Alle afleveringen
87 afleveringen, van nieuw naar oud
-
Mamdani’s Victory Is Less Significant Than You Think
5 november 2025 · 5 min
Does Zohran Mamdani’s win mean a new dawn for the Democratic Party? Not exactly, Ross Douthat argues. In this mini-episode of “Interesting Times,” Ross explains that the New York mayor’s office has historically been a “springboard to nowhere,” rather than a precursor for national politics. Lees meer
(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.)
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com. Please subscribe to our YouTube Channel, Interesting Times with Ross Douthat.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
What Palantir Sees
30 oktober 2025 · 58 min
Who’s afraid of Palantir? The company’s chief technology officer, Shyam Sankar, joins Ross Douthat for a conversation about what the shadowy company actually does — and the thorny political and ethical questions it faces. They also discuss the new era of collaboration between Silicon Valley and the military, a personal project for Sankar, who was recently commissioned as a lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army Reserve. Lees meer
01:37 - So, what does Palantir do?
07:45 - The “kill chain”
13:27 - The tech company’s relationship with I.C.E.
18:09 - What happens to privacy?
25:30 - Palantir and Israel
27:22 - Sankar’s personal military journey
34:43 - Silicon Valley’s militarization
43:09 - TITAN, A.I. and the “Iron Man” suit
(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.)
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com. Please subscribe to our YouTube Channel, Interesting Times with Ross Douthat.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
Taylor Swift’s Trad Turn
29 oktober 2025 · 4 min
Is Taylor Swift’s “The Life of a Showgirl” the soundtrack for the Trump era? Self-titled “conservative dad” Ross Douthat thinks so, and explains why in this mini-episode of “Interesting Times. Lees meer
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com. Please subscribe to our YouTube Channel, Interesting Times with Ross Douthat.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
The Next Economic Bubble Is Here
23 oktober 2025 · 53 min
Is the artificial intelligence revolution keeping the entire economy afloat? This week on “Interesting Times,” Ross talks with Jason Furman, an economist from the Harvard Kennedy School and a contributing writer for Times Opinion, about how investors, policymakers and consumers should think about the boom — and potential bust — of the fastest growing segment of the American economy and look to past bubbles for answers. Lees meer
01:12 - Okay, so are we in a bubble?
08:51 - Historical comparisons of past bubbles
12:45 - The case for an A.I. bubble
22:07 - The case against an A.I. bubble
29:44 - What if it bursts?
34:15 - The economic health of the Trump administration
45:08 - “I'm reasonably optimistic.”
(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.)
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com. Please subscribe to our YouTube Channel, Interesting Times with Ross Douthat.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
Amy Coney Barrett Is Looking Beyond the Trump Era
16 oktober 2025 · 1 uur 4 min
Justice Amy Coney Barrett is playing the long game. In this week’s “Interesting Times,” she walks us through the current court’s most controversial rulings, why she believes that her originalist interpretations are resistant to ideological pressures and why she’s not comfortable thinking of herself as a cultural icon. Lees meer
02:19 - Balancing the personal and the professional
11:45 - The theory and practice of originalism
18:00 - Why was Roe. v. Wade overruled?
27:19 - Stare Decisis and Overruling Decisions
35:29 - “Judges are human and judges are fallible.”
42:49 - The Supreme Court is taking the long view
53:20 - The Court's relationship with the executive branch
(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.)
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com. Please subscribe to our YouTube Channel, Interesting Times with Ross Douthat.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
He Believes America Should Be a Theocracy. He Says His Influence Is Growing.
9 oktober 2025 · 1 uur 15 min
Evangelical pastor and self-proclaimed Christian nationalist Doug Wilson has been preaching for decades that America needs to reclaim its Puritan past. But in 2025, he believes he’s “significantly” more influential. Does that mean America is closer to Wilson’s goal of theocracy? In this episode, nothing is off limits — even Ross’s own salvation. Lees meer
01:36 - Doug Wilson's vision for a Christian nation
08:37 - Wilson’s ideal theocratic republic
19:12 - Theocracy and religious diversity
30:50 - Do women have rights in this new republic?
36:59 - Christendom and slavery
46:50 - How far does Wilson’s influence go in a “clown world”?
59:54 - Calvinism activism and quietism
(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.)
