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From abortion rights to partisan school board elections, ballot measures are a big deal in 2024. But what are they? A drop of direct democracy to defend against corrupt politicians? A pawning-off of governance to voters who don’t know what they’re voting on? This hour: the good, the bad, and the weird of ballot measures.

GUESTS: 
Dane Waters: Founder of the Initiative and Referendum Institute at the University of Southern California
Desmond Meade: Executive Director of the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition and author of "Let My People Vote: My Battle to Restore the Civil Rights of Returning Citizens"
Ryan Byrne: Managing Editor of the Ballot Measures Project at Ballotpedia

Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter.

The Colin McEnroe Show is available as a podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts. Subscribe and never miss an episode!

Subscribe to The Noseletter, an email compendium of merriment, secrets, and ancient wisdom brought to you by The Colin McEnroe Show.

Colin McEnroe and Cat Pastor contributed to this show.

From abortion rights to partisan school board elections, ballot measures are a big deal in 2024. But what are they? A drop of direct democracy to defend against corrupt politicians? A pawning-off of governance to voters who don’t know what they’re voting on? This hour: the good, the bad, and the weird of ballot measures.
GUESTS: 
<ul>
<li>Dane Waters: Founder of the <a href="https://www.initiativeandreferenduminstitute.org/" data-cms-ai="0">Initiative and Referendum Institute</a> at the University of Southern California</li>
<li>Desmond Meade: Executive Director of the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition and author of <a href="https://www.desmondmeade.com/let-my-people-vote" data-cms-ai="0">"Let My People Vote: My Battle to Restore the Civil Rights of Returning Citizens"</a></li>
<li>Ryan Byrne: Managing Editor of the Ballot Measures Project at Ballotpedia</li>
</ul>
Join the conversation on <a href="https://facebook.com/ColinMcShow" data-cms-ai="0">Facebook</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/colinmcshow" data-cms-ai="0">Twitter</a>.
The Colin McEnroe Show is available as a podcast on <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-colin-mcenroe-show/id714179884" data-cms-ai="0">Apple Podcasts</a>, <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/0AXtqrzWounIoJyIqz003p?si=89RJodkWRsOo1dck5BCdMA&amp;nd=1" data-cms-ai="0">Spotify</a>, <a href="https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cub21ueWNvbnRlbnQuY29tL2QvcGxheWxpc3QvYWMwYmU5NjktZDdkZi00NjBjLWE2NmMtYTZmOTAwZTFlYmQxLzcxZGM0YTBmLWU4Y2EtNDAyMS1hZWM5LWFhMDMwMDI2MDQyZC9iNjk1Y2I4Ny1mNmE5LTRjNzYtOGYxMS1hYTAzMDAyNjA0M2IvcG9kY2FzdC5yc3M" data-cms-ai="0">Google Podcasts</a>, <a href="https://www.stitcher.com/show/colin-mcenroe-show-rsspodcast" data-cms-ai="0">Stitcher</a>, or wherever you get your podcasts. Subscribe and never miss an episode!
<a href="https://www.ctpublic.org/newsletters" data-cms-ai="0">Subscribe to The Noseletter</a>, an email compendium of merriment, secrets, and ancient wisdom brought to you by The Colin McEnroe Show.
Colin McEnroe and Cat Pastor contributed to this show.

The Colin McEnroe Show is public radio’s most eclectic, eccentric weekday program. The best way to understand us is through the subjects we tackle: Neanderthals, tambourines, handshakes, the Iliad, snacks, ringtones, punk rock, Occam’s razor, Rasputin, houseflies, zippers. Are you sensing a pattern? If so, you should probably be in treatment. On Fridays, we try to stop thinking about what kind of ringtones Neanderthals would want to have and convene a panel called The Nose for an informal roundtable about the week in culture.

