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The Focus Group Podcast

The Focus Group Podcast

By: The Bulwark
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 Unfiltered, uncompromising, unexpected—The Focus Group is a look into what the average voter thinks about politics, policy, and current events. Sarah Longwell, publisher of The Bulwark, has conducted hundreds of hours of focus groups all across the country. She and a series of special guests will take you behind the glass to hear what real focus group participants have to say. https://www.thebulwark.com/podcast/focus-group/Bulwark Media Political Science Politics & Government Social Sciences
Episodes
  • S5 Ep24: Do the Next Right Thing, Change the World (with Heather Cox Richardson)

    S5 Ep24: Do the Next Right Thing, Change the World (with Heather Cox Richardson)
    Jun 28 2025
    Our season finale is a bit of a pep talk. America is in a precarious place, but Americans everywhere are speaking up against the authoritarian threat. Historian extraordinaire Heather Cox Richardson joins Sarah to discuss the lessons history leaves for this moment, and Americans' role in fighting back.

    By Heather Cox Richardson:
    Letters from an American
    Democracy Awakening: Notes on the State of America
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    1 hr and 1 min
  • S5 Ep23: Cuomo vs. Mamdani (with Harry Siegel)

    S5 Ep23: Cuomo vs. Mamdani (with Harry Siegel)
    Jun 21 2025
    The New York City mayoral primary is "dumb" and getting lots of "dumb attention," at least according to our (radically candid) guest. Democratic voters face a choice between disgraced former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, and the inexperienced socialist state assemblyman Zohran Mamdani. There's another candidate who was just arrested by ICE, which may shake up this race at the VERY end. The City's Harry Siegel joins Sarah for a wide-ranging conversation about New York City's politics today.

    By The City:

    • The City's Meet Your Mayor Quiz
    • FAQ NYC Podcast
    By Harry Siegel:

    • NYC’s lousy election rules create lousy choices
    • Mamdani’s moment for momentum: The surging socialist in the Democratic mayoral primary
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    1 hr and 1 min
  • S5 Ep22: 'This Country is Effed' (with Jonathan Cohn)

    S5 Ep22: 'This Country is Effed' (with Jonathan Cohn)
    Jun 14 2025
    Donald Trump's Big Beautiful Bill is moving through Congress, and you may be surprised by some former Trump voters' reactions. Bulwark in-house policy wonk Jonathan Cohn joins Sarah to talk about the bill's negative consequences and why healthcare has been such a political albatross for the Republican Party. We also learn that plenty of voters are irritated by Congress only seeming to pass 'big' bills these days.
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    53 mins
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