Hearsay Culture 1.0 Site (2006-2021)
Covering modern technology and Internet issues
Hosted by Dave Levine.

Jeremy Pelt: Griot, Jazz, and the Power of Personal Narratives

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Tune in on Friday, June 25 @ 3pm PST on KZSU-FM Stanford

Support Hearsay Culture’s influential new path and growth by checking out our Indiegogo campaign!

Jeremy Pelt, 2018 Photos by Kasia Idzkowska

What can resonate even more than the truth? The story. And so, Jeremy Pelt, renowned trumpeter (who has played with one of my favorite groups, the Village Vanguard Orchestra) and musical story-teller, has a new book that is inspired by the West African oral “griot” tradition. In Griot: Examining the Lives of Jazz’s Great Storytellers, Pelt interviews jazz colleagues with fascinating backgrounds and insights to share. He speaks with musicians spanning several decades, from Paul West to Bertha Hope to Wynton Marsalis to Robert Glasper. His questions are direct and open up deeply personal conversations.

Jazz is known as the first American art form, and this book is Pelt’s first volume looking at the maestros of the genre. Pelt seems to have an unquenchable passion for this search for meaning in music culture, delivering surprising perspectives and important insights into how we relate to each other in our endlessly-networked world. Tune in for a dynamic discussion of culture, music, civil rights, whether jazz should be still be streamed from clubs after Covid, and the controversy around the name “jazz” (and check out the accompanying album!)

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Is Your Computer (Really) on Fire? A chat with Ben Peters

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Friday, March 26, at 8pm pacific on KZSU-FM (Stanford)

Co-editor of the book Your Computer Is On Fire (MIT Press 2021), with Thomas S. Mullaney, Mar Hicks, and Kavita Philip

Technophilia, the dread of technology infringing on and disrupting human life, is a topic Professor Ben Peters covers in depth in his new co-authored and co-edited book, “Your Computer Is on Fire.” Acknowledging the power to enable society, Peters and his fellow co-editors and contributors nonetheless broadside what they call the “large-scale consequences of Silicon Valley.” Its a remarkably broad and timely endeavor.

On today’s show, Dave examines what’s really burning, and where is it out of control? Using clips from from Mark Zuckerberg’s 2017 Harvard commencement speech, as well as raising issues about how consumers and the government might address the many concerns raised by the authors, Hearsay Culture pushes for accuracy on this crucial topic — a goal shared by the authors themselves. In a broad discussion with return guest Ben, who has a vast and deep background in technology theory and practice, the 2021 state of tech play is developed and translated.

Listen in!

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Is Everything A Game? The Role of Gamification in Society

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An Interview with Profs. Kevin Werbach and Dan Hunter, authors of For The Win: The Power of Gamification and Game Thinking in Business, Education, Government, and Social Impact

Friday, February 26, 2021 at 8pm pacific on KZSU

Should life – and business – be turned into a game? This question highlights this week’s discussion on Hearsay Culture. As games present a great attraction to trainers, and business marketers, do we really want games to infiltrate so many aspects of our world? If not (and we don’t), then where do they work? What are the guardrails, if any, for governments, businesses, and other institutions to engage in gamification?

On this week’s show, Dave takes a close look at these questions with two leading thinkers in this space. The authors lay out the practical and theoretical underpinnings for and concerns about inserting games into a range of activities, from Uber’s disturbing efforts to promising health and medical uses. What kind of gamer are the authors, and what kind of gamer do we want games to reward?

Exploring the notion that “fun” is at gamification’s center, Hearsay Culture digs deep to bring expert viewpoints into plain speak for the rest of us to understand. Tune in tonight at 8pm pacific on KZSU to hear about a step-by-step practical guide to gamification. Reach out if you have comments at dave@hearsayculture.com!

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Holography: How It Might Change Your Life

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A Conversation with Visby founder Kris Chaisanguanthum, Friday, February 12 @ 8pm pacific on KZSU

(c) Kari Orvik Tintype Studio

On tonight’s show, Visby CEO Kris Chaisanguanthum calls holography “the next step in the evolution of image quality.” Holography will dramatically affect everything from business, education, and politics, to movies, concerts, and sports broadcasts. Imagine a 3-D object in front of you instead of a flat computer screen; Kris argues that this is the future of displays and why his company is among its pioneers. The building blocks of this revolution are being developed now, but will holography dominate later this decade? If so, how will the public have any say in its deployment?

Building on the last 20 years of rapid computer technology advances, holography is the next frontier of consumer device displays that imparts new meaning to the term “virtual.” In the interview, Kris explains why new computer and smart phone user interface features will change the way devices and communications work, and whether private companies can handle this monumental responsibility. Tune in for a fascinating discussion about one of the most cutting edge innovations of our time—as well as some personal insights on the journey and how to enter this exciting new field.

