Best Academicfreedom Podcasts (2025)

1
Can the Government Block Student Visas Over Campus Speech? 55:31

3d ago55:31

55:31

Keith Whittington is joined by Eugene Volokh, the Thomas M. Siebel Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution. He is the author, among other works, of the textbook, The First Amendment and Related Statutes. On May 22, the Department of Homeland Security announced that Harvard University has lost its certification to participate in the Student and Exch…

1
On Withholding Federal Grants to Universities 55:19

6d ago55:19

55:19

Keith Whittington interviews Cass Sunstein, the Robert Walmsley University Professor at Harvard Law School, whose scholarly interests include free speech, constitutional law, and administrative law. He recently authored a paper, “Our Money or Your Life!’ Higher Education and the First Amendment,” available here, which explores the First Amendment c…

1
On Trump's Threat to Harvard’s Tax Exempt Status 44:27

12d ago44:27

44:27

Keith Whittington sits down with Daniel Hemel, professor of law at New York University Law School, with an expertise in taxation, nonprofit organizations, and constitutional law. They discuss the Trump administration’s threat to strip Harvard University of its tax-exempt status and the implications of the tax code for the workings of American unive…

1
Free Speech Soars at GMU Law School 24:12

12d ago24:12

24:12

Dubbed “Washington’s School for Civil Discourse,” George Mason University’s (GMU) Antonin Scalia Law School exposes students to all legal and political viewpoints and leads them in civil, respectful debate. In this episode of Higher Ed Now, ACTA’s Bryan Paul interviews JoAnn Koob, assistant professor of law and director of the Antonin Scalia Law Sc…

1
Reinvigorating Civil Discourse at M.I.T. 28:31

25d ago28:31

28:31

MIT Concourse is a program for first-year students at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology that “brings science into conversation with the humanities.” It also hosts the Civil Discourse Project, which seeks to “reinvigorate the open exchange of ideas at MIT.” In this episode of Higher Ed Now, ACTA’s Bryan Paul interviews Senior Lecturer Linda …

1
Civil Discourse Surges at UNC-Greensboro 37:31

1M ago37:31

37:31

ACTA’s Program Coordinator for the College Debates and Discourse Alliance, Kayla Johnston, returns to her alma mater, the University of North Carolina (UNC)–Greensboro, for a conversation with two student leaders: Lauren Fletcher and Matt Kircher. Thanks to the generous support of the Barnes Family Foundation, the College Debates and Discourse Alli…

1
John Hillen: American Civics and Student Leadership 46:35

1M ago46:35

46:35

ACTA President Michael Poliakoff welcomes The Honorable John Hillen, distinguished resident fellow at the Center for Politics in Duke University's Sanford School of Public Policy and an executive-in-residence of the Political Science Department. Dr. Hillen is a combat veteran and Bronze Star recipient, a former assistant U.S. secretary of state, a …

1
“People were disappeared, just like the smoke.” Omar Gómez Trejo on seeking truth and justice in the 2014 Ayotzinapa case in Iguala, Mexico 27:30

2M ago27:30

27:30

Free to Think speaks with Omar Gómez Trejo, a lawyer and human rights advocate from Mexico. Omar gained prominence as the special prosecutor leading the investigation into the disappearance of 43 student teachers from the Ayotzinapa Rural Teachers’ College in the city of Iguala, Mexico. From 2019-2022, Omar’s team secured indictments for over 100 f…

1
Zagros Madjd-Sadjadi: Expanding Civil Discourse at Winston-Salem State University 48:49

2M ago48:49

48:49

This episode features Zagros Madjd-Sadjadi, professor of economics at Winston-Salem State University. Dr. Madjd-Sadjadi has more than 30 years of teaching and economic consulting experience and was formerly the chief economist of the city and county of San Francisco. His work has been cited in the Congressional Record and led to the repeal of the G…

1
On Columbia University and the Trump Administration 36:06

2M ago36:06

36:06

Keith Whittington is joined by David Cole, the Honorable George J. Mitchell Professor in Law and Public Policy at Georgetown University Law Center. He is also the former National Legal Director of the American Civil Liberties Union. This episode focuses on the recent “Statement from Constitutional Law Scholars on Columbia,” of which Professor Cole …