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com. Please subscribe to our YouTube Channel, Interesting Times with Ross Douthat.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
Hasan Piker Is Flirting With the Revolution
2 oktober 2025 · 1 uur 13 min
The Twitch and YouTube star Hasan Piker understands what pushes people to commit acts of political violence. But does that understanding tip over into appreciation? In this episode of “Interesting Times,” Ross Douthat and Piker debate why Piker’s post-liberal rhetoric attracts criticism from the right (and results in the occasional platform suspension) and why Americans’ changing attitudes on Israel feed his “revolutionary optimism.” Lees meer
02:14 - Life during and after Twitch
10:45 - The Hasan Piker worldview
15:57 - “Revolutionary violence”
20:13 - Is it hyperbole or incitement?
30:48 - Hasan’s Luigi Mangione coverage
41:35 - The danger in pushing taboos
51:52 - Anti-Zionist advocacy and Hasan’s Turkish background
1:08:00 - “Revolutionary optimism”
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com. Please subscribe to our YouTube Channel, Interesting Times with Ross Douthat.
A full transcript of this episode is also available on the Times website.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
The Grand Strategy Behind Trump’s Crackdown on Academia
25 september 2025 · 59 min
What is wrong with higher education in America? According to many on the right, a lot. This week, Ross Douthat talks to May Mailman, the lawyer behind President Trump’s battles with Harvard and Columbia, about the administration’s assault on the Ivy League and why “a glorification of victimhood” is changing the relationship between universities and the federal government. Lees meer
02:51 - What is a “culture of victimhood”?
07:38 - Mailman’s political awakening
11:44 - Social media and protest culture in the 2010s
19:39 - The Trump administration’s strategy against universities
26:33 - The financial levers that could ensure compliance
36:09 - Ideological diversity and free speech
47:56 - How legal is all this?
52:25 - Higher education in 2030
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com. Please subscribe to our YouTube Channel, Interesting Times with Ross Douthat.
A full transcript of this episode is also available on the Times website.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
Ezra Klein Is Worried — but Not About a Radicalized Left
18 september 2025 · 48 min
Ezra Klein argues that the left desperately needs a unifying project — for its own survival and for the sake of the country. In this episode of Ross Douthat’s “Interesting Times,” Ross and Ezra assess the aftermath of Charlie Kirk’s assassination and debate whether the left has taken a dark turn. Lees meer
00:25 How liberalism became “uncertain and exhausted”
08:37 The void in the Democratic Party
12:21 Does progressive despair lead to radicalism?
15:04 “Violence is contagious"
19:24 Can the left be more malleable?
28:20 The hippies, Peter Thiel and technology
32:11 Does the American left need cosmic hope?
41:59 A vision of the “good life”
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com. Please subscribe to our YouTube Channel, Interesting Times with Ross Douthat.
A full transcript of this episode is also available on the Times website.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
I was set to interview Charlie Kirk. Then he was assassinated.
11 september 2025 · 8 min
In moments of political shock and horror, where can we turn? Ross was supposed to interview Charlie Kirk next month for the show and now offers his reflections on Kirk, his political movement and his assassination. Lees meer
(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.)
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com. Please subscribe to our YouTube Channel, Interesting Times with Ross Douthat.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
Does the Future Belong to China?
4 september 2025 · 1 uur 5 min
Is the United States still a worthy opponent for China? In this episode, Ross Douthat talks to Dan Wang, the author of “Breakneck: China’s Quest to Engineer the Future,” about the alarming speed at which China is able to build and could blow America out of the water. Lees meer
01:44 - “A life full of ease and beauty”
05:30 - Rule by engineers
11:00 - China’s Technological Mastery
16:04 - Is autocracy driving innovation?
25:00 - What are the real stakes of the competition?
35:47 - How could China fail?
53:00 - Advice for America
(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.)
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com. Please subscribe to our YouTube Channel, Interesting Times with Ross Douthat.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
The MAGA Woman Dress Code
28 augustus 2025 · 20 min
While “Interesting Times” is on vacation, we’re sharing a conversation from “The Opinions” between Meher Ahmad, an editor for Times Opinion, and the Opinion writer Jessica Grose. They talk about the aesthetics of MAGA women — think Kristi Noem and Nancy Mace — and what they signal about femininity and power within the Republican Party. Lees meer
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com. Please subscribe to our YouTube Channel, Interesting Times with Ross Douthat.
