The Preamble

What would it take to update the Constitution and should we try? Sharon is joined by former Wisconsin Senator Russ Feingold to explore this question from his book, The Constitution in Jeopardy. Together, they unpack the tools the framers gave to evolve the founding document, including the never before used, and deeply controversial, Constitutional Convention. Could such a convention be a path to necessary reform, or a backdoor to dismantling democracy itself?

Credits:

Host and Executive Producer: Sharon McMahon

Supervising Producer: Melanie Buck Parks

Audio Producer: Craig Thompson

With approval ratings of The Supreme Court at a historic low, what can Congress and the average American citizen do to hold the court accountable, and foster transparency? Sharon welcomes law professor Stephen Vladeck to nerd out about all things Supreme Court. Stephen dives into the elusive behind-the-scenes “shadow docket,” and how 99% of what the court does is in the shadows – without public hearings, and without explanation.

Credits:

Host and Executive Producer: Sharon McMahon

Supervising Producer: Melanie Buck Parks

Audio Producer: Craig Thompson

When we know a loved one is about to die, how can we best hold space for them in the in-between? Sharon is joined by Hadley Vlahos, RN, who has written a bestselling book, The In-Between, about her experiences working as a hospice nurse. Hadley walks us through the discomfort of death with great compassion and empathy while considering what it means to live well, and to die well. She also reflects on the mysterious, often unexplainable experiences shared across faiths and beliefs, encouraging us to embrace the dignity in dying by allowing our loved ones to share their experiences in death.

Credits:

Host and Executive Producer: Sharon McMahon

Supervising Producer: Melanie Buck Parks

Audio Producer: Craig Thompson

We all know that poverty is an existing problem in the United States, but what does that really mean in a country with so much wealth? Sharon is joined by Matthew Desmond, Professor of Sociology at Princeton University and the founding director of the Eviction Lab. Together, they discuss his best-selling book, Poverty, By America, and take a hard look at poverty in one of the richest countries in the world, while reimagining how we perceive poverty.

Credits:

Host and Executive Producer: Sharon McMahon

Supervising Producer: Melanie Buck Parks

Audio Producer: Craig Thompson

American democracy is going through a rough patch, and the Constitution, for all its brilliance, has some flaws that limit the power of majorities. So why haven’t we made any real reforms in over 50 years? And what are other democracies doing to fight authoritarianism? Sharon sits down with Harvard government professors, Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt, to discuss their book, Tyranny of the Minority. They explore how past democracies have failed, and find the striking pattern that political minorities often wield power over political majorities.

Credits:

Host and Executive Producer: Sharon McMahon

Supervising Producer: Melanie Buck Parks

Audio Producer: Craig Thompson

Ever wonder how a white supremacist becomes an extremist? Sharon has a conversation with Matson and Tawni Browning about their book, The Hate Next Door. Matt gets candid about his time working undercover in white supremacist groups and what it was like to balance his dueling realities: where the job ended and where his home life began. Matt and Tawni also talk about the type of person white supremacist hate groups target for recruitment and the types of messaging they rely on to spread their violent ideologies.

Credits:

Host and Executive Producer: Sharon McMahon

Supervising Producer: Melanie Buck Parks

Audio Producer: Craig Thompson

How does American society uphold the First Amendment while restricting books and censoring diverse ideas? Sharon talks with Suzanne Nossel, CEO of PEN America, about the surge in book bans, now over 4,000 nationwide. Suzanne explains how vague language about “protecting children” is used to remove books that reflect marginalized voices, often labeling them as “indecent” without justification. The result is classic literature and health-related content being removed from the shelves.

Credits:

Host and Executive Producer: Sharon McMahon

Supervising Producer: Melanie Buck Parks

Audio Producer: Craig Thompson

These days, it feels like every fleeting thought, mistake, or awkward phase can be captured and shared online. So how are kids supposed to grow up in a world like that? Sharon sits down with Dr. Devorah Heitner, author of Growing Up in Public, to talk about how parents, teachers, and mentors can support kids as they navigate the digital world, with plenty of empathy along the way.

Credits:

Host and Executive Producer: Sharon McMahon

Supervising Producer: Melanie Buck Parks

Audio Producer: Craig Thompson

All creatures, humans included, experience just a tiny slice of the full reality around us. Sharon chats with Pulitzer Prize winner and New York Times bestselling author Ed Yong about his book An Immense World, which dives into the amazing and often unseen ways animals sense the world. Ed talks about how exploring these sensory worlds can lead to some pretty big, thought-provoking questions about life. Even if our own perception is limited, there’s so much we can discover when we stay curious and open to new perspectives.

Credits:

Host and Executive Producer: Sharon McMahon

Supervising Producer: Melanie Buck Parks

Audio Producer: Craig Thompson

This Memorial Day we take a moment to remember the 350,000+ American women who served in uniform during the war, in every service branch, in every combat theater, and in nearly two-thirds of the available military occupations at the time. Their service ranged from critical support roles flying planes across the country, drawing maps to help men get through Normandy, codebreaking, and building & maintaining the behind-the-scenes infrastructural work that made the heroics possible. Sharon is joined by CIA military analyst, WWII expert, and debut author, Lena Andrews, to unveil the scale and scope of what women in uniform contributed during WWII. 

Credits:

Host and Executive Producer: Sharon McMahon

Supervising Producer: Melanie Buck Parks

Audio Producer: Craig Thompson