The Wall Street Journal's Jason Riley on Immigrants: Let Them In

Posted on May 8, 2009

During Reason Weekend, the annual event held by the nonprofit that publishes this website, The Wall Street Journal's Jason Riley, author of the recent book Let Them In: The Case for Open Borders, gave a spellbinding presentation about the myths surrounding immigration.

Riley walks through the history of German, Irish, and Mexican migrants in rich and compelling detail, deflating nativist hype while also complicating easy narratives about the United States as a mythic destination for all the wretched of the world.

Approximately 30 minutes. 

Shot and edited by Roger Richards.

For video of this talk, go here.

John Blundell on The Legacy of Margaret Thatcher

Posted on May 6, 2009

During Reason Weekend, the annual event held by the nonprofit that publishes this website, head of the Institute of Economic Affairs and Reason contributor John Blundell gave a riveting remembrance of Margaret Thatcher's massive achievements as British prime minister.

Blundell is the author of, most recently, Margaret Thatcher: A Portrait of the Iron Lady.

Go here for video, iPod and HD versions.

Approximately 30 minutes.

Shot by Roger Richards; edited by Meredith Bragg.

LEAPing Past the Drug War

Posted on April 29, 2009

During Reason Weekend, the annual event held by the nonprofit that publishes this website, Reason.tv's Nick Gillespie caught up with Jerry Cameron of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP), a group made up of police, judges, and other guardians of the law who are sick and tired of the massive costs of the drug war. LEAP's members have seen firsthand how the drug war perverts the justice system, corrupts cops, intensifies violent crime, and screws with foreign policy—all without having any real effect on whether people use drugs or not.

Cameron, a former police chief of two "small town departments," is a graduate of the 150th Session of the FBI National Academy, the DEA Basic Drug Enforcement Course, and two DEA Advanced Drug Enforcement Professional Institutes. Gillespie asked Cameron about how LEAP got started, whether it's achieving its aims, what his drug of choice is, and more.

Shot and edited by Roger Richards; approximately 6 minutes.

Go here for an audio podcast version.

Related: Back in 2008, Reason.tv interviewed another LEAP luminary, former Seattle Police Chief Norm Stamper about his take on the ruinous drug war.

The Reason.tv Talk Show with Nick Gillespie, Michael C. Moynihan, Peter Leeson and David Post

Posted on April 28, 2009

Reason.tv's Michael C. Moynihan and Nick Gillespie sit down with Peter Leeson, author of The Invisible Hook: The Hidden Economics of Pirates, and David Post, author of In Search of Jefferson's Moose: Notes on the State of Cyberspace, to discuss social contracts amongst pirates, Internet piracy, and whether or not 17th century pirates actually said "shiver me timbers." 

Approximately 25 minutes. 

For an audio podcast version, go here. For an archive of all Reason.tv Talk Shows, go here. Watch Nick Gillespie's interview with Peter Leeson here, and his interview with David Post here .

Jeffrey Miron on The Financial Crisis: The Case for Doing Nothing

Posted on April 27, 2009

During Reason Weekend, the annual event held by the nonprofit that publishes this website, Harvard economist and Reason contributor Jeffrey A. Miron argued that last year's bailout was a mistake and that any stimulus spending should consist of reductions in taxes, not increases in expenditures.

Miron is a senior lecturer and director of undergraduated studies at Harvard. Educated at Swarthmore and M.I.T., he has held positions at the University of Michigan and Boston University and he has written widely on the "economics of libertarianism," including a controversial and widely discussed cost-benefit analysis of the war on drugs that concluded prohibition's costs far outweigh any possible benefits.

Go here for video of this talk, including an iPod-friendly version.

Stalking Jefferson's Moose and Taking Notes on The State of Cyberspace

Posted on April 22, 2009

Reason contributor David Post teaches cyberlaw at Temple University and blogs at the Volokh Conspiracy. Long recognized as one of the most original thinkers about the Internet and digital culture, he is the author of the widely acclaimed new book In Search of Jefferson's Moose: Notes on the State of Cyberspace.

Post recently sat down with Reason.tv's Nick Gillespie to talk about the cutting edge in intellectual property, constitutional history, what the Internet tells us about the economic crisis, and much more.

Shot by Dan Hayes and Meredith Bragg and edited by Roger Richards. Approximately nine minutes.

For iPod and HD versions and more videos, go here.

Tea Party Confidential

Posted on April 21, 2009

During Reason Weekend, the annual event held by the nonprofit that publishes this website, Reason.tv's Nick Gillespie caught up with Matt Kibbe of Freedomworks, the group that has done more than anyone else to coordinate the controversial and wildly popular Tea Party demonstrations against out-of-control government spending.

Kibbe, a longtime limited-government activist, explains the meaning of the Tea Party movement, its grassroots appeal, the mainstream media's inability to understand the rage of the common man, and what comes next for the most vital anti-government movement in memory.

Shot and edited by Roger Richards; approximately 5.30 minutes.

Go here for video versions.

Related materials:

An archive of anti-stimulus, anti-bailout writings by Freedomworks' chairman, Dick Armey.

Kibbe's writings on the same topics. And his classic Reason.com article from October 2, 2008, "What Would Mises Do?: Confessions of a free-market, anti-bailout operator."

From October 2007's Reason in DC conference, here is Armey on "Illegal Immigrants: 'Bless their hearts'" (approximately 3.30 minutes).

