Host Kim Lewis and VOA Music Director for VOA1 and Host of Today’s Hit Countdown and Soul Lounge Shawna Renee explore the beginnings of Hip Hop music and its explosion into a cultural phenomenon that has been embraced by people worldwide. Don’t miss this special edition of Press Conference USA as we celebrate 50 years of Hip Hop.

Paul Cherukuri, Vice President for Innovation and Adjunct Professor of Management and Entrepreneurship, at Houston's Rice University joins Rick Pantaleo for a discussion on Nanotechnology. It’s the developing field of science and technology that controls and works with materials at measures below microscopic levels. It is already being applied in areas like medicine, energy, and environmental science.

Host Carol Castiel talks with Damon Wilson, CEO and President of the National Endowment for Democracy, a congressionally funded grantmaking foundation which supports freedom around the globe. Wilson discusses how Russia’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine and China’s malign activities have rendered NED’s work with democratic partners in Africa, Latin America, Eurasia, and East and South Asia all the more relevant.

Host Kim Lewis and VOA Senior National Affairs Correspondent Chris Simkins talk with Dr. Kris Marsh, author and associate professor of Sociology at the University of Maryland. As we observe Black History month, Marsh describes the root causes of economic disparity for African Americans and what is needed to overcome the challenges to achieve economic prosperity as envisioned by Dr. Martin Luther King in his memorable, “I have a Dream,” speech.

Host Carol Castiel talks with the Chair and President of Eximbank, the official export financing agency of the United States. An established lawyer and diplomat, Reta Jo Lewis, was nominated to take the helm at EXIM by President Joe Biden one year ago this month. On the anniversary of her swearing in and in honor of Black History Month, Lewis discusses her vision for the Agency and the key role EXIM plays in creating US jobs and exporting US product and services around the globe, including a...

Since this past September, health professionals noted surges in the levels of Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infection (RSV), Influenza, and COVID-19, causing concern that the spread of these three infectious respiratory diseases could spark what some called a tridemic. Dr. Allison Agwu of Johns Hopkins Medicine joins Rick Pantaleo to talk about it .

Host Carol Castiel talks with Cliff Kupchan, Chairman of the Eurasia Group about the 10 top imminent and long-term threats facing the globe in 2023. From “Rogue Russia” and “Maximum Xi” to women-led protests threatening the Islamic regime in Iran, Kupchan outlines risks and debunks the fallacies regarding China, Russia, Iran and much more.

In a wide-ranging interview, host Carol Castiel and senior managing editor in VOA’s Ukrainian Service, Tatiana Vorozhko, speak with Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman about the significance of his congressional testimony in 2019 regarding the infamous telephone call between former President Donald Trump and newly elected Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, which led to Trump’s first impeachment. Vindman also tells VOA that Ukrainian President Zelenskyy’s strength of character, along with...

On this annual edition of Press Conference USA, host Carol Castiel and co-host, Rick Pantaleo, speak with Mark Bryan of the “Future Today Institute” about the future trends in technology, like AI, and its implications for business, society, and politics in 2023.

Nancy Pelosi is one of the most powerful politicians in the United States. She is the first woman to be twice elected Speaker of the House of Representatives. This Baltimore-born Democrat has represented the liberal district of San Francisco for 35 years. With the advent of a new Congress in January 2023, she is stepping aside from leadership to make way for a new and younger generation of Democrats. Host Carol Castiel updates and reprises her conversation with Time Magazine political...

On this year-end edition of Press Conference USA, host Carol Castiel brings you excerpts from conversations with some of our most distinguished newsmakers including Congresswoman Elaine Luria on the significance of the House January 6th Committee’s investigation of the assault on the US Capitol; analyst Anna Borshchevskaya on Russia’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, Congresswoman Judy Chu in honor of Asian-American Pacific Islander Heritage month, SCOTUS blog reporter Amy Howe on overturning...

A Minneapolis police officer who assisted in the restraint that led to the death of George Floyd was recently sentenced to 3½ years in prison. On this encore edition of Press Conference USA, host Carol Castiel talks with Tolu Olorunnipa, co-author of the acclaimed book, “His Name is George Floyd: One Man’s Life and The Struggle for Racial Justice. Olorunnipa wrote the book to reveal the life of a man whose name became synonymous with the shocking circumstances of his death.

