James Traub: When the Bough Breaks
About this episode
John Heilemann discusses education and democracy with author James Traub, focusing on his book about the role of schools in society.
John welcomes author James Traub to discuss his latest book, “The Cradle of Citizenship: How Schools Can Help Save Our Democracy.” Traub describes the year he spent reporting in K-12 classrooms across the country; the fierce culture wars after the Covid-19 pandemic in many school systems around race, gender, curricula, and library collections; the debate over the 1619 Project and 1776 Report; and other signs of politicized rot in primary and secondary education. He also points to signs of hope, including the rise of so-called "classical" charter schools—and explains why the reflexive liberal opposition to them is misguided. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
People in this episode
Host: John Heilemann
Guest: James Traub
Topics covered
- education
- democracy
- culture wars
- K-12 classrooms
- politicization
- charter schools
Keywords
- education
- democracy
- culture wars
- K-12
- charter schools
- 1619 Project
- 1776 Report
- politicization
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Audacy, Puck
Books & works: The Cradle of Citizenship: How Schools Can Help Save Our Democracy, 1619 Project, 1776 Report
More episodes of Impolitic with John Heilemann
- Chris Murphy: Everything Is Broken
- Jonathan Martin: Crooked Ken v. Tofu Talarico
- Josh Tyrangiel: AI, What is it Good For? Absolutely Something (Say It Again)
- Robert Kagan: Only Bad Options in Iran & Nothingburgers in Beijing
- Dan Pfeiffer: Why Trump’s “I Don’t Think About Americans” Gaffe is the Worst Gaffe Ever
- Michael Froman: Love Taps in Iran, Summitry in Beijing, & Schizophrenia in Ukraine
Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Impolitic with John Heilemann podcast page.