
NPC Update-1 Podcast
Tune into the National Press Club's Update-1 podcast for insight into news, politics, entertainment and sports.
Episodes
Reading the feed…

Tune into the National Press Club's Update-1 podcast for insight into news, politics, entertainment and sports.
Reading the feed…
Podcaster Kris Goldsmith feels legacy media does not adequately cover what he considers threats from far-right extremists. In this edition of Update-1, Goldsmith talks about how he's using his podcast to fight back, how people are reacting to it and its impact on his life.
Artificial Intelligence is in the news as CEOs like Sam Altman of OpenAI meet with legislators and White House advisors. The focus is on voluntary cybersecurity tests of advanced AI models and the possibility of government regulation. Behind it all is a political argument – U.S. competition with China. In the latest Update-1 podcast, Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, a former senior advisor to the secretary of the Navy in the Biden Administration and the first female lieutenant governor of Maryland shares her views on the politics behind the AI race with Susan Baumel, a member of the Broadcast Podcas
With the shutdown of CBS News Radio in May after 99 years of broadcasting being the latest in a seemingly endless string of job cuts in the news industry, what is the future of the media landscape? In this edition of Update-1, Broadcast Podcast team member Gemma Puglisi talks with Michael Harrison, the founder and editor of TALKERS Magazine, known as "the Bible of Talk Radio and the New Talk Media." Harrison explains why he wasn’t surprised when CBS pulled the plug on its radio network. He also discusses the growth of podcasting and the factors he thinks will determine the media in the years a
Mark Schoeff says he now understands the many responsibilities that go with being president of the National Press Club. Schoeff was elected in December as the club's 119th president. In the latest edition of Update-1, he talks with Broadcast Podcast team co-chair Adam Konowe about his first months in the position and his goals and objectives for the rest of the year. They also discuss changes that have been implemented at the club, and how he intends for it to remain as the place where news happens.
A broadcast era comes to an end this Friday. CBS News Radio will shut down following the last national newscast Friday night, after nearly 100 years of broadcasting. In the latest Update-1 podcast, former CBS Radio anchor and reporter Sam Litzinger, a press club member, talks with Broadcast Podcast team co-chair Mike Hempen about his nearly 20 years at the network, its history and tradition. Sam discusses the legendary Edward R. Murrow and the Murrow Boys and offers thoughts on the future of radio news.
The Space Symposium, hosted annually by the non-profit Space Foundation, features senior leadership from commercial and military space organizations, creating a concentration of newsmakers and mediagenic topics every April at The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs. It also attracts more than 100 journalists from around the world. In this edition of Update-1, NPC Broadcast/Podcast co-chair Adam Konowe speaks with is Torsten Kriening, CEO and publisher of SpaceWatch.Global, a Berlin-based digital media outlet. Recorded on the sidelines of the Foundation's annual Space Symposium in Colorado Springs, K
From weather alerts to precision agriculture, not to mention GPS guidance and internet connectivity, the benefits of space utilization have become ubiquitous around the world. Yet the industry behind these and other life-enhancing technologies is often less well understood. In this edition of Update-1, NPC Broadcast/Podcast co-chair Adam Konowe speaks with Rich Cooper, vice president of strategic communication for the non-profit Space Foundation. Recorded on the sidelines of the Foundation's annual Space Symposium in Colorado Springs, Cooper addresses the organization's mission and flagship ev
Press freedom in the United States faces unprecedented challenges, ranging from government pressure to financial stresses. In the latest edition of Update-1, Broadcast/Podcast Committee member Tom Young speaks with two veteran journalists and free press advocates -- former NPC President Myron Belkind and Katherine Jacobsen, with the Committee to Protect Journalists, an organization that provides free safety training and other resources for reporters facing threats and intimidation. They offer their views on the state of press freedom in the U.S. in 2026.