<a href="https://www.ctpublic.org/show/the-colin-mcenroe-show/about">The Colin McEnroe Show</a> is public radio’s most eclectic, eccentric weekday program. The best way to understand us is through the subjects we tackle: Neanderthals, tambourines, handshakes, the Iliad, snacks, ringtones, punk rock, Occam’s razor, Rasputin, houseflies, zippers. Are you sensing a pattern? If so, you should probably be in treatment. On Fridays, we try to stop thinking about what kind of ringtones Neanderthals would want to have and convene a panel called <a href="https://www.ctpublic.org/tags/the-nose">The Nose</a> for an informal roundtable about the week in culture.

The Colin McEnroe Show

“A safety valve”: The impact of ballot measures on democracy

The 98th Academy Awards were Sunday night. KPop Demon Hunters swept its two nominations. Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein cleaned up in the craft categories and won three awards.

But the big question going into the night was what would win the big awards. Would it be Sinners, with its record-setting 16 nominations, or the seemingly inevitable One Battle After Another?

Inevitability won out. One Battle After Another won six Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Adapted Screenplay for Paul Thomas Anderson.

This hour, The Nose reacts to the Oscars — the awards themselves, the ceremony as television, the fashion, the memes, Conan O’Brien’s turn as host — the whole thing.

GUESTS:
Shawn Murray: A stand-up comedian, writer, and the host of the Nobody Asked Shawn podcast
Vivian Nabeta: Director of digital marketing for Connecticut State Community College
Gene Seymour: A “writer, professional spectator, pop-culture maven, and jazz geek

Music featured (in order):
There’s No Business Like Show Business – The Original Movie Orchestra
Peg – Steely Dan
Everything’s Come Up Roses – The Replacements
I Lied to You (Live at the Oscars) – Miles Canton, Shaboozey, Brittany Howard, Eric Gales, Christone “Kingfish” Ingram
Golden (Live at the Oscars) – EJAE, Audrey Nuna and Rei Ami
The Way We Were – Barbra Streisand (but the original proper version)

The 98th Academy Awards were Sunday night.&nbsp;KPop Demon Hunters&nbsp;swept its two nominations. Guillermo del Toro&rsquo;s&nbsp;Frankenstein&nbsp;cleaned up in the craft categories and won three awards.
But the big question going into the night was what would win the big awards. Would it be&nbsp;Sinners, with its record-setting 16 nominations, or the seemingly inevitable&nbsp;One Battle After Another?
Inevitability won out.&nbsp;One Battle After Another&nbsp;won six Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Adapted Screenplay for Paul Thomas Anderson.
This hour, The Nose reacts to the Oscars &mdash; the awards themselves, the ceremony as television, the fashion, the memes, Conan O&rsquo;Brien&rsquo;s turn as host &mdash; the whole thing.
GUESTS:
<ul>
<li>Shawn Murray:&nbsp;A stand-up comedian, writer, and the host of the&nbsp;Nobody Asked Shawn&nbsp;podcast</li>
<li>Vivian Nabeta:&nbsp;Director of digital marketing for Connecticut State Community College</li>
<li>Gene Seymour:&nbsp;A &ldquo;writer, professional spectator, pop-culture maven, and jazz geek</li>
</ul>
Music featured (in order):
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VcF5qeUDW6k">There&rsquo;s No Business Like Show Business</a>&nbsp;&ndash; The Original Movie Orchestra</li>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ki2GxDUxEkM">Peg</a>&nbsp;&ndash; Steely Dan</li>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZVg3AKLO2S8">Everything&rsquo;s Come Up Roses</a>&nbsp;&ndash; The Replacements</li>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j3ae7BvTuC4">I Lied to You (Live at the Oscars)</a>&nbsp;&ndash; Miles Canton, Shaboozey, Brittany Howard, Eric Gales, Christone &ldquo;Kingfish&rdquo; Ingram</li>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ex4SrdtvHwE">Golden (Live at the Oscars)</a>&nbsp;&ndash; EJAE, Audrey Nuna and Rei Ami</li>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ifWOSnoCS0M">The Way We Were</a>&nbsp;&ndash; Barbra Streisand (but the original proper version)</li>
</ul>

The Noscars 2026

Mike Pesca is one of our very favorite guests — onanynumberoftopics.

