Background Briefing – July 31, 2025
Background Briefing offers an educational approach to providing information in an era of “fake news.”
Featured Episode
The Visionary Activist Show – Whose Story is running the show?
Whose Story is running the show? Caroline Pays homage to Tom Lehrer, Many songs: And especially his “Verner von Braun” Quirkily pertinent to us now, and the fate of the world… We delineate the connection between Elon Musk and Verner von Braun, That we are living in Verner and Elon’s dystopian sci-fi, infantile obsession … Continued
Masters of Science Fiction: Isaac Asimov (1920-1992), recorded in New York City on August 10, 1983. Ray Bradbuy (1920-2012) recorded in Los Angeles in 1992.
Fundraiser special: cops and AI
Alex Vitale on Zohran Mamdani, the NYPD, and policing generally (Nation article here) • Dwayne Monroe on the AI mania
PEN America (see last week’s This Way Out) teams up with queer Los Angeles writers for readings from some of the most targeted works threatened by the rise in book bans (correspondent /participant Jason Jenn interviews organizer Hank Henderson and author Abdi Nazemian).
As much as I champion curiosity, sometimes it can take us down bad paths. Thank goodness there are excellent resources that help us lean into our curiosity and recognize misinformation — then stop it in its tracks. “Curiosity can help us avoid things like confirmation bias or motivated reasoning, where were looking for answers that … Continued
Guest: Ann Schmiesing is professor of German and Scandinavian studies at the University of Colorado Boulder. She is the author of Disability, Deformity, and Disease in the Grimms’ Fairy Tales and most lately, The Brothers Grimm: A Biography.
Democracy Now 9am (rebroadcast) – July 31, 2025
On Today’s Show: UNRWA Rep Slams “Disaster” of Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, Says Aid Must Flow Without Restrictions NY Doctor Just Back from Gaza: Starvation Is Widespread & Undeniable, Despite Israeli PM Claims As Canada, U.K. & France Move to Recognize Palestine, Two-State Solution Remains Taboo Inside Israel “Total, Random Chaos” of Trump Tariffs Are Not Rebalancing … Continued
Anti-Zionist Author Sim Kern on Collective Liberation
In today’s episode, we speak with author, influencer and anti-Zionist Jewish activist Sim Kern about their book Genocide Bad: Notes on Palestine, Jewish History, and Collective Liberation. Fund Drive Special. Pledge $110 and receive a copy of Genocide Bad: Notes on Palestine, Jewish History, and Collective Liberation, which dismantles Zionist propaganda in ten unapologetic essays. Drawing … Continued
Robert Reich on His Path to Politics, Teaching and Winning Back Democracy
00:08 — Robert Reich is Chancellor’s Professor of Public Policy emeritus at the University of California, Berkeley. He has served in three presidential administrations, Republican and Democrat, as Secretary of Labor under Bill Clinton, and has written eighteen books. His latest book is “Coming Up Short: A Memoir of My America”