Fighting disinformation is nothing less than a civic duty, according to JJ Green, the Edward R. Murrow Award-winning national security correspondent for WTOP Radio. In this edition of Update-1, NPC Broadcast/Podcast co-chair Adam Konowe talks with Green about his new book, “The Noise War: How to Fight Disinformation and Find Truth When Everything is Lying to You” (available on Amazon). The conversation includes insight on what attracted Green to the beat, why he's stayed on it for decades, and how the book can serve as a "field manual" for those who seek to prioritize truth in an era where dis
The Pentagon recently announced it would take over editorial content of Stars and Stripes, a newspaper for the U.S. military community. That's despite a congressional mandate that requires the paper to remain independent of the military chain of command. In this edition of Update-1, Broadcast Podcast team member Tom Young speaks with Stars and Stripes Editor-in-Chief Erik Slavin and ombudsman Jacqueline Smith about the role of Stars and Stripes and the importance of its ability to report freely.
At a time of record-low trust in the media and government, paired with seemingly unmanageable amounts of text-based and multimedia content, new tools are emerging to help identify and counter disinformation in real time. In this edition of Update-1, NPC Broadcast/Podcast co-chair Adam Konowe speaks with former technology journalist Maria Amelie, the CEO and co-founder of Norway-based Factiverse. The service, built by a team of data scientists and journalists, provides media outlets and others with details on narratives, keywords and other elements so journalists, fact-checkers and others can e
National Press Club member Mahtab Farid was born in Tehran and moved to the United States as a teenager, settling in California. After learning a new language and culture and graduating from college, she became an international journalist and diplomat. In this episode of Update-1, Farid talks with Broadcast Podcast Committee Co-Chair Mike Hempen about her new memoir, "Serving Without A Uniform: Reporting Truth In Defense Of Freedom." She discusses growing up in Iran, the decision to move to the U.S., the obstacles she faced, her years reporting for VOA, serving as a diplomat in Afghanistan and
Museums have become lightning rods in an increasingly polarized society, exposing often underdeveloped relationships with key stakeholders, from the media to community members. On this edition of Update-1, NPC Broadcast/Podcast Team Co-chair Adam Konowe speaks with Steve Lott, a former journalist turned public relations practitioner and university lecturer. Lott's new book, "Museum Flack: A Public Relations Guide for Museums," uses the fundamentals of story mining and telling as the basis for helping museum executives recognize the difference between marketing and PR. From embracing the journa
The decision by X, formerly known as Twitter, to implement Community Notes, a peer-based system for flagging misinformation, met with initial skepticism and even suspicion. On this edition of Update-1, NPC Broadcast Podcast Team Co-Chair Adam Konowe speaks with Huaxia Rui, the Xerox professor of Information Systems and Technology at the University of Rochester’s Simon Business School. A study by Rui and his peers suggests that so-called “crowd-checking” does have a chilling effect on authors' intent on misleading the public. And that in turn has implications for journalists, communicators and
Surveys show most business leaders say their companies are not prepared to handle a major crisis when one arises. In this episode of Update-1, NPC member Edward Segal discusses his new book, "The Crisis Casebook: Lessons in Crisis Management from the World’s Leading Brands," which offers a roadmap for organizations, leaders, and public figures who want to be prepared for the inevitable. Segal says many executives prepare for crises by denying them, thinking they will never happen to them until they do. In an interview with Broadcast Podcast team member Gemma Puglisi, Segal talks about how medi
How does a globally recognized novelist weave thrillers out of reality? In the latest Update-1 episode, New York Times bestselling author David Baldacci joins NPC Broadcast Podcast Committee co-chair Mike Hempen to discuss using real-life situations in fiction.
