Penn State McCourtney Institute for Democracy

Democracy Works

Government EN ↓ 331 episodes

The Democracy Works podcast seeks to answer that question by examining a different aspect of democratic life each week — from voting to criminal justice to the free press and everything in between. We interview experts who study democracy, as well as people who are out there doing the hard work of democracy day in and day out. The show’s name comes from Pennsylvania’s long tradition of iron and steel works — people coming together to build things greater than the sum of their parts. We believe that democracy is the same way. Each of us has a role to play in building and sustaining a healthy de...

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Penn State McCourtney Institute for Democracy

Episodes

How Democracies Die author Daniel Ziblatt on the ‘grinding work’ of democracy 10.04.2018 31:42

Daniel Ziblatt has done a lot of interviews since the release of How Democracies Die , the bestselling book he co-wrote with Steven Levitsky. But we asked him a question he’d never gotten before — about a line toward the end of the book when he refers to democracy as “grinding work.” The idea that democracy isn’t easy is a central theme of this podcast. As How Democracies Die illustrates, it’s m...

What can Pennsylvania voters do about gerrymandering? 03.04.2018 26:26

Chris Satullo Pennsylvania received a new congressional map earlier this year, closing the books on what was widely considered one of the most egregious examples of partisan gerrymandering after 2010 census. Chris Satullo sees that decision as winning the battle against gerrymandering, but not the war. Satullo, a civic engagement consultant for the Committee of Seventy , is involved with several...

Fake news, clickbait, and the future of local journalism 27.03.2018 32:05

Can philanthropy save local journalism? Are the calls of “fake news” from Washington impacting the work of journalists in other parts of the country? We discuss those questions and the role of the free press in a democracy with Halle Stockton , managing editor of PublicSource in Pittsburgh. Halle Stockton PublicSource is a nonprofit journalism organization in the style of ProPublica, funded primar...

Checking the President’s power 20.03.2018 33:10

From Watergate to Benghazi to Robert Mueller, U.S. history is full of congressional hearings. You’ve no doubt heard about them in the news, but do you know what those House and Senate committees actually do and what their role is in a democracy? Doug Kriner We address those questions and more with Doug Kriner , professor of Government at Cornell University and co-author of Investigating the Presid...

Is Colin Kaepernick a good democrat? 14.03.2018 26:34

Abe Khan No matter how much of a sports fan you are, you probably remember seeing Colin Kaepernick kneeling during National Anthem. President Trump took the debate to a whole new level when he said that anyone who does not respect the National Anthem and the flag should be fired. Kaepernick and those who followed him are the most recent example of athletes using their sports as a means to protest,...

Democracy Works: Asking big questions about democracy past, present, and future 12.03.2018 2:44

From the McCourtney Institute for Democracy at Penn State, this is Democracy Works. In this episode, hosts Michael Berkman and Chris Beem take a few minutes to explain why we wanted to start this podcast and what we hope to achieve through our interviews and conversations. They also explain the meaning behind the name Democracy Works. It’s about people coming together to build things that are grea...