The Munk Debates Podcast

Friday Focus provides listeners with a focused, half-hour masterclass on the big issues, events and trends driving the news and current events. The show features Janice Gross Stein, the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and bestselling author, in conversation with Rudyard Griffiths, Chair and moderator of the Munk Debates. On this week’s edition of the Friday Focus podcast, Janice and Rudyard start the show with a discussion of the ongoing political fallout around former Governor General David Johnston’s report on Chinese interference in Canadian democracy and his recommendation not to hold a public inquiry. With Parliament’s censure this week of Johnston, are his days as the Prime Minister’s “special rapporteur” numbered? What are the implications for Canada’s democratic institutions, including the office of the Governor General, if he continues in his role? The second half of the program looks at the economic news that has dominated headlines the last week. New inflation numbers suggest higher prices are persisting despite interest rate hikes. Is it time for central banks to come off their self-declared “pause” and push forward with more rate increases? And, if they don’t, what are the risks that we are repeating the inflation-fighting missteps of the 1970s? This podcast is a project of the Munk Debates, a Canadian charitable organization dedicated to fostering civil and substantive public dialogue. More information at www.munkdebates.com.

In November 2022, substack journalist Matt Taibbi joined us on stage for our Munk Debate on Mainstream Media. Matt and his debate partner, political commentator Douglas Murray, argued in favour of the resolution, Be it resolved, don’t trust mainstream media, against best-selling author Malcolm Gladwell and New York Times columnist Michelle Goldberg (Matt and Douglas won a decisive victory, it was the biggest voter swing in Munk Debate history). Right after the debate, Matt got on a plane to San Francisco, where he went directly to Twitter’s head office to meet with its new CEO, Elon Musk. What came next was perhaps the biggest news story to close out 2022: the release of the twitter files, which exposed content moderation decisions at the social media company, often at the behest of politicians and government agencies. What followed was a tumultuous few months for Matt which included testifying before congress, a house visit from the IRS, a public fallout with Musk, and the end of his reporting on twitter. On this episode of the Munk Debates Podcast, we're joined by Matt Taibbi for an in depth chat about his life post-debate, why his reporting on the twitter files came to an end, and how growing distrust in the mainstream media could affect the 2024 US election cycle.   The host of the Munk Debates is Rudyard Griffiths - @rudyardg.   Tweet your comments about this episode to @munkdebate or comment on our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/munkdebates/ To sign up for a weekly email reminder for this podcast, send an email to podcast@munkdebates.com.   To support civil and substantive debate on the big questions of the day, consider becoming a Munk Member at https://munkdebates.com/membership Members receive access to our 10+ year library of great debates in HD video, a free Munk Debates book, newsletter and ticketing privileges at our live events. This podcast is a project of the Munk Debates, a Canadian charitable organization dedicated to fostering civil and substantive public dialogue - https://munkdebates.com/   Senior Producer: Ricki Gurwitz Editor: Kieran Lynch

Friday Focus provides listeners with a focused, half-hour masterclass on the big issues, events and trends driving the news and current events. The show features Janice Gross Stein, the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and bestselling author, in conversation with Rudyard Griffiths, Chair and moderator of the Munk Debates.   This week’s edition of Friday Focus is dedicated to analyzing the fallout from former Governor General David Johnston’s report on Chinese interference into Canadian democracy and his recommendation not to call for an independent public inquiry. Janice and Rudyard assess the decision, it’s reasoning and debate what is ultimately in the public’s interest when it comes to restoring public confidence.   This podcast is a project of the Munk Debates, a Canadian charitable organization dedicated to fostering civil and substantive public dialogue.   More information at www.munkdebates.com.

It’s no secret that both China and the US are preparing for war. Some American military experts think that an armed conflict between the two superpowers is inevitable and could begin as early as 2025. And while there is a general consensus among Americans that the US should defend Taiwan from Chinese aggression, there is also widespread disagreement about whether the US government should make a public commitment to do so. Some foreign policy experts argue that strategic ambiguity will signal that an invasion will be met by a weak response, thus bolstering China’s resolve to attack. Strategic clarity in the form of a pledge to defend Taiwan would intimidate Xi Jinping, deter his re-unification ambitions, and send a strong message of support to allies in the region. Other analysts say that a security guarantee by the US could force Xi’s hand and lead to a military conflict that would have otherwise never come to pass. The US should focus on deterring China from attacking Taiwan without resorting to military commitments that could spiral into a long, protracted and devastating war with a rising superpower. Arguing for the motion is David Sacks, Research Fellow at Council on Foreign Relations, where he specializes in U.S.-China relations Arguing against the motion is Michael Mazarr, a senior political scientist at the RAND Corporation. He previously served as a special assistant to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.   SOURCES: CBS, CNN, ABC, China Policy Research   The host of the Munk Debates is Rudyard Griffiths - @rudyardg.   Tweet your comments about this episode to @munkdebate or comment on our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/munkdebates/ To sign up for a weekly email reminder for this podcast, send an email to podcast@munkdebates.com.   To support civil and substantive debate on the big questions of the day, consider becoming a Munk Member at https://munkdebates.com/membership Members receive access to our 10+ year library of great debates in HD video, a free Munk Debates book, newsletter and ticketing privileges at our live events. This podcast is a project of the Munk Debates, a Canadian charitable organization dedicated to fostering civil and substantive public dialogue - https://munkdebates.com/   Senior Producer: Ricki Gurwitz Editor: Kieran Lynch

