Episodes

19 hours ago
19 hours ago
In this podcast, our guest is Sarah Kendzior, the best-selling author of “The View From Fly Over Country, “Hiding In Plain Sight,” and “They Knew.” Her latest book, “The Last American Road Trip: A Memoir,” is part political history and part memoir, but it is mostly a great road trip romp with her family across the United States before it is too late.
Kendzior has a PhD in anthropology from Washington University in St. Louis, where she studied authoritarian regimes of the former Soviet Union. After getting her PhD in 2012, Kendzior spent a decade writing about the decline of the United States for various publications around the world. She lives with her husband and kids in St. Louis.
Order the Book: https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250879882/thelastamericanroadtrip/
Subscribe to Sarah’s Substack Newsletter: https://sarahkendzior.substack.com/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
#Sarah Kendzior#Last American Road Trip# American road trip#Political corruption#Trump kleptocracy# Authoritarianism in America# Surveillance capitalism# Conspiracy culture. Media disinformation# Midwest flyover country#They Knew# Hiding in plain site#Paywall censorship#Route 66 nostalgia#FBI watchlists#Paywall censorship#ransnational organized crime#Pat Cummings#Greg Godels#ZZ Blog#Podcast#Coming FromLeftField#Coming From Left Field#zzblog#mltoday

Thursday Apr 03, 2025
“Crossroads of Change” and Media Reflections with Jim Painter
Thursday Apr 03, 2025
Thursday Apr 03, 2025
In this podcast, our guest is Jim Painter, who spent 40 years in the newspaper business as a reporter and photojournalist and ended his career as managing editor of Phoenix’s West Valley View newspaper, published twice a week with a circulation of 80,000.
Jim was one of the first guests on our podcast four years ago. Then we talked about the state of the media, its evolution, biases, and challenges.
Today, we continued to discuss the media landscape that is controlled by a handful of conglomerates, shrinking independent outlets, staff cuts, dominance of Right-Wing consolidation, and declining revenues.
But there may be a ray of hope with independent journalism, challenging the dominance of traditional newspapers, offering alternative perspectives, and better adapting to the digital age.
We also review Jim’s new book, “Crossroad of Change,” a collection of his photos from his time in the 1980s and 1990s when he chronicled the pivotal decade of growth and development in the Phoenix Southwest Valley. Jim is a remarkable photographer, not just when he was a newspaper photojournalist, but also today.
Google Photo Album of some pictures mentioned: https://photos.app.goo.gl/6eNnK3EJrzUY97aK9
Visit Jim Painter’s art: https://fineartamerica.com/profiles/jim-painter
Order the book: https://www.amazon.com/Crossroads-Images-decade-change-Southwest/dp/B0DJJWHRVZ/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
Jim Painter#Crossroads of Change#Meida#West Valley View newspaper #Alternaive Media#Newspaper decline#Phonenix history#John McCain#Goodyear#Litchfield Heritiage Center#Barry Goldwater#Luke AFB#Charles Keating##Pat Cummings#Greg Godels#ZZ Blog#Podcast#Coming FromLeftField#Coming From Left Field#zzblog#mltoday

Tuesday Feb 25, 2025
Update on Syria with Dan Kovalik
Tuesday Feb 25, 2025
Tuesday Feb 25, 2025
In this podcast, Dan Kovalik shares what's really happening in Syria after a recent trip to the country and their new “de facto” government brought to power in large part by U.S. The fall of Syrian President Bashar Assad ended a 53-year dynasty that began with his father. In Syria, the U.S. has now reaped what it has sown as the new leader, Abu Mohammad al-Julani, takes charge, a former member of ISIS.
Dan Kovalik visited the country in the latter part of January to see for himself what Syria is like under the new regime. He had something to compare this to as he had visited Syria twice back in 2021 when it was still under the leadership of Bashar al-Assad.
Dan Kovalik is a human and labor rights lawyer and peace activist. He graduated from Columbia Law School in 1993 and then began a 26-year career as the in-house counsel of the United Steelworkers AFL-CIO. Kovalik has also frequently commented on and contributed to various media outlets, sharing his perspectives on international affairs, human rights issues, and U.S. foreign policy. He has authored eight books over the last seven years. His most recent book is “The Case for Palestine.”
Greg’s MLToday Article:
https://mltoday.com/a-return-to-basics-rasmus-the-neoliberal-turn-and-exploitation/
Pat’s Substack:
https://patcummings.substack.com/
DanKovalik#CaseForPalestine#GazaStrip#Isreal#WestBank#Genocide#Syria#alJulani#TripSyria#USSanctions#EthnicCleansing#Holocost#Kakba#Hamas#Zionists#Chomsky#StephenGowans#JefferySachs#AlJazeera#ISIS#CivilRights#MiddleEast#WarCrimes#PatCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday

Monday Feb 17, 2025
“Unlikely Alliances” with Zoltán Grossman
Monday Feb 17, 2025
Monday Feb 17, 2025
In this podcast, Zoltán Grossman discusses his book, “Unlikely Alliances: Native Nations and White Communities Join to Defend Rural Lands,” which explores the surprising alliances between Native American tribes and white ranchers, farmers, and fishers who historically competed over natural resources, came together to protect their shared environment from external threats like mining, dams, and pipelines.
Zoltán Grossman is known for his work in Native American and Indigenous Studies within the field of geography. He focuses on the intersections of racial and ethnic nationhood, natural resources, militarism, and settler colonialism. His research emphasizes social movement alliances, environmental justice, and decolonization.
Order the books:
“Unlikely Alliances: Native Nations and White Communities Join to Defend Rural Lands”
https://orcabooks.com/book/9780295741529
Zoltán Grossman Social Media:
Website: https://sites.evergreen.edu/zoltan
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/zoltan.grossman
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
ZoltánGrossman#ZoltanGrossman#BoldtDecision#BretWeinsien#BenjamanBoyce#EvergreenStateCollege#Evergreen#EnvironmentalAlliances#KeystonXL#fishery#Dinali#GulfofMexico#GulfofAmeria#Greenland#Trump#SalishSea#SettlerColonalism#DoctrineofDiscovery#Crossculturalcooperation#Indigenousrights#BlackLivesMatter#BLM##PatCummings#PatrickCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday

Thursday Feb 13, 2025
“Teach Truth: The Struggle for Antiracist Education” with Jesse Hagopian
Thursday Feb 13, 2025
Thursday Feb 13, 2025
In this podcast, Jesse Hagopian discusses his recent book, ““Teaching Truth: The Struggle for Antiracist Education,” a powerful call to action to defend honest education in the face of increasing censorship, attacks on teachers, the destructive Project 2025 playbook, and constant pressures to dismantle our public education system. Hagopian argues that the struggle for a liberatory education is crucial for democracy and challenges the status quo by highlighting the importance of teaching truth and resisting efforts to regulate knowledge
Jesse Hagopian is an award-winning educator and a prominent voice on educational equity, social justice unionism, and the school-to-prison pipeline. He teaches Ethnic Studies at Seattle's Garfield High School and is known for his activism against standardized testing.
Order the books:
“Teach Truth: The Struggle for Antiracist Education” https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9798888902516
Jesse Hagopian Social Media:
Website: https://iamaneducator.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/JessedHagopian
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jessehagopian
Rethinking School Magazine: https://rethinkingschools.org/magazine/
Black Lives Matter at School: https://www.blacklivesmatteratschool.com/
Teaching for Black Lives: https://rethinkingschools.org/books/teaching-for-black-lives/
Zinn Education Project: https://www.zinnedproject.org/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
TeachTruth#LindaMcMahon#ChristopherRufo#JesseHagopia#DemocracyNow#AntiracistEducation#RacialJustice#EducationalEquity#CriticalRaceTheory#SocialJustice#BlackLivesMatter#BLM#ZinnProject##EthnicStudies#PublicEducation#Censorship#EducationalActivism#SystemicRacism#TeachingforLiberation#HistoricalAccuracy#DemocracyinEducation#UncritialRaceTheory#howardZinn#MelissaTemple#Rainbowland##BlackHistoryMonth#PatCummings#PatrickCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday

Tuesday Feb 04, 2025
“Morningside: The 1979 Greensboro Massacre” with Aran Shetterly
Tuesday Feb 04, 2025
Tuesday Feb 04, 2025
In this podcast, Aran Shetterly discusses his recent book, “Morningside: The 1979 Greensboro Massacre and the Struggle for an American City's Soul,” a recounting of all but forgotten, though no less shocking, 1979 racial tragedy that divided Greensboro, North Carolina and then the nation. The book details how a caravan of Klansmen and Neo-Nazis attacked a procession of protestors, resulting in the deaths of five people. This event, known as the Greensboro Massacre, highlights the racial conflict, economic anxiety, and clashes of ideologies that were prevalent at the time.
Aran Shetterly is a writer, editor, and narrative historian. He received numerous fellowships, including the Virginia Humanities Fellowship and the National Endowment for the Humanities Fellowship. He holds a BA in Literature from Harvard College and an MA in American Studies.
Mentioned in the podcast:
Nelson Johnson | Beloved Community Center
https://belovedcommunitycenter.squarespace.com/rev-nelson-n-johnson
Video | Greensboro Massacre
https://youtu.be/Ia8qiglxscw
Greg’s article on Lorraine Hansberry | MLToday
https://mltoday.com/lorraine-hansberry-never-to-be-forgotten-a-life-too-short/
Order the books:
“Morningside: The 1979 Greensboro Massacre and the Struggle for an American City's Soul”
https://www.harpercollins.com/products/morningside-aran-shetterly
"The Americano: Fighting with Castro for Cuba’s Freedom"
https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/aran-shetterly/the-americano/9781565128521/
Magazine: Inside Mexico
https://www.inside-mexico.com
Aran Shetterly Social Media:
X: @aranshetterly
Website: https://www.aranshetterly.com/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
AaronShetterly#Morningside#1979GreensboroMassacre#GreensboroMassacre#MargoLeeShetterly#HiddenFigures#CivilRightsMovement#LaborRights#KuKluxKlan#KKK#SocialJustice#RacialViolence#CommunistWorksParty#NelsonJohnson#BelovedCommunityCenter#AmericanNazis#DeathToTheKlan#LorraineHansberry#RasinInTheSun#NeoNazis#1979#BlackHistoryMonth#PatCummings#PatrickCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday

Thursday Jan 16, 2025
“Bad News from Venezuela” and “Propaganda in the Information Age” with Alan MacLeod
Thursday Jan 16, 2025
Thursday Jan 16, 2025
In this podcast, Alan MacLeod discusses his recent books and journalism. Dr. Macleod completed his PhD in Sociology at Glasgow University focusing on research interests of social media, Internet subcultures, propaganda, fake news, and Latin American politics. He is a prolific journalist and has contributed to FAIR.org, The Guardian, Salon, The Grayzone, Jacobin Magazine, and MintPress News.
His most recent books include:
“Bad News from Venezuela: Twenty Years of Fake News and Misreporting,” which examines how Western media has reported on Venezuela since the election of President Hugo Chavez in 1998 including coverage that is often distorted and contributes to the spread of misinformation and "fake news" in support or the US imperialism and hegemony.
"Propaganda in the Information Age: Still Manufacturing Consent" is a collaborative volume that updates Edward Herman and Noam Chomsky's propaganda model for the modern media landscape. The book explores how the original ideas from their 1988 book, "Manufacturing Consent," remain relevant today.
Order the books:
Bad News from Venezuela
https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9781032178752
Propaganda in the Information Age
https://www.kingsbookstore.com/book/9781138366404
Alan MacLeods Social Media:
Instagram: @alan.r.macleod
X: @AlanRMacLeod
MintPress News: https://www.mintpressnews.com/author/alan-macleod/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
AlanMacLeod#MintPressNews#BadNewsfromVenezuela#PropagandaInformationAge#Venezuela#FakeNews#Misreporting#MediaBias#HugoChavez#Neoliberalism#WesternMedia#Journalism#PropagandaModel#Chavismo#MediaStudies#LatinAmerican#NoamChomsky#EdwardHerman#Disinformation#Cambridge#Analytica#SyrianCivilWar#Russiagate#MediaFilters#egirls#LunchBagLujan#Jolani#PhillipCross#8200#PatCummings#PatrickCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday

Tuesday Jan 14, 2025
Tuesday Jan 14, 2025
In this podcast, Michelle Phelps discusses her book, “Minneapolis Reckoning- Race, Violence & the Politics of Policing in America,” which traces the history of the Minneapolis Police Department, from its founding through to the murder of George Floyd and subsequent reforms. Phelps provides a vivid picture of the possibilities and limits of challenging police power, showing how the dual meaning of the police—as both a promise of state protection and a threat of state violence—creates complex politics that thwart change.
Michelle S. Phelps is a Professor in the Department of Sociology at the University of Minnesota. Her research focuses on the sociology of punishment, particularly the rise of probation supervision as a criminal justice sanction and its relationship to mass incarceration. She has published extensively in interdisciplinary peer-reviewed journals and co-authored the book "Breaking the Pendulum: The Long Struggle Over Criminal Justice" with Philip Goodman and Joshua Page.
Order the book:
Minneapolis Reckoning- Race, Violence & the Politics of Policing in America by Michelle S. Phelps
https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691245980/the-minneapolis-reckoning
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
MichellePhelps#MichelleSPhelps#PoliceReform#BlackLivesMatter#BLM#MPD#PoliceReform#Chauvin#GeorgeFloyd#GunViolence#Powderhorn#OverPolice#CURA#CommunityPolicing#DeeschalationTraining#BodyCamera#PolitcalActivism#ViolencePrevention#CAHOOTS#CUAPB#MinneapolisPolice#ViolenceInteruptionProgram#waronpoverty#KernerReport#PatCummings#PatrickCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday

Wednesday Jan 08, 2025
“You Can’t Please All-Memoirs 1980-2024” with Tariq Ali
Wednesday Jan 08, 2025
Wednesday Jan 08, 2025
In this podcast, Tariq Ali discusses the second volume in his memoir series, following “Street Fighting Years.” The book, “You Can’t Please All: Memoirs 1980-2024” covers Ali’s life and political activism from 1980 to 2024. It includes autobiographical notes, journalism, essays, political commentary and personal reflections.
Tariq Ali is a Pakistani-British political activist, writer, historian, filmmaker, and public intellectual. He is well-known for his anti-imperialist stance and has been involved in various political movements since his youth. Ali has written or co-authored over 100 fiction and nonfiction books, covering a wide range of topics, including geopolitics and the history of post-colonialism.
Order the book:
You Can't Please All: Memoirs 1980-2024 by Tariq Ali
https://www.versobooks.com/products/2937-you-can-t-please-all
Bhupen-Khakhar painting mentioned:
https://brooklynrail.org/2017/02/artseen/Bhupen-Khakhar/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
TariqAli#IslamQuintet#EdwardSaid#DerekJarman#ChristopherHitchen#Bhutto#MaryKayWilmers#SusanWatkins#NewLeftReview#StreetFightingYears#StreetFiightingMan#HugoShavez#MickJaeger#JohnLennon#BhupenKhakhar#ChrisHedges#PolitcalActivism#VietnamProtest#AnitImperisalism#Palestine#LeninScenario#OliverStone#postcolonialism#WinstonChurchill#PatCummings#PatrickCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday

Thursday Jan 02, 2025
“Project Censored's State of the Free Press 2025” with Andy Lee Roth
Thursday Jan 02, 2025
Thursday Jan 02, 2025
In this podcast, Andy Lee Roth discusses the annual publication of Project Censored State of the Free Press, which takes the pulse of the media and shares the 25 most essential but underreported stories of the past year. Editors Mickey Huff, Shealeigh Voit, and Andy Lee Roth look back on a year in which significant news stories lost out to coverage of celebrities and non-events. They highlight 25 of the most underreported stories of 2024.
Andy Lee Roth is the associate director of Project Censored, a nonprofit media watchdog organization. He coordinates the Campus Affiliates Program, a network of students and faculty at colleges and universities across North America who research and identify the top "censored" news stories. He earned a PhD in Sociology from the University of California–Los Angeles and a BA in Sociology and Anthropology from Haverford College.
Order the book:
https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/760692/project-censoreds-state-of-the-free-press-2025-by-mickey-huff/
Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/
Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/about
AndyLeeRoth#AndyRoth#MickeyHuff#ShealeighVoit#StateoftheFree Press2025#ProjectCensord#FreePress2025##AI#algorithms#SocialMedia#MediaBias#Censorship#FirstAmendment#Journalism#Newsworthiness#AlgorithmicLiteracy#ShadowBanning#HorseRaceReporting#AlanMacleod#KevinGosztola#Gatekeepingmodel#Censorshipbyproxy#qualitativedataanalysis#PatCummings#PatrickCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday