Mark Blyth, political economist at Brown's Watson Institute, and Carrie Nordlund, political scientist and associate director of Brown's Annenberg Institute, share their take on the week's news. On this episode: the G7's shaky promises on taxing the rich, and shaky relationships with China and Russia; regional variations in the Covid-19 recovery in the US; making sense of the tight US labor market; the Supreme Court talks Snapchat and labor organizing; Justice Stephen Breyer's work/life balance; ...
Jun 24, 2021•44 min
Mark Blyth, political economist at Brown University's Watson Institute, and political scientist Carrie Nordlund share their take on the news. On this episode: the politics of Facebook's 'Supreme Court'; new voter restriction laws in the US and the Republican Party's continued flirtation with authoritarianism; why suspending vaccine patents won't actually help the world to make more vaccines; America's declining birthrate and other revelations from the US Census; the Covid spike in India; the UK ...
May 10, 2021•45 min
Mark Blyth, political economist at Brown University's Watson Institute, and political scientist Carrie Nordlund share their take on the news. On this episode: Mark and Carrie feel skeptical about a 'post-Covid' boom; Biden's infrastructure bill, and the inconvenient truths it poses to congressional Republicans; the trial of Derek Chauvin, and how policing in America might (or might not) change in its wake; Amazon's defeat of a union drive; Brexit-infused unrest in Northern Ireland. On the bright...
Apr 12, 2021•36 min
Mark Blyth, political economist at Brown University's Watson Institute, and political scientist Carrie Nordlund share their take on the news. On this episode: the Atlanta spa shootings and anti-Asian violence in America; the crisis at the US-Mexico border and Biden's political dilemma around immigration; the risks and rewards of the US pandemic relief bill; EU vaccine rollouts goes from bad to worse; the rise and teetering fall of New York Governor Andrew Cuomo; the in-retrospect-obviously-doome...
Mar 21, 2021•35 min
Mark Blyth, political economist at Brown University's Watson Institute, and political scientist Carrie Nordlund share their take on the news. On this episode: Biden's relief bill, and a rethink on inflation; the EU's dark-horse bid for worst vaccine rollout; a coup in Myanmar; cold winds in the midwest -- and in the hearts of certain Texas Republicans; US explores Mars; the politics of Aleksei Navalny's imprisonment; Megan and Harry find themselves in LA; a new reason to fear for the future of h...
Feb 25, 2021•36 min
Mark Blyth, political economist at Brown University's Watson Institute, and political scientist Carrie Nordlund share their take on the news. On this episode: the Capitol riot and its aftermath; Trump's deplatforming on Twitter and Facebook, and what it reveals about Big Tech; assessing Biden's first 48 hours in office; China's 'pivot' back towards itself; the confusion behind the EU's 'strategic autonomy'; Google threatens to deplatform...Australia?!; envisioning lobsters in the streets of Lond...
Jan 22, 2021•38 min
Mark Blyth, political economist at Brown's Watson Institute, and political scientist Carrie Nordlund share their take on the news. On this episode: Mark and Carrie's abiding memories of 2020; what aspects of pandemic life will go away in 2021, and what parts will stick around; the stock market vs. the real economy; presidential power and corporate power in the United States; race, class, electoral politics, and the Democrats confusion over who they want to be when they grow up; Biden's ready to ...
Dec 27, 2020•36 min
Mark Blyth, political economist at Brown's Watson Institute, and political scientist Carrie Nordlund share their take on the news. On this episode: The beginning of the coronavirus vaccine rollout; Mitch McConnell, a profile in courage; diversity in Biden's cabinet and the 'Kamala Conundrum'; what the media (and Mark and Carrie) are going to talk about after Trump leaves office; how to break up Facebook and the rest of big tech; Brexit comes to and end, or not; Russian hacking cont'd. You can le...
Dec 16, 2020•26 min
Mark Blyth, political economist at Brown's Watson Institute, and political scientist Carrie Nordlund share their take on the news. On this episode: A lingering pandemic and slow-moving 'coup'; making sense of Trump's electoral loss, and his demographic gains; why Covid cases are rising in the US and Europe but less so in Asia; how the American left and right antagonize their fellow citizens; what Sean Connery meant to Mark; Berlin's airport woes. You can learn more about Watson’s other podcasts ...
Nov 14, 2020•33 min
Mark Blyth, political economist at Brown's Watson Institute, and political scientist Carrie Nordlund share their take on the news. On this episode: rising Covid cases in the US and Europe; the state of the presidential race amidst America's twisted electoral system; Trump's value and liability to the Republican Party; the US government is kind of, sort of, reigning in big tech (but not really); what would happen if the Catholic Church hired McKinsey; how China's economic dominance spells bad new...
