The Capitol Forum

Power in Washington isn't announced — it's revealed. The Capitol Forum brings you inside the policy discussions and corporate investigations that move markets and shape American life. Listen to Second Request with Teddy Downey for sharp, unfiltered analysis of antitrust policy in America. Then stay for TCF Investigates with Arjun Singh, a narrative documentary series bringing listeners inside the reporting, sources, and regulatory developments shaping markets and corporate strategy.

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22 episodes
Avg 57 min
English

Episodes 22

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Friday · 59 min
Meta's House of Cards (Second Request)
This week, Meta reached a multibillion-dollar settlement in federal court over allegations that it was aware of the harm its products could cause to teenage mental health. That may be the tip of the iceberg for Mark Zuckerberg's problems. Today on Second Request, Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with Julia Angwin to discuss how Meta's core business, Facebook, is failing, and how Zuckerberg's ambitions to become an AI giant have failed to materialize.
August 21 · 57 min
AI Needs to Nearly Triple Productivity to Pay Off (Second Request)
To earn the return on its investment, artificial intelligence will need to nearly triple productivity in the U.S. economy. So what will it do? Today on Second Request, Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with Jessica Wachter, the Dr. Bruce I. Jacobs Professor of Quantitative Finance at the Wharton School and a research associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research, to discuss her recent paper, "What Investment Data Implies About the AI Transition," co-authored with Jonathan Wachter.
August 14 · 34 min
Paramount's Long Odyssey to Own Warner Bros. (TCF Investigates)
The Ellison family has been on a quest to reshape American media and Hollywood — their next target: Warner Bros. Discovery, home of HBO Max and CNN. Today on TCF Investigates, Arjun Singh sits down with editors Jeff Bliss and Jim Oliphant to hear about The Capitol Forum's exclusive reporting on the states' merger trial, and why a state victory could be a paradigm shift for antitrust law.
August 14 · 1 hr 1 min
Alternative Protein vs Big Meat (Second Request)
Plant-based protein has become a mainstay in restaurants and household dinners, but as an emerging industry it's susceptible to the market power of major food companies. Today on Second Request, Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with Andy Fitch and Cynthia Hanawalt of Columbia Law School's Sabin Center for Climate Change Law to discuss how antitrust law could prevent the alternative protein industry from being eaten up by its biggest players.
August 7 · 1 hr 8 min
How Private Equity Could Create a New Financial Crisis (Second Request)
Millions of life insurance policies are tied to the fortunes and speculation of the world's biggest private equity companies. Now, their risk of defaulting on their obligations is increasing, and some worry it could lead to another financial crisis. Today on Second Request, Teddy Downey sits down with Andrew Granato, Assistant Professor at the University of Texas School of Law, and Pranjal Drall, a J.D.-Ph.D. candidate in Financial Economics at Yale University, to discuss their recent paper, "Private Credit's State Backstop: How Private Equity Socializes Risk Through Insurers."
July 31 · 59 min
The Emerging Antitrust Risks in Edge Computing (Second Request)
Waymo, Apple, Meta and Google have constructed ecosystems that have immense leverage over the global economy and infrastructure. So how should antitrust law tackle that? Today on Second Request, Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with J. Wyatt Fore to discuss the emerging antitrust risks in edge computing and AI.
July 24 · 59 min
Inside Uber's AI Strategy to Inflate Your Fare (Second Request)
Same ride, two different prices — that's the new reality facing Uber and Lyft passengers. Today on Second Request, Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with Derek Kravitz of Consumer Reports to talk about Kravitz's new reporting on how Uber and Lyft make use of algorithmic pricing to charge consumers different prices and inflate base costs.
July 22 · 1 hr 2 min
How Credit Card Swipe Fees Became Multibillion Dollar Tolls (Second Request)
Today on Second Request, Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with Carter Dougherty, senior fellow for anti-monopoly and finance at Demand Progress, who argues that Visa and Mastercard enable banks to coordinate pricing without ever explicitly agreeing to it — and makes the case for how the Credit Card Competition Act, ongoing antitrust litigation, and a more aggressive enforcement posture could finally break the duopoly's grip on the payments market.
July 17 · 1 hr 1 min
Is the Paramount-Warner Bros. Merger in Real Trouble? (Second Request)
Twelve states just sued to block Paramount's $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, arguing the deal would leave viewers with fewer choices and higher prices. Today on Second Request, Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with The Entertainment Strategy Guy, who writes one of Hollywood's leading newsletters about the streaming and entertainment industry. Read The Entertainment Strategy Guy's Substack here: https://entertainment.substack.com/
June 26 · 57 min
Can an AI Chatbot Be Responsible for Murder? (Second Request)
What happens if an AI chatbot tells someone to kill someone else? Tragically, this situation unfolded at a Florida school when a shooter asked ChatGPT for advice on how to conduct a school shooting. But do the creators of ChatGPT bear any responsibility? That's what Erie Meyer, former chief technology officer of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, thinks, and in this episode of Second Request she sits down with Arjun Singh to explain why.
