Today on Stateside, companies like Ford, John Deere, and Harley-Davidson are no longer participating in third-party DEI oversight scoring like the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index. Participation in that index, which serves over 1,000 companies and the majority of the Fortune 500, is still growing, despite pressure from right-wing activists like Robby Starbuck. We sat down with Phoebe Wall Howard to learn about what this departure means for Ford Motor Company and whether or not these indexes have any bearing on sales or the corporate culture at Ford.
Then, for the second time this week, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump visited Michigan. Following Vice President Kamala Harris's appointment to the top of the Democratic ticket, the Trump campaign has clearly made Michigan a focal point of its campaign strategy. To better understand that strategy and the place Michigan holds in the Trump campaign's plans, we spoke with The Atlantic staff writer Tim Alberta, author of American Carnage and The Kingdom, The Power, and The Glory.
Finally, rock star Detroit Opera Director Yuval Sharon laid out a manifesto for what must change for opera to survive. He’s transformed how audiences in Michigan listen. His book, A New Philosophy of Opera, is an appeal to make the art form not only accessible to audiences but accessible for performers. From turning spaces like parking lots into stages to disrupting the order of classic compositions, Yuval helped us recognize how opera can be modernized and why it should.
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GUESTS ON TODAY’S SHOW:
- Phoebe Wall Howard, longtime Ford reporter for the Detroit Free Press, now writes a column on Substack
- Tim Alberta, covers the Trump campaign for The Atlantic, author of American Carnage and The Kingdom, The Power and the Glory
- Yuval Sharon, artistic director, Detroit Opera
