Episode 124: The Appeal of Podcasts

“Under the old rules, a gatekeeper who owned the airwaves would never give you a radio show if you didn’t have the credentials he deemed necessary. So, your story would go untold.
Times have changed. We now live in a time in which we can control our own platforms and tell our own stories. We no longer need approval, so don’t wait for someone else to tell you to start.”
— Jon Nastor, Copyblogger, March 10, 2016
“Since the beginning of time (and the advent of humans), oral storytelling has served a critical role as the sole means of abstracting experiences and emotions in narrative form. Ancient oral storytellers were revered keepers of local knowledge, history, and traditions in their communities.”
— Chris Giliberti of Gimlet Media on Forbes, March 31, 2016

Every week, we share our thoughts and feelings with you in the form of this podcast. But why do we rely upon this medium? What sets it apart and what do we find most appealing about it? Edison Research indicates that 21% of Americans listen to at least one podcast a month, reflecting a positive trend (up from 9% in 2008 and 12% in 2013). Big players like the Wall Street Journal, The New York Times and others are entering the young market which also contains podcast-focused groups like Gimlet Media and Radiotopia. This week Kendall Theroux joins us to share some of her thoughts as an avid podcast listener. But how should the medium expand and what are its current limitations as a means of human and artistic expression?

Episode 123: Dickinsonian Opposites

“Forever is composed of nows.”
— Emily Dickinson
“I dwell in possibility.”
— Emily Dickinson
“Success is counted sweetest by those who never succeed.”
— Emily Dickinson
“I’m nobody, who are you?”
— Emily Dickinson

We often choose our words because of their meanings, whether personal or mutually agreed upon. But in language, we also elect to use certain terms or phrases to directly oppose arguments, ideas or speakers themselves. This week, Spencer Huffman joins us to examine and recreate a poetry class assignment which confronted opposites as they relate to the poetry of Emily Dickinson. How does the concept of "opposites" become more complex and cumbersome as words become phrases and systemic ideas? How might our adherence to black-and-white opposing structures of thought lead us to reduce larger ideas and erase nuance? Does the concept have the power to create opposition within otherwise similar and cooperative groups of people?

Episode 122: How We Show Respect

“One of the most sincere forms of respect is actually listening to what another has to say.”
— Bryant H. McGill
“If you have some respect for people as they are, you can be more effective in helping them to become better than they are.”
— John W. Gardner
“There is no respect for others without humility in one’s self.”
— Henri Frederic Amiel

Although we often refer to respect as a vital concept in our society, it often becomes an umbrella term, a placeholder. We presume that respect, in a general sense, includes any behavior which treats another person in a kind, morally correct way. But what do our beliefs about respect say about us? This week Milad Momeni joins us to discuss the roots of our respect for ourselves, our environments and others. We also examine what actions and attitudes we employ in demonstrating our respect for the aforementioned groups. How do our languages of respect affect what we interpret as respectful or disrespectful? Why do we hold respect for those we do and are our signals of respect mutual?

Episode 121: The Stigmatization of Play

“You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation.”
— Richard Lingard, A Letter of Advice to a Young Gentleman Leaving the University Concerning His Behaviour and Conversation in the World
“This is the real secret of life — to be completely engaged with what you are doing in the here and now. And instead of calling it work, realize it is play.”
— Alan Watts

As we enter adulthood, we naturally leave behind many of the vestiges of childhood. We outgrow old clothing, our interests evolve and our social circles expand and adapt. But in this process, as adulthood often prepares us to work, we often lose the time and apatite for play. This week, Evan Rasch joins us to discuss the role that playing has in childhood and what it could offer in an adult perspective. Do we close ourselves off to new perspectives and creative problem solving when we abandon play as a lens through which to see the world? Do we limit our own abilities to appreciate the world when we limit play to the youngest members of our culture? At what point do most of us stop playing and what does this signify about our larger beliefs and values?

Episode 120: Why We Hesitate to Discuss Our Beliefs

“I think it’s better to have ideas. You can change an idea, changing a belief is trickier. Life should be malleable and progressive; working from idea to idea permits that. Beliefs anchor to certain points and limit growth; new ideas can’t generate. Life becomes stagnant.”
— Chris Rock as Rufus in the movie "Dogma".
“You never know how much you really believe anything until its truth or falsehood becomes a matter of life and death to you.”
— C.S. Lewis

Especially in recent weeks, many of us have been confronted by the realities which operate in spite of, beneath and because of our beliefs. We have been forced to engage in dialogue with those who do not share our perspectives and the clash of numerous systems of belief has been prominent in our discourse as a society. But even under less confrontational circumstances, many of us do not share our beliefs. This week we welcome Mark Ashin to examine why beliefs represent such vulnerability in us and what we might gain in more honest, respectful discussion of what we believe and why we believe it. How could more open discussion promote more empathy? Are some of our most strongly-held perspectives so deeply woven in our subconscious that we cannot articulate them clearly? Is there a judgment inherent in the crossroads of beliefs that do not align with one another?