June 12 · 33 min
The Surveillance Economy, Part Two (TCF Investigates)
In the second episode of The Surveillance Economy, a mini-series from The Capitol Forum Investigates, Arjun Singh sits down with Andrew G. Ferguson, a law professor and expert in policing and technology, to discuss his new book Your Data, Will Be Used Against You: Policing in the Age of Self-Surveillance. Together, the two discuss how law enforcement agencies use personal data from data brokers to create predictive policing programs, and the potential pitfalls of consumer data being handed over to law enforcement.
June 10 · 38 min
The Surveillance Economy, Part One (TCF Investigates)
Corporations are spying on you — and you've given them permission to do it. Every time we log on to a browser, open an app or share information with a business, that data is packaged and sold. This lucrative business, however, has turned consumer technology into a surveillance apparatus, and that information is being sold to governments around the world. In the first episode of a special two-part investigation on "The Capitol Forum Investigates," reporter Ethan Ehrenhaft tells the story of how a former cocaine smuggler taught the government how to surveil the public, and how states, including California, are trying to clamp down on the unchecked proliferation of personal data.
June 5 · 1 hr 7 min
What Happens If the AI Bubble Bursts? (Second Request)
Who will pick up the pieces if the AI hype fizzles? Today on Second Request, Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with Matthew Scherer of the Open Markets Institute to discuss his recent report, "No Bailouts for Big Tech Billionaires: Policies for When the AI Bubble Bursts." Together, the two examine the massive debt fueling artificial intelligence spending and the role of private credit, shadow banking, and other opaque financing structures in AI markets.
May 29 · 1 hr 3 min
The Future of Sports Streaming (Second Request)
In 1961, Congress granted the NFL an antitrust exemption allowing the league to collectively negotiate broadcasting rights, revolutionizing sports broadcasting in America. Now, streaming companies like Amazon argue the law doesn't cover them, and that NFL teams can't collectively bargain with them for broadcasting rights. Today on Second Request, Executive Editor Teddy Downey speaks with Katie Van Dyck, Senior Legal Fellow at the American Economic Liberties Project, to discuss her recent article, "How an Obscure Law Lets Sports Leagues Rob Fans Blind."
May 22 · 1 hr 1 min
Who Runs the Skies? (Second Request)
Will the budget airline die with Spirit Airlines? For decades, four major carriers have controlled most of the U.S. airline market — but the collapse of Spirit has renewed questions about the future of flying and what less competition means for airfare. Today on Second Request, Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with Gene Burrus, founder of Burrus Competition Strategies, to talk about the state of competition and consolidation in the airline industry.
May 15 · 1 hr 3 min
The Secret History of Forced Arbitration (Second Request)
When you signed up for Disney+, you probably signed away your right to sue Disney. Most Americans have — buried in the terms and conditions of many apps is a legal clause called forced arbitration, and it's become corporate America's get-out-of-court-free card. Today on Second Request, Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with Brendan Ballou — former special counsel in the DOJ's Antitrust Division and author of the new book When Companies Run the Courts: How Forced Arbitration Became America's Secret Justice System — to discuss the history and impact of forced arbitration in America.
May 8 · 1 hr 10 min
The New A.I. Gatekeepers (Second Request)
In this episode of Second Request, Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with Dr. Courtney Radsch to discuss her new paper examining content licensing relationships between publishers and artificial intelligence firms. Together, the two look at how A.I. companies utilize published information and the policy tools that could empower publishers to prevent A.I. firms from improperly using their material.
May 5 · 29 min
Ticketmaster's Extraction Engine (TCF Investigates)
Is the Live Nation-Ticketmaster era finally over? In a landmark verdict, a jury found that Live Nation-Ticketmaster operated an illegal monopoly — a conclusion that musicians, venue owners, and fans had been waiting years to hear. For decades, Ticketmaster held the concert industry in a stranglehold, leveraging its market dominance and even government resources to lock out any competition that dared to emerge. Today on The Capitol Forum Investigates, reporters Krista Brown, Cole Cahill, and Rebecca Kern break down how Live Nation-Ticketmaster built the extraction engine that came to control live music — and what this verdict means for everyone who's ever bought a ticket. Read Krista Brown's article about Ticketmaster in The American Prospect
May 1 · 58 min
What's the Beef With American Food? (Second Request)
Why is Irish butter better than American? It's about consolidation. Today on Second Request, Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with author and agricultural policy expert Austin Frerick to look at the state of consolidation in the American food industry, and emerging regulatory trends in the agricultural sector.
April 24 · 57 min
Lawless Antitrust (Second Request)
In this episode of Second Request, Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with John Newman, an antitrust expert and professor at the University of Memphis, to discuss Newman's recent paper "Lawless Antitrust" and the how antitrust enforcement has deviated from statutory text.

Showing 1–20 of 22 episodes