US Global Influence & Democracy; Blinken's Africa Tour; Amazon COVID-19 Cover-up

Blinken begins an African tour amid the crisis in Ethiopia. Will the US be an honest broker in this conflict?

Laith Marouf, international affairs analyst and media law consultant, joins us to discuss a report published in The New York Times arguing that US global influence has been detrimental to democracy. We talk about the original assumption of the US as a force of good that is widely held by the media and public figures in this country and how the rest of the world actually sees through this smokescreen. We also discuss an article from The Atlantic reinforcing the characterisation of other regional powers like China and Russia as the "bad guys" and how this line of thinking limits global cooperation to solve pressing issues like climate change.

Netfa Freeman, organiser for Pan-African Community Action (PACA) and member of the Coordinating Committee of the Black Alliance for Peace, talks to us about Secretary Blinken's visit to Africa, where he is scheduled to visit Kenya, Nigeria, and Senegal, and how the US is responding to the crisis in the Horn of Africa. We talk about the seemingly changing posture towards the conflict in Ethiopia, what commitments to fighting terrorism in Nigeria will mean, and whether this will entail expanding the role of AFRICOM on the continent.

Tina Desiree Berg, host of the podcast District 34 and a reporter for Status Coup, joins us to talk about anti-vaxxers attacking journalists in California, the Committee to Protect Journalists expressing concern about the harmful precedent set by recent FBI raids on the homes of Project Veritas founder James O'Keefe and his associates after the alleged theft of a diary belonging to Joe Biden's daughter, and Amazon settling with the state of California for half a million dollars over accusations that it failed to tell its workers about COVID cases at its warehouses and failed to share legally required information.

Nookie Bishop, host of the Digital Gumbo Podcast, talks to us about English cricket approaching an "emergency" over its failure to address racism after officials and former players speak out, New Orleans Pelicans forward Zion Williamson's recovery from injury, and the amateur boxing match between Deron Williams and former NFL running back Frank Gore.

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