His book, Upon Further Review: The Greatest What-Ifs in Sports History, is a whole series of earth-shattering, hypothetical, what-if questions (and posited answers to said earth-shattering, hypothetical, what-if questions):

What if a blimp full of money had exploded over world track headquarters in 1952? What if Nixon had been good at football? What if Bobby Fischer had received proper psychiatric help? What if the Dodgers hadn’t left Brooklyn? What if basketball rims were smaller than basketballs? What if the 1999 U.S. women’s national soccer team had lost the Women’s World Cup? And yes: What if the Olympics had never dropped tug of war?

It goes on and on.

Pesca joins us for the hour.

GUESTS:
Will Leitch: Contributing editor at New York magazine, founder of Deadspin, and a whole bunch of other things
Mike Pesca: Host of The Gist and the author of Upon Further Review
Louisa Thomas: Staff writer at The New Yorker and the author of Louisa: The Extraordinary Life of Mrs. Adams

The Colin McEnroe Show is available as a podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, TuneIn, Listen Notes, or wherever you get your podcasts. Subscribe and never miss an episode!

Subscribe to The Noseletter, an email compendium of merriment, secrets, and ancient wisdom brought to you by The Colin McEnroe Show.

Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter.

Colin McEnroe, Carlos Mejia, and Chion Wolf contributed to this show, which originally aired June 7, 2018.

Mike Pesca is one of our very favorite guests &mdash; <a href="https://www.ctpublic.org/show/the-colin-mcenroe-show/2025-03-19/march-madness-2025">on</a> <a href="https://www.ctpublic.org/show/the-colin-mcenroe-show/2023-05-01/the-artist-formerly-known-as-the-colin-mcenroe-show-conversations-about-rebranding">any</a> <a href="https://www.ctpublic.org/arts-and-culture/2019-05-23/from-the-bad-ideas-dept-its-a-show-about-towels">number</a> <a href="https://www.ctpublic.org/show/the-colin-mcenroe-show/2025-03-21/from-the-bad-ideas-dept-todays-show-is-not-about-tapirs">of</a> <a href="https://www.ctpublic.org/show/the-colin-mcenroe-show/2022-03-03/an-hour-with-the-gist-podcast-host-mike-pesca">topics</a>.
His book, <a href="https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/mike-pesca/upon-further-review/9781455540372/">Upon Further Review: The Greatest What-Ifs in Sports History</a>, is a whole series of earth-shattering, hypothetical, what-if questions (and posited answers to said earth-shattering, hypothetical, what-if questions):
What if a blimp full of money had exploded over world track headquarters in 1952? <a href="http://www.slate.com/articles/podcasts/upon_further_review/2018/05/the_new_podcast_from_slate_s_mike_pesca_explores_the_greatest_what_ifs_in.html">What if Nixon had been good at football?</a> What if Bobby Fischer had received proper psychiatric help? <a href="https://slate.com/culture/2018/05/what-if-the-dodgers-had-never-left-brooklyn.html">What if the Dodgers hadn&rsquo;t left Brooklyn?</a> What if basketball rims were smaller than basketballs? <a href="https://slate.com/culture/2018/06/what-if-the-1999-u-s-womens-national-soccer-team-had-lost-the-womens-world-cup.html">What if the 1999 U.S. women&rsquo;s national soccer team had lost the Women&rsquo;s World Cup?</a> And yes: What if the Olympics had never dropped tug of war?
It goes on and on.
Pesca joins us for the hour.
GUESTS:
<ul>
<li>Will Leitch: Contributing editor at New York magazine, founder of Deadspin, and a whole bunch of other things</li>
<li>Mike Pesca: Host of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.mikepesca.com/thegist">The Gist</a>&nbsp;and the author of Upon Further Review</li>
<li>Louisa Thomas: Staff writer at The New Yorker and the author of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.louisathomas.com/#louisa">Louisa: The Extraordinary Life of Mrs. Adams</a></li>
</ul>
The Colin McEnroe Show is available as a podcast on <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-colin-mcenroe-show/id714179884">Apple Podcasts</a>, <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/0AXtqrzWounIoJyIqz003p">Spotify</a>, <a href="https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/9b6b3cee-f69b-4729-a78b-181f851d80e8/the-colin-mcenroe-show">Amazon Music</a>, <a href="https://tunein.com/podcasts/News--Politics-Podcasts/The-Colin-McEnroe-Show-p1208473/">TuneIn</a>, <a href="https://www.listennotes.com/podcasts/the-colin-mcenroe-show-connecticut-public-lXR08dxQSM5/">Listen Notes</a>, or wherever you get your podcasts. Subscribe and never miss an episode!
<a href="https://www.ctpublic.org/newsletters">Subscribe to The Noseletter</a>, an email compendium of merriment, secrets, and ancient wisdom brought to you by The Colin McEnroe Show.
Join the conversation on <a href="https://facebook.com/ColinMcShow">Facebook</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/colinmcshow">Twitter</a>.
Colin McEnroe, Carlos Mejia, and Chion Wolf contributed to this show, which originally aired June 7, 2018.