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Rock is Here to Stay, But is Adapting Fast! Interview with the Bad Penny band

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Top (L-R): Bad Penny guitarist/songwriter Mike Holtzman; Host Dave Levine. Bottom (L-R): Bassist Danny Miranda (formerly of Queen); Drummer Jules Radino (Blue Oyster Cult)

Has the global pandemic killed live performing and rock and roll dreams?

On tonight’s show (January 29 @ 8pm pacific on KZSU), Bad Penny, made up of former band members from Journey, Queen, and Blue Oyster Cult and newcomer/songwriter Mike Holtzman, discuss collaborative recording spun from historical metal styles.

As technology has continued to flood our lives, it’s become a standard medium for business, shopping, and economics. However, technology has increasingly upended the arts world, providing new kinds of tools, social media outlets, and streaming business models. It’s inevitable that we turn to electronically-mediated music and its future on Hearsay Culture.

What is the professional musicians’ routine and prospects for a livelihood?

We discuss making a living, the economics of the new digital music landscape requiring higher ticket prices, and the different generations of format – like the LP record album – an art form with its liner notes, jacket, pictures of the band, credits and lyric sheets. Of course, we also hear bits of the band’s first three explosive tunes; one of which that was released today! Join us as Hearsay Culture expands beyond its traditional topics, but in its own signature style.

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Congress under siege: Lorelei Kelly on lessons from January 6

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Lorelei Kelly, Georgetown Beeck Center for Social Impact and Innovation Fellow, Friday, January 22 @ 8pm pacific on KZSU-FM

Lorelei Kelly (Photo: Georgetown Beeck Center)

Lorelei is an expert on Congress and its operations, as well as civilian-military relationships. On this timely show, we discuss the events of January 6, 2021 (the Congressional attacks). Is it appropriate to declare it a “coup attempt?” (You may be surprised by her answer). We also explore ways to fix Congress, what Senators can and cannot do with technology, smuggling books across the Berlin Wall, and Lorelei’s book shelf of favorite reading.

As Hearsay Culture expands its content offerings, expect us to delve into conversations that allow experts to share knowledge normally reserved for those closest to power. Lorelei Kelly’s unique perspective, deriving as it does from her beginnings in rural New Mexico, offers a compelling and grounded expert take on the nearly unfathomable events of the past three weeks. Listen in!

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Are Robots Our Friends? An Interview with Frank Pasquale

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Frank Pasquale testifying before the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, 2017 (full video available here)

Hearsay Culture is pleased to welcome back Brooklyn Law School Professor Frank Pasquale for the second interview of 2021. Frank has authored New Law of Robotics: Defending Human Expertise in the Age of AI. As Frank explains on the show, robots taking over the world is hardly a foregone conclusion. In fact, it’s unlikely, if we plan their integration thoughtfully so they support humans’ best interests – not replace them! As Frank writes on the dust cover to his book, “another story is possible.”

Frank is a friend of Hearsay Culture, and we are thrilled to have him back for one of our signature long-form but accessible interviews. A prolific reader as well as writer, we had a wide-ranging discussion about Frank’s current reading, his take on finding a job in an increasingly automated environment, and how to best harness the analytical power of machines. Listen in tomorrow, Friday, January 15, on KZSU-FM Stanford’s live stream at 8pm pacific! The show will be posted soon thereafter as a podcast. Look for it at hearsayculture.com!

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The True Vote Count: An Interview with Smartmatic’s Antonio Mugica

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Antonio Mugica on Hearsay Culture. (c) 2021 Hearsay Culture.

As previously announced, Hearsay Culture has relaunched and kicked-off 2021 newsmaker Smartmatic CEO Antonio Mugica, show # 267. The show is now available below (click on link for browser listening, or download at “download” button):

HC Mugica 1-8-21Download

As previously explained:

Smartmatic, which has counted billions of votes worldwide, has been at the center of President Trump’s unproven “stolen election” claims, and has been the subject of numerous allegations on 24-hour news outlets like Fox News and Newsmax. Smartmatic has now retained a leading defamation attorney to defend its reputation as a reliable, apolitical election technology provider. The company has found itself enmeshed in a Constitutional crisis that has been threatening the United States’ ability to conduct a peaceful transfer of power in less than two weeks. Hearsay Culture speaks to Mugica about the crisis, the integrity of the company’s technology, the future of voting, and other subjects top of mind with Americans today.

On the show, Mugica addresses what he calls the “completely false claims made about our company” that have been “amplified in the media” recently. Host Dave Levine asks Mugica about his views on transparency in voting, the recent violent occupation of Congress, circulating misinformation campaigns, and his current lawsuit against the government of Venezuela. On a personal note, Mugica discusses his favorite recent book and offers advice to younger listeners who may be experiencing an election for the first time. The result is an insightful, newsmaker interview that sheds light on the heart of the democratic voting process.

