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Did We Get The Dystopia We Were Promised?

Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.
In March, the mayor of Reggio Calabria, Italy, admonished his constituents that, "This is not a film. You are not Will Smith in 'I Am Legend.' "

Three years ago, we did a show where we asked which fictional dystopian future we were actually already living in. Now that we've arrived at, ya know, this present moment, that show has been on our minds. But we've realized we've got a new set of questions now too.

After all the dystopian and apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction there's been over the past couple decades -- and there's been KIND OF A LOT, right? -- has any of it actually prepared us for our very present, very current, actual nonfiction dystopia?

Well, mostly no. But some of it just may have.

And then: What exactly is dystopian fiction going to look like after this is all over?

GUESTS:

  • Naomi Kritzer - A science fiction and fantasy writer; she wrote "So Much Cooking" in 2015, and her novel Catfishing on CatNet just won the Edgar Award for Best Young Adult Novel
  • Laurie Penny - An author, columnist, journalist, and screenwriter
  • Ben Winters - The author of ten novels; his new collection of short stories, Inside Jobs: Tales from a Time of Quarantine, is out tomorrow as an Audible original

Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter.

Colin McEnroe and Cat Pastor contributed to this show.

Jonathan is a producer for ‘The Colin McEnroe Show.’ His work has been heard nationally on NPR and locally on Connecticut Public’s talk shows and news magazines. He’s as likely to host a podcast on minor league baseball as he is to cover a presidential debate almost by accident. Jonathan can be reached at jmcnicol@ctpublic.org.

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SOMOS CONNECTICUT is an initiative from Connecticut Public, the state’s local NPR and PBS station, to elevate Latino stories and expand programming that uplifts and informs our Latino communities. Visit CTPublic.org/latino for more stories and resources. For updates, sign up for the SOMOS CONNECTICUT newsletter at ctpublic.org/newsletters.

SOMOS CONNECTICUT es una iniciativa de Connecticut Public, la emisora local de NPR y PBS del estado, que busca elevar nuestras historias latinas y expandir programación que alza y informa nuestras comunidades latinas locales. Visita CTPublic.org/latino para más reportajes y recursos. Para noticias, suscríbase a nuestro boletín informativo en ctpublic.org/newsletters.

The independent journalism and non-commercial programming you rely on every day is in danger.

If you’re reading this, you believe in trusted journalism and in learning without paywalls. You value access to educational content kids love and enriching cultural programming.

Now all of that is at risk.

Federal funding for public media is under threat and if it goes, the impact to our communities will be devastating.

Together, we can defend it. It’s time to protect what matters.

Your voice has protected public media before. Now, it’s needed again. Learn how you can protect the news and programming you depend on.

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