Relations between the US and Iran may be on a path to improvement with President Obama emphasizing a need for diplomatic engagement with Iran at this morning's UN General Assembly. What will this mean for Iran's nuclear program? And Gov. Jerry Brown signed into law a bill that gives minors the right to delete materials they post online. Will this benefit kids who post impulsively online? How will it be enforced? Then, we'll talk about haters on the internet. What's it like to be the subject of online hatred? Later, we'll talk about the future of the Muslim Brotherhood after the group's activities were banned yesterday by an Egyptian court. Then, we'll talk about our favorite banned books and find out what goes into writing an iconic rock ballad when we talk to legendary songwriter Mike Stoller.
Obama: U.S. to pursue face-to-face negotiations with Iran on nuclear program
President Barack Obama today spoke at the United Nations General Assembly. In addition to pushing for an international resolution on Syria’s chemical weapons, Obama wants to have a face-to-face to President Hassan Rouhani about Iran’s nuclear program.
This historic meeting would be the first time the U.S. and Iran has met in over 30 years. President Obama believes that this would be the first step towards settling decades of suspicion and mutual mistrust.
He said this morning that the U.S. “respects the right of Iranian people to access peaceful nuclear energy” but not the development of nuclear weapons. Although Iran has stated they have no intention of developing nuclear weapons, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is not supportive of allowing Iran to enrich uranium, according to the Associated Press. President Rouhani is planning on speaking later today.
What will President Rouhani say in response to President Obama’s speech? Is a meeting between the U.S. and Iran long overdue or is it still too soon? How will the rest of the world respond?
Guests:
Reza Marashi, research director of the National Iranian American Council
Alireza Nader, Senior International Policy Analyst at the RAND Corporation
California bill gives minors chance to repair online reputation
A California bill seeking to give minors the right to delete questionable posts, images, videos and other materials they post online was signed into law today by Governor Jerry Brown. The so-called eraser provision is part of a broader bill, SB 568, which limits online marketing to kids.
Proponents say the measure gives kids a chance to keep what they do online from causing damage in real life; horror stories abound of people who have lost out on job opportunities because of ill-advised photos or comments they posted on the internet years before. Opponents, though, worry that the bill would be too difficult to enforce and might have the unintended effect of further putting a young person's privacy at risk.
Some websites like Facebook and Twitter already give users that option. The law, the first of its kind to pass in the country, now requires all websites to do the same for minors in California.
Guest:
Joni Lupovitz, Vice President of Policy at Common Sense Media, a San Francisco-based media and technology advocacy group that pushed for the law.
How does it feel when the Internet hates you?
C.D. Hermelin was a hated man before people even knew his name. With skinny jeans and a typewriter, he sat on a New York City park bench tapping out original stories for a few bucks a piece. But with one snap of a stranger's camera, Heremelin unwittingly became that most feared of Internet beings: a meme. "Typewriter Guy" was suddenly on the front page of Reddit as the Internet's most hated hipster.
And the comments were not kind. Redditors told him to get out of their city and called him names we can't print here. It only got worse. He was hated on Pinterest, BuzzFeed and thousands of Facebook pages. Instead of trying to slink into obscurity, Hermelin decided to speak out and wrote an article about his time as an Internet meme. With the rising popularity of websites like Reddit and BuzzFeed, more and more people are becoming unwitting Internet memes.
Has this happened to you? Have you commented or shared one of these without knowing the story behind it? Would it change your mind if you did? What does it feel like to be the subject of online hatred?
Guest:
Christopher Hermelin, Brooklyn-based writer and that guy you hate on the Internet
Egyptian Court bans Muslim Brotherhood activities
On Monday, an Egyptian court issued an injunction to dissolve the Muslim Brotherhood, and seize their assets. The ruling was made by the Cairo Court for Urgent Matters, but is a preliminary injunction on the Brotherhood until a higher court can make a more permanent action.
Since Mohamed Morsi’s ouster, Brotherhood members have participated in mass protests against the takeover. This ban would also impact the philanthropic role the Brotherhood has played in communities in Egypt.
What does this mean for the future of the Muslim Brotherhood? Is it a positive or negative for Egypt? What does it say about the military rule in Egypt?
Guest:
Borzou Daragahi, Foreign Correspondent, Financial Times
It’s Banned Books Week...what are you reading?
The American Library foundation has declared the last week of September as Banned Books Week. Every year, libraries, booksellers, publishers, teachers and readers come together in support of intellectual freedom and to highlight books that have been subjected to threats of censorship -- and actual censorship. The frequently challenged books include classics like The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger and Animal Farm by George Orwell.
But there were dozens of books banned in American schools and libraries in 2012, including The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, Beloved by Toni Morrison and Fifty Shades of Grey by E. L. James. Some are banned for political reasons, religious viewpoint, offensive language and sexually explicit content.
But how much of a problem is book banning these days? How does one ban a book in free speech America today? Do book challenges actually make books more powerful? What are your favorite banned books?
Click here for more information on Banned Books Week
Guest:
John Szabo, City Librarian, Los Angeles Public Library
What goes into writing an iconic rock ballad?
Mike Stoller and his partner Jerry Leiber wrote some of the most iconic songs in modern music, including "Hound Dog," “Stand by Me,” “Yakety Yak,” “Jailhouse Rock,” “Spanish Harlem,” "On Broadway," "Kansas City," "Love Potion #9," "Fools Fall in Love,” and many more.
Smokey Joe’s Cafe, a live revue of the pair’s songs, is currently playing on the mainstage of the Pasadena Playhouse, where it runs through October 13th. We talk to Mike Stoller about what goes into writing such iconic anthems.
Do you have a favorite Stoller and Leiber hit? Why does their music resonate with you?
Guest:
Mike Stoller, legendary songwriter