Talk Cocktail Jeff Schechtman

There is still hope for local news. Over the years, the Pulitzer Prize for “breaking news reporting” has typically been awarded to major legacy media brands. However, this year a hyperlocal online publication, the Santa Cruz Lookout, received the prestigious honor for its coverage of the once-in-a-century floods that devastated Santa Cruz in January 2023. On this week’s California Sun podcast I talk with Ken Doctor, who founded the Lookout in 2020, details how the newsroom covered the floods, and how it has emerged as a potential model for the future of local journalism.

 
Can elections be predicted like hurricanes or sporting events? American University professor Allan Lichtman believes so, and he has the track record to prove it. Using his unique “13 Keys to the White House” system, Lichtman has, according to him, correctly predicted the outcome of 10 out of the last 10 presidential elections.
In this episode of my WhoWhatWhy podcast, I talk with Lichtman to unpack his groundbreaking method, which goes beyond fleeting polling numbers to consider the complex interplay of 13 immutable forces that, he says, determine who will occupy the Oval Office.

 
Like a shark, if we don't keep moving forward, we die. James Pethokoukis, a renowned economic policy expert, shares insights from his groundbreaking work, "The Conservative Futurist." Pethokoukis presents a captivating vision of a future where technological advancements and environmental preservation harmoniously coexist. Where the  intersection of technology, culture, and politics, and discovery join to embrace a bold, future-oriented mindset. One that could lead us to a world of abundance and wonder.

In "The Guarantee," Natalie Foster argues that our current economic system is failing too many Americans, despite signs of growth. As millennials and Gen Z build wealth amidst the greatest transfer of wealth in history, stubborn pockets of economic stagnation persist.
Foster explores what it would take to create an economy that works for everyone, questioning whether the government should guarantee basic rights like housing, healthcare, education, and a living wage. Drawing on mainstream and heterodox ideas, she passionately argues for a radical rethinking of the relationship between government, the economy, and the people, viewing guaranteed economic rights as an urgent necessity.

On this week’s WhoWhatWhy podcast, I sit down with the lead author of that report, military sociologist Marek N. Posard, to examine these alarming threats and what we can do to counter them.
Imagine a small, seemingly innocuous hack on a local water treatment plant. A carefully timed disinformation campaign, powered by the latest in artificial intelligence. The physical security of our voting machines compromised. Suddenly, we have the perfect storm that could bring down the integrity of the entire 2024 presidential election and our democracy along with it
This isn’t just a hypothetical scenario — it’s a very real possibility outlined in a chilling new report from the RAND Corporation, titled, The 2024 U.S. Election, Trust, and Technology: Preparing for a Perfect Storm of Threats to Democracy.

On thisWhoWhatWhy podcast, we explore the potential for a total reimagining of our beleaguered American democracy.
Joining me is Maxwell Stearns, a professor of law at the University of Maryland Carey School of Law. An esteemed author of numerous articles and books on the Constitution, the Supreme Court, and legal economics, Stearns’s latest work is Parliamentary America: The Least Radical Means of Radically Repairing Our Broken Democracy.