A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
Ross and Ezra Klein Discuss Trump, Mysticism and Psychedelics
21 augustus 2025 · 1 uur 36 min
This week, we’re sharing a great conversation Ross had on “The Ezra Klein Show” this past spring. Ezra asks Ross about his most recent book, “Believe: Why Everyone Should Be Religious.” But along the way, they debate not just how religion influences the Trump administration but also their own lives. Come for their seeking and stay for their thoughts on ayahuasca and mystical encounters. Lees meer
02:39 - Trump: man of destiny?
19:55 - Political power, cruelty and Godliness
36:13 - Religion and spirituality in the modern world
42:53 - The mysteries of the universe…
48:38 - Aliens! Fairies! (and some Catholic history)
56:51 - Contending with uncertainty and evil
1:05:24 - Psychedelic experiences
1:20:56 - Official knowledge
1:38:58 - Book recommendations
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com. Please subscribe to our YouTube Channel, Interesting Times with Ross Douthat.
A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
Abolish the Senate. End the Electoral College. Pack the Court.
14 augustus 2025 · 56 min
For Democrats, President Trump’s victories have revealed the antidemocratic flaws at the core of our government. But could it be an opening for a constitutional revolution as the party searches for its next leader? Lees meer
This week, Ross explores what that revolution would entail with Osita Nwanevu, the author of the book, “The Right of the People: Democracy and the Case for a New American Founding.”
3:46 - What's wrong with our democracy?
9:07 - Our undemocratic founding
17:00 - The case for more U.S. states and a new constitution
23:52 - Where economic reform fits into this problem
29:26 - Does Trump represent the will of the people?
37:17 - What Trump’s presidency says about democracy
40:30 - The elusive Bernie Sanders moment
46:29 - The mystical element of our politicsThoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com. Please subscribe to our YouTube Channel, Interesting Times with Ross Douthat.
A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
The Next Parenting Trend Starts Before Conception
7 augustus 2025 · 1 uur 3 min
Would you use an algorithm to select your embryos? Enter Orchid, a company that promises parents the ability to protect their future children through genetic testing for embryos before pregnancy. The founder, Noor Siddiqui, and Ross debate the scientific, moral and ethical implications of designing a “healthy” child and what we lose in separating reproduction from sex. Lees meer
01:27 - Orchid’s vision
04:59- The process and benefits
17:20 - Noor explains why Orchid was developed
22:00- Criticism and skepticism around genetic screening
36:21 - Does IVF need to change?
44:00 - “The moral status of the embryo”
53:36 - How does this technology change us?
(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.)
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com. Please subscribe to our YouTube Channel, Interesting Times with Ross Douthat.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
The DOGE Alum Asking if Foreign Aid Is America’s Problem
31 juli 2025 · 48 min
Does America have a moral obligation to the world? The former Department of Government Efficiency staffer Jeremy Lewin, now deputy administrator for the United States Agency for International Development, explains how he is implementing President Trump’s foreign aid philosophy and what it means for humanitarian assistance going forward. Lees meer
01:59 - From the private sector to interviewing with Elon Musk
09:18 - The rapid restructuring of U.S.A.I.D.
19:44 - Lewin’s critiques of U.S.A.I.D.’s focus
25:15 - The most controversial cuts: humanitarian aid
29:50 - America’s interests first, values-based interests second
40:14 - What is the future vision for foreign aid?
(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.)
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com. Please subscribe to our YouTube Channel, Interesting Times with Ross Douthat.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
What if the Government Believes in U.F.O.s More Than You Do?
24 juli 2025 · 1 uur
U.F.O.s, fairies and abductions! This week, Ross talks to Diana Walsh Pasulka, a professor of religious studies, about how a deep dive into Catholic archives led her down a path to unravel the connections between religion, extraterrestrial encounters and government secrecy. Lees meer
01:53 - How Pasulka’s religious studies led to the U.F.O. debate
06:08 - Modern U.F.O. encounters and telepathic communication
13:29 - What are the actual beliefs of the U.F.O. community?
19:28 - Whistleblowers and government contradictions
31:35 - Angels, demons and “actual things in the sky”
45:38 - Disclosure
52:51 - “Amazing.”
