The Chris Hedges Report

Chris Hedges
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Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Chris Hedges interviews a wide array of authors, journalists, artists and cultural figures on complex topics of history, politics and war.

  1. 32 MIN AGO

    Making the Film 'Palestine 36' (w/ director Annemarie Jacir) | The Chris Hedges Report

    In filmmaker Annemarie Jacir’s new film, Palestine 36, one of the most pivotal moments in Palestine’s history is brought to life for the first time through cinema. In this episode of The Chris Hedges Report, host Chris Hedges speaks with Jacir about the 1936–39 Palestinian uprising against British colonial rule — a mass revolt that laid the groundwork for the modern Palestinian struggle, and also the crushing of Palestine’s organizational infrastructure that culminated into the founding of the Zionist state a decade later. Jacir explains that this period represents “the beginning of the national movement for liberation in Palestine,” emphasizing its scale and significance as “the first really mass uprising” that spread from “countryside to city” and “across classes.” For her, revisiting this moment is essential to understanding everything that followed, as “it sets up everything for the Nakba in 1948 and the loss of Palestine.” Jacir explains how her film reconstructs not only the revolt itself but also the conditions that shaped it—British colonialism, offensive attacks on Palestinian labor, and the exploitation of the Palestinian elite’s fractured nature and ambitions for power. In her research, Jacir says she was struck by the extent of that brutality, noting, “I was really… surprised… I’d never really heard about that under the British,” only to later uncover detailed accounts in archival records, including testimonies from British soldiers themselves. In fact, “it’s the blueprint of military occupation that we live today,” she says. But Jacir frames Palestine 36 as more than a historical drama. It is, she says, about “a moment of real possibility” and the moral choices faced by those living under oppression. Even during production—disrupted by the war in Gaza—the film’s themes felt urgently contemporary. “There is no past and present,” she reflects. “We’re still living the same thing.”

    35 min

  2. 4 DAYS AGO

    Why Israel Wants a War with Iran (w/ Gideon Levy) | Chris Hedges Report

    As the war between the United States, Israel, and Iran intensifies, the justifications for its outbreak grow increasingly murky, shifting between nuclear fears, regime change, and regional security concerns. In this interview, Israeli journalist Gideon Levy joins Chris Hedges to cut through the official narratives and examine the deeper ideological forces driving Israel’s long-standing push toward confrontation with Iran under Benjamin Netanyahu. Levy argues that the war cannot be understood purely through strategy or geopolitics, but instead through a deeply embedded national mindset. “War is always the first option, not the last one in Israel,” he explains, pointing to a political culture that consistently defaults to military solutions while sidelining diplomacy. This helps explain why lessons from past conflicts—from Gaza to Lebanon—have failed to meaningfully alter Israeli policy, even when those campaigns produced questionable results. At the same time, the human consequences have been dire. As the region destabilizes further, Levy emphasizes the sheer scale of displacement caused by Israeli military actions, noting that “six million human beings…were expelled, uprooted, displaced from their homes.” In other words, the war’s impact extends far beyond its stated objectives, raising urgent moral and strategic questions. Levy goes on to discuss Israeli society itself. He delivers a scathing critique of the country’s media landscape, arguing that self-censorship have infected Israeli “open” society. Levy says the press voluntarily “made Israel totally ignorant about what’s going on on our behalf in Gaza,” insulating the public from the realities of its own military actions. As the conflict with Iran threatens to spiral into a wider regional war, Levy remains deeply pessimistic. Without a fundamental shift away from militarism, he suggests, Israel risks entrenching itself in an endless cycle of violence—one whose consequences will ultimately extend far beyond the Middle East.

