Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Follow Us:
Top Stories

Jazz as a metaphor for Democracy

Jazz great teaches kids about sound of democracy

Famed trumpeter Wynton Marsalis sees jazz music as the perfect metaphor for democracy.

"The question that confronts us right now as a nation is, 'Do we want to find a better way?'" Marsalis says.


To understand what democracy and jazz have in common and to see how music can engage a new generation of Americans to appreciate the democracy we all love, watch this short video:

There are so many examples of how music and the arts are connected to democracy. In the coming days and months, we will present many more to you. However, the heart of music is the interplay between the entertainer and the audience. So please engage.

Please email us at pop-culture@fulcrum.us and tell us other examples that you think represent the connection between the arts and democracy. Whether music, theater, poetry, comedy or other mediums, please send us your ideas.

Thank you.


Read More

Bad Bunny Super Bowl Clash Deepens America’s Cultural Divide

Bad Bunny performs on stage during the Debí Tirar Más Fotos world tour at Estadio GNP Seguros on December 11, 2025 in Mexico City, Mexico.

(Photo by Emma McIntyre/Getty Images)

Bad Bunny Super Bowl Clash Deepens America’s Cultural Divide

On Monday, January 26th, I published a column in the Fulcrum called Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl Halftime Show Sparks National Controversy As Trump Announces Boycott. At the time, I believed I had covered the entire political and cultural storm around Bad Bunny’s upcoming Super Bowl performance.

I was mistaken. In the days since, the reaction has only grown stronger, and something deeper has become clear. This is no longer just a debate about a halftime show. It is turning into a question of who belongs in America’s cultural imagination.

Keep ReadingShow less
Independent film captures Latino immigrant life in Wisconsin

Miguel (David Duran) in an ice fishing tent with a strange local, Carl (Ritchie Gordon)/ Nathan Deming

Photo Provided

Independent film captures Latino immigrant life in Wisconsin

Wisconsin filmmaker Nathan Deming said his independent film February is part of a long-term project to document life in Wisconsin through a series of standalone fictional stories, each tied to a month of the year.

Deming said the project is intentionally slow-moving and structured to explore different perspectives rather than follow a single narrative. He said each film functions on its own while contributing to a larger portrait of the state.

Keep ReadingShow less
Hollywood Gets Congress Wrong—and It’s Costing America Trust in Democracy

Hollywood sign and The Capitol

AI generated picture

Hollywood Gets Congress Wrong—and It’s Costing America Trust in Democracy

The following article is excerpted from "Citizen’s Handbook for Influencing Elected Officials."

Since the 1970s, public trust in American institutions—including Congress—has steadily declined. Approval ratings for the House and Senate usually hover in the teens. Certainly, some misdeeds by our elected leaders have contributed to this decline, and mainstream national media can claim its fair share of “credit” in portraying Congress in a negative light. Yet another major ingredient in the ugly formula poisoning public opinion of Congress is Hollywood. Movies and TV shows routinely portray Congress as craven, corrupt, selfish, and completely indifferent to the public interest. Regrettably, this is a wholly incorrect portrayal of our nation’s legislators.

Keep ReadingShow less