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May 22, 2009

Ten Top Audio & Video Debates

Listen to ten great debates with these ten free resources on audio & video. For the past three years we've featured hundreds of free audio & video resources as part of our Free Resource of the Day Emails. From these resources we've selected the top ten free debates covering issues such as abortion, gay marriage, religion, politics, intellectual property, evolution, and more. You can check them all out by clicking the links below:

1. 2008 Presidential Debates Video Podcast

In case you missed the 2008 presidential debates or the vice presidential debate, you can now watch them as podcasts. CBS News is offering all the debates on their podcast series. The first presidential debate between Republican Party nominee John McCain and Democratic Party nominee Barack Obama focused primarily on foreign policy, while the second one focused on domestic issues covering the economic crisis, and the third debate again focused the economy addressing Joe the Plumber. The only vice-presidential debate between Sarah Palin and Joe Biden covered a range of issues and what a vice president's role was in confronting them.

2. A Public Debate On The Limits of Intelligent Machines

Can we Create conscious machines that are every bit as self-aware as a human being? Ray Kurzweil and David Gelertner debate the feasibility of this question in this downloadable audio released by WGBH. Kurzweil argues that future technology will allow humans to mechanically simulate consciousness, to which Gelertner counters that mere replication doesn't necessarily lead to self- awareness. Listen in on this lively and thought provoking discourse on what makes the human brain unique. This debate is available on streaming audio & video and MP3 download.

3. Is Abortion Morally Justifiable in a Free Society?

Listen to this 90-minute debate offered by the Intercollegiate Studies Institute. It's a well-organized debate with interesting arguments for pro-life advocate & philosophy professor Peter Kreeft and pro-choice advocate and author of A Defense of Abortion David Boonin. Boonin argues for the right of a woman to not keep the fetus on "life support" in the womb, while Kreeft that abortion is wrong by moral and religious standards. This debate is available on MP3 download and streaming video.

4. Al Sharpton and Christopher Hitchens Debate

Listen to a stimulating debate between the Reverand Al Sharpton and God Is Not Great author Christopher Hitchens. Hitchens provides many arguments against religion, arguing against religious texts, dogmatic beliefs, and a creator God. Al Sharpton contends that Hitchens cannot prove the non-existence of God and argues that if immoral acts are performed in the name of God that they have no relation to the great character of God. They both reflect on the modern implications of a belief in God, as Hitchens denounces the intrusion of religion into politics and culture (particularly in the Middle East) and Sharpton emphasizes the role of religion in positive social change such as in the American Civil Rights Movement. The whole debate is handled with good humor, even if neither Sharpton nor Hitchens are able to change one another's minds. This debate was held at the New York Public Library and is available on streaming video and MP3 download from FORA.tv.

5. Was America Responsible for the Attacks of September 11th?

A bit of a provocative title perhaps, but this debate offered from the Intercollegiate Studies Institute really doesn't cover the September 11th attacks. Instead it is more of an overall debate about whether American power and wealth in the world is generally good or bad. Dinesh D'Souza, author of What's So Great About America, argues that the American way of life is superior than other cultures and that we all too often ignore the freedoms and priviledges that make us the envy of the world. Rabbi Michael Lerner argues that the American empire is excessively selfish and greedy, and that our financial and military power has been used to oppress cultures throughout the world. It makes for a very heated and interesting debate. It is available on streaming audio and video as well as on MP3 download.

6. Creativity, Commerce, & Culture: Lessig vs. Valenti

If you want to hear an interesting debate over copyright in the digital age, tune into this free online video from the USC Annenberg School for Communication. President of the Motion Picture Association Jack Valenti is hilarious as he stubbornly keep to his position for the entertainment industry's battle to maintain it's intellectual property as long as it wants to. Law professor and author Lawrence Lessig has a sense of humor too, but he is seriously concerned that in our increasingly copyrighted culture the artist's freedom and fair use is being stifled. Decide for yourself and be entertained while doing so.

7. A Debate over Intelligent Design

Timely and provocative, this talk provided by the Intercollegiate Study Institute presents a debate between intelligent design advocate William Dembski and evolutionist Lee Silver. Both men are given equal time to present their case, giving the listener a detailed examination of how the case for a creator might work with or run counter to the biological foundations of modern science. We are then asked to come to our own conclusions based on the evidence at hand in a debate that has captured the headlines and continues to be a hot button issue in science classrooms across the nation. This debate is available on MP3 download, streaming audio, and streaming video.

8. Gay Marriage Debate

Watch this debate on gay marriage with David Blankenhorn, author of The Future of Marriage, and Evan Wolfson, author of Why Marriage Matters: America, Equality, and Gay People's Right to Marry. This 2 hour debate, along with audience questions, becomes quite heated, but is very informative as to the positions on each side of the gay marriage debate. Blankenhorn expresses his belief of what marriage is and what it means for parents and children if the definition of marriage is changed. Wolfson cites studies by numerous organizations that have shown gay marriage to not be harmful in regards to raising children, and to deny gay couples marriage is discrimination and violates their civil rights. This debate was conducted on C-SPAN and can be viewed on streaming video through FORA.tv.

9. Howard Dean and Richard Perle Foreign Policy Debate

Today's resource consists of a very entertaining debate between Richard Perle and Howard Dean that was held at Pacific University in Portland, Oregon on February 17, 2005. In front of this mostly anti-war audience, Richard Perle gets a shoe thrown at him and Howard Dean delivers his points to uproarious applause almost as if he is at the Democratic Convention. Richard Perle is one of the most articulate proponents of the foreign policy behind the war on terrorism and Howard Dean is a key voice of how the Democrats believe we should defend America so it makes for an excellent debate. This debate was recorded by C-SPAN and is available on audio download from Audible.com.

10. Jimmy Wales and Andrew Keen Debate Web 2.0

In this debate from the Commonwealth Club of California journalist David Ewing Duncan moderates a debate over Web 2.0 between Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales and author Andrew Keen. Keen brings up many interesting objections to Web 2.0 and its user-based sites such as Wikipedia, YouTube, and Craigslist. He feels these sites are undermining the ability for creative professionals to make a living because they give everything away for free. He also criticizes Wikipedia because the authors are anonymous and he feels an individual author is required in order to evaluate their writing. Wales feels that Web 2.0 has contributed to a growing creative class and that while the new Internet paradigm has created disruptions in the economy it ultimately leads to a better knowledge-based economy and a better world. This debate is available on streaming video and MP3 download from FORA.tv.

And for more debates on a wide variety of topics you might want to check out: NPR's Intelligence Squared U.S. Podcast.

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