Friday Focus provides listeners with a focused, half-hour masterclass on the big issues, events and trends driving the news and current events. The show features Janice Gross Stein, the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and bestselling author, in conversation with Rudyard Griffiths, Chair and moderator of the Munk Debates.  The following is a sample of the Munk Debates’ weekly current affairs podcast, Friday Focus. On this week’s edition of the Friday Focus podcast, Janice and Rudyard start the show with a discussion of the billions currently being spent by governments in North America to subsidize companies involved in the electrification of the economy. Do these subsidies work? What are the tradeoffs? And, can we continue to afford generous cash transfers of public funds to private enterprises? The second half of the program looks at the different countries vying to lead on a peace deal for the Ukraine War. What exactly is going on here? Do any of these countries and any one specific plan have a chance to end the war? How are Russia and Ukraine likely to be ultimately brought to the peace table, and when? To access full-length editions of the Friday Focus podcast, consider becoming a donor to the Munk Debates for as little as $25 annually, or $.50 per episode. Canadian donors receive a charitable tax receipt. This podcast is a project of the Munk Debates, a Canadian charitable organization dedicated to fostering civil and substantive public dialogue. More information at www.munkdebates.com.

The fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 and the end of the Cold War marked a new era in world politics.  For many geopolitical experts, it was championed as the ascendancy of the western liberal world order over competing political ideologies. It was, as American political scientist Francis Fukuyama famously declared, “the end of history”  and the beginning of long term peace and prosperity. But that post-Soviet optimism did not last long. The past decade has seen a rise in authoritarian leadership, widespread distrust in liberal institutions, polarization on the left and right, and a new war being fought on European soil. On this episode of the Munk Debates Podcast, we’re joined by that same political scientist - Professor Francis Fukuyama - to talk about how the world has changed in 30 years, and whether liberal democracies around the world can withstand the strong forces that seek to dismantle them. Click here for more information about Francis Fukuyama’s latest book, Liberalism and its Discontents   The host of the Munk Debates is Rudyard Griffiths - @rudyardg.   Tweet your comments about this episode to @munkdebate or comment on our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/munkdebates/ To sign up for a weekly email reminder for this podcast, send an email to podcast@munkdebates.com.   To support civil and substantive debate on the big questions of the day, consider becoming a Munk Member at https://munkdebates.com/membership Members receive access to our 10+ year library of great debates in HD video, a free Munk Debates book, newsletter and ticketing privileges at our live events. This podcast is a project of the Munk Debates, a Canadian charitable organization dedicated to fostering civil and substantive public dialogue - https://munkdebates.com/   Senior Producer: Ricki Gurwitz Editor: Kieran Lynch

Friday Focus provides listeners with a focused, half-hour masterclass on the big issues, events and trends driving the news and current events. The show features Janice Gross Stein, the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and bestselling author, in conversation with Rudyard Griffiths, Chair and moderator of the Munk Debates.  The following is a sample of the Munk Debates’ weekly current affairs podcast, Friday Focus. On this week’s edition of the Friday Focus podcast, Janice and Rudyard spend the show talking about the upcoming June 22 Munk Debate on artificial intelligence at Roy Thomson Hall in downtown Toronto. What are the major fault lines that are likely to drive the debate between MIT’s Max Tegmark and Yann LeCun, Chief AI scientist for Meta? How could the rise of thinking machines constitute an existential threat to humanity? What are the policies or practices that industry and government could adopt to ensure AI safety? Janice and Rudyard dissect the big issues and ideas that are making the rise of AI one of the most important issues of our time. To access full-length editions of the Friday Focus podcast, consider becoming a donor to the Munk Debates for as little as $25 annually, or $.50 per episode. Canadian donors receive a charitable tax receipt. This podcast is a project of the Munk Debates, a Canadian charitable organization dedicated to fostering civil and substantive public dialogue. More information at www.munkdebates.com.

