This is a pilot episode for a podcast on work. Original music by Samuel Haines.

As everybody knows, today the political landscape is sharply divided. This is especially true when it comes to economic redistribution. On the right, freedom means free markets. On the left, free markets produce inequality and oppression. This framing is of course hyperbole, but it does suggest how we take for granted the political alignment betwee…

Rafael Khachaturian and Sean Guillory discuss their new article "Mapping the American Left." Both have been on the podcast before. Their article lists a few challenges faced by the Left in America. "Mapping the American Left," Социология власти [Sociology of Power] Том 30 No 4 (2018). The Public Sphere is a podcast from Contrivers Review. Visit www…

In a shorter episode, Pete and Luke are astounded by President Trump's declaration of a State of Emergency in order to find money for his border wall. The Public Sphere is a podcast from Contrivers Review. Visit www.contrivers.org to read great essays and interviews. You can also sign up for our newsletter, follow us on Twitter, or like our Faceboo…

A discussion about neoliberalism as a political and theoretical concept arising out of our research and reading. The Public Sphere is a podcast from Contrivers Review. Visit www.contrivers.org to read great essays and interviews. You can also sign up for our newsletter, follow us on Twitter, or like our Facebook page. If you have a suggestion for t…

Pete and Luke discuss a controversial article from Andrew Sullivan, "America's New Religions," in New York Magazine. They debate the differences between small-L liberalism and small-C conservatism in political theory. They also probe the role played by religion in providing the background cultural resources for stable political disagreements (as Su…

Pete talks with frequent guest Wes Bishop about how politics (mis-)characterizes and stereotypes the working class. Wes Bishop, "The Public Stage: The Working Class in Theatrical Representations and the Fear of America’s Declining Public Sphere," South Atlantic Review 2018 (20:3) 130-149. The Public Sphere is a podcast from Contrivers Review. Visit…

Pete and Luke discuss a few articles about party politics in America. German Lopez, "William Barr helped establish mass incarceration. Now Trump wants him as attorney general." Vox.com (Dec 7, 2018). Charlie Savage, "Trump Will Nominate William Barr as Attorney General," New York Times (Dec 7, 2018). Dylan Scott, "What we know about the alleged ele…

On this episode, Luke and Pete discuss "Scary Clowns,” an article in the Baffler by Brendan O'Conner. Luke begins with a monologue about his growing fear of extremist right-wing violence. We consider the connections between more mainstream conservative groups and fascist groups like the Proud Boys. We discuss the racial polarization of politics, an…

Pete and Luke discuss Ryan Zinke, the scandal-ridden Secretary of the Interior. What does "public land for public use" mean? What is an "America First" energy policy? They also briefly revisit last week's topic, Matthew Whitaker, the newly appointed acting Attorney General. Intro clip: Dogs at Dept of Interior, Fox New (May. 05, 2017). Whitaker Red…

On this week’s episode, Pete and Luke talk about the 2018 midterm elections and the appointment of Matthew Whitaker. We also have a wide-ranging conversation about the undemocratic nature of the Senate and the Electoral College, redistricting, and the legitimacy and history of the federal system. All of that before we discuss the new acting Attorne…

Pete and Luke are talking about the new Sokal Hoax, academic authority, and the economic context. This new controversy was perpetrated by three scholars: James Lindsay, Helen Pluckrose, and Peter Boghossian. They wrote 20 fake papers in the style of cultural studies but with invented data or ostensibly ridiculous claims, as one title states: “The C…

Pete and Luke talk about Bret Kavanaugh's testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee. Our discussion is not exhaustive; it could hardly be so given the controversy. We neglect to make many of the very good, salient points made elsewhere. Therefore, we encourage the listener to take our comments as provisional and part of a larger public conver…

Pete and Luke discuss a few articles that interrogate Silicon Valley culture and the limits of philanthropy. Christopher Mackin, "Silicon Valley and the Quest for a Utopian Workplace," The New Republic. David A. Banks, Silicon Valley Labor Organizing, The Baffler. Robert Homan, "Think Different: Apple’s Redistribution of Wealth to the Wealthy," Bos…

