The Elevator Podcast: Big Ideas in Short Rides

As Season One comes to a close, I reflect on photography not just as a way of capturing reality, but as a force that shapes memory, meaning, and history itself.

In my last episode of season one, I sit down with sociology professor Dr. Jimmie Bany to explore a powerful question: Does photography create social change, or simply reflect the world as it already is? We unpack how images do more than capture moments, they shape meaning. Drawing on sociological theory, including Durkheim’s concept of collective consciousness, we discuss how photographs become sh...

In a conversation with political science professor Dr. Claudia Sandoval, photography emerges as more than art, it becomes a powerful political tool. Reflecting on her upbringing in Inglewood during the Los Angeles Uprisings, Dr. Sandoval connects images to lived experiences of racial tension, community transformation, and political identity. Her work documents the shifting landscape of historicall...

On this episode of The Elevator Podcast, Dr. Mark Sellick unpacks politics not as a place, but as a process, driven by people, narratives, and power. Through that lens, photography emerges as far more than documentation; it becomes a political instrument. We explore how images construct and reinforce hierarchies, who gets included or excluded from the political “inside,” and how dominant narrative...

In this powerful and deeply reflective episode, Ethnic Studies professor Dr. Melanie Lindsay explores photography as both a tool of oppression and a force for resistance. Drawing on the words of James Baldwin, who wrote that “to be Black and conscious is to be in a constant state of rage”. The conversation confronts the painful visual legacy of slavery, violence, and dehumanization embedded in Ame...

In this episode of The Elevator Podcast, history professor Monica Hernandez explores the powerful role photography played in the Chicano Movement and its offshoots, including the farmworker movement. More than just documentation, photography became both a mirror and a weapon by documenting lived realities while challenging injustice. We discuss how images exposed generational poverty, police bruta...

In this episode of The Elevator Podcast, I sit down with Communications Studies professors Jose Oseguera and Rhejean Adu-Gyamfi to explore photography as a powerful non-verbal form of communication. We break down how images function within the communication process through encoding, decoding, channels, and feedback. We challenge the idea that photos simply “capture reality.” Instead, we argue that...

In this episode, I’m joined by Dr. Adam Felton, professor of psychology, for a fascinating conversation on how photography has shaped the field of psychology, and how it continues to shape the way we see each other. We explore how photographs became essential tools in psychological research, from studying facial recognition to understanding how we process visual stimuli. Dr. Felton breaks down our...

On this episode of The Elevator Podcast, I’m joined by Dr. Rhonda Taube for a thought-provoking ride up 13 floors as we explore one of the most transformative inventions in human history: photography. Together, we unpack how photography didn’t just change art, it reshaped how we understand reality, truth, and memory itself. Before the camera, artists were largely responsible for recording the worl...

In this episode, I sit down with Dr. Virgil Lee to trace the fascinating chemistry behind the birth of photography, and how humanity learned not just to see images, but to preserve them . We explore the early magic of the Camera Obscura, where light first painted the world upside down, long before anyone knew how to keep it. Artists like Leonardo da Vinci studied and refined these projections, usi...

In this episode of The elevator Podcast, I sit down with applied digital media professor Robert Delgadillo to explore the evolving role of photography in today’s media landscape. Our conversation dives into how photography shapes advertising and influences the way we connect with brands, often blurring the line between identity, aspiration, and consumption. From seeing ourselves reflected in campa...

In this reflective episode, I sit down with Nicholas, an artist and professor of photography, for a conversation that explores the deeper human power of the photographic image. Together, we unpack how photography captures and challenges diverse identities, giving visibility to stories in a powerful way. Nicholas shares his perspective on photography as a bridge across generations. We can see peopl...

In this introduction to season one of The Elevator Podcast, I introduce the first season’s focus on photography. Photography is an art form that is as personal as it is universal, a reflection on memory, identity, and the human need to capture fleeting moments.