On with Kara Swisher

Flock Safety, the company that makes the automated license plate reader (ALPR) cameras used by over 7,000 U.S. law enforcement agencies, is facing a public backlash against surveillance tech. Nearly half of Americans surveyed in an August poll said they opposed ALPRs. The opposition is part of a long-simmering mistrust of big tech and concerns over privacy and data security.

Kara speaks with a panel of experts about how the backlash to Flock and street surveillance cameras squares with the boom in wearable tech and AI-powered smart devices. Plus, they discuss – and question – the usual framing of a trade-off between privacy and security.

Jason Koebler is a co-founder of 404 Media. He and his colleagues have been reporting on Flock for the past few years.

Dr. Safiya Umoja Noble is the David O. Sears Presidential Endowed Chair of Social Sciences and Professor at the University of California, Los Angeles. She is the Director of the Center on Resilience & Digital Justice and is the recipient of a MacArthur “Genius Grant.” She’s also the author of Algorithms of Oppression: How Search Engines Reinforce Racism.

Victoria Song is a senior reviewer for The Verge and author of the Optimizer newsletter. She specializes in emerging technologies in wearables, health and fitness and XR.

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As ballots start to hit mailboxes ahead of the November midterms, Democrats are finally feeling some long-awaited electoral optimism. But to build a coalition that can defeat MAGA politics for good, the party will have to win back voters it's lost. In her new book, “How to Eat An Elephant,” Sarah Longwell, founder and publisher of The Bulwark, gives readers a blueprint to do just that.

In a live conversation recorded at Sixth & I in downtown Washington, D.C., Kara and Sarah talk about the hundreds of voter focus groups Sarah’s conducted since President Trump first won the White House a decade ago, how Trump convinced swing voters he was the “lesser of two evils” in 2024, and why she thinks Democrats need a stronger message on immigration. Sarah also offers her opinion on which Democrats are — and are not — best positioned to win the White House in 2028.

Questions? Comments? Email us at on@voxmedia.com or find us on YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Threads, and Bluesky @onwithkaraswisher.

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Ripple CEO Chris Larsen once told Kara he’d rather vomit blood out of his eyeballs than run for public office. But that doesn’t mean he won’t use his wealth to influence politics or install a Flock surveillance system that helps the San Francisco Police Department. The latter has some civil liberties advocates crying foul.

Kara presses Larsen on everything from surveillance, the AI arms race, cryptocurrency regulations, California's billionaire tax ballot measure, and the midterms. This conversation was recorded live at San Francisco’s Pier 27 as part of the Odoo Experience.
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Ahead of the midterms and what’s shaping up to be an intense political season, Kara speaks with the Democratic mayors of three cities dealing with some of the biggest issues facing the nation including affordability, housing, gerrymandering and immigration.

Mike Johnston is the first-term Mayor of Denver, Colorado. A former teacher, school principal and Colorado state senator, Mike is also a vice president of the Democratic Mayors Association.

Quinton Lucas is the Mayor of Kansas City, Missouri, currently in his second term. He’s also the youngest person elected to the role since 1855. An attorney and former city councilman, Quinton is the President of the Democratic Mayors Association.

Helena Moreno is the Mayor of New Orleans. She began her first term in office this year. Previously she served on the city council and as a Louisiana state legislator. Before getting into politics, she worked as a journalist. She’s the first Latina mayor of New Orleans and the city’s second woman mayor.

Questions? Comments? Email us at on@voxmedia.com or find us on YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Threads, and Bluesky @onwithkaraswisher.
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In his new book, “Money To Burn,” author and Puck journalist William Cohan traces the rise and fall of one of Wall Street’s most towering modern figures: billionaire Leon Black. His private equity and investment firm, Apollo, changed Wall Street, making Black enormously rich. He reached the highest rungs of New York society, but his ties to convicted sex criminal Jeffrey Epstein ultimately took him down.

Kara and Bill talk about how Black and Apollo ushered in a "new Wall Street" and the nature of Black's relationship with Epstein, which continued for almost a decade after Epstein's 2008 conviction for soliciting prostitution from a minor. They also break down some of the latest headlines in business and finance, including Meta’s $17 billion settlement and President Trump’s escalating trade war with Canada.

Questions? Comments? Email us at on@voxmedia.com or find us on YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Threads, and Bluesky @onwithkaraswisher.
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