Wes Bishop joins Pete to discuss the second Gilded Age. The top 1% owns more wealth and has captured the majority of gains from economic growth than at any time since 1920s in the United States, even as worker productivity has increased across the board. In other words the 99% are producing more but receiving an increasingly smaller share. The Publ…

This is an emergency podcast to discuss the Bob Woodward excerpts published in the Washington Post and the anonymous "senior official in the Trump administration" op-ed in the New York Times. I Am Part of the Resistance Inside the Trump Administration Bob Woodward’s new book reveals a ‘nervous breakdown’ of Trump’s presidency Chris Hayes tweet Naun…

Pete and Luke discuss Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the Democratic Socialists of America, the legacy of the Third Way, and what electoral success might look like.由Contrivers' Review

Luke Mergner and Pete Sinnott discuss President Trump's European trip, the now-infamous Helsinki presser, and the conspiracy theories that help explain it all. Mueller's indictments CNN Clip of Trump The Atlantic roundup McKay Coppins, The Atlantic Andrew Sullivan, NYMag Ron Elving, NPR NY Times. Pod Save the World, Trump's Disastrous European Vaca…

An interview with Mark G.E. Kelly about his new book For Foucault: Against Normative Political Theory. The Public Sphere is a podcast from Contrivers Review.由Contrivers' Review

Today we are talking to Rafael Khachaturian again about the DSA or Democratic Socialists of America. You may have heard the name, but aren't sure what it is. You may, like me, be familiar with the DSA but remain skeptical of its goals, its effectiveness, or just the word "socialism." Rafael, whose been involved with the DSA in Bloomington, IN and P…

Today we are discussing the head of the EPA, Scott Pruitt. His tenure has been controversial. He has been in the news for potential ethics violations regarding airline fares. There have been odd details about personal security and a lack of transparency. Environmentalists have voiced concerns about policy process and changes that have occurred unde…

On the show today, Pete talks to Samantha Parsons, a co-founder of Unkoch My Campus and Transparent GMU. These organizations expose the influence The Charles Koch foundation on colleges and universities throughout the United States. In a recent episode of The Public Sphere, Pete and I discussed the lawsuit brought by Transparent GMU against the Geo…

Pete talks to Kate Doyle Griffiths about the teachers' strike in West Virginia and her article in Viewpoint Magazine. Kate is a doctoral candidate at the CUNY Graduate Center in the department of Anthropology. She writes about work, women and queers, strikes and social reproduction, health and healthcare in the USA and South Africa. She is a member…

Free speech is a core tenet of our democratic and academic systems. But as in politics, universities are increasingly under siege by large donors carrying bags of cash. What do billions of dollars entitle you to? Does it entitle you to shape what is taught and researched at a public university? How can you tell when or if ideology is subverting cor…

Today Pete and Luke are discussing John Dickerson's argument in May issue of The Atlantic that the modern presidency is too unwieldy for any individual to succeed. Implicitly he is pushing back against the idea that Trump's personality is ill-fitted to the job: Anyone would be overwhelmed by the office, he thinks.…

This week, we’re talking about A Kingdom of Dust, by Mark Arax. This long-form article was published in California Sunday Magazine in late January. It’s a long winding lyrical account of the largest grower of almonds, pistachios, and pomegranate in the country. You would probably recognize the Wonderful brand from the bottles of pom juice you seen …

Joining us today is Sean Guillory, who teaches in the Russian and East European Studies Center at the University of Pittsburgh. Sean has a Ph.D. in History from UCLA. He is the host of the Sean's Russia Blog Podcast, a weekly conversation on Eurasian politics, history, and culture. You can follow him on Twitter at @seansrussiablog and support him t…

This week we are talking about Facebook and the aftermath of the Cambridge Analytica scandal. Since the story broke, it's morphed several times. At first we feared the manipulation of public opinion using "Big Data." Then public opinion seemed shocked at how much data Facebook was keeping and potentially reselling. Feeling suddenly vulnerable, peop…