1
Jane Calvert: The Imperative to Study America's Founding 27:25

3M ago27:25

27:25

In this episode, ACTA Vice President of Policy Bradley Jackson talks with Jane Calvert, director of the John Dickinson Writings Project and a member of ACTA’s National Commission on American History and Civic Education. They contend that the study of history is less about rote memorization and more like being a detective excavating an unsolved myst…

1
"Before being a scientist, I'm a human being:" Dr. Encieh Erfani on exile and solidarity among Iranian academics abroad 33:15

3M ago33:15

33:15

As the first in her family to attend university, Dr. Encieh Erfani was drawn to the stars. Her interest led her to physics and cosmology, examining the origin of the universe – a rare subject in Iran at the time. Dr. Erfani was traveling outside of Iran in September 2022 when the “Women, Life, Freedom” movement began, sparked by the death in custod…

1
Juniata College: Embracing Debate from the Campus to Classroom 1:08:44

3M ago1:08:44

1:08:44

In this episode, Sadie Webb, ACTA's Associate Director of the College Debates and Discourse (CD&D) Alliance, discusses the Alliance’s extensive work with faculty and student leaders at Juniata College. Dean of Students Matthew Damschroder, Dean of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Derek James, and four students share how participating in classroom an…

1
“It never crossed my mind to stop…” Omar Mohammed on using scholarship for the public good 39:41

3M ago39:41

39:41

Omar Mohammed first gained international prominence in 2014 as the anonymous blogger “Mosul Eye”, risking his life to document daily existence in the occupied city of Mosul, Iraq. His blog was considered one of the few reliable, real-time sources of information on life under the Islamic State (aka ISIS or Daesh in Arabic), and proved to be a critic…

1
On the Boundaries of Faculty Free Speech 1:02:13

4M ago1:02:13

1:02:13

The AFA's Keith Whittington sits down with Michael Berube and Jennifer Ruth to discuss their recent book, It’s Not Free Speech: Race, Democracy, and the Future of Academic Freedom. Michael is the Edwin Erle Sparks Professor of Literature at Pennsylvania State University. Jennifer is a professor of film at Portland State University. He is the author…

1
Jon Hardister: Theory and Practice of Excellent University Governance 24:30

4M ago24:30

24:30

ACTA’s chief of staff and SVP, Armand Alacbay, sits down with Jon Hardister, who once chaired North Carolina's House Education Committee, and now serves as a trustee at Western Carolina University. Hear his insider insights on the key role trustees play in university governance, student success, and protecting free speech on campus.…

1
Ohio Senator Jerry Cirino: Fortifying Open Discourse in the Buckeye State 33:56

4M ago33:56

33:56

ACTA president Michael Poliakoff speaks to Ohio Senator Jerry Cirino, vice chair of the Senate's Higher Education Committee, on his promise to enact legislation to enhance the quality of higher education in the Buckeye State. Senator Cirino aims to safeguard open discourse and intellectual diversity for both students and faculty, mandate institutio…

1
Finding solidarity “beyond the border” in Southeast Asia – Khoo Ying Hooi on how building regional coalitions can help protect scholars & academic freedom 30:48

4M ago30:48

30:48

Free to Think speaks with Dr. Khoo Ying Hooi, an Associate Professor at the University of Malaya and 2022-23 Mellon/SAR Academic Freedom Fellow, on academic freedom and coalition building in Southeast Asia. Ying Hooi discusses her research and shares how building an academic freedom coalition across Southeast Asia – a region that spans 11 countries…

1
Mitch Daniels: The Heart of the Academic Enterprise 29:32

5M ago29:32

29:32

Focusing on the role of higher education in preparing young Americans for citizenship, ACTA's president Michael Poliakoff speaks with Mitch Daniels, former Governor of Indiana, who also served as president of Purdue University from 2013 to 2022.

