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Democracy Works

Penn State McCourtney Institute for Democracy

The Democracy Works podcast seeks to answer that question by examining a different aspect of democratic life each week — from voting to criminal justice to the free press and everything in between. We interview experts who study democracy, as well as people who are out there doing the hard work of democracy day in and day out.The show’s name comes from Pennsylvania’s long tradition of iron and steel works — people coming together to build things greater than the sum of their parts. We believe that democracy is the same way. Each of us has a role to play in building and sustaining a healthy democracy and our show is all about helping people understand what that means.Democracy Works is part of The Democracy Group, a network of podcasts that examines what’s broken in our democracy and how we can work together to fix it.

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Episodes

335 episodes

  1. Federalism and power in Trump 2.0 47:19
  2. How identity fuels political divides 41:52
  3. Who pays for American democracy? 52:55
  4. Political status and the DSA summer 48:40
  5. How to create social change that sticks 38:52
  6. Talk Nerdy: Black Evidence with Candis Watts Smith 1:04:48
  7. When politics enters the doctor's office 31:42
  8. The Declaration of Independence and democracy renovation 46:40
  9. Janet Napolitano on higher education and democracy 34:31
  10. Is public media still public? 20:51
  11. Embracing mindful democracy 38:34
  12. How AI is changing democracy 46:50
  13. How America's political divides affect foreign policy 49:41
  14. The Context: Seven ways anyone can fight authoritarianism 32:44
  15. Troubling times for higher education and democracy 52:52
  16. Fixing the information ecosystem starts with us 38:11
  17. The dismantling of USAID and the death of government oversight 52:00
  18. Disorder: Democracy lessons from Europe and beyond 49:31
  19. How AI is shaping the news 39:23
  20. A Republic, if you can teach it 46:04
  21. The new gerrymandering battles 49:14
  22. How misogyny fuels political violence 46:23
  23. Standing up for higher education 45:31
  24. Ben Rhodes on America's changing role in a changed world 1:03:36
  25. How mental health shapes democratic engagement [rebroadcast] 45:22
  26. Inside the MAGA black hole 47:35
  27. How 2020 changed America 47:18
  28. An update on the states 45:53
  29. The problem(s) with platforms 46:06
  30. Lessons from Charlottesville and January 6 45:51
  31. Christianity as a democratic institution 33:51
  32. The power of practicing peace 43:25
  33. Pushing back against political violence 45:33
  34. Democracy reform in 2025 and beyond 39:27
  35. Season finale: Reflecting on a new political era 44:03
  36. Sustaining democracy during wartime 46:35
  37. Telling America's story at the National Archives 43:11
  38. Bad Watchdog: The Red Herring 41:04
  39. How strong is support for democracy? 33:49
  40. How the Supreme Court could shape the 2024 election 45:41
  41. Eddie Glaude Jr. on the peril of outsourcing democracy 45:31
  42. Liberalism is a lifestyle 38:43
  43. The immigration stories that aren't told 41:12
  44. How the National Popular Vote could change presidential elections 47:30
  45. Making Peace Visible: In search of good conflict 33:21
  46. Season finale: Protests, debates, and the "meh" election 36:34
  47. How elected strongmen weaken democracy 41:51
  48. 30 years of democracy in South Africa 44:31
  49. David Hogg on leaders we deserve 48:44
  50. Democracy is the sum of us 45:51