Glenn Greenwald on Drug Decriminalization in Portugal and Obama's Iffy Take on Civil Liberties

Posted on April 14, 2009

Salon columnist and bestselling author Glenn Greenwald is the author of a new Cato Institute policy paper on Portugal's pathbreaking and hugely successful drug decriminalization program.

Greenwald sat down with Reason.tv's Nick Gillespie to talk about the lessons from Portugal-and Barack Obama's decidedly disappointing performance so far on drug policy, executive power, and civil liberties. Approximately nine minutes. Shot by Dan Hayes and Meredith Bragg; edited by Dan Hayes.

Go here for video and iPod-friendly versions.

Dan Pallotta: Making Charity Pay

Posted on April 8, 2009

As the creator of memorable and successful charity events such as the California AIDSRide, in which participants biked 575-miles from San Francisco to Los Angeles over seven days, and the Breast Cancer 3-Day Walk, in which participants covered 55 miles over several days, Dan Pallotta has long been recognized as a trailblazer in philanthropic circles. He has raised hundreds of millions of dollars for various causes and brought huge amounts of publicity to any number of issues.

In his groundbreaking new book, Uncharitable: How Restraints on Nonprofits Undermine Their Potential, Pallotta makes the case that the nonprofit sector needs to be deregulated so that it can directly harness the energy of capitalism and the profit motive in pursuit of philanthropy.

Approximately nine minutes, this interview was conducted by Reason Foundation President David Nott and filmed and edited by Alex Manning.

For video, go here.

For more information on Pallotta, visit his website.

The Reason.tv Talk Show, Episode 15

Posted on April 6, 2009

Reason.tv's Michael C. Moynihan and Nick Gillespie sit down with Reihan Salam, an associate editor at The Atlantic and co-author of Grand New Party: How Republicans Can Win the Working Class and Save the American Dream, and Michael Barone, a senior writer for US News & World Report and principal coauthor of The Almanac of American Politics, talk about the future of the Republican Party, the influence of Rush Limbaugh on the conservative movement, and how the right can win again. Approximately 25 minutes. Shot and edited by Dan Hayes.

Screenwriting in Hollywood

Posted on April 3, 2009

At Reason Goes Hollywood, our 40th anniversary bash held November 14-15, 2008 in Los Angeles, Reason.tv's Paul Feine interviewed screenwriters Paul Guay (best known for Liar, Liar) and David H. Steinberg (Slackers, American Pie 2) about what it takes to make it in the entertainment biz, especially when your politics diverge from a very narrow set of acceptable positions.

Approximately 50 minutes.

For video of this conversation, embed code, and iPod and HD versions, go here.

For more video from Reason Goes Hollywood, go here.

The Reason.tv Talk Show, Episode 14

Posted on March 30, 2009

On January 21, the day after Barack Obama's inauguration, Reason.tv's Michael C. Moynihan and Nick Gillespie sat down with David Frum, the former Bush speechwriter, author of Comeback, and New Majority impresario and Steve Clemons, of the New America Foundation and The Washington Note to talk about foreign policy, Obama's economic plans, and the new direction of American politics.

The second of two parts (watch part on here). Approximately 40 minutes. Shot and edited by Dan Hayes.

Go here for video.

For an archive of all Reason.tv Talk Shows, go here.

Barack W. Bush: Is the Obama administration's "war on terror" policy more of the same?

Posted on March 27, 2009

Amongst liberals, libertarians, and even some conservatives, there has considerable "hope" that a Barack Obama presidency would radically transform Bush administration policies regarding the "war on terror." And, on certain issues, the new administration has delivered a measured amount of "change." But were Obama's executive orders banning torture and closing down the prison at Guantanamo Bay, signed on his first two days in office, just a head fake? Were they designed to placate a certain segment of his base, while actually continuing-or even expanding-many of Bush administration terrorism policies?

Jane Hall of Fox News on War, Journalism, and New Media

Posted on March 26, 2009

In conjunction with The Interactive Media Studies Program at Miami University of Ohio, reason's Nick Gillespie co-taught a class last fall called "Poltics, Culture, and New Media."

The course explored the theory and practice of new media, especially as it relates to cultural and political journalistic outlets. In alternating weeks, the course took place in classroom spaces on the Miami University campus and Reason's D.C. offices, where Gillespie, a Ph.D. in literature and a 20-year veteran of journalism, led web-based videoconferences with journalists, authors, and policy analysts.

On December 3, Gillespie hosted a videoconference with American University communications professor Jane Hall, a regular on Fox News Channel's "News Watch" and a veteran of The Los Angeles Times and other publications. A frequent commentator on radio and television, Hall has appeared on The Charlie Rose Show, CNN, NPR, C-SPAN, and many other places. Her 2005 research on media self-censorship during the first Gulf War was lauded by the Columbia Journalism Review as "an important new study."

For video, embed code, and related materials, go here.

Approximately one hour.

The Business of Hollywood

Posted on March 25, 2009

At Reason Goes Hollywood, our 40th anniversary bash held November 14-15, 2008 in Los Angeles, Reason.tv's Ted Balaker led a lively discussion on "The Business of Hollywood," especially as it pertains to creative work that challenges a stultifying left-liberal consenus in movie industry.

Panelists included Moving Picture Institute co-founder (and Reason Foundation supporter) Frayda Levy, Lionsgate Entertainment vice chairman Michael Burns, and Disney Channel co-founder Jim Jimirro. The conversation covered ground ranging from the Atlas Shrugged movie to Mad Men to the effect of popular culture on political attitudes.

Approximately 40 minutes.

For video version, go here.

For more video from Reason Goes Hollywood, go here.