Five Deep Dish Episodes to Explain the World Right Now

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Global Insight by Brian Hanson
Davide Cantelli
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Deep Dish host Brian Hanson shares five recent episodes that help explain what’s happening in our world today and why these issues are so important.

As the host of Deep Dish, the Chicago Council on Global Affairs' foreign policy podcast, I talk to experts around the world about what's happening in the news and how to understand the issues driving the headlines. We cover a large range of topics—from national security to urban affairs—and have great conversations on how these issues influence US foreign policy and the United States' place in the world. In honor of world podcast day, September 30, I'm sharing my recommendations for five of our recent episodes that explain what's happening in our world and why these issues are so important.

Mark Zuckerberg appears on a video feed testifying before Congress.
1. Making Cyberspace Safe for Democracy As the US Presidential election moves closer, public concern about the election’s integrity has increased. The Alliance for Security Democracy’s Laura Rosenberger and Stanford University’s Jacob Helberg join Deep Dish to discuss digital interference, misinformation, and data privacy within the lens of geopolitics.
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Black Lives Matter protests in June, 2020.
2. How Racial Injustice Shapes US Foreign Policy The murder of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and other Black people—as well as the US government's reaction to national protests on racial injustice—have added to concerns over the demise of US global leadership. University of Wisconsin-Madison historian Brenda Gayle Plummer joins Deep Dish to examine what the United States must learn from our past in order to fix our foreign policy.
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View of the Kremlin and St. Basil's Cathedral in Moscow, Russia during winter.
3. How Putin Holds Power Over Russia After a constitutional referendum this summer, Russian President Vladimir Putin is set to hold power until 2036. Investigative reporter Catherine Belton joins Deep Dish to examine the people that surround the enigmatic leader – and the financial ties to the West that makes the Kremlin’s dominance possible.
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An image of a wall and phone with "TikTok" written on them.
4. Who’s Winning the US-China Tech War? While the United States still allows American users to download the Chinese app TikTok (for now), the outcome of legal proceedings against the app’s parent company ByteDance will set the precedent for future tech companies. The Council on Foreign Relations’ Adam Segal joins Deep Dish to explain the battles between China and the US over products like Huawei and TikTok, their role in US foreign policy, and why US allies are choosing sides.
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Angela Merkel and Donald Trump face each other at the NATO Summit.
5. Why Allies are Key for US Security Today The spread of COVID-19 and the United States' mismanagement of the pandemic may have a long-term effect on the relationships the country has relied on for decades. The Council on Foreign Relations' Mira Rapp-Hooper joins Deep Dish to explain why the alliance system is still essential for America’s global leadership—but must be remade to meet the challenges of the 21st century.
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About the Author
Brian Hanson
Former Vice President, Studies
Brian Hanson headshot
Brian Hanson served as the vice president of studies at the Chicago Council on Global Affairs. He managed the Council's research operations and hosted the Council's weekly podcast, Deep Dish on Global Affairs.
Brian Hanson headshot
Issues US Foreign Policy Defense and Security Global Politics
Regions North America Russia China
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