Macalester Podcasts

Guest Speakers

Mideast Peace and Conflict Series, Sept 2007
•Lessons from Osama Bin Laden. Bruce Lawrence, Duke University, one of the nation’s leading experts on contemporary Islam. Listen
•Opening Convocation. Former Assistant Secretary of State and Ambassador Richard Holbrooke. Listen
• Yossi Beilin, chairman of the Meretz-Yachad Party and a member of the Knesset Listen
•Hanan Ashrawi, Official Spokesperson for the Palestinian Authority delegation for the U.S.-Israel-Palestinian Peace Talks, Listen
•Walter Mondale '50, former U.S. Vice President Listen

This year's Commencement speaker was Marian Wright Edelman, founder and president of the Children's Defense Fund. Under her leadership, CDF has become the nation's strongest voice for children and families.
listen to her address»

Counterpane Security expert Bruce Schneier spoke at Macalester April 3 about the systems we have in place post-9/11, revealing which of them actually work and which ones are simply "security theater."
Listen to the speech (.mp3)»
Watch the speech (.mp4)»

Aaron Brown Commencement Speech. Aaron Brown, the longtime broadcaster and Minnesota native, was the keynote speaker at Macalester's 117th Commencement on May 13.
Time: 21:00
Listen: MP3

Kofi Annan, April 22, 2006
Kofi Annan '61, Secretary-General of the United Nations, Nobel Laureate and Macalester alumnus, spoke at Macalester as part of the inaugural events for the new Institute for Global Citizenship.
Time: 41:58
Listen: MP3

Sarah Weddington, Feb. 16, 2006
At the age of 26, Weddington argued her first contested case, Roe v. Wade, before the United States Supreme Court; the Court decided in her favor on January 22, 1973. Weddington is the author of the best-seller, A Question of Choice, which details Roe v. Wade. She is currently working on a book about leadership and self-renewal. listen»

Mayor's Forum, Feb. 21, 2005
St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman and Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak took part in a Macalester Mayors' Forum. The two mayors discussed their leadership styles, how students can learn from their career paths, the challenges they face and how they plan to work together. They also took questions from the audience. Moderated by former St. Paul Mayor George Latimer, an urban studies visiting professor at Macalester. listen»

Alice Kaplan, Oct. 26, 2005
Twin Cities native and author Alice Kaplan, professor of Romance Studies, Literature, and History at Duke University, lectured and read from her recent book The Interpreter (August 2005). Her book examines the differing fates of African-American and White U.S. soldiers charged with committing crimes against civilians in France during World War II. Kaplan's The Collaborator: The Trial and Execution of Robert Brasillach (2000), won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize in History. listen

Felicia (Lusia) Karo Weingarten, Oct. 20, 2005
St. Paul author and holocaust survivor Felicia (Lusia) Karo Weingarten will read from her new collection of short stories and narratives Ave Maria in Auschwitz: The True Story of a Jewish Girl from Poland. Book signing to follow. Sponsored by the Macalester Chaplain's Office and the Macalester Jewish Organization. listen

Michael Sells, Oct. 14, 2005
Michael Sells, John Henry Barrows Professor of Islamic History and Literature at the University of Chicago Divinity School, spoke on "The Politics of the Qur'an." listen

David Zirin, Oct. 14, 2005
A talk and reading with Dave Zirin, Macalester alumnus and author of the new book, What's My Name, Fool? Sports and Resistance in the United States. A discussion panel with Irv Cross, former Macalester athletic director and NFL star; Howard Sinker, Macalester alumnus and an editor at the Star Tribune; Leola Johnson, chair of Macalester's Humanities and Media and Cultural Studies, followed. listen

International Roundtable, Oct.13-15, 2005
Professor Walter Mignolo delivered the keynote address for the 2005 International Roundtable, entitled "Delinking: Don Quixote, Globalization, and the Colonies." listen

Frederick de Armas, Andrew W. Mellon Professor in Humanities, and Professor of Spanish and Comparative Literature at the University of Chicago, delivered an afternoon lecture entitled, "Don Quixote: World Emperor." listen

David Carr, Oct. 10, 2005
David Carr, New York Times media columnist and former editor of the Twin Cities Reader, has been writing about media as it intersects with business, culture and government for the past 25 years. He also works as a general assignment reporter in the Culture section of The New York Times covering all aspects of popular culture. listen

Sir Ketumile Masire, Oct. 3, 2005
Sir Ketumile Masire, former president of the Republic of Botswana, speaks about "Peace and Development in Africa." Masire was one of the founders of Botswana as a non-racial, non-tribal democracy in 1966 and served as president from 1980 until he retired in 1998. He is the architect of unmatched economic success and is considered one of the outstanding leaders of Africa.  listen

Arthur Serota, Sept. 29, 2005
Arthur Serota, human rights lawyer and head of a group trying to end child soldiering, discusses the issue of child soldiering in Uganda and other parts of Africa as well as human rights protocols, peacekeeping and the role of the International Criminal Court.  listen

Ashanti Alston, Sept. 15, 2005
Alston, a former member of the Black Panther Party, speaks about his past to show what it meant to be moved by the idea of new, radical possibilities- from Black Power to revolution.  listen

Opening Convocation, Sept. 8, 2005, Weyerhaeuser Memorial Chapel
Featuring President Brian Rosenberg, Provost Diane Michelfelder and Student Government President Ben Johnson '06  listen