    43 min

  3. 19 MAR

    How Israel Convinced Trump to Wage War Against Iran (w/ Max Blumenthal) | The Chris Hedges Report

    As the chaos and destruction of the war in Iran escalates by the day, a lesser known element of the conflict remains ensconced in the shadows of statespeak and bureaucracy. Max Blumenthal, editor-in-chief of The Grayzone, joins Chris Hedges to explain how an Israeli psychological warfare campaign worked to exploit Donald Trump’s imbecilic intelligence and increasing paranoia with the ultimate goal of luring the President into a war with Iran. Blumenthal says the Israelis and their allies convinced President Trump that Iran was trying to assassinate him – a fear first stoked when Trump began a vicious cycle of violence with the regime after he assassinated Iranian General Qasem Soleimani during his first term. The FBI played an active role in this covert lobbying effort, utilizing War- on- Terror-esque sting operations to manufacture threats in order to justify foreign policy measures. “Trump is an enigmatic figure,” Blumenthal points out, “less stable and predictable than a Bill Clinton or even a Barack Obama. However, he offers a massive opportunity because he’s totally transactional and entered politics essentially to make a profit.” As the war drags on and thousands of lives are claimed in the process, the grim reality that cynical actors likely played a role in manipulating American leadership into the interests of the Zionist lobby casts an embarrassing light on any propagandistic narrative about combatting “terror” in the region. “Do you think [fear of assassination] was the primary motivation behind Trump’s support of the war?” Hedges asks Blumenthal. “I think Trump has to answer for that.”

    48 min

  4. 17 MAR

    How the War With Iran Will Trigger a Global Financial Crisis (w/ Yanis Varoufakis) | The Chris Hedges Report

    As the U.S.-Israel and Iran War enters its second week, American and Israeli strategy becomes increasingly opaque, while Iran’s resolve hardens. Professor John Mearsheimer, a renowned voice in international politics, joins host Chris Hedges again on this episode of The Chris Hedges Report to spell out what can be expected from the conflict. Mearsheimer chronicles everything that is known about the war so far, from Benjamin Netanyahu’s victory in convincing an American president to finally launch this long-awaited attack on Iran to the reluctance within Trump’s own cabinet to go through with it. Mearsheimer also spells out the major implications this conflict has on the whole of the world economy; with Iran closing the Strait of Hormuz, countries in East Asia such as South Korea and Japan as well as the whole of Europe will suffer. “You could have a worldwide depression. You could have something less than that, like a worldwide recession, that would have huge consequences for people all over the planet, especially in developing countries, less so in developed countries. But even in developed countries, it’s quite clear that the importance of oil for running the international economy simply can’t be underestimated,” Mearsheimer tells Hedges.

    46 min

  5. 12 MAR

    Why America is Losing the War With Iran (w/ John Mearsheimer) | The Chris Hedges Report

    As the U.S.-Israel and Iran War enters its second week, American and Israeli strategy becomes increasingly opaque, while Iran’s resolve hardens. Professor John Mearsheimer, a renowned voice in international politics, joins host Chris Hedges again on this episode of The Chris Hedges Report to spell out what can be expected from the conflict. Mearsheimer chronicles everything that is known about the war so far, from Benjamin Netanyahu’s victory in convincing an American president to finally launch this long-awaited attack on Iran to the reluctance within Trump’s own cabinet to go through with it. Mearsheimer also spells out the major implications this conflict has on the whole of the world economy; with Iran closing the Strait of Hormuz, countries in East Asia such as South Korea and Japan as well as the whole of Europe will suffer. “You could have a worldwide depression. You could have something less than that, like a worldwide recession, that would have huge consequences for people all over the planet, especially in developing countries, less so in developed countries. But even in developed countries, it’s quite clear that the importance of oil for running the international economy simply can’t be underestimated,” Mearsheimer tells Hedges.

    53 min

  6. 7 MAR

    Can Israel & the U.S. Sustain Iran's Military Power? (w/ Alastair Crooke) | The Chris Hedges Report

