This Week in Dystopia

This week, host Chris Robichaud is joined by Caroline Light, Harvard Senior Lecturer and Director of Undergraduate Studies of Women, Gender, and Sexuality. Light, an expert on America’s relationship with self-defense, provides insight into today's debate over gun control.

On February 26th, Walter Scheidel, Dickason Professor in the Humanities, Professor of Classics and History, Stanford, joined This Week in Dystopia host Chris Robichaud for a conversation at Harvard Kennedy School about inequality. They answer the questions no one wants to address like, is war or catastrophe really the only way to curb inequality? Is inequality in society okay?

Leah Wright Rigueur, Assistant Professor of Public Policy at Harvard Kennedy School, joins host Chris Robichaud to discuss Black Panther, helping us understand the #WakandaForever movie-ment. From Oakland to Wakanda, T’Challa to Killmonger, comic book to movie, the conversation covers the pros and cons of the film, the hidden easter eggs, and what might happen in a sequel (or prequel!).

Thursday, February 8th, Idiocracy co-screenwriter Etan Cohen joined Christopher Robichaud in a screening of the movie followed by a live episode of This Week in Dystopia. Tune in to hear Cohen discuss what didn’t make it into the film, the relationship between comedy and reality, and how social media would have changed the story.

Host Chris Robichaud invites former Clinton Campaign Manager Robby Mook, now a fellow at Harvard Kennedy School’s Belfer Center and CNN political commentator, to discuss campaign cybersecurity, the generic ballot, the outlook for the 2018 election cycle, and more.

Immigration is a contentious issue, hotly debated on both sides of the aisle. Amidst arguments, in a post-truth era, it’s hard to know what to believe about policy and laws. To help us all better understand the legal underpinnings of immigration, host Christopher Robichaud is joined by Sabrineh Ardalan, Assistant Clinical Professor of Law and Assistant Director of the Harvard Immigration and Refugee Clinic.

Comic fans, this one is for you. Host Chris Robichaud dives into the world of dystopian superheroes, bringing culture and politics together to help us understand what our love of the bad good guys really means.

Misogyny is hard to spell but much easier to find in modern politics and society.

Surveys show that healthcare is a top concern for many Americans. What’s plaguing our system? In 2018, what’s going to happen to insurance markets in the U.S. without the individual mandate? Will we enter a “death-spiral”? Would a single-payer system actually work? Host Chris Robichaud is joined by healthcare policy expert Emily Schlichting to discuss the future of healthcare.

What’s going on with the “War on Christmas”? Host Chris Robichaud invites Lauren Kerby, Ph.D., to join him for a discussion about religious conservatives, Christmas, and coffee cups.

From money to malware, our democracy is facing serious challenges. In episode nine of This Week in Dystopia, Donna Brazile, Harvard Shorenstein Center fellow & former Democratic National Committee (DNC) interim chair, sits down with host Christopher Robichaud to discuss her experience during the 2016 presidential election cycle. Brazile covers how she uncovered an unethical financial relationship between the Clinton campaign and the DNC. She then dives into what it was like dealing with attacks and hacks, focusing on our need for better cyber hygiene and literacy.

Host Chris Robichaud welcomes R. Derek Black, a former white nationalist activist and current graduate student in history, to share his unique story and perspective.

Join host Christopher Robichaud in his office as he sits down with Claire Wardle and Hossein Derakhshan to discuss 2017’s Word of the Year, fake news; why that phrase should be banned from our vocabulary, and what we should use instead.

Former Congressman Bart Stupak (D-MI) sat down with host Christopher Robichaud to discuss the choices and constraints he faced during the passage of the Affordable Care Act. Stupak, a lifelong pro-life advocate, discusses how he had to reconcile his advocacy for comprehensive healthcare reform with his opposition to abortion. Stupak’s story is one of both strategy and ethics, an interesting case study on the role of compromise and party politics in our democracy.

Happy Halloween from This Week in Dystopia. In a spooky episode, host Christopher Robichaud illustrates what zombie apocalypse stories have to teach us about democracy.