How to Fix Democracy Bertelsmann Foundation

For this episode, host Andrew Keen sits down with James Kirchick, journalist and author of the New York Times bestseller Secret City: the Hidden History of Gay Washington. They discuss the historical exclusion of gay individuals within American democracy, with a particular emphasis on the challenges - from legal persecution to professional exclusion, and social stigmatization, Kirchick and Keen explore how political attitudes towards gay rights have evolved, intertwining with broader cultural and political shifts. Kirchick describes the gradual inclusion of homosexuals in the democratic process, highlighting key moments of setbacks and progress over the past century. The conversation explores significant events such as the Kinsey report in 1948, the Alger Hiss case, McCarthyism, and the political landscape during the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. The emergence of homosexuality as a national political issue, alongside movements like gay liberation and the AIDS crisis, had a profound impact on American politics and society. When America openly accepted homosexuals into its civic and cultural life, it marked a significant enhancement of its democracy. 

In this episode we delve into Jeffrey Rosen's latest work The Pursuit of Happiness. As the President of the National Constitution Center and a Professor of Law at George Washington University, Rosen brings a unique perspective on America's democratic foundations. Through an exploration of classical writers and America's own philosophers and political founders, Rosen and Keen engage in a discussion on the challenges facing American democracy and law today.
We ask crucial questions: How closely do America's democratic institutions align with the ideals of the founding fathers? What insights can we glean from the evolution of American law and government practices over centuries? And, perhaps most importantly, what elements from our past are essential for sustaining and enriching American democracy? 

Testing American Liberalism in the Cold War Years
In this episode journalist and historian James Traub delves into the paradoxical nature of liberalism in the post war years. The continuation of New Deal social and economic reforms charactarized a society of consensus in fulfillment of democratic ideals in the Cold War years. However, the illusory impression was built on the continuiation of Jim Crow systems in the South deepening racial inequity in the rest of the country. Resistance stirred underneath consensus and the illusion of an expanding liberalism and democratic enhancement.
James Traub is an American journalist and scholar specializing in international affairs. 

In conversation with Prof. Sarah Snyder, an historian of Cold War international relations, Andrew Keen examines the relationship of democratic goals with the realities of American foreign policy. As the world's great post-war democratic and capitalistic power, the U.S. opposed Russia and China through strategic foreign aid and international interventions - often with non-democratic regimes. Internal divisions and controversies about the role of the United Nations, international human rights initiatives and racial divisions in the U.S. however challenged that post-war consensus.

The democratic divide in post WWII: advance abroad, retreat at home.  In this episode, Andrew Keen speaks with Dr. Carol Anderson, professor of African American Studies at Emory University. They discuss America in the post World War II years when America emerged as the world's leading democratic country. That claim was belied by the reality of a flawed and unfulfilled democracy at home. Black Americans, who joined the military in great numbers and fought with great distinction, returned to Jim Crow America and discrimination in many parts of the country. It continued practices of oppression and blocked the expansion of global post-war Human Rights doctrines from applying to the United States.

American Democracy Transformed: A Conversation with Kevin Baker on the Interwar Era's Cultural and Political Evolution
In this episode, host Andrew Keen discusses with writer and editor, Kevin Baker, the multifaceted changes and growth of American democracy. Significant cultural innovations, technological advancements, and societal shifts occurred between the two World Wars. Baker emphasizes America's transformation into a cultural and political powerhouse during this period, where its arts and politics gained global recognition and when American culture including literature, music, and cinema, played a pivotal role in shaping societal views and politics.
Kevin Baker graduated from Columbia University in 1980 and has since pursued a career as a writer and editor. His writings include novels like "Sometimes You See It Coming" and "Dreamland" forming part of his New York City of Fire trilogy.