DC & Canada, Meta’s announcement, 2025 predictions, and the Gulf of America? | Ep. 1

Join hosts Conner Jones and Micah Tomasella in the inaugural episode of Culture Brief, a Denison Forum podcast, as they navigate through the latest news, politics, sports, entertainment, pop culture, and technology-all from a Christian perspective. This episode features an introduction to Denison Forum, discussions on U.S. and global political updates, including President Biden's final days and Justin Trudeau's resignation. They also cover the latest shifts in social media moderation by Meta, predictions for 2025, and a look ahead at upcoming sports events. Lastly, they remind listeners about the power of prayer and encourage responses through their mailbag segment.
Topics
• (01:08): What is Denison Forum?
• (03:17): Meet Micah
• (04:43): Meet Conner
• (05:55): Diving into Politics: Inauguration and Congress
• (08:40): Trump's Bold Moves and Announcements
• (13:42): Prayers and Reflections
• (16:08): Justin Trudeau's Resignation
• (21:29): Meta's Major Overhaul
• (24:55): Cultural Tipping Point and Free Speech
• (27:33): Prayers for Natural Disasters
• (28:15): Fun Predictions for the New Year
• (31:04): Masters and Movie Predictions
• (35:30): Wildcard Predictions for 2025
• (37:34): Mailbag and Listener Engagement
• (38:21): Upcoming Events and Football Schedule
Resources
• Mailbag: [e-mail] (mailto:[e-mail])
• DenisonForum.org/subscribe (denisonforum.or...)
• Gulf of America (x.com/atrupar/...)
• Panama & Greenland (x.com/atrupar/...)
• Trump warns ‘all hell will break out’ if Gaza hostages aren’t released before his inauguration | CNN Politics (www.cnn.com/20...)
• Trump says he will revoke Biden offshore drilling ban immediately | Reuters (www.reuters.co...)
• Donald Trump wins US presidency (www.denisonfor...)
• Trudeau says he's not the right choice to lead party in next election, promises to resign as PM | CBC News (www.cbc.ca/new...)
• (USD) Dollar Falls Most in Two Months on Report Trump to Limit Tariffs - Bloomberg (www.bloomberg....)
• Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau Says He Is Resigning: Live Updates - The New York Times (www.nytimes.co...)
• More Speech and Fewer Mistakes | Meta (about. n...)
• Elon Musk Is Positioning X Behind the New Trump Presidency (www.nytimes.co...)
• Meta to End Fact-Checking on Facebook, Instagram Ahead of Trump Term: Live Updates - The New York Times (www.nytimes.co...)
• Prediction: The Artificial Intelligence (AI) Bubble Will Burst in 2025. Here's Why. | The Motley Fool (www.fool.com/i...) .
• Former President Jimmy Carter dies at age 100 (www.denisonfor...)
About Micah Tomasella
Micah Tomasella is the Advancement Officer at Denison Ministries and co-hosts Denison Forum's "Culture Brief" podcast. A graduate of Dallas Baptist University, Micah is married to Emily, and together they are the proud parents of two daughters. With an extensive background in nonprofit work, finance, and real estate, Micah also brings experience from his years in pastoral church ministry.
About Conner Jones
Conner is the Director of Performance Marketing at Denison Ministries and Co-Hosts Denison Forum's "Culture Brief" podcast. He graduated from Dallas Baptist University in 2019 with a degree in Business Management. Conner passionately follows politics, sports, pop-culture, entertainment, and current events. He enjoys fishing, movie-going, and traveling the world with his wife and son.
About Denison Forum
Denison Forum (www.denisonfor...) exists to thoughtfully engage the issues of the day from a biblical perspective through The Daily Article email newsletter (www.denisonfor...) and podcast (www.denisonfor...) , The Denison Forum Podcast (www.denisonfor...) , as well as many books (www.denisonfor...) and additional resources.