635 episodes
The Gray Area with Sean Illing Vox
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- Society & Culture
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4.6 • 407 Ratings
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The Gray Area with host Sean Illing is a philosophical take on culture, politics, and everything in between. We don’t pretend to have the answers, but we do offer a space for real dialogue. Resist certainty, embrace ambiguity, and get some cool takes on a very hot world. Formerly the Vox Conversations podcast. New episodes drop every Monday.
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3,000 years of The Iliad
Constance Grady, a culture writer at Vox, is joined by Emily Wilson to discuss her bestselling translations of The Iliad and The Odyssey. They unpack the buzz surrounding them and the significance of The Iliad today.
Host: Constance Grady, (@constancegrady), culture writer, Vox
Guest: Emily Wilson, classics professor and translator of The Iliad and The Odyssey
References:
The Iliad by Homer, translated by Emily Wilson (W.W. Norton, 2023)
The Odyssey by Homer, translated by Emily Wilson (W.W. Norton, 2018)
Enjoyed this episode? Rate The Gray Area ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ and leave a review on Apple Podcasts.
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Support The Gray Area by making a financial contribution to Vox! bit.ly/givepodcasts
This episode was made by:
Engineer: Patrick Boyd
Deputy Editorial Director, Vox Talk: A.M. Hall
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Late-stage liberalism
Sean Illing is joined by John Gray, political philosopher and author of the new book, The New Leviathans: Thoughts After Liberalism. They discuss Thomas Hobbes and the origins of liberalism, the current state of democracy, and the very uncertain future of the global liberal order.
Host: Sean Illing (@seanilling), host, The Gray Area
Guest: John Gray, author and political philosopher
References:
The New Leviathans: Thoughts After Liberalism by John Gray (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2023)
Leviathan by Thomas Hobbes (1651)
Enjoyed this episode? Rate The Gray Area ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ and leave a review on Apple Podcasts.
Subscribe for free. Be the first to hear the next episode of The Gray Area by subscribing in your favorite podcast app.
Support The Gray Area by making a financial contribution to Vox! bit.ly/givepodcasts
This episode was made by:
Engineer: Patrick Boyd
Deputy Editorial Director, Vox Talk: A.M. Hall
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The case against free will
Sean Illing speaks with Robert Sapolsky, a professor of biology and neurology at Stanford University and the author of a new book called Determined: A Science of Life Without Free Will. They discuss the concept of free will, whether it actually exists in the way we think it does, and what it means for society if free will is indeed an illusion.
Host: Sean Illing (@seanilling), host, The Gray Area
Guest: Robert Sapolsky, author, Determined: A Science of Life Without Free Will
References:
Determined: A Science of Life Without Free Will by Robert M. Sapolsky (Penguin Random House, 2023)
Behave by Robert M. Sapolsky (Penguin Random House, 2018)
“Robert Sapolsky Doesn’t Believe in Free Will. (But Feel Free to Disagree.)” by Hope Reese (New York Times, October 2023)
Enjoyed this episode? Rate The Gray Area ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ and leave a review on Apple Podcasts.
Subscribe for free. Be the first to hear the next episode of The Gray Area by subscribing in your favorite podcast app.
Support The Gray Area by making a financial contribution to Vox! bit.ly/givepodcasts
This episode was made by:
Engineer: Rob Byers
Deputy Editorial Director, Vox Talk: A.M. Hall
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A Jew and a Muslim get honest about Israel and Gaza
Zack Beauchamp, a Vox senior correspondent who writes about democracy and Israel, speaks with Shadi Hamid, a columnist at The Washington Post, research professor of Islamic studies at Fuller Seminary, and author of The Problem of Democracy: America, the Middle East, and the Rise and Fall of an Idea. They discuss the October 7 attack, the subsequent war in Gaza, what it means for Israelis and Palestinians, and how Jews and Muslims in the United States can find common ground amidst their communities’ grief.
This conversation was recorded on November 2, 2023.
Host: Zack Beauchamp (@zackbeauchamp), senior correspondent at Vox
Guest: Shadi Hamid, (@shadihamid), columnist and Editorial Board member at The Washington Post, research professor of Islamic studies at Fuller Seminary, and author of The Problem of Democracy: America, the Middle East, and the Rise and Fall of an Idea.
