Mic Check Radio

A look into the Commission on Presidential Debates and how they hijacked the presidential debates from the League of Women Voters and turned the whole circus into, well a more boring form of a circus. [Click to Listen]

This episode takes a look at that elusive idea of defining what art is. Where does that spark of creativity come from? What drives human beings to take an idea from our mind and create something in the physical world? As a starting point for this conversation we take a look back throughout history to see what people far smarter than all of us have to say about art and the role of art within human society.
At a very basic level, any art (both good and bad) is just the product of a human being expressing something that first occurred in the mind. In fact, the majority of art is never put on display in a gallery. The society in which we live defines the value of art for us and determines what is displayed in a gallery. However, maybe the 'value' of art should be a personal definition.
We then hear from a working artist on the dilemma between making a living from art, but also being able to artistically develop and explore with that fear in the back of your mind that 'no one will buy this'. How exactly does tying commerce (capitalism) to art affect the art? And, on the other end of that question, how does it affect the definition of art in the mind of the consumer of that art?
In previous generations, art was produced and boundaries were pushed due to a societal circumstance that we no longer experience - boredom. When we have the ability to entertain ourselves 24/7, we are never bored. Without the presence of boredom, we are never forced to entertain ourselves. To create something from nothing. There is current scientific data that shows human creativity is on the decline (specifically in the USA) due to our lack of being bored. The good news is that the solution is simple and fun. We all just have to play and explore a lot more. Rhyme intended. [Click to Listen]
Song Credits:
Land of 7 Billion Dances - The Coup
Come and Check Your Head - Blue King Brown
All's Fair in Love and Dubstep - Skrillix
Vitamin C - Can
All That You Paid For - Falling Sickness
Boredom - S.T.U.N.
Brand New Colony - The Postal Service
On the Corner - Miles Davis
$o$ - Die Antwoord
Only Getting Younger - Elliphant

We start off the show with some poetry:
Even When There's Little Choice, We Choose by Nicholas Gordon
For our In The News segment on this show we take our one and only looks at the Republican and Democrat primary season. We have a clip from each side that proves the two party political machine is still very much in control and knows what they are doing. If that isn't convincing enough, we also have an audio clip from Leslie Moonves, the president and CEO of CBS Corporation, explaining to shareholders how Donald Trump is great for business.
Next up we have a quick Activist Cinema segment looking at the #OscarsSoWhite "conversation" surrounding this years Academy Awards and why it's great to draw attention to the racism in the entertainment industry...but it's still and industry and the Oscars are just their Employee of the Year awards. So don't watch them. [Click to Listen]

We start off our annual year end wrap up with some news about the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission investigating the hiring practices of the major Hollywood studios. Turns out, the entertainment industry is shallow, image obsessed and sexist towards women. Hopefully this investigation will have better results than the 1969 investigation by the EEOC...or the 1983 class action law suit by the Directors Guild of America.
We also take quick look at a few of the essential documentary films of 2015.
Merchants of Doubt
Cartel Land
Best of Enemies
He Named Me Malala
[Click to Listen]

A quick history of Code Pink actions, including their interruption of Mitt Romney's coronation at the Republican National Convention in Tampa. [Click to Listen]