"The Donkey and Elephant Show" can be found on Soundcloud and iTunes. The duo also post updates on Facebook and Twitter.
Editor's note: Todd Blevins used to write for news the Daily News
For some, opposing political views can be tricky to navigate. For two Ball State friends, it’s their way of providing entertainment.
Todd Blevins, a graduate student studying public administration, and Rich Usdowski, a Ball State alumnus, host a podcast they call "The Donkey and Elephant Show."
The two are politically opposed, Blevins is a democrat and Usdowski is a republican. They talk about current political events and also have topic-based discussions.
"The Donkey and Elephant Show" is recorded on Monday nights, usually in Bracken Library. This week's podcast will predict outcomes for Super Tuesday, the day in which many states hold their primary elections. The next one will feature the two analyzing the outcomes.
Blevins and Usdowski had tossed the idea around for about a year and decided to go through with making a podcast because of the upcoming 2016 election.
“We would always talk politics at dinner,” Blevins said. “We thought, 'Let’s at least make this constructive, have a medium for it.'”
So far, the show has covered the Iowa caucuses, politics in the media, Judge Scalia’s death, the Apple debate and healthcare. The two pick topics based on what they are interested in and what they think people want to hear, Usdowski said.
“There’s no shortage of things to talk about,” Usdowski said. “That’s the beauty of talking politics.”
Blevins said they don’t want the show to be genre specific, and they try to mix up their topics. The two also target listeners who aren’t politically savvy and explain what they’re talking about when they use political jargon, Blevins said.
Although they are political opposites, Blevins and Usdowski don’t just bicker the entire show. They don't agree on everything but listen and try to understand where the other person is coming from.
“We want to ... be able to give our own side and not jump over the table and strangle each other,” Usdowski said.
In fact, there are some topics the two have come to an agreement on, like the right to privacy in the Apple case. The two have found that on some topics, they both lean to the liberal side.
“There’s areas where, going into it, we both have agreement,” Blevins said. “Then it becomes explaining what [the topic] is, and all the different nuances of the situation.”
There is one thing Blevins and Usdowski can fully agree on: Donald Trump should not be president.
“Absolutely not,” Usdowski said. “Trump should not be president.”
Usdowski and Blevins aren’t worried about being short on topics once the election is over. They are looking into topics such as the first 100 days in office and any issues for which the new president is under scrutiny.
“It’ll be a transition from the election to whatever politics gives us,” Usdowski said.
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