Zócalo Public Square
@zocalopublicsquare.bsky.social
We combine public programs and journalism to examine essential questions in a broad-minded and accessible spirit.
A unit of ASU Media Enterprise.
A unit of ASU Media Enterprise.
After meeting novelist Junot Díaz at a book signing, playwright Marco Antonio Rodriguez embarked on a journey to adapt Díaz's beloved novel, "The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao," for the stage. Read all about it: zps.la/4a47tsp
The Long, Wondrous Adaptation of Oscar Wao | Essay
How a Playwright Translated Junot Díaz’s Beloved, Epic Novel of Dominican Dislocation for the Stage
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November 20, 2025 at 9:24 PM
After meeting novelist Junot Díaz at a book signing, playwright Marco Antonio Rodriguez embarked on a journey to adapt Díaz's beloved novel, "The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao," for the stage. Read all about it: zps.la/4a47tsp
Immigrant rights advocate Yliana Johansen-Méndez explains why immigration is essential to California’s identity and growth and, despite current challenges, will continue to be. youtube.com/shorts/4iXtG...
Why Immigration Defines California’s Future
YouTube video by Zócalo Public Square
youtube.com
November 19, 2025 at 6:53 PM
Immigrant rights advocate Yliana Johansen-Méndez explains why immigration is essential to California’s identity and growth and, despite current challenges, will continue to be. youtube.com/shorts/4iXtG...
@caltech.edu astrophysicist Konstantin Batygin discusses how AI’s rapid rise is redefining how scientists teach, learn, and innovate. youtube.com/shorts/THqlj...
Caltech Astrophysicist Konstantin Batygin on AI and the Future of Innovation
YouTube video by Zócalo Public Square
youtube.com
November 18, 2025 at 8:14 PM
@caltech.edu astrophysicist Konstantin Batygin discusses how AI’s rapid rise is redefining how scientists teach, learn, and innovate. youtube.com/shorts/THqlj...
In California's recently concluded special election, the Trump regime engaged in abuses and intimidation tactics that have convinced the U.N. to deploy election monitors in other countries.
Joe Mathews on why California needs the U.N. to observe its 2026 and 2028 elections. zps.la/47ZzAGG
Joe Mathews on why California needs the U.N. to observe its 2026 and 2028 elections. zps.la/47ZzAGG
Dear United Nations, Send Election Monitors to California | Connecting California
We Need International Help to Protect the Golden State from Federal Attacks
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November 18, 2025 at 6:16 PM
In California's recently concluded special election, the Trump regime engaged in abuses and intimidation tactics that have convinced the U.N. to deploy election monitors in other countries.
Joe Mathews on why California needs the U.N. to observe its 2026 and 2028 elections. zps.la/47ZzAGG
Joe Mathews on why California needs the U.N. to observe its 2026 and 2028 elections. zps.la/47ZzAGG
What will California’s democracy look like in the year 2200? Business advocate and public affairs specialist Brooke Armour Spiegel predicts a future shaped more by citizen-led initiatives. youtube.com/shorts/ZbDUg...
The Future of California’s Democracy
YouTube video by Zócalo Public Square
youtube.com
November 17, 2025 at 8:50 PM
What will California’s democracy look like in the year 2200? Business advocate and public affairs specialist Brooke Armour Spiegel predicts a future shaped more by citizen-led initiatives. youtube.com/shorts/ZbDUg...
