Free Kiwis!
A podcast focussing on freedom and free speech in a New Zealand context, hosted by two Wellington-based academics, Drs. Michael Johnston (VUW Education) and James Kierstead (VUW Classics).
Show episodes
Nigel Biggar is an emeritus professor at Oxford University, where he was Regius Professor of Moral and Pastoral Theology. He is also an Anglican priest. His most recent book is Colonialism. A Moral Reckoning (2023). We talked to Prof. Biggar about the how to assess the British Empire and about the roots of our universi
Only a few days after its Senate voted down the University of Auckland"s "academic freedom" policy, Victoria University of Wellington has come out with a similar policy of its own. Here to discuss VUW"s policy with us is Steph Martin from the Free Speech Union. We also discuss Steph"s work to help protect New Zealander
Toby Young is the founder of the Free Speech Union and The Daily Sceptic, an associate editor of The Spectator, and a former associate editor at Quillette. We talked to him about the prospects for free speech and academic freedom in the Anglosphere, why he left Quillette and founded The Daily Sceptic, and what his expe
Peter Ridd was formerly head of the Physics Programme and the Marine Geophysical Laboratory at James Cook University in Queensland. We asked him how and why he was forced out of JCU, as well as about the Great Barrier Reef and climate change in the Pacific. An article by Peter calling for greater quality assurance in "
The morning after Victoria University of WELLINGTON"s free speech event, Michael and James met to discuss the event, including both its set-up and points made by the speakers.
Jonathan Rauch is a US writer whose books include The Happiness Curve: Why Life Gets Better After 50 (2018); Gay Marriage: Why It Is Good for Gays, Good for Straights, and Good for America (2004); Government"s End: Why Washington Stopped Working (2000); and Kindly Inquisitors: The New Attacks on Free Thought (1993). W