Podcasts by 55 Voices for Democracy – The Podcast
How can democracy be renewed and defended today?
A collaboration of the Thomas Mann House, the Goethe Institute, Wunderbar Together, and the Los Angeles Review of Books.
Further podcasts by Tom Lutz
Podcast on the topic Gesellschaft und Kultur
All episodes
Marina Weisband on What Gets us Through the Crisis from 2023-11-30T15:30
“Going through a crisis and having a positive vision of the future are not the same thing. You need to have a positive vision of the future to get through the crisis.” Our hosts, Aida Bagherneja...
Listen
Lynne Thompson on the Role of Poetry in Democracies from 2023-10-19T07:30
“There is an understanding that between humans we have this one thing called language and it brings us - or can bring us - together.” Writer and poet Lynne Thompson talks with hosts Aida Baghern...
Listen
Bill Wiggins on African-American History&Historically Black Colleges and Universities from 2023-03-23T07:30
Host Tom Zoellner sat down with professor William Wiggins to discuss the ongoing importance of African-American history within the larger context of US history. Professor Wiggins has written on ...
Listen
Teresa Bücker on Time as a Political Resource from 2023-03-02T08:30
“Time is a political resource. How time is distributed is a question of structures we find within a society. It’s structured by the economic system we have; it’s structured by gender, by race,” ...
Listen
Roberto Lovato on the Tenderness that Survives the Terror from 2023-02-16T08:30
“I’ve been through war. I’ve witnessed the workings of genocide. I have gone to mass graves across the entire continent (…) We have to un-forget to get past the present fear.” In this episode, w...
Listen
Antonia Juhasz on the Impact of Fossil Fuels on Democracy from 2023-01-05T08:30
“Part of what has led the movement against fossil fuels is the increased number of people being confronted with the effects of oil drilling and fracking,” arg...
Listen
Raul Krauthausen on Inclusion and Accessibility from 2022-12-08T08:30
“I realized that everything I learned in terms of communication, creativity, strategy and planning at university can also be used for good...for...
Listen
Sarah Jaffe on Working Conditions&Labor Movements from 2022-11-22T08:30
“Until we start thinking about what people’s lives are really like and not just shame them for how they vote, we’re not going to have a healthy democracy,” argues Sarah Jaffe. The labor journali...
Listen
Geraldo Cadava on the 2022 Midterm Elections&'the Latino Vote' from 2022-11-10T08:30
"One of the things that is so fascinating about last night‘s midterm elections is how young people really showed up,” states Geraldo Cadava, professor of history and Latina and Latino studies at...
Listen
Boris Dralyuk on Poetry, Translation and Émigrés from 2022-10-20T07:30
While politics can involve seemingly abstract decisions, “literature can remind us of the stakes at human level,” argues Boris Dralyuk. In this episode, the translator, author and editor-in-chi...
Listen
LaTosha Brown on Fighting Voter Suppression from 2022-10-06T07:30
“Some of the tension and voter
Doris Kleilein on Changing Definitions of Urban Architecture from 2022-09-22T07:30:37
What makes a city a home for people with different
Christoph Bieber on Hate Speech, Deep Fakes and Other Challenges of the Internet from 2022-08-25T07:30:21
What can be done against online hate speech and deep fakes? Host Tom Zoellner talks to the political scientist & 2022 Thomas Mann Fellow Dr. Christoph Bieber about internet regulation in Europe ...
Listen
Veronika Fuechtner on Thomas Mann's construction of "Germanness" from 2022-08-11T07:30:29
The Brazilian origins of his mother Júlia were initially a source of shame for Thomas Mann, but that changed in the 1920s “as his understanding of his role in...
Listen
Ulrich J. Schneider on Libraries as Democratic Spaces from 2022-07-28T07:30:29
Rosecrans Baldwin on Los Angeles as a City-State from 2022-07-14T07:30:28
This episode focuses on what novelist and writer Rosecrans Baldwin calls "the city state Los Angeles.” In his recent best-selling book Everything Now: Lessons From the City-State of Los Ange...
Listen
Christine Landfried on the Democratic Potential of Citizens' Assemblies from 2022-06-30T07:30
When it comes to politics, “distrust is a very healthy thing,” says Dr. Christine Landfried. But Dr. Landfried warns that a complete loss of trust in democratic processes lead people to disconne...
Listen
Matthew Continetti on Populism and Conservatism in the American Right from 2022-06-15T18:14:25
In this episode, author and intellectual historian of the right, Matthew Continetti talks about the past and current strains of American Conservatism. Continetti ...
Listen
Diana Garvin on the Political Implications of Food from 2022-06-02T07:30:55
The fascist regime in Italy attempted early on to create a culinary nationalism by “re-writing ‘la cucina povera’ (the cooking of the poor) as national greatness” and to evoke a sense of pride i...