Join us Sat, Dec. 13 at 6 p.m. at Bread & Salt (San Diego) for “Where Does Deportation Come From?,” a conversation between @macfound.org Fellows Kelly Lytle Hernández and @alex-rivera.bsky.social exploring the history of deportation. Free RSVP: zps.la/deportation
Where Does Deportation Come From? | Upcoming Experiences | Zócalo Public Square
Co-presented by Zócalo Public Square, MacArthur Foundation, Times of San Diego, and Bread & Salt Deportation has impacted communities across
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November 17, 2025 at 7:45 PM
Join us Sat, Dec. 13 at 6 p.m. at Bread & Salt (San Diego) for “Where Does Deportation Come From?,” a conversation between @macfound.org Fellows Kelly Lytle Hernández and @alex-rivera.bsky.social exploring the history of deportation. Free RSVP: zps.la/deportation
In a 1960s experiment, mice who had time to learn their way around a barn avoided a predatory owl. Those who didn't got eaten. A UCLA biologist's thoughts on experts and survival: zps.la/47FkF5E
What Animals Teach Us About Expertise | Essay
A Biologist Explains Why Experience and Acquired Knowledge Matter
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November 17, 2025 at 6:37 PM
In a 1960s experiment, mice who had time to learn their way around a barn avoided a predatory owl. Those who didn't got eaten. A UCLA biologist's thoughts on experts and survival: zps.la/47FkF5E
To write "Hot Girls with Balls," @xbennyboo.bsky.social immersed herself in volleyball and internet culture. "Acquiring this knowledge was central to my writing process. But I wrote a novel, not a reference guide," she explains. On fiction, empathy, and expertise: zps.la/3LFzkoI
There Are No Experts in Fiction | Essay
A Novelist on the Limits of Craft and the Many Paths to Unlocking a Book’s Magic
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November 13, 2025 at 7:22 PM
To write "Hot Girls with Balls," @xbennyboo.bsky.social immersed herself in volleyball and internet culture. "Acquiring this knowledge was central to my writing process. But I wrote a novel, not a reference guide," she explains. On fiction, empathy, and expertise: zps.la/3LFzkoI
Reposted by Zócalo Public Square
👏Hosted by @zocalopublicsquare.bsky.social , Playwrights’ Arena, UCLA Diversifying the Classics, and LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes.
🎟️Reserve your spot: www.eventbrite.com/e/can-comedi...
🎟️Reserve your spot: www.eventbrite.com/e/can-comedi...
Can Comedia Help Us Understand California’s Past?
Co-presented by Zócalo Public Square and an alliance of partners.
www.eventbrite.com
November 12, 2025 at 5:25 PM
👏Hosted by @zocalopublicsquare.bsky.social , Playwrights’ Arena, UCLA Diversifying the Classics, and LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes.
🎟️Reserve your spot: www.eventbrite.com/e/can-comedi...
🎟️Reserve your spot: www.eventbrite.com/e/can-comedi...
Policy analyst Robert Lempert participated in a meeting of the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which bridges the scientific community and policymakers. Here's what he learned: zps.la/43emhRa
How Do You Give Expert Advice in Transformational Times? | Essay
A Policy Analyst Wants to Repair Our Broken Climate Change Conversations in Partnership With Decision-Makers and the Public
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November 6, 2025 at 10:19 PM
Policy analyst Robert Lempert participated in a meeting of the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which bridges the scientific community and policymakers. Here's what he learned: zps.la/43emhRa
Picture this: The year is 2027. The Trump regime is over. Young people have led a successful revolution to take back the U.S.
Read columnist Joe Mathews’ dispatch from the not-so-distant future: zps.la/47msTiT
Read columnist Joe Mathews’ dispatch from the not-so-distant future: zps.la/47msTiT
Letter from 2027: How America’s Kids Took Down Trump | Democracy Local
Inspired by Gen Z Revolutionaries Around the World, Young People Rose up and the Olds Followed
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November 4, 2025 at 7:00 PM
Picture this: The year is 2027. The Trump regime is over. Young people have led a successful revolution to take back the U.S.
Read columnist Joe Mathews’ dispatch from the not-so-distant future: zps.la/47msTiT
Read columnist Joe Mathews’ dispatch from the not-so-distant future: zps.la/47msTiT
Reposted by Zócalo Public Square
Well that’s a nice wake up surprise! This piece I wrote for @zocalopublicsquare.bsky.social is a finalist for a Los Angeles Press Club National Arts & Entertainment Journalism Award! www.zocalopublicsquare.org/romance-genr...
Happily Ever After Is for Everyone | Essay
The romance genre has a single set-in-stone rule: The main characters of the story will end up happily in a relationship. The HEA (Happily Ever After) or the HFN (Happy for Now) is the expectation of ...
www.zocalopublicsquare.org
November 4, 2025 at 11:47 AM
Well that’s a nice wake up surprise! This piece I wrote for @zocalopublicsquare.bsky.social is a finalist for a Los Angeles Press Club National Arts & Entertainment Journalism Award! www.zocalopublicsquare.org/romance-genr...
