Politicology Creators & Guests

Ron Steslow is the creator and host of Politicology, a podcast pursuing a deeper understanding of who we are, how we got here, what we are really fighting each other about, and, most importantly, how we rebuild our democracy without repeating the mistakes of the past. Politicology differentiates itself by expanding what we think politics is, and what our individual role is in it by bringing in academics, behavioral economists, social psychologists, philosophers, scientists, journalists, poets, and many others who show the interdisciplinary nature of our politics.Steslow spent nearly two decades in high-stakes electoral politics and left the Republican Party as political extremism on the right reared a fever pitch in 2016. In 2020, Steslow was named one of Fortune Magazine’s Top 40 Under 40 in Government and Politics.Steslow co-founded The Lincoln Project and led its marketing efforts to defeat Donald Trump in the 2020 presidential election. He created and hosted the Lincoln Project Podcast, which debuted at #7 on the Apple Podcast charts and included guests like Sen. Doug Jones, Carly Fiorina, Congressman Beto O’Rourke, Anne Applebaum, Israel Gutierrez, and Mary Trump.When Steslow worked as a political professional, he blended high-level political and advocacy strategy, message development, brand management and integrated marketing for many of the biggest names in national politics: presidential candidates, U.S. senators, representatives and governors, as well as issue advocacy groups, media organizations and startups.

Nick Troiano is a civic entrepreneur based in Denver, CO. He is the Executive Director of Unite America, a national organization that works to bridge the growing partisan divide by enacting political reforms and electing candidates who put people over party.Nick is active in leading efforts and supporting organizations that are aimed at strengthening American democracy and tackling our country's most pressing challenges. Previously, Nick worked for Change.org on Change Politics – a non-partisan platform that empowers citizens to make informed decisions on Election Day. In 2016, he was named to the "Forbes 30 Under 30" for Law & Policy.Nick ran for the U.S. House of Representatives in 2014 from Pennsylvania’s 10th District and drew national attention as both the youngest candidate and the most successful independent of the cycle, garnering over 22,000 votes. In 2012, Nick co-founded The Can Kicks Back campaign to advocate for bipartisan policies to reduce the national debt and was instrumental in the introduction of the INFORM Act to increase transparency in the federal budget. Previously, he served as National Campus Director for Americans Elect where he organized and supported student groups at over 300 colleges nationwide.

Alua Arthur is a death doula and the founder of Going With Grace.

Justin Zorn is an author at HarperCollins and a Partner at Astrea Strategies.

Nina Schick is a broadcaster, and author of the book Deep Fakes & the Infocalypse.

Sasha Issenberg is a journalist for Monocle, and author of The Engagement.

Richard Reeves is a Senior Fellow of Economic Studies.

Jennifer Horn is a politician. She was a two-time challenger for New Hampshire's 2nd congressional district.

Beth Fukumoto is a politician, speaker, writer, and former member of the Hawaii State House.

Kashmir Hill is a journalist who writes about technology and privacy for the Special Project Desk at Gizmodo Media Group.