Portside

In this searing exposé on the state of democracy in America and the fracturing of the Republican Party, Academy Award®-nominated directors Carl Deal and Tia Lessin (Trouble the Water; co-producers of Fahrenheit 9/11 & Bowling for Columbine) follow the money behind the rise of the Tea Party. CITIZEN KOCH investigates the impact of unlimited, anonymous spending by corporations and billionaires on the electoral process, featuring stories of life-long Republicans whose loyalty is tested when their families become collateral damage in the GOP fight to take organized labor out at the knees. Alternately terrifying and funny, CITIZEN KOCH is an essential and powerful portrait of our political times.

John Lee Hooker and Bonnie Raitt perform "I'm In The Mood." From the DVD "John Lee Hooker & Friends 1984-92." More info here.

Letting cable companies set the terms for communicating over the Internet is like hiring a dingo as your babysitter. John Oliver explains the "net neutrality" controversy and lets viewers know how they can voice their displeasure to the FCC.

On May 24, a crowd of hundreds gathered to mark the renaming of a stretch of West 77th Street in New York City as Miles Davis Way. The remarkable jazz musician Davis, who would have been 88 this week, was a long-time resident of the block now being renamed in his honor. Here is a video of Davis performing So What? 

A video produced by the Half the Sky Movement. As Nicholas Kristof notes, "Ultimately, the greatest threat to extremism isn't drones firing missiles, but girls reading books." Read his full article on smart girls here.

An interview in memory of Maya Angelou (April 24, 1928 - May 28, 2014). 'If a human being dreams a great dream ... if a human being dares to be bigger than the condition into which she or he was born, it means so can you.' 

"Daddy I Do" examines Abstinence-Only Education versus Comprehensive Sex Education in America and its influence on the rates of teen pregnancies, abortions, and STDs, as well as poverty and sexual abuse. Directed by Cassie Jaye. Winner of the Best Documentary Award at the 2010 Cannes Independent Film Festival. DVD available here.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren's (D-Mass.) gives the keynote address at The New Populism Conference on May 22, sponsored by the Campaign for America's Future.