It’s a debate being argued across school boards, politics, and family dinner tables: whether educators should be including gender identity and sexual orientation in their k-5 curriculums. At least 5 Canadian provinces and seven US states now require the inclusion of LGBTQ topics, while more conservative states like Florida have banned any mention of such language altogether. Conservative lawmakers and parents argue that teaching about gender identity is inappropriate and confusing for children who are too young to understand the complexity of this subject and its potential life altering consequences. Educators, driven by liberal ideology, are ignoring parents’ wishes and using their classes to push their own political beliefs on impressionable youth. Progressives believe that as the number of children who identify as transgender and non-binary rises, teachers have an obligation to dispel misconceptions about gender and provide inclusive, safe environments for all students, especially the most vulnerable. Contrary to what some right-wing groups claim, you cannot alter or influence a person’s gender identity through education, while banning its teaching altogether will cause emotional and mental distress to our most vulnerable youth. Arguing for the motion is Jonathan Butcher, the Will Skillman Fellow in Education at The Heritage Foundation Arguing against the motion is Elizabeth Meyer, associate professor of Educational Foundations, Policy and Practice at the University of Colorado at Boulder SOURCES: CBS, CBN, Forbes   The host of the Munk Debates is Rudyard Griffiths  Tweet your comments about this episode to @munkdebate or comment on our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/munkdebates/ To sign up for a weekly email reminder for this podcast, send an email to podcast@munkdebates.com.   To support civil and substantive debate on the big questions of the day, consider becoming a Munk Member at https://munkdebates.com/membership Members receive access to our 10+ year library of great debates in HD video, a free Munk Debates book, newsletter and ticketing privileges at our live events. This podcast is a project of the Munk Debates, a Canadian charitable organization dedicated to fostering civil and substantive public dialogue - https://munkdebates.com/ Senior Producer: Ricki Gurwitz Editor: Adam Karch

Friday Focus provides listeners with a focused, half-hour masterclass on the big issues, events and trends driving the news and current events. The show features Janice Gross Stein, the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and bestselling author, in conversation with Rudyard Griffiths, Chair and moderator of the Munk Debates.  The following is a sample of the Munk Debates’ weekly current affairs podcast, Friday Focus. On this week’s edition of the Friday Focus podcast, Janice and Rudyard spend the show talking about the Canadian story that made international news this week in the form of media reports that Canada’s intelligence agency had information that it shared with the government that a sitting member of the national legislature was the target of a foreign intimidation campaign by the Chinese government. Who knew what, when, and why is the Chinese diplomat identified in intelligence reports still working out of the Toronto consulate? What does it mean for Canada’s national security going forward when members of its premier intelligence agency are leaking to the press and are in outright breach with the government and its handling of Chinese interference in Canadian democracy? Where does Canada-China relations go from here? Janice and Rudyard unpack it all for Munk members. To access full-length editions of the Friday Focus podcast, consider becoming a donor to the Munk Debates for as little as $25 annually, or $.50 per episode. Canadian donors receive a charitable tax receipt. This podcast is a project of the Munk Debates, a Canadian charitable organization dedicated to fostering civil and substantive public dialogue. More information at www.munkdebates.com.

60 years ago, university students were leading the protest in defense of free speech. The 1960’s Free Speech Movement at the University of California at Berkeley has been credited with paving the way for the civil liberties movement of the 1960’s and widespread social and political change. These days, however, free speech has taken on a new meaning. University students are being criticized for shutting down speech that doesn’t align with their progressive and left leaning principles. So how do free speech laws play into the current free speech debate? Where do we draw the line between speech that offends and speech that causes harm? For this conversation, we’re joined by one of the most important free speech advocates in America. Nadine Strossen served as President of the American Civil Liberties Union from 1991 to 2008, and is now a senior fellow at FIRE - the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression.    The host of the Munk Debates is Rudyard Griffiths - @rudyardg.   Tweet your comments about this episode to @munkdebate or comment on our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/munkdebates/ To sign up for a weekly email reminder for this podcast, send an email to podcast@munkdebates.com.   To support civil and substantive debate on the big questions of the day, consider becoming a Munk Member at https://munkdebates.com/membership. Members receive access to our 10+ year library of great debates in HD video, a free Munk Debates book, and ticketing privileges at our live events. This podcast is a project of the Munk Debates, a Canadian charitable organization dedicated to fostering civil and substantive public dialogue - https://munkdebates.com/ Senior Producer: Ricki GurwitzEditor: Kieran Lynch