In light of the terror attack on London Bridge and Borough Market that killed seven people and injured several dozen others, we SPOTLIGHT Samina Ahmed. Samina oversees International Crisis Group’s work in Pakistan, Afghanistan, India and Nepal. Together with their analysts throughout the region, she prepares reports on the political, social, economic and military factors that increase the risks of extremism, internal conflict and war, and she makes policy recommendations to overcome these threats. In general, her team focuses on political, security and stability issues in South Asia, including problems of authoritarianism; Islamic extremism, domestic and regional terrorism; educational, judicial, and security sector reform. Extensive media experience.
Ex-FBI director James Comey is set to testify in the ongoing Russia investigation this Thursday. To discuss the potential ramifications that Comey's testinomy may have on the administration, we FEATURE Elizabeth Hempowicz. Elizabeth is Project On Government Oversight's (POGO) Policy Counsel. She oversees POGO’s legislative reform work, with a focus on whistleblower protections and government accountability. Liz develops and advances public policies to combat corruption and to promote openness and accountability in government. She strategizes on the best way to translate POGO report findings into legislative reforms. She has participated in efforts to improve lobbying and congressional ethics rules, whistleblower protections, the Freedom of Information Act, and other open government initiatives. Media includes: NPR, Washington Examiner, Salon, POLITICO, Daily Caller, Huffington Post Live.
Over the years, several women have alleged that Bill Cosby drugged and assaulted them. This week the trial against him by one of his accusers, Andrea Constand, begins and we FEATURE Jane Manning. Jane is a former prosecutor who now serves as Director of Advocacy of the New York City chapter of the National Organization for Women, focusing on their new initiative to combat drug-facilitated sexual assault. She began her career as a prosecutor, specializing in cases of domestic violence, child abuse, and sex crimes. In private practice, she provided pro bono representation to a coalition of battered women’s organizations. Media includes: Women’s Media Center Live, New York Times Op-Ed page, WNYC (NPR).
Nooses have been found at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial, the African American History Museum, and a D.C. elementary school. To discuss the violence that these acts represent to the African American community, we FEATURE Koritha Mitchell. Koritha is author of the award-winning book Living with Lynching: African American Lynching Plays, Performance, and Citizenship, 1890 - 1930. She is an associate professor of English at Ohio State University. Her research centers on African American literature, racial violence in United States history and contemporary culture, and black drama and performance. She examines how texts, both written and performed, help targeted communities to survive and thrive. Media includes: WBNS-10TV, PBS, ColorLines.com, Michael Eric Dyson radio show.
Following the terror attack in London, President Trump tweeted this morning that the Justive Department should submit his original travel ban to the Supreme Court. To discuss how this ban would affect immigration, we FEATURE Deepa Iyer. Deepa is an attorney who has worked on civil and immigrant rights issues in the non-profit and governmental sectors for 15 years. Deepa’s first book, We Too Sing America: South Asian, Arab, Muslim and Sikh Immigrants Shape Our Multiracial Future, was published by the New Press in November 2015. Media includes: NPR's Michel Martin Show, NPR's Brian Lehrer Show, New York Times, USA Today.
With Wonder Woman's debut weekend breaking the record for largest box office opening for a female director, we FEATURE Erin Hill to discuss the uphill battle that faces women in Hollywood. Erin worked in film and TV production and development in New York and Los Angeles before returning to academia to study the media industry. Her first book, Never Done: A History of Women's Work in Media Production (Rutgers UP, 2016) examines feminized labor in American film history and its relationship to women’s continued stifled progress in contemporary Hollywood. Media includes: Making Media Work (NYU Press), The International Encyclopedia of Media Studies (Blackwell), Production Studies: Cultural Studies of Media Industries (Routledge).















