Meeting of Minds Podcast

In Ep. #130, Isaac Willour from Bowyer Research sits down with Luke and Jennifer Richey, cofounders of Haiven, a safe, AI-powered gaming and chat platform designed to protect, connect, and empower the next generation online. Join us for a discussion on: What parents need to know about the reality of child safety on online gaming platforms How Haiven is changing the game in combatting grooming and...

In Ep. 129, Isaac Willour from Bowyer Research sits down with Tyler O’Neil, senior investigative reporter at the Daily Signal, one of the foremost journalists covering the Southern Poverty Law Center. Join us for a conversation covering: The latest in the DOJ’s indictment of the SPLC How corporate America is cutting ties with activist groups like the SPLC The moral and theological rami...

At Amazon's annual meeting, the company faced a shareholder proposal from the Heritage Foundation via its Free Enterprise Initiative over its reliance on the Southern Poverty Law Center in vetting charities. Stefan Padfield presented for Heritage, urging the company to drop this biased, discredited data source as part of its responsibility to fiduciary duty and political neutrality. "The board&rsq...

At American Express' annual meeting of shareholders, the company faced a shareholder proposal from Inspire Investing over its perfect score on the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index, one of the primary corporate activist rating systems for LGBTQ+ issues. Presenting at that meeting, along with Inspire's director of corporate engagement Tim Schwarzenberger, was Soren Aldaco, a detransi...

At Docusign's 2026 annual meeting, the company faced a shareholder proposal from Inspire Investing over the use of non-fiduciary metrics in executive compensation. Listen to Inspire's presentation from director of corporate engagement Tim Schwarzenberger, urging the company to prioritize executive clarity and business performance over diversity incentives. "The reputational risks of ESG and DEI el...

At S&P Global's annual meeting, the company faced a shareholder proposal from the Heritage Foundation via its Free Enterprise Initiative, asking the company to report on the risks of the company’s work with activist groups like the Human Rights Campaign. Meanwhile, the company became once again embroiled in controversy over its ESG rating policies  while this engagement was going on...

At Cummins' 2026 annual meeting, the company faced a shareholder proposal from David Bahnsen, founder of The Bahnsen Group, over the company's participation in activist rating systems like the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index. Listen to David's presentation, urging the company to prioritize core business over activist scorecards. "Cummins’ rating from the Human Rights Campaig...

In Ep. #128, Jerry talks with Tom Carter, president and co-founder of Ridgeline Research. Join us for a conversation on: Why companies like Exxon and Starbucks are moving to business-friendly red states Navigating corporate impact as part of a conservative coalition How Ridgeline’s American Conservative Values ETF handles corporate engagement See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy informati...

At Gilead Sciences' 2026 annual meeting, the company faced a shareholder proposal from David Bahnsen, founder of The Bahnsen Group over the use of ESG and DEI metrics in executive compensation. Listen to David's presentation, urging the company to prioritize executive clarity and business performance over activist incentives. "Gilead does not need to be grabbing headlines or seeking activist plaud...

At Truist's annual meeting, the company faced a shareholder proposal from the Heritage Foundation via its Free Enterprise Initiative over brand politicization. Stefan Padfield presented for Heritage, urging the company to choose political neutrality in key areas, including charitable policies. "While our nation has come to realize that nice-sounding phrases like “diversity, equity, and inclu...

At HPE’s annual meeting of shareholders, the company faced a shareholder proposal from a BR client over political neutrality in the company’s charitable partnerships. Presenting at that meeting was Bowyer Research's director of corporate engagement Isaac Willour, who laid out (1) the case for risk mitigation around controversial corproate partnerships, (2) what activist ratings indicat...

At Starbucks' annual meeting, the company faced a shareholder proposal from the Heritage Foundation via its Free Enterprise Initiative over its reliance on the Southern Poverty Law Center in vetting charities. Stefan Padfield presented for Heritage, urging the company to drop this biased, discredited data source as part of its responsibility to fiduciary duty and political neutrality. "Given that...

At Disney's annual meeting, the company faced a shareholder proposal from a client of Patron Partners, asking for transparency around the company's charitable giving practices, including reported exclusions of religious/politically conservative organizations such as TPUSA. Listen to her full remarks here. "I love Disney, and the many happy moments it’s provided me and my family and frie...