References:
“Reducing Hamas’s terrorism to a problem of ‘evil’ is a mistake” by Shadi Hamid (The Washington Post, Oct. 2023)
The Problem of Democracy: America, the Middle East, and the Rise and Fall of an Idea by Shadi Hamid (Oxford University Press, 2022)
“Everything you need to know about Israel-Palestine: A comprehensive guide to the basics of the world’s most controversial conflict” by Zack Beauchamp (Vox)
Enjoyed this episode? Rate The Gray Area ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ and leave a review on Apple Podcasts.
Subscribe for free. Be the first to hear the next episode of The Gray Area by subscribing in your favorite podcast app.
Support The Gray Area by making a financial contribution to Vox! bit.ly/givepodcasts
This episode was made by:
Engineer: Rob Byers
Deputy Editorial Director, Vox Talk: A.M. Hall
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices -
How to keep panic from attacking
Sean Illing is joined by Matt Gutman, the chief national correspondent for ABC News, to talk about his new book, No Time to Panic: How I Curbed My Anxiety and Conquered a Lifetime of Panic Attacks. They discuss their personal experiences with panic, the evolutionary roots of it, and how Matt has gained control over his feelings of panic and anxiety.
Host: Sean Illing (@seanilling), host, The Gray Area
Guest: Matt Gutman (@mattgutmanABC), author, No Time to Panic: How I Curbed My Anxiety and Conquered a Lifetime of Panic Attacks.
References:
No Time to Panic: How I Curbed My Anxiety and Conquered a Lifetime of Panic Attacks by Matt Gutman (Penguin Random House, 2023)
“The brutal mirror: What the psychedelic drug ayahuasca showed me about my life” by Sean Illing (Vox, February 2018)
Enjoyed this episode? Rate The Gray Area ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ and leave a review on Apple Podcasts.
Subscribe for free. Be the first to hear the next episode of The Gray Area by subscribing in your favorite podcast app.
Support The Gray Area by making a financial contribution to Vox! bit.ly/givepodcasts
This episode was made by:
Engineer: Patrick Boyd
Deputy Editorial Director, Vox Talk: A.M. Hall
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices -
We Are What We Watch
Guest host Alissa Wilkinson speaks with Walt Hickey about his new book, You Are What You Watch: How Movies and TV Affect Everything. They discuss how entertainment affects the physical and mental states of viewers — from blood coagulation during horror movie screenings to an increase in Dalmatian adoptions after 101 Dalmatians was released in theaters — and why our responses to what we watch are worth celebrating.
Host: Alissa Wilkinson (@alissamarie), senior culture writer, Vox
Guest: Walt Hickey, (@walterhickey) author, You Are What You Watch: How Movies and TV Affect Everything
References:
You Are What You Watch: How Movies and TV Affect Everything by Walt Hickey (Workman Publishing Company, 2023)
“How to Use Math to Crush Your Friends at Monopoly Like You've Never Done Before” by Walt Hickey (Business Insider, Jun. 2013)
Enjoyed this episode? Rate The Gray Area ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ and leave a review on Apple Podcasts.
Subscribe for free. Be the first to hear the next episode of The Gray Area. Subscribe in your favorite podcast app.
Support The Gray Area by making a financial contribution to Vox! bit.ly/givepodcasts
This episode was made by:
Engineer: Patrick Boyd
Editorial Director, Vox Talk: A.M. Hall
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Customer Reviews
Hands down my favourite podcast
Hi from Devon, England…
Genuinely, I treasure this pod and anticipate each ep with much glee! Its not just that I chime personally with Sean’s outlook and values, but that the generosity and magnanimous spirit he approaches each guest (esp one’s he has disagreement with) fills a much needed gap in today’s far-too-combative discourse. He doesn’t suffer “fools” but doesn’t dwell on this (looking at you Sam Harris) - rather the attention is fully focused on the understanding of difficult issues and exploration of possible explanations / solutions. It’s a joy, well done all involved.
My only quibble: would love a Twitter / FB group or similar for exploring the topics more with other listeners after each ep. Thoughts?
Ru D
Matt Desmond
Another great discussion, thanks Sean
Interesting style
The content of the interview really depends on the interviewee, the style of this show really lets them unspool their take on a given topic. Sure the host often has opinions too but the format works quite well as a dialogue, gets a little bit more out of them than a straight set of questions. Generally the guests have just published a book on exactly that, so this is a nice way to get a synopsis of their theory. Theme music is on point.