The Capitol Forum

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143

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Aug 2026

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About the show

Power in Washington isn't announced — it's revealed. The Capitol Forum brings you inside the policy discussions and corporate investigations that move markets and shape American life. Listen to Second Request with Teddy Downey for sharp, unfiltered analysis of antitrust policy in America. Then stay for TCF Investigates with Arjun Singh, a narrative documentary series bringing listeners inside the reporting, sources, and regulatory developments shaping markets and corporate strategy. ]]>

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60 recent

September 8, 202659 min

Lies, Loans and Lawsuits (Private Credit Crisis)

We're excited to introduce Private Credit Crisis, a new weekly podcast from The Capitol Forum examining the policy problems building inside the private credit industry. In this first episode, Executive Editor Teddy Downey and reporter Josh Kosman sit down with attorney Jim Woolery, who is bringing lawsuits on behalf of investors alleging that private equity firms have inflated the assets on their balance sheets and charged inflated management fees on those assets, even as their performance has deteriorated.

September 4, 202656 min

Streaming Is the New IP Battleground (Second Request)

When phone makers turned on Qualcomm, the company built an intricate, multi-front strategy to fight back. Now, two former employees say the same playbook is being run in streaming. Today on Second Request, Christie Thoene and Kirti Gupta sit down with executive editor Teddy Downey to revisit their years inside Qualcomm and explain how today's fights over streaming technology mirror the smartphone wars of the 2010s.

August 28, 202659 min

Meta's House of Cards (Second Request)

This week, Meta reached a multibillion-dollar settlement in federal court over allegations that it was aware of the harm its products could cause to teenage mental health. That may be the tip of the iceberg for Mark Zuckerberg's problems. Today on Second Request , Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with Julia Angwin to discuss how Meta's core business, Facebook, is failing, and how Zuckerberg's ambitions to become an AI giant have failed to materialize.

August 21, 202657 min

AI Needs to Nearly Triple Productivity to Pay Off (Second Request)

To earn the return on its investment, artificial intelligence will need to nearly triple productivity in the U.S. economy. So what will it do? Today on Second Request, Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with Jessica Wachter, the Dr. Bruce I. Jacobs Professor of Quantitative Finance at the Wharton School and a research associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research, to discuss her recent paper, "What Investment Data Implies About the AI Transition," co-authored with Jonathan Wachter.

August 14, 202634 min

Paramount's Long Odyssey to Own Warner Bros. (TCF Investigates)

The Ellison family has been on a quest to reshape American media and Hollywood — their next target: Warner Bros. Discovery, home of HBO Max and CNN. Today on TCF Investigates, Arjun Singh sits down with editors Jeff Bliss and Jim Oliphant to hear about The Capitol Forum's exclusive reporting on the states' merger trial, and why a state victory could be a paradigm shift for antitrust law.

August 14, 20261 hr 1 min

Alternative Protein vs Big Meat (Second Request)

Plant-based protein has become a mainstay in restaurants and household dinners, but as an emerging industry it's susceptible to the market power of major food companies. Today on Second Request, Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with Andy Fitch and Cynthia Hanawalt of Columbia Law School's Sabin Center for Climate Change Law to discuss how antitrust law could prevent the alternative protein industry from being eaten up by its biggest players.

August 7, 20261 hr 8 min

How Private Equity Could Create a New Financial Crisis (Second Request)

Millions of life insurance policies are tied to the fortunes and speculation of the world's biggest private equity companies. Now, their risk of defaulting on their obligations is increasing, and some worry it could lead to another financial crisis. Today on Second Request, Teddy Downey sits down with Andrew Granato , Assistant Professor at the University of Texas School of Law, and Pranjal Drall , a J.D.-Ph.D. candidate in Financial Economics at Yale University, to discuss their recent paper, "Private Credit's State Backstop: How Private Equity Socializes Risk Through Insurers."

July 31, 202659 min

The Emerging Antitrust Risks in Edge Computing (Second Request)

Waymo, Apple, Meta and Google have constructed ecosystems that have immense leverage over the global economy and infrastructure. So how should antitrust law tackle that? Today on Second Request , Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with J. Wyatt Fore to discuss the emerging antitrust risks in edge computing and AI.

July 24, 202659 min

Inside Uber's AI Strategy to Inflate Your Fare (Second Request)

Same ride, two different prices — that's the new reality facing Uber and Lyft passengers. Today on Second Request, Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with Derek Kravitz of Consumer Reports to talk about Kravitz's new reporting on how Uber and Lyft make use of algorithmic pricing to charge consumers different prices and inflate base costs.

July 22, 20261 hr 2 min

How Credit Card Swipe Fees Became Multibillion Dollar Tolls (Second Request)

Today on Second Request , Executive Editor Teddy Downey sits down with Carter Dougherty, senior fellow for anti-monopoly and finance at Demand Progress, who argues that Visa and Mastercard enable banks to coordinate pricing without ever explicitly agreeing to it — and makes the case for how the Credit Card Competition Act, ongoing antitrust litigation, and a more aggressive enforcement posture could finally break the duopoly's grip on the payments market.

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