The Public Sphere is a podcast from Contrivers Review. Please consider supporting The Public Sphere and Contrivers' Review on Patreon. Today we’re talking to Wesley Bishop, a PhD candidate in History at Purdue University. His writings have appeared at Jacobin, The Socialist Worker, and TERSE, where he is the assistant editor. He is also a campus or…

Hi and welcome to THE PUBLIC SPHERE from Contrivers' Review. I'm Luke Mergner joined by Pete Sinnott at our "studio" — in air quotes — in Glendale, CA. Two weeks ago we discussed the collective autobiography, Quit Lit, documenting the mass exodus of non-tenured faculty from Higher Education to a depressed and depressing job market. Today, we're tal…

Rafael Khatchaturian joins the podcast again. Today, we are talking about the bizarre circle that took Paul Manafort from the apex of K-Street to post-Soviet Eastern Europe and back. Mantefort was briefly the campaign manager of the Trump campaign and now is a major target of Robert Mueller's investigation. Franklin Foer, now a national corresponda…

What is Quit Lit? And what does it says about the universities and professors. Erin Bartam, "The Sublimated Grief of Being Left Behind." Rebecca Shuman, "Thesis Hatement," Slate (April, 2013). Funding for Maryland Universities. Guns vs. Butter (12:25) US Discretionary Funding: CBO infographic, 2017 Budget Priorities. Malcolm Gladwell, "My Little Hu…

This is the podcast on podcasts. This week, Pete and Luke discuss which podcasts we listen to, why, and what makes them work. Slate's Trumpcast Rational Security from Lawfair. The Weeds, Vox.com Pod Save America, Crooked Media The Dig from Jacobin Chapo Trap House由Contrivers' Review

Today we're talking about Nancy Fraser, eminent political and critical theorist. She is a professor of philosophy and politics at the New School for Social Research. Her work addresses the intersection of feminism and Marxism, by arguing in part that the exploitation of unpaid domestic, mostly female labor is a key aspect of capitalism. She recentl…

This week we're discussing "Greate White Hype" by Ned Resnikoff published by The Baffler. In the article, he argues against a new dynamic influencing public debate. The primary example he cites is Steve Bannon, now-discredited presidential advisor and former CEO of Breitbart News, who was portrayed as a genius in some media accounts. "A legion of p…

This week we are talking about "Rescuing Economics from Neoliberalism" by Dani Rodrik, published in the Boston Review. Rodrik is a well-known economist and long-time critic of globalization. While he's no black-flag, brick-throwing anti-capitalist, he was one of the earliest voices questioning the post-1991 free trade orthodoxy. Of course, the stor…

Today we're talking about Michael Wolfe's book on the first 200 days of the Trump administration. Fire and Fury is the the dramatic title for a controversial book. Links Michael Wolfe, Fire and Fury Devil's Bargain Andrew Prokop, "The controversy around Michael Wolff’s gossipy new Trump book, explained." Vox.com (Jan. 5, 2018). Nausicaa Renner and …

This week we're engaging in some good old fashioned punditry. December saw a couple of profiles published about how the Trump White House operates. We've been getting edges of the puzzle for months now as personnel, like Steve Bannon, have left and the Russia investigation continues. But the Dec. 9 NY Times article from Maggie Haberman, Glenn Thrus…

This week, Pete and Luke talk about "Generation Screwed" by Michael Hobbes, published by the Huffington Post. The Public Sphere is a produced by Contrivers' Review, where you can find lot's of things to read. Follow us on Twitter, Like us on Facebook, or subscribe to our mailing list.由Contrivers Review

This week, Pete and Luke discuss the NY Times Magazine profile of Sean Hannity and Justin Peter's "Watching Fox" blog from Slate.com. Is Fox News propaganda? How does it impact public opinion? Is there a middle ground between a dogmatic insistence on "facts" and a postmodern world of competing narratives? The Editors Podcast is a production of Cont…