The laws of capitalism have elevated the interests of the few above that of the many, but we can rewrite the code and restore balance to society. In this series, Professor Katharina Pistor (@Columbia Law School) breaks down the history, process, institutions, and participants...

60 min

This Land is Our Land: The Fight to Reclaim the Commons (2010)

For more than three decades, transnational corporations have been busy buying up what used to be known as the commons -- everything from our forests and our oceans to our broadcast airwaves and our most important intellectual and cultural works. In This Land is Our Land...

47 min

The Race for What’s Left: The Global Scramble for the World’s Last Resources (2013)

Renowned energy expert Michael T. Klare provides an invaluable account of the new and increasingly dangerous competition for the world's dwindling natural resources. Arguing that the world is facing an unprecedented crisis of resource depletion -- one that goes beyond "peak...

39 min

The Next American Revolution: Beyond Corporate Capitalism & State Socialism (2013)

While there's been no shortage of commentary about the structural crisis plaguing the American economic and political system, from wage stagnation and chronic unemployment to unchecked corporate and state power and growing inequality, analyses that offer practical...

47 min

The New Economics 101: True Wealth in the New Economy (2013)

Economist and bestselling author Juliet Schor lays out a positive vision for rethinking our relationship to consumer goods in this accessible and timely analysis of the devastating ecological, social, and personal costs of mass consumerism.

46 min

Dysfunctional Societies: How Equality Makes Societies Stronger (2015)

What distinguishing feature do the world's healthiest and happiest societies have in common? According to acclaimed author Richard Wilkinson, the answer is simple: they have far less income inequality than other societies. In this new film based on his international...

40 min

Jeremy Corbyn Destroys The Establishment

Corbyn sets the record straight.

8 min

Why There's No Such Thing as a Good Billionaire

Adam Conover breaks down why billionaire "charity" is terrible for the planet, and why we should stop swallowing their myths.

21 min

Capitalism Hits The Fan (2008)

With breathtaking clarity, renowned University of Massachusetts Economics Professor Richard Wolff breaks down the root causes of today's economic crisis, showing how it was decades in the making and in fact reflects seismic failures within the structures of American-style...

57 min

Growing Pains: the Ecological Cost of an Insatiable Economy (2019)

'Growing Pains' is the title for a short edit (47min) of the award-winning documentary 'System Error'. A look at the global and political obsession with economic growth and the ecological and humanitarian consequences.

47 min

We Need A Library Economy

The library has been a long-standing institution in our society, but what if we applied its philosophy more broadly? Let's imagine what it would mean to realize the possibilities of this proto-socialist concept and reintroduce free access to the commons through a library...

27 min

Liz Truss: The Oligarch's Prime Minister | George Monbiot

Welcome to Oligarch Island

11 min

Why Billionaires Won't Save Us

In this video essay, I look at why billionaires won't save us from climate change. Specifically, I look at how the elite philanthropy of Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos, and Elon Musk function as more of a billionaire preservation of wealth and self than as an act of altruism.

15 min

The American Dream and Other Fairy Tales (2022) (trailer)

Abigail Disney looks at America's dysfunctional and unequal economy and asks why the American Dream has worked for the wealthy, yet is a nightmare for people born with less.

3 min

Why Capitalism Cannot Be Redeemed

I have a very friendly relationship with Adam Bendell, who is very deeply involved in the world of impact investment and who has also been very interested in the work I am doing around gift economy. Over the years, he has come to events of mine and we have had some very...

Miki Kashtan

Why the Suburbs Are Terrible for Us (and the Planet)

In this video essay, I look at why the suburbs are so terrible for people and the planet. Specifically, I look at the racist history of the suburbs in the United States in order to understand how the suburbs came about. The suburbs have a dark history of white supremacy and...

18 min

How the Rich REALLY Cause Climate Change

In this video essay, I look at how the rich really cause climate change. Specifically, I look at how the focus on the richest people in the world's consumption habits (i.e. our obsession with Taylor Swift's jet emissions) distracts us from how they make their money in the...

21 min

Can Capitalism Solve World Hunger?

We're often told just how productive a capitalist economy is. We produce far more than we need...so why are there still so many hungry and malnourished people? In this episode we'll investigate the real cause of world hunger, and assess whether capitalism has the tools to...

19 min

How Capitalism Robs the Developing World

You've probably seen videos ask questions like "why is _____ so poor?" or "why are northern countries richer?" but most of them fail to grapple with the underlying causes of global inequality. In this week's video, we'll fix that. Come learn about what really causes so-called...

19 min

You Are Being Lied to About Inflation | Robert Reich

The underlying problem is not inflation. It’s corporate power. The entire American economy is concentrated into the hands of a few greedy, corporate giants with the power to raise prices.

