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Forbidden Conversations
By Katherine BrodskySociety & Culture
Forbidden Conversations episodes
- A pro-peace Palestinian refugee speaks up
Welcome to the Forbidden Conversations podcasts, which provides a nuanced and civil approach to difficult subjects.
My guest today is Mo Ghaoui, a Palestinian-Lebanese refugee turned American who has spent 25 years in the tech sector, including some involvement with the more shadowy aspects of the political world. Despite his professional background, he remains committed to resolving the right of return dilemma and actively opposes the communication ban with Israelis, advocating for open dialogue to foster better relationships and understanding.Mo's voice is one that is often omitted from the spotlight when it comes to navigating the conflict in the Middle East, but is critical to include in the discourse. Not only do we tackle the Gaza/Israel conflict, but we unexpectedly get into the weeds of Islam and the interpretation of the Quran.1 hr 49 min - Is it better to transition early? Brianna Wu & Christina Buttons
This isn't a debate, but rather a civil conversation that presents two different perspectives on the trans conversation—particularly around children. There's areas of agreement and disagreement, all in good faith.
----Brianna Wu is an American video game developer and computer programmer. She co-founded Giant Spacekat, an independent video game development studio, with Amanda Warner in Boston, Massachusetts. She is also a blogger and podcaster on matters relating to the video game industry.Christina Buttons is a liberal, science-oriented, independent journalist who primarily reports on news and research related to "gender medicine."1 hr 46 min - Warren Smith: Why aren't we using Critical thinking more?
Warren Smith is a teacher whose video of a conversation with a student went viral back as he challenged the student to think critically about his claim relating to author J.K. Rowling.
He has since been laid off from his position and runs Secret Scholars on YouTube.1 hr 7 min - 7 Reasons Why We Believe Lies (bonus)
It's striking how many people believe things that are demonstrably false, even though we live in an era where information is more accessible than ever before.
This phenomenon affects everything from personal medical decisions to global policies.In an age brimming with data and facts at our fingertips, do so many of us cling to untruths? And more importantly, how can we counteract this and foster a more accurate understanding of reality?To unravel these questions, we need to delve into the psychological and social mechanisms that shape our beliefs.This video explores 7 key consideration about how we think and perceive information, along with practical antidotes to combat our tendency to succumb to false narratives and beliefs.17 min - Special Episode: A Conversation with Elon Musk
This conversation was streamed live on X on February 19, 2024.
This episode features and interview between Katherine Brodsky & Elon Musk and a Q&A to follow.Warning: There were significant sound issues due to glitches and Elon doing this interview from an airplane.2 hr 56 min - The Future of AI with Robert Scoble
Robert Scoble is an American blogger, technical evangelist, and author. Scoble is best known for his blog, Scobleizer, which came to prominence during his tenure as a technology evangelist at Microsoft.
You can find him on X: @ScobleizerHis podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/robert-scoble448 min - Emmanuel Maggiori: Is AI overhyped?
My guest, Emmanuel Maggiori (PhD), is a 10-year AI industry insider and author of the book Smart Until It's Dumb: Why artificial intelligence keeps making epic mistakes (and why the AI bubble will burst). He has developed AI for a wide variety of applications, from extracting objects from satellite images to packaging holiday deals for millions of travelers every day, working as a data scientist and software engineer for various clients. After studying software engineering in Argentina, he completed his PhD at Inria, the French national IT research lab.
He joins me to discuss the dangers of AI and where it can excel. Is AI delivering on its promises? Is AI as good as we think it is? What can humans do better than AI? Do we need AI tools everywhere or are we putting it to use where it is not needed? Is there too much pressure to implement it everywhere? Is it overhyped? Should we be worried?52 min - Is Israel's response disproportionate? John Spencer on War and Disinformation
These days, wars aren’t merely fought on battlefields. The battle is also for public sentiment and perception. Whether we’re talking about government propaganda, or the massive spread of lies on an unprecedented scale due to speed of transmission—it is not something to be dismissed lightly.