1
Joshua Dunn: Intellectual Diversity and Informed Patriotism 36:01

5M ago36:01

36:01

ACTA's president Michael Poliakoff speaks with the distinguished scholar and education leader, Joshua Dunn, who took on leadership of the recently established Institute of American Civics at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville in June, 2023. Professor Dunn was previously the executive director of the Center for the Study of Government and the Ind…

1
Timothy Zick on Public Protests and the Law 1:16:30

5M ago1:16:30

1:16:30

Keith Whittington sits down with Timothy Zick, the John Marshall Professor of Government and Citizenship at William & Mary Law School and a leading expert on the First Amendment law surrounding protest activities. His first book was Speech Out of Doors: Preserving First Amendment Liberties in Public Places, which was published in 2009. His latest b…

1
Aaron Sibarium - On the Record 1:06:39

5M ago1:06:39

1:06:39

ACTA's Paul and Karen Levy Fellow in Campus Freedom, Steve McGuire, interviews Aaron Sibarium, a journalist who writes for the Washington Free Beacon. Sibarium graduated in 2018 from Yale University, where he was the opinion editor of The Yale Daily News. Much of his reporting for the Free Beacon focuses on issues in higher education, and he has au…

1
Peter Skerry: Embracing Uncomfortable Campus Conversations 43:54

6M ago43:54

43:54

Higher Ed Now producer Doug Sprei interviews Peter Skerry, professor of political science at Boston College, who has served as a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and research fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. He has been featured in a variety of scholarly and national media publications, and is the author of Counting on the Cen…

1
A Conversation with Professor Cary Nelson 1:12:20

6M ago1:12:20

1:12:20

The AFA's Keith Whittington interviews Cary Nelson, the Jubilee Professor of Liberal Arts & Sciences Emeritus at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He served for many years in the leadership of the American Association of University Professors, including terms as its president from 2006 to 2012. He is currently chair of a new organizat…

1
Alumni Free Speech Advocacy at MIT: Wayne Stargardt and Peter Bonilla 43:32

7M ago43:32

43:32

For the past several years, ACTA has collaborated with the Alumni Free Speech Alliance (AFSA) to defend free expression, academic freedom, and viewpoint diversity on college and university campuses. With hundreds of alumni advocates across 27 institutions, AFSA represents a national movement empowering alumni to exert positive, meaningful influence…

1
Core Texts in a Hispanic Context: a Special Spanish Episode of Higher Ed Now 59:37

8M ago59:37

59:37

In this episode of Higher Ed Now, the second of two conversations devoted to core texts, ACTA’s Academic Affairs Fellow Veronica Bryant speaks in Spanish with Clemente Cox, classics and philosophy scholar and the Academic Director of the Center of General Studies at the Universidad de los Andes. Their conversation includes the differences between A…

1
Core Texts and Enduring Questions for Today’s Students 58:28

9M ago58:28

58:28

ACTA’s Academic Affairs Fellow Veronica Bryant is joined by two distinguished educators and advocates for core texts in liberal education: Dr. Charlotte Thomas, Executive Director of the Association for Core Texts and Courses, or ACTC, and Dr. José María Torralba, board member of ACTC. Dr. Thomas is a Professor of Philosophy at Mercer University, w…

1
Confessions of a Black Conservative: Glenn Loury 21:45

9M ago21:45

21:45

Those who listen to "The Glenn Show" will know that Professor Glenn Loury has published an extraordinary autobiography. Late Admissions: Confessions of a Black Conservative breathes the spirit of candor, intellectual openness, and personal humility that has characterized his life and work. Professor Loury is a Paulson Fellow at the Manhattan Instit…

1
Jonathan Turley: We Must Live Up to the Promise of Free Speech 55:23

10M ago55:23

55:23

Renowned legal scholar, professor, columnist, and commentator Jonathan Turley joins ACTA's Dr. Steven McGuire on Higher Ed Now to discuss why free speech has always been America’s most revolutionary and indispensable right; how academia spawned the latest, and perhaps most dangerous, campaign against free speech; and why an enriching college experi…

1
The Groundwork of Campus Civil Discourse: Mark Dalhouse and Ari Miller: 45:46

11M ago45:46

45:46

ACTA’s College Debates and Discourse (CD&D) Alliance has launched more than 300 Braver Angels debates and workshops, engaging 11,000 students at colleges and universities across the nation. CD&D employs a highly collaborative approach that engages students and faculty to lead civil debates on controversial topics. In this episode of Higher Ed Now, …

1
‘Refusing to accept the status quo’ — Students speak up for at-risk scholars through SAR seminars & legal clinics 34:47