5 min

Why Capitalism Loves Disasters

In this video essay, Our Changing Climate looks at why disaster capitalism exists and how it works. Specifically, they dive into the core principles behind disaster capitalism-- how crises are exploited to pass neoliberal policies, turn a profit, and privatize land and...

18 min

Why You're Not “Middle Class”

Fun fact, the vast majority of people see themselves as "middle class." That includes everyone from those making $20k per year all the way to those making millions of dollars per year. Surely they can't all be part of the same group, right? What's going on here? What is the...

17 min

Abby Martin’s Speech on US Sanctions & Economic Gangsterism

Abby's speech at the People’s Summit for Democracy, the progressive counter to Biden's imperialist ‘Summit of the Americas’ on June 9 2022.

13 min

Socialism for Absolute Beginners

You've probably heard the word "socialism" in the media. More often than not, it's used as a pejorative. Why is that? Is socialism really that bad, or is there something else going on? In this episode, we'll take a look at socialism at the very surface level. This video is...

25 min

A Healthy Economy Should be Designed to Thrive, Not Grow | Kate Raworth

What would a sustainable, universally beneficial economy look like? "Like a doughnut," says Oxford economist Kate Raworth. In a stellar, eye-opening talk, she explains how we can move countries out of the hole -- where people are falling short on life's essentials -- and...

16 min

What If We Just...Stopped Working?

Ever think about how the average person is orders of magnitude more productive than workers of the past, and yet our work week hasn't gotten any shorter? What's the deal? In this week's episode, we're looking at the idea of "work," and how it's been so thoroughly polluted by...

21 min

Hustle Culture Is Worse Than You Think

I tried "hustle culture" for 3 years, and then stopped. Here's what I've learned. - Struthless

12 min

LOCAL: A Story Of Hope

LOCAL: A Story Of Hope, examines the root causes of our social and environmental crises - the global economy - and proposes a call to action: “re-regulate the big and global – rebuild the small and local”. The controversial message is delivered by three strong voices - Helena...

8 min

How to Convert a Business into a Worker-Owned Cooperative

Cooperatives are a great way to bring democracy into the workplace. They can either be built from scratch or by converting existing businesses into worker-owned cooperatives. For retiring business owners as well as entrepreneurs, selling a business to employees is a way to...

Cat Johnson

Financial Crises and Socio-Economic Outlook in Three Documentaries

1- Requiem for the American Dream (2015)

Alpaslan Pasaoglu

Why Student Debt Is So Hard to Forgive

Americans are currently burdened with about 1.57 trillion dollars of student debt, and that number is climbing rapidly. For many, a lifetime of debt has become the painful reality of life in the United States. Why? What happened to make this country, and this economic system...

16 min

How Capitalism Destroys Radical Movements

Movements like Black Lives Matter often start out as radical demands for change, but somewhere along the way they get consumed, defanged, and turned into meaningless symbols. How does this happen?

20 min

The Pandora Papers: How the World of Offshore Finance is Still Flourishing (2021)

In a major international investigation, Four Corners reveals the secrets of the Pandora Papers.

43 min

Going Circular (2021)

Imagine a future where we mimic the genius of nature—to re-calibrate the way humankind lives, breathes, builds—respecting the limits of our resources and transforming the modern world. Going Circular unlocks the secrets to circularity, an innovative concept that could save...

88 min

GIFT (2018)

Inspired by Lewis Hyde’s beloved classic The Gift: Creativity and the Artist in the Modern World, GIFT is a richly cinematic film, interweaving character‐driven stories.

90 min

How American Workers Are Losing Billions

You've probably heard the term "wage theft" before, but do you know just how big a problem it is? In the US, wage theft dwarfs all other kinds of theft combined. Let's take a look at why this is happening and try to understand the underlying problems that enable it.

16 min

CASH-IN COP-OUT - The COP26 Glasgow Climate Summit (2021)

CASH-IN COP-OUT tells how Glasgow’s COP26 climate summit notched-up yet another year of talks that failed to find a solution to the climate emergency. Thousands converged at COP26 with polarised objectives. Businesses sought deals to cash-in from the climate crisis. Thousands...

12 min

The Myth Of Upward Mobility

In this video, Second Though revisits the idea of "meritocracy" and explores the misguided belief that the United States is anywhere close to a "fair competition" where everyone has "equal opportunity."

15 min

There's a Sickness at the Heart of British Democracy & It's Called Oligarchy | Peter Jukes

Tory Corruption is just the tip of the iceberg...

9 min

How Wealth Inequality Spiraled Out of Control | Robert Reich

The top 1% holds 15x more wealth than the bottom 50% combined. How did it get this way? Here's the full story of wealth inequality in America.

