Deseret Voices

In a political climate driven by tribalism and culture wars, how can citizens move toward peacemaking and common ground? On this episode of " Deseret Voices ," host McKay Coppins sits down with former federal judge Thomas B. Griffith for a thought-provoking conversation on civic duty, constitutional values and religious liberty. Drawing from President Dallin H. Oaks’ landmark address at the...

Is artificial intelligence advancing so fast that our legal guardrails and democratic institutions are rendered obsolete? In this episode of  " Deseret Voices ," host Jane Clayson Johnson sits down with Harvard Law School professor and former dean Martha Minow to analyze the dangerous gap between rapid AI development and the law. From hallucinated court cases to rogue AI agents and the "liar'...

Sen. John Curtis, R-Utah, called for the Senate Judiciary Committee to subpoena Donald Trump Jr. and Hunter Biden over their foreign business dealings and presidential family connections. On this bonus episode of " Deseret Voices ,"he explains why he called a Russian oligarch's lavish wedding gift "corruption" and why he believes the same standard should apply to both parties. After a ProPublica i...

On Sept. 11, 2001, Carol Lin was the first national news anchor to break the story of the attacks on CNN — while Jane Clayson Johnson was hosting the CBS morning show when the towers were struck. Twenty-five years later, these two women sit down for the first time to share what they saw, what they felt, and what they never said on air. In this 9/11 25th anniversary conversation, you’ll...

When Utah Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson opened a letter from the Department of Justice, she discovered something alarming: Her office was under federal investigation for refusing to surrender unredacted voter rolls. In this exclusive sit-down on the “ Deseret Voices ” podcast with McKay Coppins , Henderson exposes the escalating standoff between state sovereignty and federal overreach. Vie...

Governor Wes Moore reveals what Republican governors are privately telling him about federal election interference—and why he says the Iran war is becoming another Afghanistan. In this episode of " Deseret Voices "  with McKay Coppins, the NGA chair and combat veteran opens up about his genuine friendship with Utah Governor Spencer Cox, what Democrats fundamentally misunderstand about T...

AOC says " Woke 1 was crazy " — but is laughing off an era of defunding the police, prison abolition and ideological conformity actually enough? On this episode of " Deseret Voices ," McKay Coppins sits down with The Atlantic's Idrees Kahloon to ask why Democrats can't simply wash their hands of Woke 1.0 and what the party's chaotic 2026 primaries reveal about its identity crisis heading int...

The United States and Canada share the longest undefended border in the world, deeply integrated supply chains — and a free-trade agreement that President Donald Trump negotiated himself during his first term and called a great deal. Now, these longtime allies are locked in an escalating trade war, with 50% tariffs on $20 billion in Canadian goods and Canada retaliating dollar for dollar. Ma...

Lake Powell is 30 feet from the point where water may stop flowing past the dam entirely and the expert who's spent his whole life on this river says we're asking the wrong question. We're not running out of water. We're running out of cheap water. On this episode of " Deseret Voices " with Jane Clayson Johnson , water law professor Rhett Larson of Arizona State University breaks down the Colorado...

While ICE detentions hit record highs and deportation flights resume across the U.S., the woman running the U.N.'s global migration agency says almost everyone is having the wrong conversation. In this rare sit-down, IOM Director General Amy Pope explains why border enforcement alone can't stop migration — and reveals the surprising playbook already working in Brazil and Italy. On this episo...

Higher education is facing a season of disruption — from artificial intelligence and affordability concerns to political pressure , public skepticism and shifting demographics. But Baylor University President Dr. Linda Livingstone believes moments of uncertainty can also become moments of transformation. In this episode of " Deseret Voices ," host Jane Clayson Johnson talks with President Li...

Why do good, well-intentioned people make catastrophic ethical missteps? In this episode of “ Deseret Voices ,” host Jane Clayson Johnson sits down with Princeton University ethics scholar Dr. David W. Miller , author of “ The 5 Questions for Ethical Decisions: How to Succeed Without Selling Your Soul. ” Together, they explore why standard moral intentions often fail under...

