//podcastplus.net/feed/shorenstein-center-media-and-politics-podcast~4746350b The Shorenstein Center Media and Politics Podcast features insight and expertise from leading voices at the intersection of media, politics and public policy. Prominent journalists, editors and academics address topics such as the media industry, campaigns and politics, foreign policy, race and gender, and technology. Sun, 16 Aug 2026 17:26:34 +0000 http://traffic.libsyn.com/shorensteincenter/HeidiLeggFinal_mixdown.mp3?dest-id=260545 Magazines that cover American public affairs, culture, and life have long held an important place in American journalism. But the magazine industry, like the rest of journalism, has struggled in recent years.  This special edition of our podcast is an audio version of Heidi Legg's new Shorenstein Center Paper "Preserving America's Thought Leader Magazines." https://shorensteincenter.org/ preserving-americas-thought-leader-magazines The paper starts with a brief history of the thought leader magazine with an emphasis on how they built trust, which is key to attracting loyal readers. The discussion then turns to  brand affinity, as it relates to trust and affects revenue streams. Finally, the paper examines how six leading thought leader magazines – New York Magazine, Mother Jones, Wired, The Information, The   Atlantic,  and  Rolling Stone – are all responding to changing public demand and delivery.  Thanks to Harvard College student Andrew Zucker for producing this audio paper. ... Wed, 25 Mar 2020 18:40:07 +0000 http://traffic.libsyn.com/shorensteincenter/HeidiLeggFinal_mixdown.mp3?dest-id=260545 http://traffic.libsyn.com/shorensteincenter/Narratives_in_News_Podcast_-_London_and_Patterson_with_Intro.mp3?dest-id=260545 How does news and truth survive, when trust in what is fact has suffered and people live in bubbles of isolated realities fed by polarized and fragmented media sources? What is the role of narrative storytelling in this new media landscape?  Thomas Patterson is the Bradlee Professor of Government and the Press at Harvard Kennedy School, and the author of the recent book "How America Lost Its Mind: The Assault on Reason that is Crippling America." He talks with former Shorenstein Center Fellow and Filmmaker-in-Residence Gabriel London, whose paper titled "Hanging by a Thread: Serialized Narratives in a Post-Factual Era" was just published at ShorensteinCenter.org.  Wed, 11 Mar 2020 21:05:18 +0000 http://traffic.libsyn.com/shorensteincenter/Narratives_in_News_Podcast_-_London_and_Patterson_with_Intro.mp3?dest-id=260545 http://traffic.libsyn.com/shorensteincenter/LOCAL_NEWS_Legg.mp3?dest-id=260545 Local journalism is in crisis, off and online. Years of downsizing in the face of digital disruption have weakened regional and local news organizations. But there are a few glimpses of hope in models for local news across the country. In this special edition of our podcast, Heidi Legg, the Shorenstein Center's Director of Special Projects, reads her new landscape study on local news models across America. This landscape study includes over 40 mini case studies on outlets that are making the shift, starting fresh, or experimenting with new ways to survive and thrive. To read the full print version of the paper, visit  https://shorensteincenter.org/landscape-local-news-models/ Tue, 09 Jul 2019 15:43:34 +0000 http://traffic.libsyn.com/shorensteincenter/LOCAL_NEWS_Legg.mp3?dest-id=260545 http://traffic.libsyn.com/shorensteincenter/edokeefeapril24_mixdown.mp3?dest-id=260545 Shorenstein Center Spring 2019 Fellow Edward F. O'Keefe served most recently as Senior Vice President of Content Development at CNN, previously worked as a reporter at ABC News and editor in chief of Now This, and is a media industry expert in mobile, short-form video, OTT and streaming content. His research as a Shorenstein Fellow has focused on why news may be the key to winning the streaming video wars, and who is doing news (even if they don't call it that) in the streaming universe to-date.  In this special episode of the Shorenstein Center Media & Politics Podcast, Ed O'Keefe reads his paper "Streaming War Won" in its (very engaging) entirety.   For the original, written, version of this paper visit  https://shorensteincenter.org/streaming-war-won/ Tue, 30 Apr 2019 03:00:00 +0000 http://traffic.libsyn.com/shorensteincenter/edokeefeapril24_mixdown.mp3?dest-id=260545 http://traffic.libsyn.com/shorensteincenter/graff_audio.mp3?dest-id=260545 Shorenstein Center director Nicco Mele speaks to Garrett M. Graff, journalist, historian, and director of the Aspen Institute's Cybersecurity and Technology Program, about the Mueller Investigation: what we know, what we still don't know, and what's next.  This Shorenstein Center Speaker Series event was recorded April 2, 2019, at Harvard Kennedy School.  Music ("Skip a Beat" by Intimidation) provided by ExtremeMusic.com.    