Public Affairs

Overview

Public Affairs hosted speakers who are prominent people in the world of international affairs, from acclaimed authors, to Nobel laureates, to high-ranking UN officials.

NOV 6, 2002 Transcript

Global Poverty and U.S. Foreign Policy

Markets alone will not solve the problems of Africa and other poor parts of the world, says economist Jeffrey Sachs. "Markets will not stop mosquitoes ...

One World: The Ethics of Globalization

OCT 29, 2002 Transcript

One World: The Ethics of Globalization

If we agree with the notion of a global community, then we must extend our concepts of justice, fairness, and equity beyond national borders by ...

The New Killing Fields: Massacre and the Politics of Intervention

OCT 16, 2002 Transcript

The New Killing Fields: Massacre and the Politics of Intervention

Humanitarian intervention does not "belong in the shadows" because it has the moral urgency of self-defense, which puts it ahead of preventive war, say Walzer ...

Warren Zimmermann

OCT 9, 2002 Transcript

First Great Triumph: How Five Americans Made Their Country a World Power

The U.S. has always been an expansionist power, but between 1891-1909, it was exceptionally so, says Zimmerman. Five individuals in particular helped to drive ...

A Bed for the Night: Humanitarianism in Crisis

OCT 2, 2002 Transcript

A Bed for the Night: Humanitarianism in Crisis

Humanitaniarism is losing its traditional function of relief provision and is increasingly used for political purposes, often with disastrous consequences, warns David Rief.

SEP 25, 2002 Transcript

From a Reporter's Notebook: Afghanistan One Year Later: The Struggle for the Soul of a Nation

Afghanistan is less stable today than it was six months ago because of U.S. reluctance to provide security outside Kabul and the international community's ...

SEP 24, 2002 Transcript

Ethnic Conflict and Civic Life: Hindus and Muslims in India

Why are some cities in India rife with ethnic conflict whereas others are not? According to Varshney, a city's proneness to violence is directly linked ...

The Fragmentation of Afghanistan by Barnett Rubin

JUN 25, 2002 Transcript

The Fragmentation of Afghanistan: State Formation and Collapse in the International System

Afghanistan is "hard to rule" for the same reason it's hard to conquer: it does not have many resources, the settlements are far apart, and ...

The Savage Wars of Peace: Small Wars and the Rise of American Power by Max Boot

JUN 3, 2002 Transcript

The Savage Wars of Peace: Small Wars and the Rise of American Power

The United States has a long but largely uncelebrated history of fighting "small wars," and "if the past is a prologue of what is to ...

Globalization and Its Discontents by Joseph Stiglitz

MAY 15, 2002 Transcript

Globalization and Its Discontents

There will be a strong backlash against globalization unless the international institutions that govern it become more democratic, says Stiglitz.