Listen
Craig Calhoun on Nationalism&Protest Movements from 2022-05-19T07:30:27
Can we reframe the concept of nationalism to use it as a resource for change? Social scientist Craig Calhoun argues for a more complex understanding of nationalism. With our hosts, Calhoun also tal...
Listen
Ruben Neugebauer on Sea Rescue and the Crisis on the Mediterranean Sea from 2022-05-05T07:30:07
Civil sea rescue by organizations such as Sea-Watch saves lives, but the fundamental problem that Europe is sealed off to many who seek refuge remains, argues Ruben Neugebauer. Neugebauer is a c...
Listen
Lawrence Douglas on Fixing the Electoral System from 2022-04-21T07:30:28
How can we restore trust in democratic elections and what are the problems electoral systems are facing today? With his book Will He Go? Trump and the Looming Electoral Meltdown in 2020, Lawrence D...
Listen
Mohamed Amjahid on the Protection of Minorities from 2022-03-10T08:30:09
Aurora Almendral on the Political Situation in the Philippines from 2022-02-24T08:30:08
In this episode, Tom Zoellner and fellow journalist Aurora Almendral analyze the political situation in the Philippines: How does President Rodrigo Duterte, who many criticize for his autocratic...
Listen
David Kipen on the Renewal of the Federal Writers' Project from 2022-02-10T09:30
Birte Meier on Equal Pay from 2022-01-27T08:30:32
What can Germany learn from California in terms of Equal Pay? Award-winning journalist Birte Meier explored this question during her Fellowship at the Thomas Mann House in Los Angeles. In this e...
Listen
Sonia Faleiro on Political Oppression in India from 2022-01-06T08:30
In this episode, award-winning journalist Sonia Faleiro talks about dangerous developments in Indian democracy under Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The repression of the Muslim minority and restr...
Listen
Daniel Ziblatt on Resilient Democracies | A Collaboration with the German American Conference at Harvard from 2021-12-16T08:30
In this collaboration with the German American Conference at Harvard, Dr. Daniel Ziblatt talks about the decline of democracies. Ziblatt encourages us not to "be afraid to reform our ...
Listen
Tobias Boes on Thomas Mann’s War from 2021-12-02T08:30
How did Thomas Mann use the then still young medium of radio in his fight against fascism? How did he channel repressed energies into political activism? Literary scholar Tobias Boes, author of ...
Listen
Anniversary Episode: One Year of "55 Voices for Democracy" from 2021-11-18T08:30
The 55 Voices for Democracy podcast celebrates it's first birthday this month! Time to look back on the first 25 episodes and reflect on what happened so far: Hosts Tom Zoellner and Aid...
Listen
Emilia Roig on Intersectionality from 2021-11-04T07:30
"We have to think of the entire fabric of our society, and we have to be courageous!“ French political scientist Emilia Roig talks about the intersection and simultaneity of different categories...
Listen
Timothy Snyder on Resisting Authoritarianism from 2021-10-21T07:30
"The problem is ourselves." Timothy Snyder describes why the challenges of our democracies are not so much political figures like Trump, but ourselves as citizens. Snyder says it's about breakin...
Listen
Samuel Moyn on the idea of humane wars from 2021-10-07T07:30
Stephanie Kelton on Democracy and the Deficit Myth from 2021-09-16T16:02:14
Susan Bernofsky on Translation and the Plurality of Language from 2021-08-19T07:30
Susan Bernofsky's new translation of Thomas Mann's novel "The Magic Mountain" is eagerly awaited. In conversation with Tom Zoellner, Bernofsky talks about Thomas Mann's...
Listen
Mithu Sanyal on 'Transracialism' and Identity from 2021-07-15T07:30
As more and more Americans self-identify as multiracial, transgressing categories of race still raise questions. Most prominently in the case of Rachel Dolezal, a former college professor and a...
Listen
David Himbara on Threatening Developments in Rwanda from 2021-07-01T07:30
While his government has long been a promise for reconciliation and development, Rwanda's President Paul Kagame is facing increasing international criticism. Human Rights Watch and other institu...
Listen
Colm Toíbín on Thomas Mann&Democracy from 2021-06-17T07:30
Irish novelist, journalist and scholar Colm Toíbín talks about Thomas Mann’s formation as a democrat and the historic circumstances that formed his political thinking. Toíbín’s highly anticipate...
Listen
Joyce Marie Mushaben on Post-Merkel Germany from 2021-06-03T07:30
Max Czollek on Diversity and the New German Nationalist Culture from 2021-05-20T07:30
Poet and writer Max Czollek talks about why German remembrance culture seems staged to him, and what a radically diverse society might look like. Czollek's recent books "Gegenwartsbewältigung“ (...
Listen
Andreas Reckwitz on the COVID-19 Pandemic and Its Effect on Late Modern Societies from 2021-05-06T07:30
How can societies and states reinvent themselves after the pandemic? Andreas Reckwitz, sociologist, cultural theorist and one of Germany’s most eminent contemporary scholars, talks about what th...
Listen
Nora Krug on Notions of Belonging and Historical Memory from 2021-04-22T07:30
Keisha N. Blain on African American History and Selective Memory from 2021-04-08T07:30
Historian Keisha N. Blain, Professor at the University of Pittsburgh and President of the African American Intellectual History Society, recently co-edited the acclaimed book Four Hundred So...
Listen
55 Voices for Democracy – Trailer from 2021-03-29T07:30
55 Voices for Democracy is modeled after the BBC radio speeches, through which Thomas Mann in the mid 1940s pleaded to thousands of listeners to resist the Nazi regime. In this podcast ...
Listen
Luisa Neubauer on Dreaming as a Tool for Change from 2021-03-25T07:30
The societal state as a crisis of imagination? German climate activist Luisa Neubauer is one of the main organizers of Fridays for Future in Germany,...
Listen
Deborah Feldman on Religion, Integration and Political Participation from 2021-03-11T08:30
In this episode, U.S.-German writer Deborah Feldman engages in a conversation with hosts Tom Zoellner and Aida Baghernejad about contemporary Jewish culture in Berlin, political participation by...
Listen
John S. Adams on Donations as Threats for Democracies (Special Episode) from 2021-03-04T08:30
In this special episode of our podcast, the award-winning investigative and political reporter John S. Adams talks about money, politics and its effect on democracy. While there was always "mone...
Listen
Brad Smith on the Role of Digital Technology in the World of Politics from 2021-02-25T08:30
We have to step up and accept our responsibility for all of the implications that technology has created.” Brad Smith, President of Microsoft and author of the book Tools and Weapons: The Pr...
Listen
Igor Levit on Music and Politics from 2021-01-12T08:30
Pianist Igor Levit talks with our hosts about the persistence of the arts in the face of political threats and why Europeans should work against their feelings of cultural superiority. While Igo...
Listen
Chantal Mouffe on Conflict as a Political Good from 2020-12-22T20:00
In this episode, Belgian political theorist Chantal Mouffe reflects on the question of why democracy has to be turbulent and how to foster a democratic ethos of equality and social justice. In h...
Listen
Daniel Kehlmann on Politics, Power, and Populism from 2020-12-08T09:00
The German-Austrian novelist and playwright Daniel Kehlmann talks with host Tom Zoellner and co-host Aida Baghernejad about the reasons for the rise of populist politicians and "literature as th...
Listen
Wolfgang Ischinger on Trust, Truth, and Transparency from 2020-11-24T08:01
The former German Ambassador to the U.S. and Chairman of the Munich Security Conference speaks about Europe's position in international politics. In the interview with host Tom Zoellner and co-h...
Listen
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya and Franak Viačorka and the Crisis in Belarus from 2020-11-17T08:01
The guests in this episode are the Belarusian opposition politicians Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya and Franak Viačorka. Tsikhanouskaya, who ran for president in the 2020 elections, is currently in ex...
Listen
Dipayan Ghosh on Digital Democracy from 2020-11-10T13:00
How should democracies deal with the increasing power of tech companies? This episode features Dipayan Ghosh, a former technology and economic policy advisor in the Obama White House. Ghosh cond...
Listen
Conny McCormack on Election Mechanics from 2020-11-02T11:00
Conny McCormack has served as an international observer of fair elections in Albania, Ecuador, Finland, Panama, Zambia and other countries. She had been the Registrar-Recorder and County Clerk f...
Listen
Conny McCormack on Election Mechanics from 2020-11-02T11:00
Conny McCormack has served as an international observer of fair elections in Albania, Ecuador, Finland, Panama, Zambia and other countries. She had been the Registrar-Recorder and County Clerk f...
Listen
David Shimer on the Vulnerability of the Electoral Process from 2020-10-27T13:00
David Shimer is a Global Fellow at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars and an Associate Fellow at Yale University. His reporting and analysis have appeared in the New York T...
Listen
David Shimer on the Vulnerability of the Electoral Process from 2020-10-27T13:00
David Shimer is a Global Fellow at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars and an Associate Fellow at Yale University. His reporting and analysis have appeared in the New York T...
Listen
Rebecca Solnit on Hope in Politically Dark Times from 2020-10-17T02:12:29
Polymath author of twenty books, writer, historian, essayist, urban geographer and activist Rebecca Solnit is our inaugural guest on 55 Voices for Democracy. The author of, amo...
Listen
Rebecca Solnit on Hope in Politically Dark Times from 2020-10-17T02:12:29
Polymath author of twenty books, writer, historian, essayist, urban geographer and activist Rebecca Solnit is our inaugural guest on 55 Voices for Democracy. The author of, amo...
Listen