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PODCAST

The Ballpark

LSE Film and Audio Team

The Ballpark is the LSE US Centre"s regular podcast on the politics and policy of the United States. Through features and interviews with academics from the LSE and elsewhere, The Ballpark looks more closely into what"s going on behind the headlines.

social science higher education

All Episodes

01:35:30

Jack Rakove in conversation with Larry Kramer

The Ballpark ·

2026/10/01

Is America experiencing a constitutional crisis, or have we reached the point of constitutional failure? At this LSE Phelan US Centre event, leading scholar on American constitutional history, Professor Jack Rakove, explored this question

en-GB

34:04

LSE: The Ballpark | Predicting climate change with AI

The Ballpark ·

2026/09/28

Data is incredibly important in predicting climate change and its impacts. Now, climate scientists are increasingly using AI to help them interpret climate data and to make more accurate predictions about climate change and its impacts.

en-GB

33:10

LSE: The Ballpark | Behavioural AI and...

The Ballpark ·

2026/09/14

As the popularity of AI grows, this new technology is increasingly being applied to make decisions based on interactions with humans, and their behaviours. But what happens if the way these AI systems have been built mean that they get it wrong?

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31:30

LSE: The Ballpark | How AI is influencing society...

The Ballpark ·

2026/09/01

Since the emergence of AI as a highly transformative force for modern society, many have faced challenges in updating their policies to address the potentially harmful effects of unrestricted AI development and integration into everyday life.

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28:12

LSE: The Ballpark | Donald Trump and the unmaking of...

The Ballpark ·

2026/05/26

While Trump’s foreign policy record has not been very successful elsewhere as wars continue to rage in Ukraine and in the Middle East, the exception is Europe which Trump seems to want to divide and weaken.

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32:21

LSE: The Ballpark | American foreign policy in the...

The Ballpark ·

2026/04/13

To talk about Donald Trump’s foreign policy, in February 2026 the Phelan US Centre spoke to Walter Russell Mead

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44:48

LSE: The Ballpark | After the Fall: From the End of...

The Ballpark ·

2026/03/30

From the rise of Donald Trump in the US, Brexit in the United Kingdom and Victor Orban in Hungary and National Rally in France, anti-system populists have seen a resurgence in many western democracies in the last decade.

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28:03

LSE: The Ballpark | America first and the future of...

The Ballpark ·

2026/03/16

From China’s growing influence in Europe to deepening Russia–China cooperation and the ripple effects of Trump’s America First policies, Eurasia has emerged as a single, highly contested geopolitical space.

en-GB

39:39

LSE: The Ballpark | China’s Three Personality Problem...

The Ballpark ·

2026/03/02

Understanding China’s role in the world has never been more important — or more complex. China projects itself variously as a moral global actor, a fiercely defensive power guarding its core interests, and a pragmatic, opportunistic player.

en-GB

00:43:44

LSE: The Ballpark | “Is AI a threat or an opportunity...

The Ballpark ·

2026/01/19

Contributor(s): Chris Gilson, Kayode Adeniyi, Natasha Chávez, Francesca Nicolodi | Recent years have seen growth in the capability and use of AI tools across society, including by business, academia, the media, and in the economy more widely. Many institutions have embraced AI tools and models such as ChatGPT (OpenAI) and Gemini (Google) to provide solutions to a variety of challenges, from the everyday to the global. At the same time, many commentators have expressed concerns about bias in AI, its

en-GB

00:26:30

LSE: The Ballpark | How to help left behind regions...

The Ballpark ·

2026/01/05

Contributor(s): Chris Gilson, Professor Gordon Hanson | The last 40 years have seen a sharp decline in America’s manufacturing industries with growing joblessness in many previously prosperous industrial regions of the US.But how and why did these job losses happen, and how did the US move from an economy based on manufacturing to one that’s now based on services? And what can be done to help workers affected by technological disruption in what are called “left-behind places”? To discuss the

en-GB

00:29:33

LSE: The Ballpark | The promise and peril of Trump’s...

