Project Censored

A conversation about surveillance and authoritarianism, with Kalemba Kizito.   the Project Censored Show:   Hosts: Nolan Higdon, Nicholas Baham and Desiree McSwain Producer: Mitch Scorza

Authors Peter Dale Scott and David Talbot join Mickey for a discussion of the now-popular phrase "deep state,"  and its implications. They also share their thoughts on the best way forward for the left in the Trump era. Peter Dale Scott is a retired diplomat and prolific author on politics and history; among his books are "Deep Politics  and the Death of JFK," and "Drugs, Oil and War." David Talbot is the founder of Salon.com, and now a columnist for  the San Francisco Chronicle; his most recent book is "The Devil's Chessboard."  

Nolan, Nicholas and Desiree speak with long-time community journalist Louis Laventure about how journalism needs to adapt to serve today's young people.  

Historian and author Andres Resendez speaks about "the other slavery" -- the enslavement  of millions of Native Americans from the time of Columbus to the 1900s, a subject often overlooked  in history curricula. Resendez spoke in Berkeley, CA in April 2017; Mickey Huff was the host of that event.  This program includes Resendez' speech, and part of the question-and-answer period that followed. 

Mickey's guest for the hour is the academic and prolific author Henry Giroux of McMaster University in Canada.  They discuss some of the consequences of neoliberalism and authoritarianism for the US, and how US political culture  deteriorated to a level that allowed Trump to be elected.

Mnar Muhawesh is the guest for the first half of the show; she explains why she created Mint Press News,  as well as her experience of being a Muslim woman doing journalism in the U.S.Later in the program, the three hosts have a panel discussion covering, among other topics,  the various connotations of the word "nationalist."    Web sites mentioned on this week's show:   www.mintpressnews.com

Peter Phillips and guest co-host Michael Sukhov spend the hour with Alison Weir, founder of the organization "If Americans Knew."   The interview focuses on two ongoing initiatives by pro-Israel organzations: -- efforts to have the definition of "anti-Semitic" rewritten to encompass criticisms of the Israeli government,     a campaign underway in domains ranging from the State Department to university campuses. -- lobbying state legislatures to pass laws punishing firms that follow the BDS (boycott, divestment and sanctions)     campaign against the occupation of Palestine; more than 20 states have now done so.   In the course of the conversation, Weir also refutes some common misconceptions about the Middle East,      such as "Israel was created by the UN."   Web sites mentioned on this week's show:   www.ifamericansknew.org www.israelpalestinenews.org

Peter and Mickey spend most of the hour in conversation with attorney Caitlin Henry and sociologist Laleh Behbehanian;  their topic is the rise in state legislative efforts to suppress or punish political protest.   At the end of the program, we hear an update about the Golden Rule, a historic sailboat used in anti-nuclear and pro-peace actions;  crew members Helen Jaccard and Jerry Condon will explain their upcoming voyages.     Caitlin Henry is an attorney in Oakland, CA and a member of the National Lawyers Guild. Laleh Behbehanian teaches Sociology at the University of California Berkeley campus.

Does the rise to the presidency of Rodrigo Duterte signal a drift toward facism in the Philippines? Nolan and Nicholas explore this question, and other issues of Philippine history and politics, with scholar and former Philippine government research administrator Maria Ortuoste. Maria Ortuoste is Associate Professor of Political Science at Califoria State University, East Bay. Previously, she worked in the Philippine government, as head of the research division in the Foreign Service Institute.

Nolan and Nicholas spend this week's show in conversation with author and historian Katherine Olmstead; their topic is "conspiracy culture in media." Katherine Olmstead teaches History at the University of California Davis campus. She has written several books about 20th-Century US history, including "Real Enemies: Conspiracy Theories and American Democracy."

In the first half of the show, Mickey and Peter speak with three student researchers at San Francisco State University, and their faculty advisor, about their current Project Censored research, and about innovative new approaches to journalism itself.   Then Chase Palmieri of Tribeworthy.com makes a return visit to the show, to offer an update on Tribeworthy's progress. Tribeworthy's purpose is to offer news 'consumers' a site to collectively rate the quality of individual news stories.       Notes:   Bethany Surface, Malcolm Pinson and Audrey Johnson are students at San Francisco State University and members of the SFSU Project Censored Club; Kenn Burrows is faculty advisor to the club, and an lecturer in Holistic Health Studies.   Web sites mentioned on this week's program: www.tribeworthy.com

Peter and Mickey spend most of the hour in conversation with attorney Caitlin Henry and sociologist Laleh Behbehanian; their topic is the rise in state legislative efforts to suppress or punish political protest.   At the end of the program, we hear an update about the Golden Rule, a historic sailboat used in anti-nuclear and pro-peace actions; crew members Helen Jaccard and Jerry Condon will explain their upcoming voyages.     Caitlin Henry is an attorney in Oakland, CA and a member of the National Lawyers Guild. Laleh Behbehanian teaches Sociology at the University of California Berkeley campus.   Notes:   Web sites mentioned on this week's program: www.antirepressionbayarea.com www.defendj20resistance.org www.nlg.org www.vfpgoldenruleproject.org

The three hosts discuss among themselves issues of sexism in US society, focusing on the health care system and the media. Later in the program, Julie Frechette of Worchester State University joins the conversation about sexism and sexual harrassment within media organizations, especially Fox News.     Julie Frechette is Chair of the Department of Communications at Worcester State University in Massachusetts.   the Project Censored Show:    Hosts: Nolan Higdon, Desiree McSwain, Nicholas Baham Originates at KPFA, 94.1 FM, Berkeley CA, Fridays 1-2 PM Pacific Time Archives at  www.projectcensored.org/category/radio

This week's program is a panel discussion among the three hosts, examining some recent news stories. They begin with the death of musician Chris Cornell, and how corporate media frames individuals' drug problems. Then, for the majority of the hour, they consider the multiple grounds for the impeachment of Donald Trump.

What role can civil disobedience play in the stuggle for social change?  Peter explores this question with two guests: first, environmental organizer  Tim DeChristopher recounts his experience delaying a federal oil and gas  leasing process, and how the legal doctrine of "necessity" could be used in environmental campaigns.  Then Sunsara Taylor discusses the right-wing effort to supress womens' option of abortion, and the countercampaign to preserve reproductive choice. Tim DeChristopher founded two climate-action organizations. He spent 21 months in prison  for submitting a false bid at a federal oil and gas auction in Utah in 2008. (www.timdechristopher.org) Sunsara Taylor is with StopPatriarchy.org, and also is a member of the Revolutionary Communist Party (www.revcom.us.)