On this episode of " Deseret Voices ," host Jane Clayson Johnson sits down with Dr. David Wingate — professor of computer science at Brigham Young University and academic lead for the Consortium for Evaluation of Faith and Ethics in AI (CEFE-AI). Together, they explore groundbreaking research conducted across an unprecedented interfaith collaboration, uniting scholars from Brigham Young Univ...

At just 7 years old, Olivia Moultrie wrote a note to her parents stating she wanted to be the best soccer player in the world. By 13, she had signed a historic Nike endorsement deal . At 15, she sued the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) to lift its age restriction — and won — forever changing the landscape of American professional sports. Now 20, and an established superstar...

Does religious freedom only benefit the devout or is it the bedrock foundation that keeps all civil liberties intact? This week on " Deseret Voices ," host Jane Clayson Johnson sits down with Josh McDaniel , assistant professor at Harvard Law School and director of the Harvard Religious Freedom Clinic, to unpack the rapidly shifting landscape of the First Amendment. McDaniel explores the fascinati...

As the United States hits its historic 250th anniversary, the nation finds itself caught in the throes of a profound "faith crisis" — not just in its institutions, but in the very endurance of the American experiment. In this episode of " Deseret Voices ," host McKay Coppins sits down with former senator and presidential candidate Mitt Romney for a deeply candid, reflective and surprisingly...

As the United States marks its 250th anniversary, a creeping sense of political pessimism has captured the national conversation. Are we truly living through an unprecedented era of democratic decay, or is this just another chapter in the long, turbulent history of the American experiment? In this episode of “Deseret Voices,” host McKay Coppins sits down with Pulitzer Prize-winning his...

The Great Salt Lake is disappearing . With two-thirds of its water gone and more than half of its area desiccated, experts warn that Utah is sitting on an environmental time bomb . In this episode of " Deseret Voices ," host Jane Clayson Johnson sits down with two leading figures at the forefront of the restoration movement to discuss the stark reality of the lake's decline, the catastrophic healt...

How does a crowd-funded project about Jesus Christ become a global phenomenon? In this episode of " Deseret Voices ," guest host Sheri Dew sits down with Dallas Jenkins, the creator, director, and co-writer of “The Chosen,” for an intimate, behind-the-scenes conversation as the groundbreaking series films its final season. Dew and Jenkins take a trip down memory lane to early 2020, rev...

Are we trading authentic faith for political tribalism and cultural war? In this episode of " Deseret Voices ," host McKay Coppins   sits down with renowned theologian and Christianity Today editor at large Dr. Russell Moore to explore a shift in American religion: The Casinofication of Church. The conversation sparks from a recent Atlantic investigation where Coppins was given $10,000 to exp...

Why don’t Americans trust the media anymore? On this episode of " Deseret Voices ," host McKay Coppins sits down with Evan Smith , co-founder of The Texas Tribune and managing director for events at The Atlantic , to dissect the ongoing crisis of trust in American journalism. As local newspapers vanish and national media outlets face unprecedented strain, a dangerous information vacuum has e...

On this episode of " Deseret Voices ," Utah Gov. Spencer Cox joins host McKay Coppins for a candid, wide-ranging conversation that touches on everything from national political polarization to the sudden intersection of rural Utah and artificial intelligence. Despite writing a new book , leading to some speculation, Cox insists he isn't eyeing the White House — but he is looking to export Ut...

Why are the owners of a multibillion-dollar tech empire doubling down on live sports in an age of AI and digital isolation? In this episode of “ Deseret Voices ,” host McKay Coppins sits down with Ryan and Ashley Smith, owners of the Utah Jazz and the new Utah Mammoth, to explore why they believe the stadium is one of the last remaining places where a community can truly breathe, cheer...

For the first time in over 130 years, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is preparing to open the doors of the Salt Lake Temple to the public following a massive, multi-year renovation .  On this episode of " Deseret Voices ," McKay Coppins sits down with project director Andy Kirby and church historian Matt Grow to discuss the dual mission of this monumental undertaking: preserv...

On this episode of " Deseret Voices ," host Jane Clayson Johnson sits down with No. 1 New York Times bestselling author David Baldacci to discuss his latest thrillers, “ Nash Falls ” and “ Hope Rises .” Baldacci reflects on his childhood in segregated Richmond, Virginia, explaining how early access to the public library became his "body armor" against bigotry. Beyond the cr...