(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.)
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com. Please subscribe to our YouTube Channel, Interesting Times with Ross Douthat.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
She Exposed Epstein, and Shares MAGA’s Anger
19 juli 2025 · 59 min
Julie K. Brown thinks Jeffrey Epstein didn’t act alone. On this episode of “Interesting Times,” Ross talks to Brown, the investigative reporter whose work ultimately led to Epstein’s re-arrest, about what the government could release that it hasn’t and how the story is bigger than Epstein. Lees meer
2:32 - Brown's initial interest in the Epstein case
5:26 - Discovering Epstein's crimes and the plea deal
13:13 - Epstein's victims and the impact of Brown's reporting
18:20 - Epstein's wealth and connections
25:20 - Epstein's social circles
35:01 - Certainty and unsolved mysteries
45:25 - The role of government in the case
51:04 - Trump and the political fallout
(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.)
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com. Please subscribe to our YouTube Channel, Interesting Times with Ross Douthat.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
Is ‘Toxic Empathy’ Pulling Christians to the Left?
17 juli 2025 · 1 uur 4 min
The conservative Christian podcaster Allie Beth Stuckey joins Ross on “Interesting Times” this week to explain why “toxic empathy” has a stranglehold on politics, whether evangelical Christians have a red line President Trump could cross and why her commentary has echoes of Phyllis Schlafly. Lees meer
01:26 “The New Phyllis Schlafly”
9:46 Untangling the web of Evangelical Protestants
15:50 Female authority in the church
22:12 What is “toxic empathy”?
30:55 Toxic empathy and cruelty in American politics
40:19 Do conservative christians have a red line?
57:24 “The mushy middle”
(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.)
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
Israel’s Moral Balance Beam
10 juli 2025 · 46 min
How has the war in Gaza reverberated throughout American politics? Opinion columnist Bret Stephens and Ross Douthat debate the implications of the Israel-Gaza conflict on antisemitism, the morality of war, and why “Monday morning quarterbacking” is not productive when taking stock of military actions in the Middle East. Lees meer
01:56 Israel actions in Gaza
04:39 The moral baseline
13:31 What is the end game?
15:52 The role of Israel in American politics
23:44 Can you criticize Israel without becoming antisemetic?
36:05 Does Israel have obligations to the Jewish diaspora?
(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.)
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
Why Trump’s Blood-and-Guts Strategy Worked
3 juli 2025 · 56 min
Happy Independence Day! We’ll be back next week with a new episode, but today we’re sharing the episode that started us on the path to “Interesting Times.” Ross Douthat talks to Reihan Salam, the president of the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research. Together they wrote the book “Grand New Party: How Republicans Can Win the Working Class and Save the American Dream.” Lees meer
They review their George W. Bush-era prescriptions for the Republican Party to reclaim the working-class vote and the ways they were right (and wrong) about building a new Republican majority.
03:47 George W. Bush era
12:06 Rise and fall of the Tea Party
18:19 Trump’s 2016 “blood and guts” message
28:11 Trump’s effect on the right and left
35:48 Trump’s first term economic agenda
39:30 Elon Musk vs JD Vance
46:50 Imagining an activist, conservative government
(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.)
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
A Mind-Bending Conversation with Peter Thiel
26 juni 2025 · 1 uur
The billionaire Peter Thiel is unimpressed with our pace of innovation. In this episode, he critiques artificial intelligence, longevity science and space travel — and warns that our lack of progress could lead to catastrophic outcomes, including the emergence of the Antichrist. Lees meer
01:19 - What does stagnation mean in 2025?
06:30 - Peter Thiel's case for more progress and innovation
11:30 - Does taking more scientific risk include life extension?
15:14 - Peter Thiel's political history
18:34 - Did Trump live up to Thiel's expectations?
25:10 - Does Elon Musk still want to go to Mars?
28:09 - How Thiel defines A.I.
33:20 - Is A.I. Too Modest An Ambition?
35:23 - How will the human race evolve? Should it?
41:53 - Thiel's critique of Silicon Valley
43:40 - Who is the real Antichrist?
(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.)