11M ago34:47

34:47

Free to Think speaks with three university students who express the profound impact of joining the SAR student advocacy community. “Being involved in the amplification of the voice of somebody who's marginalized doesn't just affect the person who's marginalized,” says Samkele Shange, a SAR Student Advocacy Seminar participant at the University of S…

1
William B. Allen: Montesquieu, Madison, and the Mission of a Liberal Arts Education 42:35

11M ago42:35

42:35

ACTA's president, Michael B. Poliakoff, and vice president of policy, Bradley Jackson, engage scholar, author and Professor Emeritus of Michigan State University, William B. Allen in candid conversation about his lifelong love of books and learning, the Founders, the philosophical thought leaders whose seminal works cut a path for the emergence of …

1
Jeffrey Rosen: The Classics' Critical Role in Education 39:06

12M ago39:06

39:06

ACTA President Michael Poliakoff interviews Jeffrey Rosen, president and CEO of the National Constitution Center and professor of law at George Washington University Law School. In this vibrant conversation, they explore Dr. Rosen’s new book, The Pursuit of Happiness: How Classical Writers on Virtue Inspired the Lives of the Founders and Defined Am…

1
Teaching Students to Find Their Voice in Civil Discourse 43:14

1y ago43:14

43:14

On today’s episode, Higher Ed Now producer Doug Sprei interviews Jennifer Keohane, associate professor in the Klein Family School of Communications Design at the University of Baltimore, and Justin Eckstein, associate professor of communication at Pacific Lutheran University. Both of these remarkable professors advise and support the College Debate…

1
Navigating the ‘mental prison’ – Mubashar Hasan on higher education in Bangladesh 32:48

1y ago32:48

32:48

Free to Think speaks with academic, policy analyst and human rights activist Mubashar Hasan. He describes how in Bangladesh certain research topics are off-limits, particularly those that threaten the power of the ruling class, and speaks from first-hand experience — Hasan survived 44 days of “enforced disappearance” in Bangladesh in 2017. Now base…

1
Mónica Guzmán: "People Hear Better When They're Heard" 23:47

1y ago23:47

23:47

Immediately after she delivered an electrifying keynote speech at Pacific Lutheran University's Wang Symposium on March 7, 2024, ACTA's Doug Sprei interviewed Monica Guzman, the best-selling author of I Never Thought of It That Way: How to Have Fearlessly Curious Conversations in Dangerously Divided Times. Ms. Guzman's influential work in the civil…

1
Gaining or losing academic freedom? Decoding the Academic Freedom Index with Katrin Kinzelbach and Lars Lott 33:13

1y ago33:13

33:13

Free to Think speaks with Katrin Kinzelbach and Lars Lott, researchers behind the Academic Freedom Index (AFI) which assesses levels of academic freedom in 179 countries and territories from 1900 to the present. Recent headlines suggest academic freedom is in retreat everywhere, but is it true? Katrin Kinzelbach and Lars Lott discuss the latest dat…

1
John Bolton: The Long Decline of Free Expression on Campus 27:12

1y ago27:12

27:12

John Bolton served as the 25th United States Ambassador to the United Nations from 2005 to 2006, and as the 26th United States National Security Advisor from 2018 to 2019 during the Trump Administration. He is the author of The Room Where It Happened: A White House Memoir, as well as Surrender Is Not An Option. Always an erudite figure in politics,…

1
“Undoing the censorship that was stuck in me” – A conversation with Achiro Olwoch, writer, playwright, filmmaker from Northern Uganda 27:03

1y ago27:03

27:03

Free to Think speaks with Achiro P. Olwoch, an award-winning writer, playwright, and filmmaker from Northern Uganda, and current scholar-at-risk and Weiss International Fellow at Barnard College in New York City. Achiro describes her recent play ‘The Survival,’ the impact of anti-LGBTQ+ laws in Uganda, and how living in New York has made her a “bol…

1
Anika Prather: “Classical Education Helps Everyone Flourish” 53:18

1y ago53:18

53:18

Dr Anika T. Prather is a nationally-recognized speaker and advocate for the relevancy of classical education for the Black community. She has served as a lecturer at Howard University’s Classics and English departments and, most recently, as a Director of High-Quality Curriculum and Instruction at the Johns Hopkins Institute for Education Policy. S…

1
“We have no definition” — MSCA4Ukraine fellow Artem Nazarko on prosecuting war crimes in Ukraine 31:27

