The Capitol Forum

What happens if an AI chatbot tells someone to kill someone else?  Tragically, this situation unfolded at a Florida school when a shooter asked ChatGPT for advice on how to conduct a school shooting. But do the creators of ChatGPT bear any responsibility? That's what Erie Meyer, former chief technology officer of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, thinks, and in this episode of Second Reque...

In the second episode of The Surveillance Economy , a mini-series from The Capitol Forum Investigates , Arjun Singh sits down with Andrew G. Ferguson, a law professor and expert in policing and technology, to discuss his new book Your Data, Will Be Used Against You: Policing in the Age of Self-Surveillance . Together, the two discuss how law enforcement agencies use personal data from data brokers...

Corporations are spying on you — and you've given them permission to do it. Every time we log on to a browser, open an app or share information with a business, that data is packaged and sold. This lucrative business, however, has turned consumer technology into a surveillance apparatus, and that information is being sold to governments around the world. In the first episode of a special two-part...

Who will pick up the pieces if the AI hype fizzles? Today on Second Request , Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with Matthew Scherer of the Open Markets Institute to discuss his recent report, "No Bailouts for Big Tech Billionaires: Policies for When the AI Bubble Bursts." Together, the two examine the massive debt fueling artificial intelligence spending and the role of private credit, shad...

In 1961, Congress granted the NFL an antitrust exemption allowing the league to collectively negotiate broadcasting rights, revolutionizing sports broadcasting in America. Now, streaming companies like Amazon argue the law doesn't cover them, and that NFL teams can't collectively bargain with them for broadcasting rights. Today on Second Request, Executive Editor Teddy Downey speaks with Katie Van...

Will the budget airline die with Spirit Airlines? For decades, four major carriers have controlled most of the U.S. airline market — but the collapse of Spirit has renewed questions about the future of flying and what less competition means for airfare. Today on Second Request , Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with Gene Burrus, founder of Burrus Competition Strategies, to talk about the st...

When you signed up for Disney+, you probably signed away your right to sue Disney. Most Americans have — buried in the terms and conditions of many apps is a legal clause called forced arbitration, and it's become corporate America's get-out-of-court-free card. Today on Second Request , Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with Brendan Ballou — former special counsel in the DOJ's Antitrust Divi...

In this episode of Second Request , Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with Dr. Courtney Radsch to discuss her new paper examining content licensing relationships between publishers and artificial intelligence firms. Together, the two look at how A.I. companies utilize published information and the policy tools that could empower publishers to prevent A.I. firms from improperly using their ma...

Is the Live Nation-Ticketmaster era finally over? In a landmark verdict, a jury found that Live Nation-Ticketmaster operated an illegal monopoly — a conclusion that musicians, venue owners, and fans had been waiting years to hear. For decades, Ticketmaster held the concert industry in a stranglehold, leveraging its market dominance and even government resources to lock out any competition that dar...

Why is Irish butter better than American? It's about consolidation. Today on Second Request , Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with author and agricultural policy expert Austin Frerick to look at the state of consolidation in the American food industry, and emerging regulatory trends in the agricultural sector. 

In this episode of Second Request , Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with John Newman, an antitrust expert and professor at the University of Memphis, to discuss Newman's recent paper "Lawless Antitrust" and the how antitrust enforcement has deviated from statutory text. 

Humanity is outsourcing decision making to machines. Today on Second Request , Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with Gideon Nave and Stephen Shaw, two researchers from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania to discuss their recent research on the influence of artificial intelligence on human decision making.

Trillions in commitments. Billions in off-balance-sheet debt. Circular investments between vendors and their own customers. The AI infrastructure build-out looks less like a gold rush and more like a house of cards — and policymakers have no plan for when it falls. Today on Second Request, executive editor Teddy Downey sits down with Asad Ramzanali, Director of AI and Technology Policy at the Vand...

Understanding A.I., it seems, is the fastest way to start doubting it. Today on Second Request, we're re-sharing a conversation Executive Editor Teddy had with Chiara Longoni, Associate Professor of Marketing at Bocconi University, to discuss her research on AI literacy — and why people who understand AI less may actually trust it more. Note: This conversation originally aired on Second Request on...

Your life insurance policy may be private equity's ticking financial time bomb. In this episode of The Capitol Forum Investigates , reporter Lisa Epstein explains her recent investigation into sweeping changes in the life and annuities sector driven by private equity-owned insurers. Despite promising security to policyholders, many of these companies use complex financial structures to shift liabi...

In this episode of Second Request , Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with Brendan Ballou, founder of the Public Integrity Project, to examine corruption enforcement under the Trump administration. They also discuss the legal implications of Trump's presidential pardons, which have been criticized for benefitting allies and donors.  To learn more about The Capitol Forum follow us on Linkedin...

Affordability is the hottest word in politics, but how does it actually become a reality? One idea: home savings accounts to help new homebuyers compete in an inflated real estate market. Today on Second Request , executive editor Teddy Downey sits down with Jon Schweppe, director of policy initiatives at the American Principles Project, to hear why he thinks home savings accounts could be a power...

Today on Second Request , Executive Editor Teddy Downey is joined by Jonathan Kanter, the former Assistant Attorney General for the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice from 2021 to 2024. Together, they unpack the evolving antitrust argument against Ticketmaster. Editor’s note: This conversation was recorded before the Department of Justice announced a settlement with Ticketmaster on Ma...

Today on Second Request , Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with Seth Bloom,  President and Founder of Bloom Strategic Counsel, to unpack what would have been the antitrust implications of Netflix's potential acquisition of Warner Bros.  This conversation was recorded before Netflix announced they would be ending their bid for Warner Bros.  To learn more about The Capitol Forum follow us on...

In November, the Department of Justice made headlines when they announced a settlement with the software company RealPage in the DOJ's lawsuit against the company for antitrust violations.  But, some have questioned that strategy, especially with several state governments pursuing action against the company.  In this episode of Second Request , Executive Editor Teddy Downey unpacks the DOJ's settl...

When a Pittsburgh based business owner opened a franchise of one of Xponential Fitness' exercise brands, he had no idea it would end in bankruptcy, intimidation and threats of violence.  Today on The Capitol Forum Investigates , investigative correspondent Kim Geiger discusses her multi-year investigation into the company Xponential Fitness, and reveals how they lured franchise owners into a preda...

Today on Second Request , Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with Sacha Sloan a senior correspondent at The Capitol Forum to discuss Sacha's recent reporting on potential collusion in the microchip sector. Together they discuss how coordinated production cuts, reduced capital expenditures, and public signaling by major NAND manufacturers are contributing to a sharp supply crunch and record pr...

2026 could make or break Roblox. That's because the multi-billion dollar children's video game company is mired in dozens of private lawsuits on top of multiple probes from several state governments, the FTC and the DOJ. In this episode of The Capitol Forum Investigates , reporter Ethan Ehrenhaft sits down with Arjun Singh to talk about the future of Roblox in the wake of major allegations of sexu...

Today on The Capitol Forum Investigates , correspondent Krista Brown discusses the use of artificial intelligence in airline pricing, and how it could potentially lead to personalized prices for plane tickets. Aviation expert Bill McGee of the American Economic Liberties Project explains how consolidation in the airline sector has led to price gouging for passengers. Noah Giansiracusa, author of t...

Today on Second Request, Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with antitrust expert Hal Singer, who argues why AirBnb is violating antitrust laws, and how enforcement could address distortions in the housing and rental markets. The conversation centers on Singer’s recent article,  “The Antitrust Case Against Airbnb,”  which analyzes how Airbnb’s “Smart Pricing” algorithm may facilitate price co...