Host Carol Castiel speaks with Kurt Braddock, professor of public communication at American University and author of “Weaponized Words: The Strategic Role of Persuasion in Violent Radicalization and Counter-Radicalization,” about the concept of “stochastic” terrorism, which explains how extremist rhetoric may lead to violent acts, such as the attack on the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, and measures to combat it.

In honor of World AIDS Day, host Carol Castiel reprises a conversation with AIDS activist, journalist, and historian, Emily Bass about her book, To End a Plague: America’s Fight to Defeat AIDS in Africa. Bass discusses the genesis and impact of PEPFAR, the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDs Relief created under President George W. Bush and its positive legacy in Africa.

A popular tech concept being spread on the internet and in mass media is something called the metaverse. While many people are talking about it, few of us really know what it is. Matthew Kanterman of Ball Metaverse Research Partners joins host Rick Pantaleo on the Science Edition of Press Conference USA to talk about what many in the tech industry are calling the next phase of the internet’s evolution.

On this edition of Press Conference USA, host Carol Castiel speaks with Molly Reynolds, an expert on the mechanics and politics of the US Congress, about the results of the recent US midterm elections, which flipped control of the House of Representatives to the opposition Republican Party and kept the Democrats in control of the Senate. Will divided government translate into gridlock? What can the Biden administration accomplish for the remainder of its mandate? What will be the priorities...

Guest host Tatiana Vorozhko interviews Peter Pomerantsev, a Ukrainian-born British journalist and author, about how Moscow deploys disinformation and propaganda in its pursuit of conquering Ukraine. Pomerantsev compares Vladimir Putin’s tactics to those of Hitler who demonized and dehumanized Jews and other minorities to justify his campaign of violence and extermination. Putin’s regime employs similar propaganda in relation to Ukraine and its people as well as falsely blames the West and...

Host Kim Lewis speaks with Paul Gillies, International Spokesperson for Jehovah's Witnesses about the root causes of religious persecution, how it led to persistent challenges to religious freedom over the years, Russia's 2017 ban of Jehovah's Witnesses activities in their country, subjecting hundreds of members to raids, arrests and prosecution, the landmark judgment against Russia handed down in June 2022 by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), and the importance of religious freedom...

Carol Castiel speaks with Keith Mines from the US Institute of Peace (USIP) and former diplomat about the current state of play in Haiti as the island nation grapples with political and economic instability exacerbated by gang violence and an outbreak of cholera.

A new study suggests breaching the 1.5-degree Celsius limit above pre-industrial global temperatures could trigger a series of tipping points that may lead to irreversible changes to our climate system. Rick Pantaleo talks about the study's findings with its lead author David McKay.

Carol Castiel speaks Ruth Ben Ghiat of New York University, who specializes in threats to democracy like fascism, authoritarianism, and propaganda, about the outcome of recent elections in Italy and Sweden as well as well-established authoritarian trends in Hungary, Russia & even the United States.

Carol Castiel talks with H.E. Audra Plepytė, Lithuanian Ambassador to the US, about her country’s solid backing of Ukraine as it repels Russian aggression and its special role, among other Baltic states, in warning the transatlantic alliance about the Kremlin’s malign activities for decades.

Carol Castiel talks with Sophie Richardson at Human Rights Watch, about the recent explosive UN report on human rights abuses by the Chinese government against the Muslim Uyghur population in Xinjiang province. The UN report declares the violations may amount to “crimes against humanity.”

As we reflect on the 21st anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks on US soil, Carol Castiel talks with Katherine Zimmerman, of the American Enterprise Institute, about the current state of al Qaeda and its affiliates & the Islamic state from Afghanistan, West Africa, to Somalia.

Kim Lewis and colleague Carol Van Dam speak with Terry FitzPatrick, director of the Alliance to End Slavery and Trafficking, about the challenges of combatting human trafficking and forced labor. The discussion also highlights progress being made against these illegal practices.