On this episode of Forbidden Conversations, I talk to combat veteran and national security/military analyst, John Spencer about the state of modern warfare, Russia’s war crimes in Ukraine, the situation in Israel, what “disproportionate response” really means, and the difficulty of fighting both mis and disinformation.I also encourage you to read his insightful article for CNN about whether Israel is actually committing war crimes in Gaza.John Spencer is an award-winning scholar, professor, author, combat veteran, national security and military analyst, and internationally recognized expert and advisor on urban warfare, military strategy, tactics, and other related topics. Considered one of the world’s leading expert on urban warfare, he served as an advisor to the top four-star general and other senior leaders in the U.S. Army as part of strategic research groups from the Pentagon to the United States Military Academy.He is the author of three books: Understanding Urban Warfare, (Howgate Publishing, 2022), Connected Soldiers: Life, Leadership, and Social Connections in Modern War (Potomac Books, 2022), The Mini-Manual for the Urban Defender (John Spencer, 2022).Spencer currently serves as the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point, Co-Director of the Urban Warfare Project, and host of the Urban Warfare Project podcast. He serves as the Chair of Urban Warfare Studies with the Madison Policy Forum, a New York based think-tank. He also serves as a Colonel in the California State Guard with assignment to the 40th Infantry Division, California Army National Guard as the Director of Urban Warfare Training. He is a founding member of the International Working Group on Subterranean Warfare.You can find him on X at @SpencerGuard.51 min - Gurwinder Bhogal: Is social media rotting our brain?
My guest, Gurwinder Bhogal, is a writer examining the intersection of psychology and technology. On this episode of Forbidden Conversations, we explore some of the ideas central to his work—namely—ways in which we tend to get fooled in the digital age. Why have we seemingly abandoned reason? Is the Internet really rotting our brain, or do we share that responsibility? We have more data available to us than ever before, but it isn’t necessarily making us more knowledgeable. And there’s few of us that have been able to avoid the Kruger-Dunning effect. Why is it that smart people believe false things? And why is it so difficult for many of us to change our minds?
Most importantly, what is the antidote?
After working in web development on projects like Microsoft Bing, Gurwinder left the tech industry to pursue a career as a freelance writer. His work has featured in UnHerd, Quillette, Areo, The Humanist, The Sunday Express, and on the blog of the counter-terrorism think-tank Quilliam. He also writes at
Gurwinder gurwinder.substack.com and you can find him on Twitter.
1 hr 54 min - Greg Lukianoff: Is cancel culture getting worse?
Is freedom of speech really under attack? Are things getting worse? What is causing many people to be worried about too much free speech? Why are these issues of particular concern on campuses? Is cancel culture literally claiming lives?
There’s probably no better guest to tackle these questions (and many more) than Greg Lukianoff, attorney, New York Times best-selling author co-author of The Coddling of the American Mind with Jonathan Haidt, and the President and CEO of the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE). Lukianoff is also the author of Unlearning Liberty: Campus Censorship and the End of American Debate, Freedom From Speech, and FIRE’s Guide to Free Speech on Campus. He is the Executive Producer of Can We Take a Joke? (2015), a feature-length documentary that explores the collision between comedy, censorship, and outrage culture, both on and off campus, and of Mighty Ira: A Civil Liberties Story (2020), an award-winning feature-length film about the life and career of former ACLU Executive Director Ira Glasser.He has been published in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, The Boston Globe, and numerous other publications. He’s also appeared on shows like CBS Evening News, The Today Show, and NPR’s Morning Edition. In 2008, he became the first-ever recipient of the Playboy Foundation’s Freedom of Expression Award, and he has testified before both the U.S. Senate and the House of Representatives about free speech issues on America’s college campuses.His upcoming book (co-authored with Rikki Schlott), The Canceling of the American Mind: Cancel Culture Undermines Trust and Threatens Us All—But There Is a Solution, is due to be released on October 17.Follow him on Twitter at: @JonHaidt---The FORBIDDEN CONVERSATIONS Podcast is a series that takes on topics that don't always get attention or are more challenging to tackle and seeks to address them through civil discourse and nuanced exploration. To view all episodes so far, visit here.Want to listen only? Find us on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.---Find more essays and podcasts at: http://www.katherinewrites.com1 hr 5 min
About Forbidden Conversations
From the publisher's feed
FORBIDDEN CONVERSATIONS is a series that takes on topics that don't always get proper attention or are more challenging to tackle in our charged society—and seeks to address them through civil discourse and nuanced exploration.
The podcast is hosted by Katherine Brodsky. As a journalist, she has served as a correspondent for VARIETY since 2011 and also written for publications like NEWSWEEK, WIRED, THE WASHINGTON POST, THE GUARDIAN, ESQUIRE, MASHABLE, VULTURE, and others.
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