13 min

The Hypocrisy of Bailouts | Jon Stewart

Why are billion-dollar corporate bailouts the American status quo, but bailing out struggling people is a socialist nightmare? It's almost like the priorities of this country are a little skewed...

8 min

The Two Futures Of Automation: Capitalism VS Socialism

With jobs being automated and handed off to machines at an ever-increasing pace, it's only natural to consider what our future will look like. Will humans have more free time to spend with loved ones? More time to pursue hobbies and fulfilling activities? Or will the status...

19 min

How Capitalism Ruined Work

If you’re unemployed, it isn’t because there’s no work. There is, and always will be, work to be done. So...what's going on? Why are there so few meaningful jobs, and why are they getting replaced by alienating, meaningless labor?

19 min

Owned: A Tale of Two Americas (2019)

“Home ownership to me means freedom—strictly. The more and more I evaluate this world, the more and more I understand: when you don’t own anything, you are nothing.” That’s how Greg Butler, a young black house flipper, sums up his view of the American dream.

82 min

5 Key Things to Know About the Pandora Papers

These disclosures about how the world's wealthy and powerful hide their vast fortunes will hopefully turn up the heat on the politicians that maintain the wealth-hiding status quo.

Chuck Collins

Everything You Know about Poverty is Wrong | Rutger Bregman

Historian Rutger Bregman found a way to end poverty, obviously we had to ask him how!

6 min

The Myth Of The "Self-Made" Billionaire

It’s no secret that Americans love to hear about billionaires. You’ll find them everywhere. They’re on the news [Bezos space launch], have their own TV shows, movies, and even make their way to elected office. Specifically, we consistently give massive audiences to...

13 min

"Work Is An Intolerable Imprisonment" | J. Krishnamurti

In this video, Krishnamurti critiques our work culture and urges us to find out if we can free ourselves from the imprisonment that is a 9 to 5 job. Jiddu Krishnamurti, (born 1895, Madanapalle, India—died 1986, Ojai, Calif., U.S.), Indian spiritual leader.

11 min

A New Economy (2016)

What if working together for the good of all was the most common business model? Watch as several organizations strive towards building a more cooperative future. By putting humanity before the bottom line, they are finding their place in a new economy no longer dominated by...

85 min

Why Jeff Bezos’ Space Dream is Humanity's Nightmare | George Monbiot

“We would live under their total unmediated control”

12 min

Planned Obsolescence Sucks. Here's Why It Still Exists.

Why (and how) Planned Obsolescence and Capitalism make terrible products.

11 min

How We End Consumerism: The Degrowth Movement Shows a Way

How we end consumerism, explained.

12 min

Is Recycling Worth It Anymore? The Truth Is Complicated.

America produces more waste per capita than any other country in the world. And recycling, which was once considered the solution to that problem, isn’t really working anymore. Recycling works, but it’s not magic. As America continues to lead the world in per capita waste...

16 min

Is Capitalism Actually Efficient?

How many times have you heard the claim that capitalism is the most efficient system for the production and allocation of goods and services? It's a very common talking point in the "western world," especially in the United States. In this video, Second Thought deconstructs...

16 min

Why Plastic Pollution Is Even Worse Than You Think

"Plastic pollution, explained. In this Our Changing Climate video essay, I look at an aspect of plastic pollution that often is ignored in the face of plastic pollution in the ocean. While ocean plastic pollution is an important issue, plastic is actually a fossil fuel...

13 min

THE CON - Episode 1 of 5 (2021)

An in-depth investigation into the 2008 financial crisis nine years in the making. Through interviews with regulators, former officials, foreclosure victims, industry whistleblowers, and journalists, THE CON connects the dots to what America used to be and where we’re headed...

122 min

THE CON (2020) (trailer)

The American Dream Dies Where Power Lies From writer/director Eric Vaughan, producer Patrick Lovell and executive producer Adam Bronfman, The Con is an in-depth investigation into the 2008 financial crisis nine years in the making, Who did it, why it happened and how our...

3 min

How Capitalism is Killing Us (And The Planet)

"In this video essay, I look at why capitalism is killing us (and the planet) by causing climate change. Specifically, I look at how capitalism's multinationals like ExxonMobil and BP are responsible for increased emissions and ultimately the climate crisis we are living...

14 min

Strengthening Local Economies Worldwide - Helena Norberg-Hodge

Helena Norberg-Hodge, speaking live from Beyond The Great Reset: The Systems Change Summit, May 2021

49 min

Food Savers (2013) (trailer)

This follow-up to Valentin Thurn’s documentary, Taste the Waste, spotlights the people and companies throughout Europe who are working to salvage usable food. It is estimated that European households throw away 100 billion Euros worth of food each year. Thurn asks why is it...

4 min

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