Professor Joe Howley has been working with student protesters for almost a year. When they occupied his building, he got texts from the kids—and nothing from the administration. Now that Columbia’s called the cops, and nearly 100 demonstrators have been arrested, what does that mean for the future of the institution—and for free speech on campus nationwide?

Guest: Joe Howley, associate professor in the Columbia University Classics Department

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It’s not that we aren’t making progress slowing our carbon and greenhouse gas emissions; it’s just that we still may not be doing enough—fast enough—to avert catastrophe. 

Guest: Umair Irfan, correspondent at Vox writing about climate change, Covid-19, and energy policy.

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In the ‘90s, Pat Buchanan was a fringe figure among Republicans whose positions on immigration and demographic change in the United States were considered too extreme for the party. Now, his ideas are what passes for Donald Trump’s 2024 campaign platform.

Guest: Ari Berman, Mother Jones’ national voting rights correspondent and author of “Minority Rule.”

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As some members of Congress call for crackdowns, how do college administrators ensure the safety of their entire student body – while also respecting its right to free speech? 

Guest: Peter Beinart, Editor-at-Large at Jewish Currents and the author of “The Beinart Notebook” on Substack.

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Podcast production by Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme and Rob Gunther.

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There are regulations regarding how farm animals are transported, how they’re auctioned, how they’re slaughtered—but when they’re living on the farm? That’s where things get cloudy. 

Guest: Annie Lowrey, journalist writing on politics and economic policy for The Atlantic.

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Podcast production by Evan Campbell, Patrick Fort, and Anna Phillips.

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The TikTok ban that has been floating around Washington since the last administration has been signed into law. What does that mean for users, creators and the court battles ahead?

Guest: 

Louise Matsakis, reporter covering tech and China.

Dillon White, TikToker under the handle @dadchats

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Who is Todd Blanche, Donald Trump’s attorney in the hush-money trial, and how did he end up representing the former president? 

Guest: Andrew Rice, features writer for New York Magazine. He’s also the author of The Year That Broke America.

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Protests at Columbia University have become a talking point across national media, but does the situation on campus actually resemble the one in the press? 

Guest: Aymann Ismail, Slate staff writer.

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The constitutional right to protest is right there in the First Amendment. So when the Fifth Circuit Court threatened this right across three states, why didn’t the Supreme Court take up the case?

Guest: Ian Milhiser, senior correspondent for Vox.

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With all eyes on the WNBA as Caitlin Clark was drafted, many were surprised at the star player’s new salary, and how it paled in comparison to that of an NBA rookie. What would it take to address this disparity? 

Guest: Lindsay Gibbs, author and founder of Power Plays, “a no-BS newsletter about women’s sports” and co-host of the Burn It All Down podcast.

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From the Wayback Machine to the mass-digitization of the history of Aruba, the Internet Archive is a non-profit doing valuable work. But some of its other projects—a pandemic-era lending library and the ongoing digitalization of 78 rpm records—have led to lawsuits now threatening the future of this repository of the past. 

Guest: Kate Knibbs, senior writer at Wired.

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