More than half of American newspapers are now controlled by financial firms. And while media moguls wring more from smaller staffs to squeeze out bigger profits, journalism hangs in the balance. Two seasoned j-profs share their hopes for the news business in the 21st century.

Russia has packed more than 100,000 troops on the Ukrainian border, in a long-brewing conflict between the former Soviet superpower and its vulnerable neighbor. And across the region, freedom hangs in the balance, as Western powers mull over what leverage they still have.

Sayra is from Mexico. Alejandro from Bolivia. Their journeys are different but the limbo they’ve experienced growing up undocumented in America has shaped them in parallel ways. Also on this episode, American University law professor Amanda Frost reflects on how the hidden history of citizenship-stripping can inform naturalization policy in the present.

Fascism. Can a creeping enthusiasm for World War Two–era totalitarianism prevail in the 21st century? Yale philosopher Jason Stanley thinks so. Not only that, he says: democracies are especially susceptible to fascist ideals.