Episode 12 - "Democracy Down Bad" with Ben Sheehan (Funny Or Die, OMG WTF)

Indecent with Kiki Andersen

They say 'If it ain't broke, don't fix it.' But what do you do with something that's as fundamentally f*cked up and dysfunctional as, say, our current political system? Digital creator Ben Sheehan argues that we give it a facelift and remember why we fell in love with this country in the first place.

Ben Sheehan is a political commentator and digital creator. He has appeared on shows including Real Time with Bill Maher, Good Morning America, Amanpour & Company and more. Ben has won Shorty, Reed, and Webby Awards for his writing and production work. He was named one of entertainment’s “35 Under 35” by The Hollywood Reporter and a “World Changing Ideas” finalist by Fast Company for his approach to civics education. He founded OMG WTF (Ohio, Michigan, Georgia, Wisconsin, Texas, Florida) to teach voters about state executive races during the 2018 midterms. OMG WTF’s Gerrymander Jewelry was a finalist for Fast Company’s World Changing Ideas 2019. In 2016, he helped register 50,000 voters through digital videos as the executive director of Save the Day. The projects he’s been involved with have received over a billion views.

Pick up a copy of the brand-new paperback edtion of his book What Does the Constitution Actually Say? A Non-Boring Guide to How Our Democracy Is Supposed to Work

Follow the comedians who pitched those one-of-a-kind political platforms:

Talib Babb @talibbabb

Ben Adam @benadambenadam

Carmen Lagala @carmstagrams

Jeanne Whitney @jeannelwhitney

Joseph Garcia @comedianjoe

Bethany Van Delft @bethanyvandelft

Hayden Arrington @haydenarrington

Here's some homework for you nerds who love to read:

https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2023/09/19/the-biggest-problems-and-greatest-strengths-of-the-u-s-political-system/

https://www.brookings.edu/articles/understanding-democratic-decline-in-the-united-states/

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/08/18/american-democracy-political-system-failures/

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/nov/16/america-flawed-democracy-five-key-areas

https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2024/06/24/public-trust-in-government-1958-2024/

https://freedomhouse.org/report/freedom-world/2024/mounting-damage-flawed-elections-and-armed-conflict

https://www.politico.eu/article/democracy-decline-worldwide-new-report-says/

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/elections/2020/09/04/u-s-interferes-more-elections-than-russia-meddling-author-says/5700657002/

"Indecent with Kiki Andersen" is a production of Next Chapter Podcasts.

Hosted by Kiki Andersen

Produced by Pete Musto & Max Wolfson

Executive produced by Jeremiah Tittle

Follow the show at @indecentkiki on Instagram and follow Kiki at @itskikiandersen

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