NPC Update-1 Podcast

The founding fathers of American democracy felt strongly about the need to hold the new government accountable and prevent tyranny. They embraced the free press as a watchdog to expose corruption and provide a safeguard to keep power in the hands of the people. Do Americans today still share those views, or has the evolution of technology left us vulnerable to malicious influence that has undermin...

On this edition of Update One, veteran political journalist Larry Barrett, who covered campaigns, elections, and the White House, notably for Time Magazine and the New York Herald Tribune, looks at the early stages of the 2020 campaign, and the lessons learned--or the lessons that should have been learned--by the media. Interviewed by longtime Press Club member Irv Chapman, Barrett compares the Tr...

In this edition of Update-1, Broadcast/Podcast Committee member Lincoln Smith interviews Ambassador Stuart Holliday, the president and chief executive officer of the Meridian International Center, a non-partisan diplomatic and global leadership institution that strengthens U.S. engagement around the world.  Ambassador Holliday has served an ambassador to the United Nations, as a Naval intelli...

Senate Historian Betty Koed talks about the many resources her office offers journalists to help them cover current events and put their stories into a historical context. In an interview with Broadcast/Podcast team member Janice Law, she also discusses the importance of being the institutional memory of the Senate and an oral history project planned for the centennial celebration of the 19th amen...

On this edition of Update-1, a former State Department negotiator with the North Koreans offers background on the current efforts to promote nuclear disarmament. Joel Wit directs a project at the Stimson Center called 38 North, a reference to the 38th parallel of latitude that has divided North and South Korea since 1953. Interviewed by Broadcast/Podcast member Irv Chapman, Wit recalls the attempt...

In an era when journalists change employers often out of necessity, Barb Zuehlke has broken the mold. On the cusp of retirement later in 2019, Zuehlke, now senior editor at Aircraft Maintenance Technology, is celebrating a 40-year career for the same publishing company. She spoke with NPC Broadcast/Podcast Committee co-vice chair Adam Konowe on the floor of an aviation maintenance convention to di...

Austin Tice is the only American journalist currently being held overseas, and the National Press Club is spearheading an effort to bring him home. In this edition of Update 1 NPC Executive Director Bill McCarren and Austin's parents, Marc and Debra Tice, join Broadcast/Podcast Committee co-Vice Chair Mike Hempen to discuss the "Night Out For Austin Tice." The May 2 event will raise reward money f...

The murder in January of investigative journalist Ahmed Hussein Suale-Divela in Ghana, one of Africa’s most stable and democratic countries, shocked the country and journalists around the world. The National Press Club called for a thorough investigation, and urged Ghanaian officials to ensure that journalists can work without the threat of violence. Journalist and lawyer George Sarpong, executive...

The National Press Club has redoubled its efforts to highlight injustices resulting from multiple verbal, legal and even physical attacks on the media. John Donnelly, chair of the club’s Freedom of the Press team, spoke with Broadcast/Podcast co-vice chair Adam Konowe about a range of domestic and international initiatives intended to reinforce the vital role journalism plays in ensuring transpare...

U.S. foreign policy can be complex and difficult to understand. In this episode of Update-1, George Washington University political science professor Dr. Henry Nau discusses his book, "Perspectives on International Relations," with NPC Broadcast/Podcast team member Lincoln Smith. Dr. Nau provides an understandable synthesis of the world of foreign policy, and talks about the approaches used by Pre...

The task of helping people of all ages glean the facts and screen out the exaggeration, bias, and misinformation from their sources of news requires a variety of targeted approaches. Dr. Belinha De Abreu is a member of the leadership council of the American Association for Media Literacy Education. She assisted the American Library Association in developing programs for adults in public libraries....

After three decades as a political reporter, editor and columnist, National Press Club member David Hawkings has become an entrepreneur. He's now the editor-in-chief of The Firewall, an editorially independent digital news publication dedicated to covering political reform at the national, state and local levels. In this episode of Update-1, Hawkings talks with Broadcast/Podcast team member Mike H...

In the latest episode of Update-1, National Press Club members Michael Yessis and Molly McCluskey discuss everything newsletters - which ones they read, what they’ve learned by starting their own, and advice for future newsletter creators. Michael is the founder and editor of This Week in Podcasts (@WeekinPodcasts), which offers a weekly roundup in all of the best and latest podcast episodes you m...

Maria Ressa, one of the journalists Time magazine honored as it's "Person of the Year" in 2018, also is a co-founder and editor of Rappler, a news website that was ahead of the curve in her native Philippines by offering hard news and video via internet and mobile. Before being recognized by Time, she was interviewed for Update-1 by Irv Chapman, a longtime member of the National Press Club, during...

Fake videos are a new form of digital media manipulation, and the former president and chief executive of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty is warning about their dangers. In this edition of Update-1, Thomas Kent talks to Broadcast/Podcast team member Tom Young about technology being used to create video of events that never happened, or video of people making statements they never made. Kent descri...

Journalists are especially vulnerable to hackers trying to access sensitive, confidential data. With growing threats against press freedom around the world, reporters are frequent targets for both public and private sector snooping. It is more important than ever to protect data, drafts, and sources from prying eyes. In this Update-1 podcast, Dr. Andy Yen, CEO and co-founder of ProtonMail, speaks...

For nearly 70 years, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization has provided a system of collective defense for North American and European Nations. Known as NATO, the alliance has grown from 12 nations when it came into existence in 1949 to 29, but it has maintained a system of collective defense in which independent member nations subscribe to mutual defense. NPC Broadcast/Podcast Committee member L...

What challenges do journalists face when reporting from a secretive regime like North Korea? National Public Radio's Mary Louise Kelly recently visited North Korea to cover the 70th anniversary of the country's founding. She referred to her official guide as a "one-man journalism prevention service." Broadcast/Podcast Committee member Tom Young spoke with her about practicing journalism in a count...

The International Center for Journalists was founded in 1984 by three veteran editors who sought to help jump start an independent press in emerging nations, including those emerging from home-grown dictatorship. Joyce Barnathan, the organization’s president for the last 12 years. is a former Moscow correspondent for Newsweek, and Hong-Kong-based Asia editor for Business Week. Broadcast/Podcast Co...

The inaugural Defence Media Dinner (Defence with a C due to the event’s British organizer) was held this year at the National Press Club on Sunday, October 7, the eve of the annual Association of the U.S. Army trade show at the Washington Convention Center. NPC Broadcast/Podcast Team member Adam Konowe, head of the judging panel, was at the event founded by aerospace and defense industry veteran P...

New York Times correspondent John Herbers was born to a white family in the segregated South, but he went on to earn praise for his pivotal coverage of the civil rights movement. Broadcast/Podcast Committee member Viola Gienger speaks with his daughter, journalist Anne Farris Rosen, about the personal and professional journey Herbers chronicled – and the lessons for journalists today -- in the mem...