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Baldwin & Co. Author Talks

DJ Johnson

This podcast is your front-row seat to the world of intellectual thought, creative expression, books, ideas, and thought-provoking conversations with some of the most brilliant minds and celebrated authors of our time.

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  • 22 episodes
  • Avg 54 min
  • English

Episodes 22

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  • #29
    February 17 · 57 min

    The Most Dangerous Lie: “The Water Is Fine” - Phyllis R. Dixon & Cecilia Guillen

    Phyllis R. Dixon is the author of Something in the Water, a gripping novel that blends political intrigue, environmental justice, and deeply human stakes. Cecilia Guillen is today’s conversation partner, bringing a sharp, community-centered lens to stories that sit at the crossroads of culture, power, and lived experience. Phyllis R. Dixon tells a story about contaminated water, political corruption, and the quiet violence of being ignored—themes that echo loudly in today’s headlines as communities across the country continue to face environmental neglect and unequal access to safety and accountability. Joined by Cecilia Guillen, this discussion moves beyond the page, connecting the novel’s characters and conflicts to real-world struggles over infrastructure, public trust, and who pays the price when systems fail. Together, Phyllis and Cecilia explore how fiction can illuminate truths that policy reports and news cycles often can’t—and why stories like this matter now more than ever. This episode is part of the ongoing conversations hosted by Baldwin & Co., a Black-owned bookstore, café, and cultural institution based in New Orleans. Baldwin & Co. exists at the intersection of literature, ideas, and community—creating space for rigorous dialogue, storytelling, and intellectual exchange. Through author talks, podcasts, live events, and community programming, Baldwin & Co. amplifies voices shaping how we understand culture, history, politics, faith, and the future. Stay connected with Baldwin & Co. across platforms: Instagram: @baldwinandco X (Twitter): @baldwinandco Facebook: Baldwin & Co. YouTube: Baldwin & Co. Website: www.baldwinandcobooks.com Visit us in New Orleans or online to support independent bookselling, discover powerful literature, and engage in conversations that matter. #BaldwinAndCoPodcast #SomethingInTheWater #PhyllisRDixon #CeciliaGuillen #EnvironmentalJustice #WaterIsLife #EnvironmentalRacism #PoliticalCorruption #SocialJustice #LiteratureAsResistance #FictionThatMatters #StoriesThatShapeUs #TruthInStorytelling #CommunityVoices #CultureAndPower #BooksAndJustice #IdeasInConversation

  • #28
    February 12 · 52 min

    Trump Didn't Break America...This Did. -- Jamelle Bouie & Nathan Robinson

    In this wide-ranging but sharply focused conversation, Nathan J. Robinson and Jamelle Bouie argue that the central danger facing American democracy is not mass apathy or popular authoritarianism, but a crisis of elite legitimacy and institutional misalignment with a public that has already changed more than its leaders realize. They contend that reactions to Trumpism—especially resistance to state repression, overt racism, and the abandonment of democratic norms—reflect decades-long cultural shifts toward greater inclusion, historical awareness, and moral commitment to equality, rather than a sudden outbreak of “woke excess.” Jamelle Bouie frames this moment as a failure of elite social reproduction: institutions that once shaped public values are now unable to pass their worldview intact to the next generation, while reactionary movements misread both public opinion and history. Together, they caution that although extremist ideologies lack broad popular support, they can still capture power through undemocratic structures, institutional cowardice, and strategic minority rule. Drawing on American history—not as prophecy but as case study—they conclude that durable political projects require flexibility, legitimacy, and long time horizons, qualities notably absent from today’s authoritarian experiments, making the present moment less a story of democratic collapse than of a system struggling to catch up to the people it claims to represent. This episode is part of the ongoing conversations hosted by Baldwin & Co., a Black-owned bookstore, café, and cultural institution based in New Orleans. Baldwin & Co. exists at the intersection of literature, ideas, and community—creating space for rigorous dialogue, storytelling, and intellectual exchange. Through author talks, podcasts, live events, and community programming, Baldwin & Co. amplifies voices shaping how we understand culture, history, politics, faith, and the future. Stay connected with Baldwin & Co. across platforms: Instagram: @baldwinandco X (Twitter): @baldwinandco Facebook: Baldwin & Co. YouTube: Baldwin & Co. Website: www.baldwinandcobooks.com Visit us in New Orleans or online to support independent bookselling, discover powerful literature, and engage in conversations that matter. #BaldwinDialogues #JamelleBouie #NathanJRobinson #CurrentAffairs #PoliticalAnalysis #AmericanDemocracy #Authoritarianism #TrumpEra #DemocracyInCrisis #ElitePower #CivicEngagement #PublicDiscourse #PoliticalCulture #HistoricalContext #DemocraticValues #InstitutionalFailure #MediaAndPolitics #IdeasMatter #LongFormConversation #IntellectualHistory

Showing 21–22 of 22 episodes