnson, Melissa Block, James Fa...

Known as the “land of lousy options,” North Korea has posed problems for the US for decades. But now, the country is testing its missiles regularly and the situation is increasingly dire. What are the best solutions for dealing with this escalating crisis? In this episode, speakers at the Aspen Ideas Festival work to demystify the North Korea subject, cut through the rhetoric, and examine what sol...

In our final podcast takeover episode, award-winning journalist Michele Norris discusses the legacy of slavery with a US mayor and the necessity of solitude with a best-selling author. In a conversation with New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu, Norris asks about Landrieu’s recent decision to remove four Confederate statues. Separately, Norris, who leads a program on race and cultural identity at the...

Joshua Johnson, host of WAMU’s “1A,” interviews Simon Sinek in this Takeover episode. Sinek teaches leaders and organizations how to inspire people. His 2009 Ted talk about how great leaders inspire others to take action, is the third most watched talk on TED.com. His books include Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action ; Leaders Eat Last: Why Some Teams Pull Together an...

In this Takeover episode, two comedians and a writer — Pete Dominick, Travon Free, and Wajahat Ali — discuss politics, race, and a changing America. How should citizens and politicians talk about race? What is white privilege? And how can we, as a country, find solutions to the problems minority communities face? This lively and funny conversation touches on serious topics. Travon Free is an actor...

Susan Page, Washington Bureau Chief of USA Today, takes over the podcast by interviewing a panel of DC outsiders. Nobody thinks Washington is working well these days. Page turns to unexpected sources — Liz Dozier, an award-winning educator from Chicago; Jeffrey Seller, a celebrated theatrical producer from New York; and Joshua Greene, an exceptional psychologist from Harvard — to brainstorm on wha...

In this Takeover episode, we examine the Supreme Court’s decision Monday to take the case regarding President Trump’s travel ban. The move was discussed at the Aspen Ideas Festival in an onstage panel including former US Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates and former US Acting Solicitor General Neal Katyal. The show includes an interview between Katyal and Podcast Takeover Host Perri Peltz. Peltz...

During the week of the Aspen Ideas Festival, going on now through July 1, five Takeover Hosts—Julie Rovner, Michele Norris, Joshua Johnson, Pete Dominick, and Susan Page—will extend the exciting conversations happening at the Aspen Idea Festival by interviewing other speakers right here on the podcast. This episode features Julie Rovner, chief Washington correspondent for Kaiser Health News, speak...

Black Lives Matter, the Occupy movement, the Tea Party, and many other groups have developed in recent years as a response to the age we’re living in — an age of epic political turbulence. Author Eric Liu says people across the political spectrum are reclaiming power. In his book You’re More Powerful Than You Think , he lays out the strategies of reform and revolution. In this episode, Liu uses ex...

As the second female justice confirmed to the US Supreme Court, Ruth Bader Ginsburg says her experiences as a female give her a unique perspective her male colleagues don’t share. In this episode, Justice Ginsburg talks about her relationships with Justices Sandra Day O’Connor and the late Antonin Scalia. She also explains what it’s like to work with newly-elected Justice Neil Gorsuch. Her discuss...

Thinking about the far-off future isn’t just an exercise in intellectual curiosity. It’s a practical skill that, as new research reveals, has a direct neurological link to greater creativity, empathy, and optimism. In this session from master game designer and acclaimed futurist Jane McGonigal, you’ll learn three practical habits that will increase the power of your imagination—and you’ll have the...

Netflix releases the fifth season of House of Cards today (5/30). In this encore episode Katie Couric interviews House of Cards creator Beau Willimon. The interview, from the Aspen Ideas Festival, took place before the show’s third season in 2015. The two have a lively conversation about Willimon’s career (he studied painting in college and later worked on political campaigns), and the turbulent l...

In this era of deep partisanship, how can common ground be found on Capitol Hill and on Main Street? In this episode, a pair of party leaders tackle relevant political questions, focusing on the divided state of America. Former Republican National Committee Chair Michael Steele sits down with Tom Perez, head of the Democratic National Committee. Voters are increasingly disappointed by candidates w...

Elisabeth Rosenthal writes about our broken healthcare system in her new book, An American Sickness: How Healthcare became Big Business and How You Can Take it Back . She says the system, comprised of hospitals, doctors, insurance companies, and drug manufacturers, is in tatters. Social and financial incentives have infected it, she says, rendering it disastrous and immoral. How has the Affordable...

While the subject of race and racism will likely continue to be a contentious topic for years to come, it is a discussion that is imperative for civil society. How does the dialogue on race continue? Will protests in the streets and boycotts become the new mode of discourse? What can be done to ease racial anxiety and promote common understanding? Former NPR Host and Director of The Race Card Proj...

When poet Elizabeth Acevedo taught creative writing to young women of color in a detention center, she recognized their trauma and avoided the teacher-as-savior mentality. Acevedo spoke at the Aspen Institute’s Summit on Inequality and Opportunity. The Summit brings together policymakers, thought leaders, and social entrepreneurs to talk about widening the opportunity gap. This episode features Ac...