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
The Progressive Regulator Winning Over the Populist Right
19 juni 2025 · 1 uur
Is the key to freedom a life without Amazon? This week, Ross talks to Lina Khan, former Chair of the Federal Trade Commission about how unchecked corporate power has limited choice in our day-to-day lives, and how her fight against Big Tech unites left and right. Lees meer
02:41 - What’s wrong with big business?
09:27 - The political costs of corporate consolidation
11:39 - How the 2008 financial crisis shaped Lina Khan's philosophy
17:49 - The antitrust consensus from Reagan to Obama
21:54 - How the left and right align against big business
26:12 - Khan's wins and losses at the FTC
36:53 - Is the Trump administration embracing or rejecting Khan's vision?
42:32 - Is anti-monopoly policy the solution to our economic problems?
48:38 - Can Big Tech be broken up?
(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.)
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
Trump’s Future Depends on His Immigration Crackdown
12 juni 2025 · 43 min
Has immigration become the new litmus test for the Republican Party? In this episode, Ross talks to Matthew Continetti, the author of “The Right: The Hundred-Year War for American Conservatism,” about the party’s shifting coalition, the defining role of immigration and how today’s right echoes its past. Lees meer
01:50 - What the Elon experiment (and fallout) tells us about the Republican Party
06:55 - Is there a tech right beyond DOGE?
10:09 - Is the “new right” really all that new?
18:16 - Where Trump’s agenda fits within the larger conservative story
25:16 - “Immigration is the biggest issue of our time”
28:39 - How border control will define conservatism around the world
34:05 - Is Silicon Valley out of step with Trump's immigration crackdown?
39:43 - Will Trump's ideas outlast Trump?
(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.)
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
What Makes Art ‘Left Wing’?
5 juni 2025 · 43 min
Does Hollywood have anything interesting left to say? In a world where franchises dominate and grown-up movies have fallen by the wayside, Ross talks to the showrunner Tony Gilroy, whose “Star Wars” spinoff “Andor” has, according to Ross, succeeded in being both original and smartly political in a Hollywood that is often neither. Lees meer
03:04 - The political world of ”Andor”
08:36 - Tony Gilroy's syllabus for “Andor”
10:40 - Is “Andor” a left-wing show?
17:07 - What makes Hollywood progressive or liberal?
24:22 - Debating the politics of “Michael Clayton”
29:42 - Why aren't there more movies for grown-ups?
32:56 - “There are no movie stars anymore.”
35:55 - How A.I. changing the movie business
39:28 - Tony Gilroy's advice for future filmmakers
(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.)
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
How the iPhone Drove Men and Women Apart
29 mei 2025 · 54 min
What would make you want to have more children? This week on “Interesting Times,” Ross Douthat speaks with Dr. Alice Evans, a social scientist who is as concerned about the global decline in fertility as he is. The two discuss why this isn’t just a gender issue — it’s “a solitude issue” – and whether there’s a way to bring relationships back. Lees meer
02:03 - What are the stakes of declining fertility?
06:41 - Alice's master theory for why birth rates are falling
09:04 - There are too many single people
10:27 - We can thank technology for the coupling crisis
12:58 - The digital segregation of men and women
16:31 - Men have less to offer these days
20:11 - What can bring the sexes back together
24:31 - Could Hollywood help fix the problem?
25:46 - Can the government incentivize people to have babies?
27:30 - What role does religion play in all this?
28:59 - The role of IVF
40:50 - Does the fantasy of youth impact the numbers?
43:43 - The world in 2080...
(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.)
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
JD Vance on His Faith and Trump’s Most Controversial Policies
21 mei 2025 · 1 uur 6 min
On this episode of “Interesting Times,” Ross Douthat interviews Vice President JD Vance about the Trump administration’s deportations, the tariff backlash and how Vance’s faith influences his politics. Lees meer
01:49 - How faith shapes JD Vance’s politics
04:26 - ‘Papal interventions in politics’
14:44 - How will the Trump administration measure success on immigration?
21:22 - ‘The courts are trying to overturn the will of the American people’
23:55 - Are migrants really at war against the US?
28:48 - The parallels between the War on Terror and Trump's deportation policies
40:29 - What does a successful trade policy look like?
48:10 - The "big, beautiful bill"
58:57 - Does the Trump administration expect the AI revolution will take jobs?
54:05 - What worries Vance about AI
58:33 - JD Vance's message to shocked Trump voters
(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.)
