Nerd Farmer Podcast

Brandi Buchman is the Law & Justice Reporter for HuffPost and has spent years covering the January 6 attack on the Capitol, its aftermath, and the prosecutions that followed. Few journalists have devoted more time...

Jordan Harper is among the best working writers of our time.  Last year, Harper joined the podcast ahead of the release of the film adaptation of his novel She Rides Shotgun. This week he returned...

Grant Wahl’s untimely passing in 2022 left a gaping hole in the global soccer community, and particularly in US journalism when it comes to speaking truth about FIFA. Grant was a champion for human rights...

This week, for the first time, I’m sitting down for an episode with a current student. I’ll call her “T” since, as we all know, people on the internet can be strange. T is a...

This is our third special episode discussing the US war on Iran and the wider regional complications.  Here are the headlines from the episode: We are safe and well We have secured a “good for...

This is our second special episode discussing the US war on Iran and the wider regional complications.  On Friday, we departed Abu Dhabi for Thailand. We’ll be living out of our backpacks until it is...

In preparation for the upcoming Academy Awards on March 16, this is our annual Oscars conversation. We ranked the ten Best Picture nominees and some films we wish would have been nominated. Chase is a...

This is a special episode, a conversation with Hope, about the situation here in Abu Dhabi and the broader Middle East thanks to the US war on Iran. Here are the headlines from the discussion:...

Tom Rademacher is a prior Minnesota State teacher of the Year, author, and parent to a really rad kid. Recently his family made the decision for the safety of their family to move to Spain. ...

I had the chance to sit down with Douglas Sackman, a history professor at the University of Puget Sound, for a conversation that feels especially timely. Professor Sackman joined me to talk about the Gilded...

Ramadan began this week. Somewhere around 2 billion Muslims around the world will be engaging in a day time fast for the next month. Living in the Gulf, Ramadan contorts my life in so many...

In December, I came across a post on the r/Tacoma subreddit that stopped me in my tracks. It was titled “Black Deported Veterans film screening” and invited people to a screening of the documentary, Bring...

State Senator Marko Liias represents Washington’s 21st Legislative District in North Puget Sound, which includes parts of Edmonds, Everett, Lynnwood, and Mukilteo. He currently chairs the State Senate’s Transportation Committee and previously served on the...

Professor Nick Brody teaches Communications at the University of Puget Sound. His research focuses on digital communication, cyber bullying, and the social implications of technology.  He joined us to talk about the concept of Morally...

Leiter joined us to discuss the growing pressure nonprofits are facing amid escalating threats and enforcement signals from the federal government. We talked about how bluster from the Department of Justice can shape philanthropic behavior...

Guardian correspondent Jason Wilson joined us to discuss his reporting on Elon Musk’s new Grokipedia.  The service, an online encyclopedia and purported rival to Wikipedia, serves up white nationalist talking points, pseudoscientific racial theories, and...

Republicans in Washington DC control the Whitehouse.  They also control both houses of Congress, majorities on every Congressional committee, and they chair every Congressional committee. The federal government is shut down on their watch. Marilyn...

This episode is an audio voters’ guide featuring Evelyn and Joe Lopez from Crossing Division: Tacoma’s Talk Show. We covered the following races in this episode: Tacoma Mayor, Tacoma City Council, Tacoma Civil Service Board,...

This week we welcome back Azeri dissident journalist Sevinc Osmanqizi, joining us for her third appearance on the show. Sevinc is one of the most prominent independent voices covering Azerbaijan and has a massive Azeri...

In July, a flood ripped through Kerr County, Texas, killing at least 104 people and leaving the community devastated. Federal emergency assistance was nowhere to be seen and then feckless when it finally arrived, a...

We’re closing out the summer with another edition of the Tacoma Small Business Series. This episode features Chris Langston of Proof, a new-ish cocktail lounge in Old Town. Chris was previously the mind behind en...

Halley returned as our most frequent guest, joined by Trayton for his third book club appearance, to take on How to Stand Up to a Dictator by Nobel Peace Prize winner Maria Ressa. We started...

Lisa Keating is an advocate for student well-being and making sure schools in Tacoma are welcoming to all students. This fall she is running for re-election. In this conversation, we looked back on her first...

Jordan Harper is an award winning writer, born and raised in the Ozarks, now based in Los Angeles.  Most widely known for award-winning novel She Rides Shotgun and his other crime fiction, he previously worked...

Senator Jessica Bateman represents the 22nd District in the Washington State Legislature. She is the chamber’s most outspoken housing advocate. She joined us for a conversation about the wins, losses, and unfinished work on housing...