In 2018, the tech and democracy activist Yaël Eisenstat joined Facebook as the head of Global Elections Integrity for political ads. Six months later, she left. She was disappointed and disillusioned at how Facebook financially profits from voter manipulation. This, of course, was years before Mark Zuckerberg's recent announcement that Facebook’s parent company, Meta, would get rid of all its fact checkers.

Before joining Facebook, she had worked for years to strengthen and defend democracy—as an intelligence officer at the CIA, a diplomat at the State Department and a White House advisor. These days Eisenstat is a Senior Fellow at Cybersecurity for Democracy, working on policy solutions for how social media, AI-powered algorithms and generative AI affect political discourse, polarization and democracy.

And, as she told our Amsterdam audience on Apri 23, 2024 at Pakhuis de Zwijger, she’s hopeful that change will come one day. But it will be slow. Very slow.

The evening was hosted by the chair of the Foundation for Democracy and Media, Yvonne Zonderop. Click here for the video of the event.

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A gem rescued from the archives! We are re-releasing the Toni Morrison episode after cleaning up the audio.

Toni Morrison writes about history, slavery, racism, resilience and survival with an unflinching voice. Her novels, once a staple of every American school bookshelf, are now the targets of politically motivated reviews and book bannings.

Despite this, there is no getting around the fact that she was one of America’s greatest writers. Before her death in 2019, her oeuvre stretched out over almost four decades. Her debut novel, The Bluest Eye, in 1970, already showed her ear for dialogue, and richly expressive depictions of African American struggles. In 2009, she came to Amsterdam on the strength of her book, A Mercy, which made the New York Times Book Review Top Ten of 2008.

She read a passage for us from “A Mercy”. Although physically frail, her mind was sharp during her conversation with the Dutch novelist, playwright and translator, Bas Heine (May 20th, 2009 at the Aula of the UvA in Amsterdam).

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Ivo Daalder is a Dutch born American citizen, who became  the U.S. representative to NATO from 2009 to 2013 under President Barack Obama and was a foreign policy advisor for his 2008 presidential campaign. He also served in the United States Security Council during the Clinton administration. He’s now the CEO of the Chicago Council on Global Affairs.

The John Adams Institute and the Netherlands Atlantic Association welcomed Ivo Daalder back to the land of his birth in celebration of the 75th anniversary of the North American Treaty Organization, or NATO.

The world has changed immensely since the end of the cold war it was created to fight. There’s war on its Eastern front and a potential conflict with China. And Donald Trump, ever suspicious of NATO,  is president again. Indeed, governments all over the western world have made a significant populist rightward shift. In this conversation moderated by Dutch journalist Eelco Bosch van Rosenthal, Mr. Daalder says the stakes for NATO have never been higher, and that maybe even liberal democracy itself  hangs in the balance.

Recorded on September 16, 2024 at the Dominicuskerk in Amsterdam. Click here for the video, or visit our digital library and scroll through our rich archive.

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Super Tuesday, March 3rd, 2020. Professor of law, a constitutional scholar, commentator and author Kim Wehle joined the John Adams to lay out exactly what was at stake in the election between Donald Trump and Joe Biden. The constitutional issues were, and still are, enormous.  

In her book How to Read the Constitution – and Why Kim Wehle describes in clear language what is actually in the Constitution, and most importantly, what it means today. She also describes how the Constitution’s protections are eroding and why every American needs to heed this “red flag” moment in our democracy back in 2020 and right now. The book is essential reading for anyone who wants to understand the constantly breaking news about the backbone of  American government.   

This conversation took place at the Aula in Amsterdam and was moderated by the Dutch journalist and John Adams regular Eelco Bosch van Rosenthal.

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It’s April 14th, 1865. The actor John Wilkes Booth pulls a gun and assassinates President Lincoln who is sitting in a balcony of the Ford Theatre in Washington DC. Booth becomes one of the most infamous men in American history. But what about his family? Who were they? What did they believe? Did they have any role in the killing?

These are questions author and Man Booker finalist Karen Joy Fowler discusses in her epic book, Booth.