Enjoy listening to this breaking news interview, and stay tuned for more new shows in the coming weeks! [Note, shows #263-267, that aired on KZSU in 2020 but were not posted, will be available here in the coming week].

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HEARSAY CULTURE NEWSMAKER INTERVIEW WITH ANTONIO MUGICA, SMARTMATIC CEO

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Hearsay Culture Kicks Off 2021 with the Visionary Voting Tech Leader

Greensboro, North Carolina, January 8, 2021: KZSU-FM (Stanford)’s Hearsay Culture is relaunching in 2021 with its first guest, global newsmaker Antonio Mugica, CEO of voting technology innovator Smartmatic.

Smartmatic, which has counted billions of votes worldwide, has been at the center of President Trump’s unproven “stolen election” claims, and has been the subject of numerous allegations on 24-hour news outlets like Fox News and Newsmax. Smartmatic has now retained a leading defamation attorney to defend its reputation as a reliable, apolitical election technology provider. The company has found itself enmeshed in a Constitutional crisis that has been threatening the United States’ ability to conduct a peaceful transfer of power in less than two weeks. Hearsay Culture speaks to Mugica about the crisis, the integrity of the company’s technology, the future of voting, and other subjects top of mind with Americans today.

On the show, Mugica addresses what he calls the “completely false claims made about our company” that have been “amplified in the media” recently. Host Dave Levine asks Mugica about his views on transparency in voting, the recent violent occupation of Congress, circulating misinformation campaigns, and his current lawsuit against the government of Venezuela. On a personal note, Mugica discusses his favorite recent book and offers advice to younger listeners who may be experiencing an election for the first time. The result is an insightful, newsmaker interview that sheds light on the heart of the democratic voting process.

Mugica is a 20-year voting machine industry veteran, and his company provided voting technology to Los Angeles during the 2020 elections. The Los Angeles County solution, known as Voting Solutions for All People (VSAP), provides “voter-verified paper records” that go to the heart of public confidence in accurate vote tabulation, and appears to have worked very efficiently in Los Angeles. Although allegedly having ties with the Venezuelan government, Smartmatic has denied any prior or current ties with Venezuela, and no evidence has been offered to prove otherwise. Reuters, in fact, reported that Smartmatic blew the whistle on turnout manipulation problems in Venezuela’s 2017 National Constituent Assembly elections. 

Hearsay Culture, hosted by Elon Law Professor and Stanford Law School Center for Internet and Society Affiliate Scholar Dave Levine,is a media platform that features interviews with recognized experts on immediate challenges that span from technology, to law, to the arts. Building upon its 14 year history on Stanford University’s KZSU-FM, Hearsay Culture elevates facts and knowledge, rather than sides and uninformed opinions, offering clear views on emerging issues. Over 260 shows later, the new Hearsay Culture is breaking modern information silos and challenging misleading narratives, soon to be offering closely-moderated debates and other content along with its signature one-on-one long-form interviews. Find out more at hearsayculture.com, on Twitter @hearsayculture, and on Facebook at Hearsay Culture.

The Antonio Mugica interview will air on Friday, January 8 at 8pm pacific on KZSU-FM; stream it live at http://kzsu.stanford.edu/live/. It will be available as a podcast thereafter.  

Media Contact: Dave Levine, dave@hearsayculture.com

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A note from me to my new law students

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I am relaunching an expanded Hearsay Culture in 2021, and I’m super-excited about it. This year, however, has obviously started terribly. Aside from our out-of-control preventable pandemic, Wednesday’s events in Washington were devastating.

As you likely know, I’m a law professor at Elon University School of Law. While the violence was unfolding in DC, I felt compelled to email my 81 first-year law students, whom I met this past Monday, and will teach via Zoom as we began our study of Contracts.

I thought that some of you might be interested in an excerpt from my message:

At this hour, our country faces a violent crisis that we have not experienced since the end of the Civil War. We should all be horrified by these actions, regardless of political affiliation, as they go against our collective values as Americans, including the rule of law. 

As I’ve already said, the courts are the bulwark against chaos. . . . I encourage you to view today’s ongoing events in and around our Congressional buildings as the starkest illustration of the need for people willing to take on the sacred responsibility of promoting the rule of law. Although I cannot predict future events, I can assure you that attorneys and a functioning judiciary are the necessary prerequisites for restoring our country. The United States and all who look to the US for enlightened world leadership need you now, more than any time in living memory.

I am honored and privileged to help you achieve your noble goal of joining my chosen profession. See you on Zoom on Friday. Be safe and well, and be resolved.

I will see my students tomorrow, and may follow-up with their reactions. Meanwhile, thoughts on the above can be emailed to me at dave@hearsayculture.com.

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