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
An Interview With the Herald of the Apocalypse
15 mei 2025 · 59 min
Is artificial intelligence about to take your job? According to Daniel Kokotajlo, the executive director of the A.I. Futures Project, that should be the least of your worries. Kokotajlo was once a researcher for OpenAI, but left after losing confidence in the company’s commitment to A.I. safety. This week, he joins Ross to talk about “AI 2027,” a series of predictions and warnings about the risks A.I. poses to humanity in the coming years, from radically transforming the economy to developing armies of robots. Lees meer
03:59 - What effect could AI have on jobs?
06:45 - But wait, how does this make society richer?
10:08 - Robot plumbers and electricians
14:53 - The geopolitical stakes
18:58 - AI’s honesty problem
22:43 - The fork in the road
27:55 - The best case scenario
29:38 - The power structure in an AI-dominated world
32:32 - What AI leaders think about this power structure
38:30 - AI's hallucinations and limitations
43:45 - Theories of AI consciousness
47:05 - Is AI consciousness inevitable?
50:59 - Humanity in an AI-dominated world
(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.)
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
The Democratic Senator Taking Cues From Trumpism
8 mei 2025 · 1 uur 4 min
Democrats are stumbling — badly. While the Trump administration redefines the limits of executive overreach, the Democratic party remains at odds over how to — even whether to — respond. But Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut has a plan for beating Republicans in 2026, and it involves taking a cue from President Trump. He shares it with Ross Douthat on this episode of Interesting Times. Lees meer
02:07 - The First 100 Days for Trump and the Democrats
04:06 - The Threat to Democracy Wasn’t Enough Then or Now.
06:49 - How Dems Fight Trump
13:41 - Where Chris Murphy Can Agree With the Populist Right
16:38 - Is Connecticut a Model of What is Wrong with Democrats?
25:54 - The Spiritual Crisis in American Life
27:56 - The Problem with Big Tech
33:45 - How Do Democrats (And Murphy) Talk About Religion? Should They?
45:35 - Is Trump Really Running An Oligarchy?
50:34 - Does the Democratic Party Need a Bigger Tent?
53:54 - A Need for a National Consensus on Immigration
57:09 - “A Democracy Dies Without a High Stakes Confrontation”
(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.)
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
The New Culture of the Right: Vital, Masculine and Intentionally Offensive
1 mei 2025 · 1 uur 13 min
The Trump era is ushering in a new age of right wing counterculture, one defined by masculinity and transgression. In this episode of Interesting Times, Ross speaks with Jonathan Keeperman, the founder of Passage Press, about the influence of an edgy, reactionary, right-wing “vibe shift” on American politics and culture. Lees meer
2:09 - Jonathan Keeperman’s Lomez days
5:25 - 2014: An inflection point in American culture?
7:40 - The emergence of a “conservative counter elite”
9:41 - The creation of a right wing counterweight to the dominant left
12:32 - What makes something “conservative art”?
15:18 - Are David Lynch films right wing art? Is Girls?
18:11 - Is there such a thing as good left wing art?
19:32 - Right wing counterculture’s obsession with “vitalism”
22:56 - Longhouse culture: Is the “over feminization” of society making America weaker?
27:55 - Is the longhouse argument just a “long male whine”?
30:41 - Is right wing counterculture anti-Christian?
35:48 - Trump as mythic hero
43:31 - What is the function of racism in right wing counterculture?
53:50 - Are racist means transgressive or just racist?
1:05:43 - Will the rightward vibe shift show up in pop culture?
1:07:37 - Why every high school senior should read “Moby Dick” and watch “No Country for Old Men”
(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.)
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
Can the Catholic Church Quit the Culture Wars?
24 april 2025 · 58 min
On this episode of “Interesting Times,” Ross Douthat is joined by the Rev. James Martin, a Jesuit priest and an editor of America Magazine, to reflect on the legacy of Pope Francis and the challenges facing the next papacy. Lees meer
02:20 The First Jesuit Pope
05:23 Google Translate and Exchanging Emails
06:05 The Visual Element of Francis’s Legacy
07:48 The Concrete Changes Made
16:19 Christian Sexual Ethics
25:22 The Church in the Modern World
27:14 What Kind of Leader Will the Next Pope Be?