At John Deere's annual meeting of shareholders, the company faced a shareholder proposal from a BR client over its notable absence of faith-based employee resource groups (ERGs/BRGs). Presenting at that meeting was Bowyer Research's director of corporate engagement Isaac Willour, who laid out (1) the case for faith-based BRGs, (2) the company's baffling opposition to the proposal, and (3) why comm...

In Ep. 127, Jerry talks with Greg Scott, executive vice president at the corporate research organization 1792 Exchange, for an illuminating conversation around the even-more-disgraced Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC). Join us for a discussion on: What you need to know about the DOJ’s indictment of the SPLC. The disturbing connection between the Southern Poverty Law Center’s hate map...

At IBM's annual meeting of shareholders, the company faced a shareholder proposal from the Heritage Foundation via its Free Enterprise Initiative over its perfect score on the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index, one of the primary corporate activist rating systems for LGBTQ+ issues. Presenting at that meeting was Camille Kiefel, a detransitioner (someone who undergoes gender transiti...

In Ep. #126, Jerry talks with Justin Danhof, Director of Policy at the Department of Labor's EBSA division, to explain recent executive actions around proxy advisory services, what you need to know, and how it affects the financial freedom and future of ordinary Americans. Join us for a conversation around: What is a proxy advisory service – and why should you care? Which factors determine w...

In Ep. 125, Isaac Willour talks with Dustin DeVito, director of research at 1792 Exchange, a nonprofit helping to get politics out of corporate America (and one of Bowyer Research's many partner organizations). Join us for a conversation on: The latest iteration of the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index Why companies are backing away from gender ideology The future of getting corpora...

In December 2025, Bowyer Research president Jerry Bowyer delivered a speech on Genesis 1 at the 25 th annual symposium for the Center for Cultural Leadership (CCL). After that speech was over, CCL senior fellow David Bahnsen remarked, “Can you imagine what would happen for Christian-oriented economics if the 30 minutes Jerry Bowyer gave here today were permeated across the land? The leverage...

In Ep. 124, Isaac Willour talks with Thomas Dias, Foundation Relations Specialist at the Acton Institute, about how Gen-Z can approach AI constructively, not reflexively. Join us for a discussion on: - How young Christians should be viewing technological innovation - The use case for AI - Responding to AI skepticism in 2026 and beyond See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In Ep. 123, Jerry talks with C. Theodore Hicks II (CFP, CKA, CMT), founder and CEO of Hicks & Associates Wealth Management, about: The flaws in modern portfolio theory Is ‘diversification’ a free lunch? Lessons from Warren Buffett’s ‘secret sauce’ of investing Why financial advisors need to be ‘good Bereans’ – and what that means. Read Ted’...

In Episode 122, Jerry is joined by Dr. Allen Mendenhall, Senior Advisor for the Free Enterprise Initiative at the Heritage Foundation. Dr. Mendenhall previously worked as a lawyer and served as the Associate Dean of the Sorrell College of Business. Join us for a fascinating discussion on: What Ayn Rand-style libertarianism gets wrong about capitalism How ESG activism inherently hinders the knowled...

In Ep. 121, Jerry Bowyer interviews Rick Graber, CEO of The Bradley Foundation and former U.S. Ambassador to the Czech Republic, on the right’s shift from classical liberalism to nationalism, the failure to defend capitalism, and victories against DEI and ESG. Graber warns about judicial overreach and rising anti-Semitism, explains how Bradley Foundation grantees are steering corporations ba...

Jerry Bowyer talks with Missouri State Auditor Scott Fitzpatrick about the hidden influence of proxy advisory firms like ISS and Glass Lewis. Fitzpatrick explains why most pension plans lacked proxy guidelines (and the results of not having them), and how the left uses boardrooms to advance agendas that fail at the ballot box. He shares progress made in pushing back against ESG and why the battle...

In Ep. 119, Jerry talks with West Virginia Treasurer Larry Pack, in a conversation touching on: How the ‘war on coal’ is connected to debanking controversies Debanking vs. Deplatforming: which is more dangerous, or are they the same? How Treasurer Pack is fighting for tax cuts for people wearing boots – not just suits. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.