Oct 23, 2020•28 min
Mark Blyth, political economist at Brown's Watson Institute, and political scientist Carrie Nordlund share their take on the news. On this episode: Trump and Melania have coronavirus; the electoral insignificance of Trump's tax returns; a dumpster fire debate; thinking long-term on this month's Supreme Court fight; the rest of the world's plan for climate change; what a coronavirus second/third/pick-your wave might look like.
Oct 03, 2020•32 min
Mark Blyth, political economist at Brown's Watson Institute, and political scientist Carrie Nordlund share their take on the news. On this episode: a global tour of climate catastrophes; Trump's immovable poll numbers; environmental hypocrisy across the political spectrum; are there anarchist bus lines to midwestern suburbs? (No); why Brexit hurts our brains; the future of commutes; The Crown, The Last Dance, and other TV nostalgia.
Sep 15, 2020•36 min
Mark Blyth, political economist at Brown's Watson Institute, and political scientist Carrie Nordlund share their take on the news. Steven Bannon's lack of imagination; the conundrum of reopening America's schools; following the money in the USPS; the implications of Apple's staggering wealth; Phil Collins forever.
Aug 18, 2020•34 min
Mark Blyth, political economist at Brown's Watson Institute, and political scientist Carrie Nordlund share their take on the news. On this episode: {Not} containing coronavirus in the US; America's navel gazing and obsession with Hydroxychloroquine; making sense of the GDP numbers; the coronavirus and Trump's chaotic campaign strategy; disparaging women in politics; Biden's VP selection conundrum; and Mark finally watched 'The Crown'.
Jul 29, 2020•34 min
Mark Blyth, political economist at Brown's Watson Institute, and political scientist Carrie Nordlund share their take on the news. On this episode: unpacking the biggest SCOTUS cases of the last two weeks; Trump's not-so-good summer so far; questioning if Trump's numbers are really as bad as they seem; 2020 Election as declaration of culture war; the difference between affect (also known as bull***t) and truth; the racial, economic, and generational contours to the debate over 'free speech'....
Jul 08, 2020•36 min
Mark Blyth, political economist at Brown's Watson Institute, and Carrie Nordlund, political scientist and associate director of Brown's Master of Public Affairs program, share their take on the news. On this episode: Covid-19 surges in some US states amid reopening and quarantine 'fatigue'; the EU's potential ban on travelers from the US; the Supreme Court's surprising decisions on DACA and LGBTQ rights; the evolution of Black Lives Matter protests and calls to defund the police; workshopping sl...
Jun 22, 2020•39 min
Mark Blyth, political economist at Brown's Watson Institute, and Carrie Nordlund, political scientist and associate director of Brown's Master of Public Affairs program, share their take on the news. On this episode: What this podcast can add to the conversation (and what it can't); the economic ramifications of systemic racism; America's uniquely violent, militarized police system; Trump's escalating rhetoric and actions in response to the week's unrest; making sense of the growing corporate su...
Jun 05, 2020•34 min
Mark Blyth, political economist at Brown's Watson Institute, and Carrie Nordlund, political scientist and associate director of Brown's Master of Public Affairs program, share their take on the news. On this episode: different scenarios as US states experiment with ‘opening up’ their economies; pandemic coverage in the US compared to the rest of the world; the Kafkaesque non-scandal that is ‘Obamagate’; whether the potential EU relief fund will be like ‘Hamilton’ the person or ‘Hamilton’ the mus...
May 19, 2020•38 min
Mark Blyth, political economist at Brown's Watson Institute, and Carrie Nordlund, political scientist and associate director of Brown's Master of Public Affairs program, share their take on the news. On this episode: thoughts on a future relief bill, in the face of historic unemployment; the profound lack of new ideas in Congress; making sense of Trumps re-election strategy; wondering if we’re a failed state; the Democratic Party's struggle over how to handle sexual assault allegations in 2020; ...
May 09, 2020•37 min
Mark Blyth, political economist at Brown's Watson Institute, and Carrie Nordlund, political scientist and associate director of Brown's Master of Public Affairs program, share their take on the news. On this episode: Trump's strategy to let states fend for themselves; Joe Biden's strategy of being neither seen nor heard; how Europe's handling the coronavirus; the US's 'one bit of luck' in this crisis; a eulogy to American exceptionalism; updates on the British Royal family; Mark's recipe of the ...
