As we see coups across the world, and as we watch the leaders like Putin, Bolsonaro, and Meloni, we wonder why is this happening? How did we get here? How do we stop the rise of fascism? On today’s A Public Affair, we ask Ruth Ben-Ghiat to help us answer these questions. Ruth Ben-Ghiat is a historian who writes about authoritarianism, democracy protection, and propaganda. She is Professor of History and Italian Studies at New York University, the recipient of Guggenheim, Fulbright, and other fellowships, and Advisor to Protect Democracy. She is an MSNBC opinion columnist, a regular contributor to CNN and The Washington Post, and provides live commentary on CNN, MSNBC, and other networks. She publishes Lucid, a newsletter on threats to democracy. Her latest book is Strongmen: Mussolini to the Present (W. W. Norton & Company, 2020). Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereMore Posts for Show: A Public Affair

Last week, UW-Madison announced a permanent center to expand on the work of the Public History Project. Joining us to talk about the expansion, their recent exhibit Sifting and Reckoning, and the role of public history is Project Director Kacie Lucchini Butcher.   Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereMore Posts for Show: A Public Affair

For the first half of the show, we talk with Cap Times Capitol bureau chief Jessie Opoien and Marquette University Political Science Professor Philip Rocco as we await the governor’s 2023-2025 proposed budget. We discuss school funding, flat tax, and the year of mental health. Image by David Mark from Pixabay Then we begin our coverage of the Wisconsin Supreme Court Judge race with Dane County Circuit Court Judge Everett Mitchell. He joins us to talk about respecting defendants, his passion to end the juvenile justice to prison pipeline, and his goals for Wisconsin. You can learn more about Judge Mitchell’s campaign here: https://www.judgeeverettmitchell.com/ This race is headed to the primary election on February 21st.   Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereMore Posts for Show: A Public Affair

The remains of more than 100 thousand ancestors of indigenous people are currently being kept in US Museums and Universities. In 1990, the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act called for all remains to be returned to descendants or tribal nations. However, in the more than 30 years since the passage of that law, many institutions have been reluctant to give them back.  A new investigation from ProPublica and NBC News has found that 10 institutions and government entities hold more than half of those remains. Joining us to to talk about the findings are ProPublica reporters Ash Ngu  and Logan Jaffe. Their interactive report can be read here. Ash Ngu is a reporter, designer and developer with ProPublica’s news apps team. They previously worked at The New York Times and The Pudding. Logan Jaffe  is a reporter for newsletters at ProPublica. She previously reported and produced for The New York Times and Chicago Public Media. She is the creator of “Battle Flag,” an interactive documentary which questions the meaning of the Confederate battle flag in America. Photo by Solstice Hannan on Unsplash Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereMore Posts for Show: A Public Affair

Continuing our coverage on climate change, we are joined by 350 Wisconsin‘s John Greenler and Emily Park. John is the Executive Director at 350 Wisconsin. Emily is the Communication Action Team representative on the Coordinating Council and also is a Fossil Free Fed Campaign Organizer with 350 US.  They join us to talk about climate activism and approaches to climate activism and communication 350 Wisconsin (formerly 350 Madison) mobilizes grassroots power to change hearts and minds, laws and policies, and humanity’s massive systems to make transformational progress toward environmental justice and solving the climate crisis by 2030. Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereMore Posts for Show: A Public Affair

In their new book, Half-Earth Socialism: A Plan to Save the Future from Extinction, Climate Change and Pandemics, Drew Pendergrass and Troy Vettese imagine a utopian future and offer a plan to get there. They suggest that humans cannot control or fully understand the earth. However, by planning new energy and food systems, and enacting large-scale rewilding efforts, we can perhaps prevent a mass extinction. They join us on A Public Affair to talk through the book and their provocative arguments for the future of humanity. You can your hand at saving the planet with their game by the same name: play.half.earth Drew Pendergrass is a PhD student in Environmental Engineering at Harvard University. His current research uses satellite, aircraft and surface observations of the environment to correct supercomputer models of the atmosphere. His environmental writing has been published in Harper’s, the Guardian, Jacobin, and Current Affairs. Troy Vettese is an environmental historian and a Max Weber fellow at the European University Institute, where he is affiliated with the ECOINT project. He studies the history of environmental economics, energy-systems, and animal life under capitalism. His writing has appeared in Bookforum, New Left Review, The Guardian, n+1 and many more publications.   Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereMore Posts for Show: A Public Affair

In his recent article, “What Price “Defense”? – America’s Costly, Dysfunctional Approach to Security Is Making Us Ever Less Safe”, William Hartung writes, “Forging a more sensible American defense strategy will, in the end, require progress on two fronts. First, the myth that the quest for total global military dominance best serves the interests of the American people needs to be punctured. Second, the stranglehold of the Pentagon and its corporate allies on the budget process needs to be loosened in some significant fashion.” Leading Pentagon spending and arms industry critic Bill Hartung joins the show to talk about his article and how the American public’s view of safety needs to change. William D. Hartung is a senior research fellow at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft. He was previously the director of the Arms and Security Program at the Center for International Policy and the co-director of the Center’s Sustainable Defense Task Force. He is the author of Prophets of War: Lockheed Martin and the Making of the Military-Industrial Complex and the co-editor, with Miriam Pemberton, of Lessons from Iraq: Avoiding the Next War. Image by Robert Waghorn from Pixabay Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereMore Posts for Show: A Public Affair

Continuing our election coverage, Madison Mayor Candidate Gloria Reyes joins us in the studio to talk about her campaign and goals for the city if elected. Gloria Reyes is the first Latina to run for Mayor in the City of Madison. Gloria is a former law enforcement officer for the City of Madison Police Department. She also served the city as deputy mayor. She is a former school board member and Madison School Board President. She was the first Latina to serve in this role. Gloria is the co-founder  of Adelante, a political action group aimed to prepare and support candidates of color to run for political office. Her consulting business: Reyes Public Safety consults with the National League of Cities and Race Forward with a focus on race and equity in law enforcement. Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereMore Posts for Show: A Public Affair

Artificial Intelligence has been slowly been making it’s way into our homes and work places over the last serval decades, but recently questions have been raised about AI stealing and replicating art, and a new AI system, ChatGPT, is being banned in schools. Joining us to discuss the moral panic (and the hype) around these bots is AI Theorist Robin Zebrowski. We cover the issues of AI biases, facial recognition, data mining, and more. Robin Zebrowski is an AI theorist and a Professor of Cognitive Science at Beloit College. Her interdisciplinary research spans philosophy, psychology, and computer science. She works primarily on human concepts of embodiment, with applications in artificial intelligence, robotics, and cyborg theory. Her recent publications can be found here.  Image by Mohamed Hassan from Pixabay Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereMore Posts for Show: A Public Affair

In September, residents from 48 townhouses in the Bayview Community along West Washington Avenue moved into 48 new apartments. This was the first phase of the Bayview Foundation‘s comprehensive re envisioning of the community which was built in 1971. Joining us to talk about the move and Bayview’s work is Executive Director Alexis London and housing coordinator, Bayview resident, and foundation board member Xong Vang. (Photo provided by Bayview Foundation.) Did you enjoy this story? Your funding makes great, local journalism like this possible. Donate hereMore Posts for Show: A Public Affair