IDEA Speaker Series

Click on the videos and article links below to learn about the unique speakers IDEA brings to the Annenberg campus.


Conversation with Issa Rae

As part of the USC Annenberg-HBO Diverse Voices Forum, creator, writer and star of her own HBO series Insecure, Issa Rae sat down for a conversation with IDEA Director Taj Frazier. Watch the full conversation on Facebook or read more here


Conversation with David Simon

As part of the USC Annenberg-HBO Diverse Voices Forum, journalist, writer and producer David Simon sat down for a conversation with IDEA Director Taj Frazier. Read more here


Conversation with LZ Granderson

IDEA hosted a conversation with LZ Granderson, an award-winning commentator/journalist, that was moderated by Annenberg graduate student Courtney Cox.


Electric Arches with Eve Ewing

IDEA hosted poet, writer and scholar Eve Ewing to read from her new book of poetry, Electric Arches, and discuss the entanglement of art, activism and scholarship in her work.


Fashioning Change and Changing Fashion

As part of the series Fashioning Change and Changing Fashion, IDEA co-director Alison Trope explores the fashion industry’s take on race, sustainability and activism. Read more about the series here or explore the programming below.

  • Rethinking the runway: Race in the fashion industry ft. Bethann Hardison, Kimora Lee Simmons, Ebonee Davis, and Julee Wilson Bethann Hardison, Kimora Lee Simmons, Ebonee Davis, and Julee Wilson: Watch the full discussion here.
  • Race and Gender in Fashion and TV with Bethann Hardison and Mara Brock Akil: Watch the full discussion here.

When Women Disrupt

IDEA brought an intersectional feminist artist collective WHEN WOMEN DISRUPT (composed of Jessica Sabogal, Tatyana Fazlalizadeh and Melinda James) to campus to collaborate with students from the “Women: Designing Media for Social Change” class. Read more here


Voices of South LA

Under the banner of USC’s Visions & Voices, IDEA’s “Voices of South LA” looks to deepen the USC community's understanding of its neighbors through a series of critical engagements and carefully crafted cultural encounters. Read more here.