{"podcast":{"title":"The Steady State Sentinel","slug":"the-steady-state-sentinel-7636983","podcast_index_feed_id":7636983,"rss_url":"https://media.rss.com/the-steady-state-sentinel/feed.xml","website_url":"https://thesteadystate.org/","image_url":"https://media.rss.com/the-steady-state-sentinel/20260104_040107_01c26922c58f7914214377cb41ca643e.png","author":"The Steady State","episode_count":34,"summary":"The Steady State Sentinel is produced by The Steady State , a community of former national security professionals who spent their careers safeguarding the United States at home and abroad. Today, we continue that mission by staying true to our oaths to defend the Constitution, uphold democracy, and protect national security. Each episode features expert hosts in conversation with accomplished guests whose experience sheds light on the crises and challenges facing the nation. New episodes every Tuesday and subscribe on YouTube for the video editon.","last_synced_at":"2026-06-30T14:17:04.443410+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-steady-state-sentinel-7636983"},"episode":{"title":"Afraid to Speak, Afraid for Democracy: New Poll Finds Widespread Concern About Authoritarianism","slug":"afraid-to-speak-afraid-for-democracy-new-poll-finds-widespread-concern-about-authoritarianism","published_at":"2026-05-26T04:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-steady-state-sentinel-7636983/afraid-to-speak-afraid-for-democracy-new-poll-finds-widespread-concern-about-authoritarianism","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-steady-state-sentinel-7636983","url":"https://rss.com/podcasts/the-steady-state-sentinel/2850652","audio_url":"https://content.rss.com/episodes/362808/2850652/the-steady-state-sentinel/2026_05_22_20_47_04_06340b5b-ae00-40ba-b440-98fbca74ec76.mp3","summary":"A top pollster and an award-winning journalist break down who is self‑censoring, why Gen Z sees democracy differently, and whether the U.S. can reverse its authoritarian slide. Host Lauren C. Anderson, former senior FBI executive, sits down with pollster Stefan Hankin of Lincoln Park Strategies and journalist Joel Anderson of The Ringer and Slate ) to unpack a national poll released in March 2026. Key findings: 54% of Americans say they hesitate to express political views at work or online, or in their communities because they worry about the consequences, and 76% express some level of concern that the U.S. is moving toward a more authoritarian form of government. The conversation explores political self-censorship, pressure on First Amendment norms, erosion of the rule of law, and the silencing of critics and journalists. They discuss generational divides, including Gen Z’s higher confidence in democracy compared with Boomers the mainstreaming of slurs and hateful speech; and why rebuilding democratic guardrails will take years. Stefan shares how his mother’s memories of 1930’s Berlin shape his view of today’s warning signs, while Joel offers practical advice on rebuilding community through schools, churches, volunteer organizations, and local elections. Episode Transcript","meta_description":"A top pollster and an award-winning journalist break down who is self‑censoring, why Gen Z sees democracy differently, and whether the U.S. can reverse it…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":2466,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-steady-state-sentinel-7636983/episodes/afraid-to-speak-afraid-for-democracy-new-poll-finds-widespread-concern-about-authoritarianism/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-steady-state-sentinel-7636983/afraid-to-speak-afraid-for-democracy-new-poll-finds-widespread-concern-about-authoritarianism.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}