Today on AirTalk, we look forward to tonight's foreign policy debate and consider the importance of newspaper endorsements in an election. We'll also discuss media giant Rupert Murdoch's potential purchase of the L.A. Times, Texas cheerleaders with bible-passage banners, and the Khan Academy education revolution.
Romney vs. Obama round three: the foreign policy debate
The final presidential debate in the knockdown, drag out fight that is Campaign 2012 is tonight in Boca Raton, Florida. Round three will be a foreign policy discussion hosted by CBS News' Bob Schieffer. Mitt Romney won the first debate, but President Obama came back strong in the rematch. That makes tonight’s showdown a tie breaker of sorts.
Foreign policy isn’t generally considered Romney’s strong suit, so a victory tonight could be just the boost he needs to finally turn those very close poll numbers decisively his way. The Commander-in-chief might be more in his element, but given the complexity of foreign policy issues, the temptation to get professorial and long-winded will be great, which could cost Obama some much needed traction.
Will the candidates get specific about their foreign policy prescriptions? Who will take charge of the Libya issue in this debate? What questions should Schieffer ask Obama and Romney?
Guest:
Ron Elving, Senior Washington Editor for NPR; also writes the "Watching Washington" column for NPR.org
Tim Mak, Defense Reporter for POLITICO
POLL: How much do election endorsements matter to voters?
Presidential endorsements have been coming in from newspapers around the country: The Dallas Morning News has anointed Mitt Romney, while The Philadelphia Inquirer backs Barack Obama. Yesterday The Los Angeles Times threw its considerable weight - over 600,000 readers - behind Obama, as they did in 2008. But several large papers, including The Wall Street Journal and USA Today, have come out to say they don’t endorse presidential candidates.
Studies in recent years have questioned the relevance of newspaper endorsements for voters in an age when information about the candidates is readily available at the touch of an iPad. It remains to be seen whether Obama’s nod from Colorado’s Denver Post or Romney’s from The Las Vegas Review-Journal will help grease the wheels in those swing states. And two major Florida papers, The Orlando Sentinel and The Tampa Bay Times have seemingly canceled each other out by endorsing Romney and Obama, respectively.
What impact do newspaper endorsements have on voters at the polls? Does your local newspaper’s opinion page reflect your concerns? Do you trust editorial endorsements to help you decide how to vote in local races and on propositions? How about for president?
Guests:
Robert Greene, editorial writer and member of the editorial board for Los Angeles Times
Greg Mitchell , writes the Media Fix blog for The Nation; former editor at Editor & Publisher and author of 13 books on politics and history; including The Campaign of the Century: Upton Sinclair’s Race for Governor of California and the Birth of Media Politics (Polipoint Press) and Tricky Dick and the Pink Lady (Random House)
Rumors connect media mogul Murdoch to L.A. Times
As the Tribune Co. emerges from a long and messy bankruptcy, there is growing speculation about its newspapers changing hands. The latest gossip had media giant Rupert Murdoch interested in the Los Angeles Times.
Reports said James Murdoch had been combing through the financials of the L.A. Times. However, that was summarily denied as “wholly inaccurate” by News Corp. representatives over the weekend. The FCC currently prohibits ownership of a television station and a newspaper in the same area, but is reconsidering this sanction - good news for Murdoch, who owns two Fox stations in L.A. and two in Chicago.
As Murdoch prepares to divide News Corp. to focus separately on entertainment media and print news, word is spreading quickly about his intentions to purchase the two financially-struggling papers. Murdoch already controls the Wall Street Journal, one of the most widely read publications in the country. He is not the only buyer on the market. Eli Broad and San Diego’s Doug Manchester are also on the list.
What do Angelenos want for the future of their paper? How would a Murdoch purchase impact media nationwide? Who else is best positioned to buy the paper? How should media concentration figure in a deal?
Guest:
Tim Rutten, former longtime writer and media critic for the Los Angeles Times
Craig Turner, former longtime reporter and editor for the Los Angeles Times
Texas cheerleaders can keep their Bible verse banners, for now
Cheerleaders at Kountze High School in east Texas can continue to use Biblical phrases on their banners during football games, thanks to an injunction from a State District Judge.
The cheerleading team started using verses from the New Testament on their motivational banners early in the fall football season after seeing similar ideas on a Pinterest board. When Superintendent Kevin Whedon prohibited the religious banners, the cheerleaders and their families filed suit. State District Judge Steve Thomas filed the injunction to prevent what he determined to be “imminent and irreparable injury.”
The injunction has been in place for a total of four weeks, but the trial isn’t scheduled until June 24, 2013; until then, cheerleaders are permitted to continue to use religious material at games. Meanwhile, politicians on all sides are cashing in - voicing their support for the cheerleaders and drawing criticism from the left for pandering to conservative Republican constituents.
Is the cheerleader’s freedom of speech at risk? How should public schools handle religious expression in the context of large, school-wide events?
Guests:
Ken Klukowski, director of the Center for Religious Liberty, Family Research Council and faculty at the Liberty University School of Law
Aaron Caplan, associate professor of law at Loyola Law School
Italian scientists convicted over earthquake warning
Scientists in Italy have been convicted of multiple manslaughter after a 2009 earthquake in L’Aquila killed 309 people. The six Italian scientists and one former government official were accused of providing falsely reassuring statements after initial tremors hit the area. Should scientists and government officials be held accountable for natural disasters? Are they responsible for providing correct information in unpredictable situations? In the event of a major earthquake here in Southern California, would you hold local officials responsible for damage and casualties?
Guest:
Tom Jordan, professor of Earth Sciences at the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences and director of the Southern California Earthquake Center (SCEC)
Salman Khan’s education revolution
In 2004, Sal Khan was a successful hedge fund manager in Boston who had started remotely tutoring his young cousin in New Orleans when the “aha” moment occurred. What started with his young protégé’s need for a little help with her math homework has exploded into called the Khan Academy, now the world’s most popular online learning website with five million unique visitors a month, a million page views a day and over 650 million exercises completed.
Khan’s approach to education is based on the idea that the existing model we use to teach humans is hopelessly archaic, and may never have been effective in the first place. In his new book, “The One World Schoolhouse,” Khan does far more than criticize the existing education paradigm; he offers specific and radical ideas to push the way we teach, and the way we learn into the 21st century.
A cornerstone of Khan’s approach is the use of technology to humanize the learning process and provide free access to education through the use of online videos and software. Khan also believes that this new approach can address existing problems in education like low teacher pay and job satisfaction and the lack of access to quality education for children and adults alike.
With American high school students ranking 23rd in the world in science and math proficiency, how can a new approach change things for the better? What can technology bring to education on a national or global scale?
Guest:
Salman Khan, founder and executive director of The Khan Academy, the world’s largest online learning website; author of “The One World Schoolhouse”