editorschat
The Editors' Chat #1
The first episode of our patron-only podcast.
Trent R. Nelson
Trent R. Nelson is a poet, historian, and philosopher, as well as a political and socioeconomic analyst. He is the managing editor for MWF Springfield and a contributing editor with Liberal Currents.
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Half the Answer #9: Language, Identity, and Anti-Woke Academic Slander
Trent and Caitlin talk with Dr. Aris Clemons, an Assistant Professor in Linguistics, about the various slanders and misapprehensions that plague her field of study. We discuss language ideologies, the illusion of objectivity, the futility of being “apolitical” in a political institution, ethnography and lived experience, “other ways of knowing,
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Half the Answer #8: What Is Personalism?
Trent and Caitlin talk with Adam Gurri, founder and editor-in-chief of Liberal Currents, about his take that the most accurate way to view the Trump presidency is as an example of “personalism.” What is personalism? What are other examples of personalist systems? What can a nation do once a personalist
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Half the Answer #7: What Is Nationalism?
Caitlin and Trent ask Alan Elrod, President and CEO of the Pulaski Institution, about what nationalism is and what kinds of nationalism are at play today. We discuss how white nationalist and Christian nationalist proponents justify it, and how U.S. progressives can participate in a national identity that celebrates
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Half the Answer #6: What Is "Heroic Masculinity?"
Trent and Caitlin ask podcaster and philosopher Toby Buckle about the claim that heroic masculinity will save us. Do all men want to be heroes? Is someone stopping them? Does asking boys and men to be considerate squash their inherent manly essence? The hosts and their expert guest dig into
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Half the Answer #5: The Rationalists and Islamophobia
Caitlin and Trent spoke with Polite Conversations host Eiynah about the ways Islamophobia disguises itself as rational, genuine liberal-minded concern, and the hateful roots that hide beneath. The Rationalists and IslamophobiaPodcast Episode · Half the Answer · 04/02/2025 · 58mApple Podcasts Half the Answer can be heard on Spotify, on Apple,
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Half the Answer #4: Youths and Technology
Trent and Caitlin ask Clinical Psychologist Dr. Melissa Fisher Paoni about problem technology use among children and teens, how to help them stay safe without crossing the line into over-surveillance or excessive restriction, and why one-size-fits-all policies are often insufficient. Youths and TechnologyPodcast Episode · Half the Answer · 03/26/2025
neonliberalism
Neon Liberalism #18: Knowing the Question Is Half the Answer
Samantha and fellow Liberal Currents editors Caitlin Green and Trent Nelson talk the crisis of misinformation, taking responsibility for your own beliefs in the social media age, and their new podcast, Half the Answer. Knowing the Question Is Half the AnswerPodcast Episode · Neon Liberalism · 03/18/2025 · 51mApple Podcasts Neon
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Half the Answer #3: At the Library
Centrist pundits, conservative think-tank guys, and far-right propagandists say the movement to target libraries with new laws and book challenges is about making sure patrons have access to all viewpoints and kids aren't exposed to obscene materials. But what does the situation really look like on the ground?
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Half the Answer #2: Campus Misinformation
Caitlin and Trent speak with Bradford Vivian, a Professor of Communication Arts and Sciences at Pennsylvania State University, about campus misinformation. How do op-eds and other polemics use hyperbole, metaphor and innuendo to create a false impression that college campuses are overrun with radical left wing revolutionaries, communist professors, mentally
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Half the Answer #1: The Questions
Caitlin and Trent, a linguist and an historian, introduce Half the Answer, a new podcast from Liberal Currents. The headlines and pundits ask their questions and present their framing of the topics of the day, but are there better questions we could be asking? Caitlin and Trent will interview experts
What Can Be Said About Israel?
Antisemitism is a great blight upon massive swaths of the world. It takes many forms, of course, and does not always resemble the violence and pogroms of so many centuries, The Dreyfus Affair in France, or the Nazi regime and the Holocaust all across Europe. It can be aggressive or