    While the official White House X account posts video montages featuring video games and Hollywood movies spliced with real footage of their attacks on Iran, the situation on the ground could not be more different than an American propaganda blockbuster. To pierce the fog of war and offer a concrete analysis of what is taking place across the Middle East, author and former British diplomat Alastair Crooke joins host Chris Hedges on this episode of The Chris Hedges Report. Iran’s military power has seen the depletion of Israeli defensive interceptor missiles, the destruction of billion-dollar American radar systems and the diligent preparation of the Iranian leadership — Crooke explains these losses of the hegemonic West and their ally in Tel Aviv is what’s shaping the reality of the unfolding war. “The Iranians say they also have newer missiles, which they will show and unfold at a later stage. They haven’t reached that stage yet, but that is waiting to be used and deployed at the right moment. They’re quite comfortable that they have huge missile stocks that they can continue for a long war,” Crooke tells Hedges. Crooke also touches on the wider implications this war will have on the region, in particular, the Gulf states that have been subservient to American and Israeli interests and subject to attacks since the war began. “The Gulf used to be known and thought of as a safe place for businessmen, for investors and others and that — AI, holidays, airliners, tourism, et cetera… That’s finished.”

    1hr 2min

  7. 24 FEB

    The Predatory Hegemon (w/ Stephen Walt) | The Chris Hedges Report

    As Donald Trump’s administration continues down the path of self destruction, it is taking the rest of the American population down with it. The abandonment of international allies, treaties and norms, the political scientist Stephen Walt argues, will slowly ostracize the United States and give rise to a multipolar world order which will leave the country behind. Walt, the Robert and Renee Belfer Professor of International Affairs at the Harvard Kennedy School and author of multiple books, joins host Chris Hedges on this episode of The Chris Hedges Report to chronicle what this decline may look like and how Trump’s policy choices are not unlike past empires in history. The decline, Walt and Hedges emphasize, is multifaceted. On the one hand, Trump is motivated by personal gain for himself and his family, and on the other, petty grievances towards countries once considered allies. This policy pattern will isolate the U.S. as Walt says, “we’re already starting to see lots of countries who are currently accommodating the United States in the short term also looking to find ways to de-risk, to reduce their vulnerability, to create alternative structures to one in which the United States has the central role. This isn’t going to leave the United States completely isolated. We’re too big for that. But it’s going to mean a long-term diminution in American wealth, power, influence, and security.” International politicians, such as Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, have already begun to understand that rather than groveling to a toxic Trump regime, standing up for your citizens can ultimately pay greater dividends. “You are going to see other leaders realize that kowtowing to Trump doesn’t get you any good, may prompt something of a nationalist backlash in your own country as well. And that in fact, taking a more principled position, defending your own country’s interests, even in the face of American pressure actually will pay political benefits,” Walt explains.

    50 min

  8. 5 FEB

    What Is the World’s Future in the ‘New World Order?’ (W/ John Mearsheimer) | The Chris Hedges Report

    Karl Marx, in his essay “The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte,” said that history repeats itself, “the first time as tragedy, the second time as farce.” Donald Trump’s actions in the first year of his second term have spelled out to many that tragedies of history are beginning to repeat themselves, this time certainly as farces.   John Mearsheimer, the renowned scholar, author and R. Wendell Harrison Distinguished Service Professor of Political Science at the University of Chicago, joins host Chris Hedges on this episode of The Chris Hedges Report to contextualize what Trump’s political missions mean through the lens of history.   “Things like soft power, things like international institutions, international law, allies, they're just not important to [Trump],” Mearsheimer says. “[Trump] thinks that U.S. economic might and U.S. military might are all he needs to basically be a benign dictator and act unilaterally and get what he wants around the world.”   With this thinking, there are real threats to the world order, Mearsheimer argues, especially Europe and East Asia. In Europe, Trump’s disregard for international law and alliances, such as NATO, alarms a leadership class that has always relied on American security guarantees. In East Asia, China’s dominance and lack of adherence to the Western imperial status quo may become a flashpoint similar to that in Europe before World War I.   “For the first time in our history, we face a serious problem in East Asia. Imperial Japan was not that big a problem… China is a completely different story. This is a formidable power. Really, we've never seen anything like this when you look at the key building blocks of military power, the size of the population, the wealth, the ability to develop sophisticated technologies better than we do.”

    1hr 5min
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Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Chris Hedges interviews a wide array of authors, journalists, artists and cultural figures on complex topics of history, politics and war.

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  • Creator
    Chris Hedges
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    89
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2024 All rights reserved.
  • Show Website
    The Chris Hedges Report

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