The PEN Pod: On Speaking Up and Questioning Authority with Lora Burnett
“It’s a little bit chilling to say the least—and I think deliberately chilling—as in a deliberate attempt to chill free speech, for the college to single out three women… More
The PEN Pod: The Right to Protest and Vaccine Hesitancy with Suzanne Nossel
“The introduction of this sweeping anti-protest legislation that restricts where you can protest. . . really runs counter to freedom of assembly rights.” More
The PEN Pod: On Using Storytelling to Push Back Against Systems with Imbolo Mbue
“This story came from [my] childhood fascination: this idea of people pushing back against systems that are way more powerful than them.” More
The PEN Pod: On Making a Safer Internet with Suzanne Nossel
“Things like disinformation, online harassment. . . people feel that they are worse because of the small number of platforms that control so much content.” More
The PEN Pod: Truth Telling with Sanderia Faye
“We are the truth-tellers—even in fiction, we are the truth-tellers. We have to continue to write, and even beyond our pain, we have to continue to write.” More
The PEN Pod: On Political Ads, the Children’s Canon, and Ongoing Crackdowns in Myanmar with Suzanne Nossel
“While there was a democratic interlude and democratic norms were taking hold [in Myanmar], it was even more fragile than I think anybody quite realized.” More
The PEN Pod: Recovering Lost Stories and How They Can Inspire the Present with Fatima Shaik
“In the Economy Society, their motto was ‘to help one another and teach one another, and put out a hand to suffering humanity.’ Now, I think that resonates with… More
The PEN Pod: Reckoning with “the Big Lie” with Suzanne Nossel
“It’s not simply just a matter of speech when you’re actually threatening people, much less using the power of government to make good on those threats.” More
The PEN Pod: The Secret History of Stan Lee with Abraham Riesman
“What I would hope is that I encourage people to embrace ambiguity when it comes to Stan [Lee]’s life and legacy. Embrace ambiguity.” More
The PEN Pod: On the Conclusion to a Landmark Lawsuit and Setting the New Precedents of Free Speech with Suzanne Nossel
“It’s not simply just a matter of speech when you’re actually threatening people, much less using the power of government to make good on those threats.” More