Apr 22, 2020•32 min
Mark Blyth, political economist at Brown's Watson Institute, and Carrie Nordlund, political scientist and associate director of Brown's Master of Public Affairs program, share their take on the news. One this episode: how to model the coronavirus(and therefore, our future); what different national responses to the pandemic reveal about their economies and politics; Bernie Sanders' departure from the Democratic Primary, and the Democratic Party's socially distanced nominee; how to vote in a pande...
Apr 12, 2020•37 min
Mark Blyth, political economist at Brown's Watson Institute, and Carrie Nordlund, political scientist and associate director of Brown's Master of Public Affairs program, share their take on the news. On this episode: digital living in the age of Coronavirus; the Trump administration's bizarre, belated crisis response; making sense of the Fed's $1.5 trillion injection; the semi-forgotten Democratic Primary; what the Coronavirus is revealing about our fractured society and economy; and TV shows an...
Mar 11, 2020•30 min
Mark Blyth, political economist at Brown's Watson Institute, and Carrie Nordlund, political scientist and associate director of Brown's Master of Public Affairs program, share their take on the news. On this episode: The human, political, and economic costs of coronavirus; Harvey Weinstein verdict; Modi, Trump and immigration policy; the Democratic primaries; Mark and Carrie's new favorite, light-hearted TV shows. You can read a transcript of this episode here: [https://drive.google.com/file/d/1...
Feb 27, 2020•29 min
Mark Blyth, political economist at Brown University's Watson Institute, and Carrie Nordlund, political scientist and associate director of Brown's Master of Public Affairs program, share their take on the news. On this episode: the politics of 'Megxit'; Impeachment and Trump's optimistic 'State of the Union'; hope vs. cynicism in the Democratic primaries; Mark and Carrie's casserole cultural exchange; Coronavirus and globalization; Mark and Carrie's holiday trips to...Australia and Russia. You c...
Feb 04, 2020•30 min
On this episode: We're LIVE at the Watson Institute in Providence! Mark and Carrie talk Trump's meddling in the Navy SEAL's; impeachment excitement-turned-fatigue-turned-existential-boredom; explaining UK Elections and Brexit to Americans; and the difference between being conservative and being wrong. Mark and Carrie also take listener questions about UBI, inflation vs. cost of living, and expanding our impeachment imagination. You can watch a recording of the event on our YouTube channel here: ...
Dec 04, 2019•46 min
Special Announcement: We'll be having a *LIVE* Mark and Carrie show on Monday, December 2 at 6pm at the Watson Institute (111 Thayer Street, Providence, RI). And you're invited - so mark your calendars! We'll have a Q&A at the end, so come with questions about the news of the day. If you can't come, you can email us questions at markandcarrie@brown.edu, and we'll get to as many as we can. Hope to see you there! You can learn more about the event here: [https://watson.brown.edu/events/2019/ma...
Nov 19, 2019•24 min
Mark Blyth, political economist at Brown's Watson Institute, and Carrie Nordlund, political scientist and associate director of Brown's Master of Public Affairs program, share their take on the news. On this episode: recapping Mark Blyth's chat with Tucker Carlson, Mark Zuckerberg (aka Frankenstein) defends his monster, and Trump's plan to pull out of the military 'Open Skies' agreement. Also, the Democratic primary's old man problem, zombie Brexit, impeachment updates, and some of Mark and Carr...
Oct 28, 2019•28 min
Mark Blyth, political economist at Brown's Watson Institute, and Carrie Nordlund, political scientist and associate director of Brown's Master of Public Affairs program, share their take on the news. Topics include: Greta Thunberg and the grown-ups failing our planet, fires and blackouts in California, Brexit: Endgame, Bernie Sanders' health and its effects on the Democratic primary, Mark's super chill visit to Hong Kong, and the US's impending constitutional crisis. You can read a transcript of...
Oct 05, 2019•35 min
Mark Blyth, political economist at Brown's Watson Institute, and Carrie Nordlund, political scientist and associate director of Brown's Master of Public Affairs program, share their take on the week's news. Topics include: Explaining the Brexit Extended Universe, Hurricane Dorian, protests and political turmoil in Hong Kong, Germany and US's political parallels, the Democrat's lukewarm affair with Joe Biden, and what Mark and Carrie learned this summer... You can read a transcript of this episod...
Sep 01, 2019•27 min
Mark Blyth, political economist at Brown's Watson Institute, and Carrie Nordlund, political scientist and associate director of Brown's Master of Public Affairs program, share their take on the week's news. In today's last show of the semester, topics include, Julian Assange, Brexit in a post-Torre world, the Democratic primary, China tarrifs, Alabama's abortion law, warmongering with Iran and record setting CO2 emissions. You can read a transcript of this episode here: [https://drive.google.com...
Aug 09, 2019•29 min