Why does becoming an expert in one field make some scientists think they know about almost any subject? Geologist and NASA mission leader Lindy Elkins-Tanton on the process and pitfalls of becoming an expert: zps.la/3LfkBkh
A True Expert Scientist Knows What They Don’t Know | Essay
Textbooks are a false front for human knowledge. Science textbooks, at least. In high school, I eagerly read the biology textbook and the chemistry textbook and the physics textbook. Every question po...
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November 3, 2025 at 8:09 PM
Why does becoming an expert in one field make some scientists think they know about almost any subject? Geologist and NASA mission leader Lindy Elkins-Tanton on the process and pitfalls of becoming an expert: zps.la/3LfkBkh
Reposted by Zócalo Public Square
A little bit about my book, Insecurities of Expulsion, in my new essay in @zocalopublicsquare.bsky.social! And get out and vote! www.zocalopublicsquare.org/mamdani-miss...
Mamdani, ‘Mississippi Masala,’ and a Mayor’s Race | Essay
Untangling the South Asian-African-American Identity Can Help Us Move Beyond Narrow Categories
www.zocalopublicsquare.org
November 2, 2025 at 1:35 AM
A little bit about my book, Insecurities of Expulsion, in my new essay in @zocalopublicsquare.bsky.social! And get out and vote! www.zocalopublicsquare.org/mamdani-miss...
When you watch a horror movie or read about a crime, you're confronting life's most difficult realities and simulating cognitive and emotional responses to them, writes psychologist Coltan Scrivner. zps.la/4o6c6q6
Lean Into Your Morbid Curiosity | Essay
Humans Have Evolved to Navigate a Complex World Because of It
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October 29, 2025 at 6:07 PM
When you watch a horror movie or read about a crime, you're confronting life's most difficult realities and simulating cognitive and emotional responses to them, writes psychologist Coltan Scrivner. zps.la/4o6c6q6
Yes, I may be, as the Book of Revelation suggests, a Satan-empowered beast. But at least I’m no tech bro, like Peter Thiel.
Read the Antichrist’s takeover of Joe Mathews’ column this week. zps.la/3J4ZvV9
Read the Antichrist’s takeover of Joe Mathews’ column this week. zps.la/3J4ZvV9
The Antichrist Is Evil, But at Least He’s No Tech Bro | Connecting California | Zócalo Public Square
I admit I can be pretty scary. But I’m nowhere near as frightening as Peter Thiel. Which may be why the dark lord of Silicon Valley has been targeting me,
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October 28, 2025 at 5:52 PM
Yes, I may be, as the Book of Revelation suggests, a Satan-empowered beast. But at least I’m no tech bro, like Peter Thiel.
Read the Antichrist’s takeover of Joe Mathews’ column this week. zps.la/3J4ZvV9
Read the Antichrist’s takeover of Joe Mathews’ column this week. zps.la/3J4ZvV9
Zócalo publishes a new poem every Friday. Read (or listen to) our latest: "Soft Spot" by Nicholas Wong. zps.la/47kAtcp
Soft Spot | Poetry
Dear Moon God a.k.a. Elder Crooner / of Love, or tens of other confusing names, / I don’t care about you working overtime. / It’s the seventh day of the seventh / lunar month, you’re duty bound to do ...
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October 24, 2025 at 6:32 PM
Zócalo publishes a new poem every Friday. Read (or listen to) our latest: "Soft Spot" by Nicholas Wong. zps.la/47kAtcp
The Trump administration’s reinstatement of the presidential fitness test follows a debunked Cold War-era playbook, writes American Studies scholar Shelly McKenzie. zps.la/4nkH7Wm
The Presidential Fitness Test Won’t Make America ‘Tough’ Again | Essay
The Trump Administration Is Borrowing From a Failed Cold-War Era Playbook
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October 23, 2025 at 5:32 PM
The Trump administration’s reinstatement of the presidential fitness test follows a debunked Cold War-era playbook, writes American Studies scholar Shelly McKenzie. zps.la/4nkH7Wm
Missed yesterday's program with ASU, California Forward, and Stocktonia: “Is Hip-Hop America’s Biggest Success Story?” We've got you covered. Watch the recorded discussion: zps.la/CAFWD
Is Hip-Hop America's Biggest Success Story? | Recent Experience
Part of the 2025 California Economic Summit, a conversation about hip-hop’s impact on the creative economy and a reception featuring a hip-hop performance.