The Ballpark ·

2025/12/15

Contributor(s): Chris Gilson, Professor Charles Kupchan | Since returning to the White House for his second term in January 2025, Donald Trump has renewed his “America First” agenda by pursing a transactional approach to diplomacy and a desire to limit the US’ involvement overseas. This in turn is remoulding the global order.To discuss Donald Trump’s “America First” foreign policy and the US’ place in the changing world order, in October 2025 the Phelan US Centre spoke to Professor Charles Kupchan,

en-GB

00:38:08

LSE: The Ballpark | AI and deepfakes with Dr Gili Vidan

The Ballpark ·

2025/12/01

Contributor(s): Chris Gilson, Gili Vidan | As long as there has been photographic and video imagery, there have been manipulated videos and photos. But only in the last decade or so have the public become aware of what are known as “deepfakes”, computer or AI generated fake images, often of celebrities. The spread of deepfake imagery raises questions about truth and authenticity online – can we still trust what we see on screen?To discuss deepfakes, and the idea of trust and authenticity in the

en-GB

00:38:10

LSE: The Ballpark | US-China strategic competition...

The Ballpark ·

2025/11/03

Contributor(s): Chris Gilson, Professor Evan Medeiros | In August 2025, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization held its 25th annual summit in Tianjin, China, with the country’s leader Xi Jinping, hosting representatives from more than 20 countries including Russia’s Vladimir Putin and India’s Narendra Modi. The absence of the United States in this gathering of global leaders may tell us about how China is competing with the US and building its own global order.To discuss China’s strategic

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00:42:25

LSE Ballpark | AI, social media, and political...

The Ballpark ·

2025/10/20

Contributor(s): Chris Gilson, Josephine Lukito | To talk about social media and politics, and how AI can help spread – or tackle – disinformation, the Phelan US Centre spoke to Dr Josephine Lukito, Assistant Professor at the University of Texas at Austin’s School of Journalism and Media. Her research specializes in malicious political language in the public sphere, focusing on cross-platform flows of messages and frames about global economic and political issues.The discussion covers how social

en-GB

00:42:20

LSE: The Ballpark | AI and the workplace with...

The Ballpark ·

2025/10/06

Contributor(s): Chris Gilson, Ifeoma Ajunwa | AI is now increasingly playing a role in many parts of our lives, and the workplace is no exception. AI is now being used by employers to help them to recruit new staff and by jobseekers in their applications. But AI is also now present when we work. It’s used by employers to manage their employees, from monitoring what they are doing during the day, to what they post on social media.To talk about the rise of AI in the workplace, and what it means for

en-GB

00:45:46

LSE: The Ballpark | Who is liable for AI? With Dr...

The Ballpark ·

2025/09/22

Contributor(s): Chris Gilson, Anat Lior | AI has legal consequences. Who is responsible when AI makes a mistake which causes harm or financial loss? What role does government regulation play, and do we need to revise our legal frameworks in the face of increasingly capable AI?To talk about these issues, in July 2025, the Phelan US Centre spoke to Dr Anat Lior, an assistant professor at Drexel University’s Thomas R. Kline School of Law. Her research interests include AI governance and liability,

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00:44:31

LSE: The Ballpark | The US’ changing relationship...

The Ballpark ·

2025/08/11

Contributor(s): Chris Gilson, Celeste Wallander | In an article in the latest issue of Foreign Affairs, “Beware the Europe You Wish For, The Downsides and Dangers of Allied Independence”, former US Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs, Celeste Wallander, wrote on the potential downsides of Europe spending more on its own defense for the transatlantic alliance and for American foreign policy leadership.To discuss her article, In July 2025 the Phelan US Centre spoke to

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00:36:29

LSE: The Ballpark | The Administrative State with...

The Ballpark ·

2025/08/06

Contributor(s): Chris Gilson, Kimberley S. Johnson | In July 2025 the Phelan US Centre spoke to Professor Kimberley S. Johnson, Professor of Social and Cultural Analysis at New York University and the John G. Winant Visiting Professor of American Government at the University of Oxford, about the recent history of the US administrative state and racial representation in the US government and administration They also discussed the second Trump administration’s moves to dismantle Diversity, Equity and

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00:30:03

LSE: The Ballpark | Deemphasizing Nuclear Weapons in...

The Ballpark ·

2025/07/14

Contributor(s): Chris Gilson, Dr Lauren Sukin | In response to what the US sees as potential growing threats from China and North Korea, nuclear weapons are becoming a more and more important part of US alliance commitments and partnerships in East Asia. But what does this focus on nuclear weapons for both deterrence and reassurance mean for US foreign policy and for the security of the region? And could there be an alternative which puts a greater focus on conventional armed forces?To discuss

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137 results

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