31:57 The Latin Mass Controversy
34:54 What Draws People to Christianity?
39:21 What Holds Such a Diverse Church Together?
43:09 The Influence of the Pope and the Hierarchy
46:41 A Renewed Interest in Religion
48:30 The Church as a Field Hospital
49:13 What Father Martin Hopes to See in the Next Pope
49:59 Where Should the New Pope Go?
52:27 Who Will Be the Next Pope?
(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.)
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
What if There’s No Way to Stop Trump’s Approach to Power?
17 april 2025 · 1 uur 6 min
President Trump may forever reshape the boundaries of executive power. This week on “Interesting Times,” Ross and Jack Goldsmith, who was the head of the White House’s Office of Legal Counsel under President George W. Bush, discuss which cases are most likely to win in the courts and permanently expand the executive branch — for better or worse. Lees meer
00:02:03 Donald Trump’s “moonshot on executive power”
00:04:16 What has surprised Goldsmith the most
00:06:57 Are we in a constitutional crisis?
00:08:59 Alien Enemies Act
00:14:02 The case of Kilmar Abrego Garcia
00:25:23 Godel’s loophole and Supreme Court enforcement
30:10 Trump’s firings of federal employees and restructuring of U.S.A.I.D.
36:11 Trump’s power over congressionally appropriated funding
41:29 Obama v. Trump’s discretion on enforcing laws passed by Congress
43:03 The TikTok case
45:46 Lawsuit over Trump’s tariffs
51:57 How the Supreme Court (maybe) thinks about picking its battles
54:24 Worst case scenarios
56:59 What the Supreme Court can do if the Trump administration does not comply
01:01:32 What a Trump executive power revolution could look like in 2028 and beyond
01:04:39 If Democrats win in 2028, what happens?
(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.)
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
This Instability May Be Worth It. Here's Why.
10 april 2025 · 48 min
Is the short-term economic pain of President Trump’s unpredictable approach to tariffs a reasonable price to pay for a more resilient America? Mr. Trump appears to think so, and so does Oren Cass — sort of. On the first episode of “Interesting Times,” the founder and chief economist of the think tank American Compass joins Ross Douthat to discuss and debate the Trump administration’s drastic trade war. Lees meer
(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.)
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
Introducing ‘Interesting Times’
6 april 2025 · 3 min
There’s a saying that comes to mind these days: May you live in interesting times. It’s understood to be a curse, even though it sounds like a blessing. Lees meer
“Interesting Times With Ross Douthat” is a new weekly podcast from New York Times Opinion. Every Thursday, he will map the new world order through interviews and conversations. Answering questions like: What does our new political era really look like? What is the future of democracy around the world, with American empire in retreat? What happens to movies and books — all of culture — in our digital and A.I.-dominated age?
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
How Democrats Drove Silicon Valley Into Trump’s Arms
6 april 2025 · 1 uur 3 min
The tech investor Marc Andreessen and his fellow Silicon Valley giant Elon Musk weren’t always the Donald Trump supporters they are today. In this episode, Ross asks Andreessen, a founder of the venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, about what led to Silicon Valley’s rightward shift and the new agenda of the tech-right faction. Lees meer
Editors’ note: This episode originally aired on the “Matter of Opinion” podcast on Jan. 17, 2025.
(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.)
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
Steve Bannon on ‘Broligarchs’ vs. Populism
6 april 2025 · 1 uur 12 min
In this conversation, Ross talks to Steve Bannon, the chief strategist from Donald Trump’s first term and part of the original MAGA movement. Despite his clashes with new factions emerging in the Republican Party, Bannon argues that Trump is still central to advancing a populist agenda. Lees meer
Editors’ note: This episode originally aired on the “Matter of Opinion” podcast on Jan. 31, 2025.
(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.)
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
-
The Anti-D.E.I. Crusader Who Wants to Dismantle the Department of Education
6 april 2025 · 1 uur 5 min
Christopher Rufo brought the term "critical race theory" into mainstream conversation. Now, the anti-DEI activist is bringing his critiques of education to the White House. In this episode, Ross explores Rufo's mission to make universities feel "existential terror." Lees meer
Editors’ note: This episode originally aired on the “Matter of Opinion” podcast on Mar. 7, 2025.
(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.)
Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.