October 14 marked a deadline set by the Pentagon for accredited members of the media to sign a controversial pledge to retain access rights to the building. Dozens of outlets, including right-leaning Fox News and the Washington Times, refused with only a couple agreeing to unprecedented and arguably unconstitutional restrictions. In this edition of Update-1, NPC Broadcast/Podcast co-chair Adam Konowe speaks with Aaron Mehta, editor-in-chief of Breaking Defense and a Pentagon Press Association board member. Mehta explains how journalists had worked previously under administrations of both parti
Former Washington Post reporter Kate Woodsome was at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, and saw firsthand the riots that occurred that day. Her life was forever changed, and now she helps others deal with stress and trauma. In this edition of Update-1, Woodsome talks with NPC Board of Governors member Debra Silimeo about the stress of newsroom life even before January 6, what happened to her in the Capitol when she was confronted by insurrectionists, and how that experience led her to re-evaluate her life and dedicate herself to helping others through her trauma work. She also discusses how
Documentary photographer Ben Sarao is no stranger to drought, having experienced the weather condition up and down the western United States. That drove him to self-publish a book titled "Drought" and then to photograph the devastation caused by California's Palisades Fire in January 2025. In this edition of Update-1, Sarao speaks with Broadcast/Podcast Team Co-Chair Adam Konowe about what drew him to photography, the impact of AI and other technology, sensitivities associated with covering the loss of life and property and the photos on display at the NPC. The conversation concludes with refl
The financial system depends on robust and credible economic data. But some observers say the credibility of that data took a blow when President Trump fired Bureau of Labor Statistics Commissioner Erika McEntarfer. Without evidence, Trump said July job numbers from the BLS were rigged against him. On the latest Update-1, Broadcast/Podcast Committee member Tom Young, along with former NPC President and Bankrate Senior Economic Analyst Mark Hamrick, speak with former BLS Commissioner Erica Groshen about job numbers and trust in the financial system.
Israel says it plans to take over Gaza City, escalating its 22-month war with Hamas and drawing a dismissal from the militant group. Israel's intentions have renewed international calls to end the conflict and have stirred fears for the hostages still in Gaza. Karim Elsammak has been involved in Mideast affairs, working for the Trump campaign in the Arab American community in New York and Michigan. In this episode of Update-1, he talks with Broadcast Podcast team co-chair Mike Hempen about the feedback he's getting regarding the situation in Gaza. He also offers thoughts on the worsening human
National Press Club member Tom Young has made a successful transition from journalism to fiction writing, leveraging his journalistic skills to craft compelling narratives. In the latest Update-1 episode, Young talks with Broadcast Podcast co-chair Adam Konowe about a new book he has coming out, "The Mapmaker," a World War II novel set within the French Resistance. Resistance fighters Charlotte and Phillippe, an American woman and a Frenchman, brave death or worse to evade the Gestapo and get critical information to the Allies. Young also talks about his career, beginning as a journalist and l
It will still be several months before the National Transportation Safety Board issues its final report as to the cause of January’s deadly midair collision between a passenger jet and a Black Hawk helicopter at Reagan National Airport. Sixty-seven people died in what was the deadliest U.S. plane crash in more than two decades. In this episode of Update-1, CNN aviation and transportation correspondent Pete Muntean, who reports from Reagan National on a regular basis, talks about what it was like covering that accident. In an interview with Broadcast Podcast team member Gemma Puglisi, Munteam,
Held on June 15 at the Aero-Club de France, this year's Aerospace Media Awards highlighted excellence in journalism across the industry. The event attracted approximately 200 attendees to celebrate the winners of 22 categories from best new journalist to three lifetime achievement winners. In this edition of Update-1, NPC Broadcast/Podcast Team Co-chair Adam Konowe interviews event organizer Peter Bradfield on the sidelines of the biennial Paris Air Show at Le Bourget Airport about honored journalists, corporate sponsors and the Defense Media Awards this fall in Washington, D.C.
Independent journalist and National Press Club member Miranda Spivack details the underreported rise in secret dealmaking between local governments and corporations and how these agreements are a threat to our health, safety and democracy in her new book that was just released. Spivack discusses "Backroom Deals in Our Backyards: How Government Secrecy Harms Our Communities and the Local Heroes Fighting Back" with Broadcast Podcast member Bill Loveless in the latest Update-1 podcast. They talk about "accidental activists" who combat secrecy around poisoned drinking water, dangerous roads, faili