PolicyCast

Iranian journalist Yeganeh Rezaian, a Fall 2016 Joan Shorenstein Fellow at the Shorenstein Center, discusses the challenges she faced as a reporter in her home country, and describes the common thread that joins her experience with that of journalists, especially women, across the Middle East. She then offers advice to young reporters interested in reporting from the region.

HKS Professor Thomas Patterson, author of an ongoing series of reports out of the Shorenstein Center on the media's coverage of the 2016 election cycle, discusses what he sees as troubling consequences of how the press approaches reporting on the campaign.

Former US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright encourages young activists to join established systems in order to learn how to drive change from within; discusses the emerging relevance of non-state actors in the international system; offers her take on a proposed wall along the US/Mexico border; and expresses her hope that Americans will welcome in more Syrian refugees.

HKS Lecturer Juliette Kayyem, a national security expert and author of “Security Mom,” digs into the “Goldilocks” problem of security in the United States, analyzing whether the Transportation Safety Administration (TSA) is worth the cost and hassle to air travellers; providing historical context to US approaches to safety and security; and explaining why national security is shaping up to become the central theme in the 2016 presidential general election, and what that means for the candidates.

US Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James discusses the return of the Air Force's Reserve Officer Training Corps to Harvard; how remotely piloted drones have affected the United States' modern approach to warfare; whether serious issues regarding the command and control of US nuclear weapons have been adequately addressed; why the modernization of the nuclear arsenal is worth the $1 trillion it is expected to cost; and how the Air Force can foster more diversity in its ranks.

Ambassador Kristie Kenney, counselor of the US State Department, gives her perspective on leadership in diplomacy, drawing on her experience as US ambassador to Ecuador, Thailand and the Philippines. She discusses what traits are most important, how she assembles her staff, why she became an avid social media user, and how technology will continue to change how the diplomatic corps operates. 

Dr. Howard Koh, former Assistant Secretary for Health at the US Department of Health and Human Services and professor at both the Harvard Chan School of Public Health and the Kennedy School, counters the popular perception that the fight against tobacco has been won, stressing that every day in the United States, thousands more teenagers pick up the habit. He discusses the new frontier opened up by e-cigarettes, recent efforts across the country to raise the smoking age to 21, and new regulations that have banned smokeless tobacco in several major league baseball stadiums.

Northeastern Professor Dan Kennedy, a spring 2016 Joan Shorenstein Fellow at the Kennedy School’s Shorenstein Center, describes the fates of three newspapers, the Washington Post, the Boston Globe and the Orange County Register, that were bought in recent years by individuals with significant financial means but little background in journalism. He explains the differing approaches each paper has taken to find a sustainable business model, discusses how the models have impacted the quality of reporting, and interprets what other news organizations might learn from their examples.

Ambassador Gary Locke, the first Chinese-American to serve as US ambassador to China, reflects on how his personal and family history influenced his approach to diplomacy, both with China and with his own constituents.

Jill Abramson, former executive editor of the New York Times and current Harvard lecturer, discusses media coverage of both sides of the 2016 presidential campaign, relating her experiences reporting on presidential races since 1976.