Booth is a sweeping American saga that charts the rising fame of the Booth family from humble beginnings to their fame as the nation’s most famous family of actors. And, of course, it looks at their fates after the event that made them the nation’s most infamous family of actors.

This conversation was recorded on 15 Sept, 2022 at the OBA Public Library in Amsterdam and was presented by the University of Amsterdam Professor, Katy Hull.

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History is entering a new phase, where old forms and ideas clash with present realities. The John Adams Institute was excited to welcome Francis Fukuyama back to Amsterdam to discuss his findings in his book, Liberalism and Its Discontents.

In this rigorous and trim volume, Fukuyama returns to liberalism, arguing that it cannot grow complacent. Liberalism—despite its flaws—appears to be the only system adaptable enough to accommodate the myriad challenges the future holds.
 
Today, caught up in the maelstrom of political ideologies and cultural realities, where can people take ideological and organizational refuge? How can we not only survive, but thrive together in a world whose present is dominated by immense challenges and an uncertain future? Fukuyama’s return to one of his most iconic topics is not only timely and insightful, but also cements his reputation as one of today’s most engaging thinkers.

This conversation was recorded on 3 October, 2022 at the Aula (Uva) in Amsterdam.

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Bret Easton Ellis took 13 years to write The Shards. It’s a horror novel. Or maybe it’s an autobiography.  In fact, it’s both. The Shards is a fictionalized retelling of Mr. Ellis’s 18th year. 

It tells the story of a group of superficially sophisticated teens have their lives shattered by a series of terrible events. It’s 1981 Los Angeles and a local serial killer known only as The Trawler draws ever closer to Bret and his friends. He taunts them with grotesque threats and acts of violence. As Bret’s obsession with the killer grows, he spirals into paranoia and isolation.

This mesmerizing novel is a vivid and nostalgic fusion of fact and fiction at the edge of what’s real and fantasy. Bret Easton Ellis is probably best known for his now-iconic book American Psycho (1991) and the highly memeable film that followed.

Bret Easton Ellis was interviewed for the John Adams Institute by Dutch writer and critic Joost de Vries at Boom Chicago in January of 2023.

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In the third and final episode of the election specials of our podcast Bright Minds, America expert and podcaster Laila Frank talks to law professor, constitutional scholar, commentator and author Kim Wehle. She is an expert on constitutional law and the separation of powers, with particular emphasis on presidential power and administrative agencies. Her latest book Pardon Power - How the Pardon System works – and Why, just dropped. In the run-up to the 2020 U.S. presidential election, she joined the John Adams to talk about her book How to Read the Constitution – and Why. What are her hopes, fears and expectations for this election cycle?

KimberlyWhele.com her personal website

Laila Frank  

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The current episodes of our podcast Bright Minds are all about the U.S. presidential elections. America journalist Laila Frank, specialized in politics and change in the U.S., will bring you conversations with remarkable American political thinkers about their hopes, fears and expectations for this election cycle.

In the second episode of our election specials, Laila Frank talks to author, journalist and political insider Mark Leibovich. What are his hopes, fears and expectations for this election cycle?

Mark is a staff writer for the Atlantic and the author of five books, including three New York Times best sellers, and two No. 1 Times best sellers, This Town (2013) and Thank You for Your Servitude. He is the recipient of a National Magazine Award for profile writing.  His latest piece in the Atlantic is a true gem of anecdotal yet brutal political analysis of the Republican Party.

Mark Leibovich's Film Pick:
All The President's Men

 
Episode Links:

Video of Mark Leibovich the John Adams Institute
Mark Leibovich’s page at The Atlantic

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The next three episodes of Bright Minds are all about the U.S. presidential elections. America journalist Laila Frank, specialized in politics and change in the U.S., will bring you conversations with remarkable American political thinkers about their hopes, fears and expectations for this election cycle.

First up is professor of African-American studies and author Carol Anderson. She is a renowned speaker and has written several books on race, systemic inequality and power structures. All are extremely relevant for the upcoming elections.

Carol Anderson’s Book Picks:
Tyranny of the Minority by Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt
Minority Rule by Ari Berman

In 2022, Carol Anderson took to the John Adams stage to talk about voting rights and the 2nd Amendment. Click here to watch the video.

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