Politicology

Politicology

Politics in America is transforming. We’re embarking on a new series to deepen our understanding of who we are, how we got here, and how we rebuild without repeating the mistakes of the past. Ron Steslow hosts academics, behavioral economists, social psychologists, politicos, philosophers, anthropologists, journalists, poets, and storytellers—and more—to discuss America’s political present and future and dive into the deeper problems we face as a nation. Email us questions or comments: podcast@politicology.com.

  1. 25 Jun

    American Made

    For the ad-free version of this episode, subscribe to Politicology+ at https://politicology.com/plus In this episode, Ron talks to Grace Pak (founder and cake artist behind Duchess of Cameron, and the artist selected by America 250 to create the official cake for the country's 250th birthday) about how a single dessert became a bipartisan project. They explore her path from a Columbia neuroscience lab to fine art cake design, and the philosophy of "cake as therapy" that shapes her studio work. Then they turn to the commission itself: how she pitched it, why she landed on the theme American Made, and how children's artwork from all fifty states and the territories became the centerpiece.  Later, Grace walks through the congressional sessions she's running on Capitol Hill, the donated ingredients sourced from local farms and historic mills, the recipe she rebuilt from the first American cookbook, and the logistics of moving a cake the size of a car. They discuss: (0:00) Pitching the birthday cake (4:07) From a neuroscience lab to a cake studio (7:37) Fine art cakes and the multisensory experience (14:33)Personifying America and landing on American Made (29:48) Bipartisan sessions on Capitol Hill (37:04) Sourcing the ingredients from local farms (41:51) Baking like it's 1796: the historic recipe research  (46:53) A cake the size of a car: logistics, humidity, and delivery (49:13) Volunteers, nonprofits, and what she'll take away Check out Duchess of Cameron: https://www.duchessofcameron.com/ Follow Ron on Twitter: https://twitter.com/RonSteslow Follow Grace on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/duchessofcameron Email your questions to podcast@politicology.com or leave us a voicemail at ‪(202) 455-4558‬ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    1 hr
  2. 13 Jun

    Policing Words — The Weekly

    Billy Binion (reporter at Reason Magazine) joins host Ron Steslow to examine how democratic governments are redefining speech as a harm to be managed and who pays the price when they do. They begin with the White House's negotiation with Senator Marsha Blackburn, a deal that would trade federal preemption of state AI laws for the Kids Online Safety Act, the No Fakes Act, and federal age verification, and whether we are “one bad deal away from the era of online government censorship.” Next, Britain's thousands of arrests each year for online posts, its mandate that Apple and Google build content scanning into every device, and Signal's vow to exit the market before that happens. Then they turn to the killing of Henry Novak, whose dying words police discounted in deference to his killer's fabricated racism accusation. Finally, they unpack Minnesota's multibillion-dollar benefits fraud—JD Vance's referral of Tim Walz and Keith Ellison, why warnings went unheeded, and the citizen journalist who made the scandal impossible to ignore. In Politicology+, they discuss the bipartisan push to force UFO disclosure and the legal fight underneath it: whether the government should use eminent domain to seize allegedly recovered non-human technology from private contractors, and whether contractor employees who come forward deserve whistleblower protections. POLITICOLOGY+ Not yet a Politicology+ member? Don’t miss all the extra episodes on the private, ad-free version of this podcast. Upgrade now at politicology.com/plus. Watch Billy’s Documentary about citizen journalist Priscilla Villarreal: https://bit.ly/3S4cuKJ  Read Konstantin Kissin on Henry Nowak’s murder: https://substack.com/home/post/p-200293621  SPONSORS & PROMO CODES: https://bit.ly/44uAGZ8 Send your questions and ideas to podcast@politicology.com Ron Steslow on X: https://x.com/RonSteslow Billy Binion on X: https://x.com/billybinion  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    1hr 11min
  3. 27 May

    ENCORE: Democracy Interventions with Prof. Robb Willer

    What are the psychological forces driving that partisan animosity? What’s causing Americans to vote for anti-democracy candidates?  Are there any interventions that might actually work  to turn down the heat and save our democracy?  Robb Willer, professor of sociology, psychology, and organizational behavior at Stanford University talks with Ron Steslow about Stanford’s Strengthening Democracy Challenge, reducing partisan animosity and support for anti-democracy candidates . (01:31) Robb’s background (02:46) The growth of polarization and partisan animosity  (15:08) The Strengthening Democracy Challenge (22:40) Negative partisanship and support for undemocratic candidates (29:46) How cues from leaders can reduce support for anti-democracy candidates (32:17) Working together and respectfully discussing differences reduces partisan animosity  (37:47) Misperceptions about how how you’re viewed by members of another party fuels animosity  (46:47) Is there hope for overcoming animosity and acceptance of undemocratic candidates?  (53:16) How to implement these ideas (59:23) The role of emotions in decision making You should check out the interventions we discussed:  Elite Cues: https://bit.ly/3TEeS6Z Positive Contact (Heineken Ad): https://bit.ly/3N74PEM Misperceptions: https://bit.ly/3W4iMaN Fear of Democratic Collapse: https://bit.ly/3W4awHO Follow Robb and Ron on Twitter: https://twitter.com/RobbWiller https://twitter.com/RonSteslow Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    1hr 21min

About

Politics in America is transforming. We’re embarking on a new series to deepen our understanding of who we are, how we got here, and how we rebuild without repeating the mistakes of the past. Ron Steslow hosts academics, behavioral economists, social psychologists, politicos, philosophers, anthropologists, journalists, poets, and storytellers—and more—to discuss America’s political present and future and dive into the deeper problems we face as a nation. Email us questions or comments: podcast@politicology.com.

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