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October 22, 2025 at 5:53 PM
Missed yesterday's program with ASU, California Forward, and Stocktonia: “Is Hip-Hop America’s Biggest Success Story?” We've got you covered. Watch the recorded discussion: zps.la/CAFWD
Stockton hip-hop is an "in-between place" in the shadow of hyphy, writes "hip-hop midwife" Tama L. Brisbane. But it's growing its own sound. zps.la/4nVGzXQ
Hip-Hop’s Coming of Age in Stockton | Essay
An In-Between Place Without a Sound of Its Own Has Grown Into a Community for Performers and Audiences
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October 20, 2025 at 5:43 PM
Stockton hip-hop is an "in-between place" in the shadow of hyphy, writes "hip-hop midwife" Tama L. Brisbane. But it's growing its own sound. zps.la/4nVGzXQ
🚨 TOMORROW 🚨
🤔Is hip-hop America’s biggest success story?
🎙️Join Robeson Taj Frazier, Tara DeVeaux & Detavio Samuels on the opening night of CA FWD’s 2025 California Economic Summit to talk about it on 10/21
🙏Sponsored by @zocalopublicsquare.bsky.social, ASU, CA FWD, California Humanities, and Stonktonia
👇RSVP
🎙️Join Robeson Taj Frazier, Tara DeVeaux & Detavio Samuels on the opening night of CA FWD’s 2025 California Economic Summit to talk about it on 10/21
🙏Sponsored by @zocalopublicsquare.bsky.social, ASU, CA FWD, California Humanities, and Stonktonia
👇RSVP
Is Hip-Hop America's Biggest Success Story? | Upcoming Experiences
Part of the 2025 California Economic Summit, a conversation about hip-hop’s impact on the creative economy and a reception featuring a hip-hop performance.
www.zocalopublicsquare.org
October 20, 2025 at 5:41 PM
🚨 TOMORROW 🚨
In 1981, José René Flores, an L.A. resident incarcerated at a migrant detention facility, joined a hunger strike to protest their treatment. Flores is part of a lineage of resistance and protest from the inside, writes author Jessica Ordaz. zps.la/4ojXZNw
Resisting Migrant Detention From the Inside | Essay
Detainees in the U.S. Have Been Fighting Back for Decades
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October 16, 2025 at 5:44 PM
In 1981, José René Flores, an L.A. resident incarcerated at a migrant detention facility, joined a hunger strike to protest their treatment. Flores is part of a lineage of resistance and protest from the inside, writes author Jessica Ordaz. zps.la/4ojXZNw
In ancient Rome, after a political murder, the senate called in the army to keep the peace. Instead, citizens felt fear. "True stability cannot be imposed spectacularly from above," writes historian Edward Watts. zps.la/42sAqd8
Cicero, Political Violence, and America Today | Essay
Attacks, Assassinations, and Weak Institutions Create Fear and Undermine the Values of a Republic
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October 6, 2025 at 8:43 PM
In ancient Rome, after a political murder, the senate called in the army to keep the peace. Instead, citizens felt fear. "True stability cannot be imposed spectacularly from above," writes historian Edward Watts. zps.la/42sAqd8
Zócalo publishes a new poem every Friday. Read our latest: "Fake Ruins" by Sara Nicholson. zps.la/48b0HAs
Fake Ruins by Sara Nicholson | Poetry
Where the sparrows nest / And me, reading / Medieval lyrics in bed / It was never about me / My life I mean / I didn’t ask for this
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October 3, 2025 at 5:51 PM
Zócalo publishes a new poem every Friday. Read our latest: "Fake Ruins" by Sara Nicholson. zps.la/48b0HAs
By leaning on insurance-based solutions to deep-seated societal problems, California has put itself on a path toward repeating the mistakes of the past, warns Temple University historian @benchansfield.bsky.social. zps.la/4nuhIdv
The Disasters ‘High-Risk’ Insurance Fails to Paper Over | Essay
From the Watts Riots to 2025 Wildfires, California’s FAIR Plan Has Stood in the Way of Transformative Change
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October 2, 2025 at 5:24 PM
By leaning on insurance-based solutions to deep-seated societal problems, California has put itself on a path toward repeating the mistakes of the past, warns Temple University historian @benchansfield.bsky.social. zps.la/4nuhIdv