Wed, 03 Apr 2019 18:07:22 +0000 http://traffic.libsyn.com/shorensteincenter/graff_audio.mp3?dest-id=260545 http://traffic.libsyn.com/shorensteincenter/Goldsmith-South_Bend_Indiana.mp3?dest-id=260545 Reporting from the South Bend Tribune and ProPublica revealed deep flaws and abuses of power in the criminal justice system in Elkhart, Indiana – from new revelations in the wrongful convictions of two men, to the promotions of police supervisors with serious disciplinary records, to the mishandling of police misconduct cases. The investigation led to the resignation of the police chief, criminal charges against two officers and plans for an independent investigation of the department, demonstrating the strong, immediate impact that investigative journalism can have at the local level – and its ability to force critical changes in communities. Read this excellent example of collaborative journalism here:  https://www.southbendtribune.com/elkhartcoverage/ Heidi Legg talked to reporter Christian Sheckler from the south Bend Tribune, and Ken Armstrong from ProPublica, about the deep searches they did through public records to find evidence of misconduct, and the collaborative experience of reporting... Tue, 12 Mar 2019 04:01:00 +0000 http://traffic.libsyn.com/shorensteincenter/Goldsmith-South_Bend_Indiana.mp3?dest-id=260545 http://traffic.libsyn.com/shorensteincenter/Goldsmith-Philadelphia_Inquirer_1.mp3?dest-id=260545 In "Toxic City: Sick Schools" The Philadelphia Inquirer revealed unsafe conditions in Philadelphia’s rundown public schools, with children forced to learn in buildings rife with mold, asbestos and flaking and peeling lead paint. By scouring maintenance logs and conducting scientific testing inside 19 elementary schools, and engaging teachers and parents in their reporting, the Inquirer built a comprehensive database of the shocking conditions putting children at risk on a daily basis. Read the reporting:  http://media.philly.com/storage/special_projects/lead-paint-poison-children-asbestos-mold-schools-philadelphia-toxic-city.html In this episode of the Shorenstein Center podcast, Heidi Legg talks to reporters Wendy Ruderman, Barbara Laker, and Dylan Purcell, along with Investigations Editor Jim Neff, about how they found and analyzed data, tracked an expanding web of problems, and eventually uncovered the vast number of health hazards across the city's school system.  This episode is part of the... Fri, 08 Mar 2019 10:00:00 +0000 http://traffic.libsyn.com/shorensteincenter/Goldsmith-Philadelphia_Inquirer_1.mp3?dest-id=260545 http://traffic.libsyn.com/shorensteincenter/Goldsmith-Frontline.mp3?dest-id=260545 FRONTLINE from PBS and the Investigative Reporting Program at UC Berkeley's Graduate School of Journalism produced an investigative documentary on labor trafficking happening today on U.S. soil. Reporters told the story of unaccompanied minors from Central America who were forced to work against their will at an Ohio egg farm, the criminal network that exploited them, the companies that profited, and how U.S. government policies and practices helped to deliver some of the children directly to their traffickers. The investigation uncovered widespread criminal abuse, and will be used as a Department of Justice Anti-Human Trafficking training tool for thousands of law enforcement officials and prosecutors. Watch the film:  https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/film/trafficked-in-america/ In this episode of the Shorenstein Center podcast, Heidi Legg talks to Daffodil Altan and Adrés Cediel about the shoeleather reporting required to find and get access to people who had been trafficked in the U.S., and the... Thu, 07 Mar 2019 10:00:00 +0000 http://traffic.libsyn.com/shorensteincenter/Goldsmith-Frontline.mp3?dest-id=260545 http://traffic.libsyn.com/shorensteincenter/Goldsmith-Dallas_Morning_News.mp3?dest-id=260545 The Dallas Morning News found that thousands of sick and disabled Texans were being denied life-sustaining drugs and treatments by the private health insurance companies hired by the state to manage their care. While these private contractors made billions of dollars from the corporate management of taxpayer-funded Medicaid, some of the most vulnerable Texans were denied critical services, equipment and treatments, often with profoundly life-altering results. As a result of the investigation the Texas legislature pledged millions of dollars to more closely regulate the system, monitor instances of denials of care, and reform the appeals process. Read the reporting:  https://interactives.dallasnews.com/2018/pain-and-profit/index.html In this episode of the Shorenstein Center podcast, Heidi Legg talks to reporters David McSwane and Andrew Chavez about tracking down the patients and families affected, how they got to the bottom of why some of the most vulnerable patients were being denied the care they ... Wed, 06 Mar 2019 10:00:00 +0000 http://traffic.libsyn.com/shorensteincenter/Goldsmith-Dallas_Morning_News.mp3?dest-id=260545 http://traffic.libsyn.com/shorensteincenter/Goldsmith-Wall_Street_Journal.mp3?dest-id=260545 Starting in 2016, a team from the Wall Street Journal, lead by reporters Michael Rothfeld and Joe Palazzolo, uncovered evidence that Donald Trump personally orchestrated a criminal scheme to suppress damaging sexual allegations, despite denials by the president. The coverage sparked a federal criminal investigation into campaign-finance abuses that will soon land the president’s longtime lawyer, Michael Cohen, in prison. In this episode of the Shorenstein Center podcast, Heidi Legg talks to Michael Rothfeld and Joe Palazzolo about how the found the story, the lengths they went to uncover evidence, and the expected and unexpected outcomes of their ongoing reporting. This episode is part of the Shorenstein Center's special series of interviews with the finalists for the 2019 Goldsmith Prize for Investigative Journalism. The Goldsmith Prize winner will be announced at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government on March 12, 2019. Music provided by ExtremeMusic.com Wed, 27 Feb 2019 16:46:43 +0000 http://traffic.libsyn.com/shorensteincenter/Goldsmith-Wall_Street_Journal.mp3?dest-id=260545