LSE: The Ballpark | Might unmakes right with Professor Oona Hathaway
Contributor(s): Chris Gilson, Oona Hathaway | In an article in the July/August edition of Foreign Affairs magazine, “Might Unmakes Right: The Catastrophic Collapse of Norms Against the Use of Force”, Oona Hathaway and Scott Shapiro look at the history of the prohibition of the use of force between states and discuss what they see as the current assault on this prohibition.
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LSE: The Ballpark | The US’ changing relationship with NATO and Europe with Dr Celeste Wallander
Contributor(s): Chris Gilson, Celeste Wallander | In an article in the latest issue of Foreign Affairs, “Beware the Europe You Wish For, The Downsides and Dangers of Allied Independence”, former US Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs, Celeste Wallander, wrote on the potential downsides of Europe spending more on its own defense for the transatlantic alliance and for American foreign policy leadership.
To discuss her article, In July 2025 the Phelan US Centre spoke to Dr Celeste Wallander, Executive Director of Penn Washington. They spoke about NATO members’ greater investment in defence, the connection between defence strategy and global influence and the future of US-European relations.
This episode was produced by Chris Gilson and Luke Digweed.
Further reading and resources
“Beware the Europe You Wish For, The Downsides and Dangers of Allied Independence” Celeste Wallander, Foreign Affairs, 24 June 2025
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LSE: The Ballpark | The Administrative State with Professor Kimberley S. Johnson
Contributor(s): Chris Gilson, Kimberley S. Johnson | In July 2025 the Phelan US Centre spoke to Professor Kimberley S. Johnson, Professor of Social and Cultural Analysis at New York University and the John G. Winant Visiting Professor of American Government at the University of Oxford, about the recent history of the US administrative state and racial representation in the US government and administration They also discussed the second Trump administration’s moves to dismantle Diversity, Equity and Inclusion measures in the US government as part of Project 2025.
This episode was produced by Chris Gilson and Luke Digweed.
Further reading and resources
Dark Concrete: Black Power Urbanism and the American Metropolis by Professor Kimberley S. Johnson (Cornell University Press, 2025) – to be published on 15 December 2025
Reforming Jim Crow: Southern Politics and State in the Age Before Brown by Professor Kimberley S. Johnson (Oxford University Press, 2010)
Governing the American State: Congress and the New Federalism, 1877-1929 by Professor Kimberley S. Johnson (Princeton University Press, 2007)
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LSE: The Ballpark | Deemphasizing Nuclear Weapons in Nuclear Deterrence with Dr Lauren Sukin
Contributor(s): Chris Gilson, Dr Lauren Sukin | In response to what the US sees as potential growing threats from China and North Korea, nuclear weapons are becoming a more and more important part of US alliance commitments and partnerships in East Asia. But what does this focus on nuclear weapons for both deterrence and reassurance mean for US foreign policy and for the security of the region? And could there be an alternative which puts a greater focus on conventional armed forces?
To discuss these topics, in June 2025 the Phelan US Centre spoke to Dr Lauren Sukin about her recent article, in the Journal for Peace and Nuclear Disarmament, with Samuel Seitz of MIT, “Deemphasizing Nuclear Weapons in Nuclear Deterrence: The Case for Conventional Counterforce”. Dr Sukin is Assistant Professor in LSE’s Department of International Relations and a Centre Affiliate at the LSE Phelan US Centre.
Further reading and resources
Seitz, S. and Sukin, L. (2025). Deemphasizing Nuclear Weapons in Nuclear Deterrence: The Case for Conventional Counterforce. Journal for Peace and Nuclear Disarmament, [online] 8(1), pp.15–35.
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LSE: The Ballpark | The US-China AI race with Professor Angela Zhang
Contributor(s): Chris Gilson, Angela Zhang | In January 2025, the release of a new model and chatbot by Chinese artificial intelligence (AI) company, DeepSeek, sent shockwaves through the tech industry in the US and elsewhere. DeepSeek’s launch was only one milestone in the ongoing AI competition between China and the US which has seen the US try to restrict the exports of key components used in AI development to other countries.
In the second episode of The Ballpark’s miniseries on AI and the US, the Phelan US Centre explored the ongoing AI competition between China and the US with Angela Zhang, Professor of Law at the Gould School of Law of the University of Southern California. Professor Zhang is an expert on AI regulation, both in China and globally.
They spoke about China’s current approach to AI regulation, and how this compares with the US, and why China may be content with being a “close second” in the AI race.
Further reading and resources
High Wire: How China Regulates Big Tech and Governs Its Economy by Angela Huyue Zhang (Oxford University Press, 2024)
The Promise and Perils of China’s Regulation of Artificial Intelligence, Columbia Journal of Transnational Law, 21 January 2025
The Ballpark is the LSE Phelan US Centre's regular podcast on the politics and policy of the United States. Through features and interviews with academics from the LSE and elsewhere, The Ballpark looks more closely into what's going on behind the headlines.
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