1+ y ago31:27

31:27

In February 2022, Artem Nazarko was in Odesa, Ukraine with his family, coming to terms with the Russian invasion of Ukraine. “It was huge traffic jams everywhere, empty shops, panic and confusion” he says. “No food, no petrol. It was tough times, and dark days.” Two years later, Artem is a PhD candidate and MSCA4Ukraine fellow at the University of …

1
Why Institutional Neutrality Matters 1:03:24

1+ y ago1:03:24

1:03:24

Tony Banout, Executive Director, and Tom Ginsburg, Faculty Director of the University of Chicago's New Forum for Free Inquiry and Expression join Steve McGuire, ACTA's Paul and Karen Levy Fellow in Campus Freedom, to discuss institutional neutrality -- the idea that universities should not take official positions on social and political controversi…

1
Glenn Loury: Defending the Cultural Inheritance of the Liberal Arts 43:07

1+ y ago43:07

43:07

ACTA's President Michael Poliakoff joins Paul Levy, a member of ACTA's board of directors and the creator of the Levy Forum for Open Discourse at the Palm Beach Synagogue. Together they interview Dr. Glenn Loury, the Merton P. Stoltz Professor of the Social Sciences in the Department of Economics at Brown University. Dr. Loury is one of the nation'…

1
George Will: Restoring the Value of an Academic Degree 29:06

1+ y ago29:06

29:06

George Will is a Pulitzer Prize-winning writer and political commentator whose twice-weekly column has appeared in the Washington Post since 1974. His works cover subjects ranging from baseball to statecraft. In this episode, he sits down with ACTA President Michael Poliakoff for a sweeping conversation on the state of American higher education. Fr…

1
Jay Bhattacharya: Free Expression and Unsettled Science 1:00:50

1+ y ago1:00:50

1:00:50

Jay Bhattacharya is a professor at Stanford University Medical School, a physician, epidemiologist, health economist, and public health policy expert focusing on infectious diseases and vulnerable populations. During the Covid pandemic, Dr. Bhattacharya co-wrote the Great Barrington Declaration, which advocated for a “focused protection” approach i…

1
Nadine Strossen: Free Speech in a Time of Campus Crisis 1:09:01

1+ y ago1:09:01

1:09:01

Nadine Strossen is the John Marshall Harlan II Professor of Law Emerita at New York Law School, and served as president of the American Civil Liberties Union from 1991 to 2008. ACTA has long admired her tireless advocacy and devotion to free speech and is proud to have featured her as a keynote speaker and panelist at many of our conferences. In Oc…

1
Ayaan Hirsi Ali: The Fight For Our Classrooms 28:09

1+ y ago28:09

28:09

ACTA's President Michael Poliakoff interviews Ayaan Hirsi Ali, a Somali-born, Dutch-American writer, human rights activist and former politician and long-time friend of our organization. She is the author of best-selling books like Infidel (2007) Nomad (2010) and Heretic (2015). Now a Research Fellow at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University a…

1
Scott Walker: A Governor's Perspective on College Spending 48:10

1+ y ago48:10

48:10

In this episode, former Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker speaks with ACTA's President Michael Poliakoff. Governor Walker is now leading Young Americans for Freedom -- an organization committed to ensuring that increasing numbers of young Americans understand and are inspired by the ideas of individual freedom, a strong national defense, free enterpr…

1
A Higher Ed Reformation: Changing Campus Policy and Culture 40:45

1+ y ago40:45

40:45

In March 2023, ACTA’s second annual Alumni Summit on Free Expression brought together alumni free speech activists and higher education nonprofit leaders from across the country to share knowledge, experiences, and resources related to campus reform efforts. In partnership with the Alumni Free Speech Alliance (AFSA), this special gathering was desi…

1
Free Speech Barriers and Legal Remedies 49:07

1+ y ago49:07

49:07

In March 2023, ACTA hosted its second Alumni Summit on Free Expression in Washington, DC, in partnership with the Alumni Free Speech Alliance (AFSA). More than 100 individuals from various AFSA member groups and other higher education nonprofit organizations attended to support the growing movement to motivate and equip alumni in their efforts to a…

Podcasts Worth a Listen

Academicfreedom Podcasts

Podcasts Worth a Listen