What if tug of war were still an Olympic sport? And other questions with Mike Pesca

The Trump administration’s messaging around the war with Iran feels reminiscent of stuff like … cowboy movies. And video games. And the manosphere. This hour, a look at the rhetoric around the war and where it’s all coming from.

GUESTS:
Casey Ryan Kelly: Professor of Rhetoric and Public Culture in the Department of Communication Studies at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. He is also Editor of the Quarterly Journal of Speech, and author of books including Manifesting Violence: White Terrorism, Digital Culture, and the Rhetoric of Replacement
Jonathan Guyer: Program Director at the Institute for Global Affairs at Eurasia Group, and a reporter and editor focused on foreign policy, national security, and the Middle East. He is host of the podcast “None of the Above”
Roger Stahl: Author and Professor of Communication Studies at the University of Georgia. He is director of the documentary Theaters of War

Music featured (in order):
“Hoe-Down” from Rodeo – Aaron Copland, NYO-USA, Michael Tilson Thomas
You Should Have Seen the Other Guy – Nathaniel Rateliff
Under My Thumb – Rolling Stones
Son of Your Father – Elton John
Cowboys Are Frequently Secretly Fond of Each Other – Orville Peck and Willie Nelson
I Am a Rock – Simon and Garfunkel

The Trump administration&rsquo;s messaging around the war with Iran feels reminiscent of stuff like &hellip; cowboy movies. And video games. And the manosphere. This hour, a look at the rhetoric around the war and where it&rsquo;s all coming from.
GUESTS:
<ul>
<li>Casey Ryan Kelly:&nbsp;Professor of Rhetoric and Public Culture in the Department of Communication Studies at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. He is also Editor of the Quarterly Journal of Speech, and author of books including&nbsp;Manifesting Violence: White Terrorism, Digital Culture, and the Rhetoric of Replacement</li>
<li>Jonathan Guyer:&nbsp;Program Director at the Institute for Global Affairs at Eurasia Group, and a reporter and editor focused on foreign policy, national security, and the Middle East. He is host of the podcast &ldquo;None of the Above&rdquo;</li>
<li>Roger Stahl:&nbsp;Author and Professor of Communication Studies at the University of Georgia. He is director of the documentary&nbsp;Theaters of War</li>
</ul>
Music featured (in order):
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dYdDYSTEuWo">&ldquo;Hoe-Down&rdquo; from Rodeo</a>&nbsp;&ndash; Aaron Copland, NYO-USA, Michael Tilson Thomas</li>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_IB9bO4XD7I">You Should Have Seen the Other Guy</a>&nbsp;&ndash; Nathaniel Rateliff</li>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yBdKMv9_vPE">Under My Thumb</a>&nbsp;&ndash; Rolling Stones</li>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aL-gy1VyIa0">Son of Your Father</a>&nbsp;&ndash; Elton John</li>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BirJMnMcfBs">Cowboys Are Frequently Secretly Fond of Each Other</a>&nbsp;&ndash; Orville Peck and Willie Nelson</li>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J2nN-Yrt1EU">I Am a Rock</a>&nbsp;&ndash; Simon and Garfunkel</li>
</ul>

“A safety valve”: The impact of ballot measures on democracy

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