CNA Talks: A National Security Podcast

Latest Episodes:

How Can Playing a Game Improve Police Officer Wellness? Apr 30, 2026

Show notes

This episode covers Balance, a learning game that helps law enforcement supervisors protect the emotional well-being of their officers.

Guest Biographies

Brittany Cunningham is an expert in scientific research and analysis and has more than a decade of experience designing, implementing and managing rigorous research studies and evaluations at the local, state and national level.

Geoff Smith is a former police chief and an expert on law enforcement and fire policies, operations and oversight. He has substantial expertise in technology, including deployment of in-car and body-worn camera systems, cell phone forensics, as well as active shooter training.

Further Reading

CNA—Balance: A Command Operations and Resilience Game

If you are interested in running Balance at your agency you can contact Brittany at Cunninghamb@cna.org.

How Can the US Strengthen, Improve, and Expand the DIB? Apr 15, 2026

Show notes

This episode explores CNA's Arsenal of Policy wargame, which is designed to explore opportunities to strengthen, improve, and expand the US defense industrial base (DIB).

Guest Biographies

Sarah Fusco is a specialist in international and non-traditional security threats. Her work focuses on emergent security challenges such as increasing partner capabilities in maritime security and domain awareness, countering violent extremism, and analyzing complex challenges through wargaming.

Kaia Haney is an expert in African security, specializing in strategic competition on the continent and the African security environment. She has played a leading role in CNA wargames on the defense industrial base and the African operational environment.

Further Reading

CNA Report—Arsenal of Policy: Defense Industrial Base Wargame Final Report

AI Tools in the Field of Criminal Justice Apr 01, 2026

Show notes

Experts discuss how AI tools can address challenges in the field of criminal justice and how these tools can be used ethically.

Guest Biographies

Vivian Elliot is the Director of CNA's Center for Justice Research and Innovation. She is an expert in criminal justice and emergency preparedness. She specializes in law enforcement organizational reform; after-action analysis; training and technical assistance; and exercise planning, facilitation and evaluation.

L. Cait Kanewske is a Research Scientist in CNA's Center for Justice Research and Innovation.

Who is Iran's New Supreme Leader? Mar 18, 2026

Show notes

Iran has a new Supreme Leader for the first time in almost 37 years, Mojtaba Khamenei. This episode explores his background, education, and ideology.

Guest Biographies

Michael Connell is an expert in Persian-Gulf security-related issues, the armed forces of Iran, U.S.-GCC security cooperation, and adversary cyber policy and strategy. He has served as CNA's Field Analyst to Naval Forces Central Command.

Further Reading

CNA Talks: Iran's Stability in the Aftermath of the Grand Bazaar Protests

CNA Report: The Evolving Russia-Iran Relationship

How Technology Has Shaped Four Years of War in Ukraine Mar 04, 2026

Show notes

This episode examines how the ubiquitous presence of drones in the Ukraine War has shaped the conflict.

Guest Biographies

Samuel Bendett (@sambendett) is an advisor with CNA's Russia Studies Program. His research focuses on Russian defense and technology developments; uncrewed, robotic and autonomous military systems; artificial intelligence; and Russian military capabilities.

Four Years of War in Ukraine Feb 18, 2026

Show notes

As we enter the fifth year of war in Ukraine, experts from CNA's Russia Studies program sit down to discuss what the war has revealed about the Russian way of war.

Guest Biographies

Dmitry Gorenburg is a Senior Research Scientist in CNA's Russia Studies Program. He is an expert on security issues in the former Soviet Union, the Russian military, Russian foreign policy, and ethnic politics and identity.

Michael Petersen is a principal research scientist in CNA's Russia Studies Program. He is an expert on Russian military strategy, operations, and net assessments of high-intensity conflict. From 2023-2024, he served as senior advisor to Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Lisa Franchetti.

Further Reading

CNA Report: Russia's Evolving Threat Perceptions Since 2022

Iran's Stability in the Aftermath of the Grand Bazaar Protests Feb 04, 2026

Show notes

This episode covers the most recent wave of protests in Iran, what they mean for the government's stability, and how US regional allies are responding.

Guest Biographies

Further Reading

CNA Talks: How Stable is Iran?

InDepth: Russia and China Respond—or Don't—to the 12-Day War in Iran

The Oreshnik Comes to Belarus Jan 21, 2026

Show notes

The Oreshnik Comes to Belarus

Belarus has become the latest stage for Russia's military ambitions, hosting the powerful Oreshnik missile system. We discuss the specifics of this missile system, and what this deployment means for NATO.

Guest Biographies

Decker Eveleth is an Associate Research Analyst with CNA's Countering Threats and Challenges Program. He specializes in open-source analysis.

Gabriela Iveliz Rosa-Hernandez is an Associate Research Analyst at the CNA Russia Studies Program. Her research centers on security orders, deterrence issues, and Russia's security policy, supplemented by her significant in-country experience living in Russia, Latvia, Estonia, Poland, and other countries in the region.

Further Reading

CNA Report: When Nuclear Weapons Return to Belarus: Evolving Concepts in Russian Escalation Strategy

Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists: The 'Zapad' exercise and how Lukashenko learned to love the Bomb

Reuters: Exclusive: Russia likely placing new hypersonic missiles at former airbase in Belarus, researchers find

Morse Code Success Stories Jan 07, 2026

Show notes

CNA is committed to using the latest technology to help us deliver for our sponsors. In this episode, we discuss how we are integrating our LLM, Morse Code, into our research process.

Guest Biographies

Dr. Jonathan Schroden is the Chief Research Officer within the Office of the President at the CNA Corporation. In this role, he oversees CNA's Research Office, including the life cycle of research quality excellence, our independent research program, research publications, editing, and support, human subjects research compliance, and research modernization and data governance.

Gregor Goodman is CNA's chief AI officer, acting as the end-to-end technology interlock between study sponsors and CNA on the largest high-impact projects. He works together with business and research leaders to build a technology partnership, ensuring that offered technical solutions deliver exceptional results for clients.

Erin Mohres is the managing director of CNA's Center for Homeland Security and Infrastructure Resilience.

Further Reading

CNA: AI Maturity Model for Government Agencies

Microsoft: CNA and Cloudforce deploy trusted AI to advance national security work

Rebroadcast: Drone as First Responder Programs Dec 31, 2025

Show notes

This episode discusses the benefits of drone as first responder (DFR) programs for police departments and public safety offices.

Guest Biographies

Officer J. "Matt" Rowland is a 20-year veteran of the Fort Wayne Police Department (FWPD) located in Fort Wayne, IN. He was a founding member of the FWPD Air Support Unit (ASU) in 2017. He spent 15 years in the Operations division and served 6 years during that time as a hostage negotiator. He is a certified instructor both in the classroom and emergency vehicle driving.

Todd Withers is a 34-year veteran of law enforcement with the last 28 years at the Beverly Hills Police Department. He is currently a Lieutenant in charge of the Real Time Watch Center and UAS/ Drone program. He holds a Master of Science Degree from California State University, Long Beach in Emergency Services Administration and is a certified FAA Part 107 UAS Pilot.

Don Redmond is a retired Chula Vista Police Captain with over 25 years in law enforcement and now serves as Vice President of Drone as First Responder (DFR) at BRINC Drones. He works with public safety agencies to advance drone technology, improve response times, and save lives. During his career, he was instrumental in developing Chula Vista PD's pioneering Drone as First Responder program, which has become a national model.

Dr. Tom Christoff is a Senior Research Scientist with CNA where he is responsible for leading projects involving local assessments, research, and developing technical assistance for agencies nationwide. Dr. Christoff recently served as a Project Director on a COPS Office project where he oversaw the development of a technology implementation guide and six case studies highlighting agencies using technology in innovative ways.

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