Jacobin Radio

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News, politics, history and more from Jacobin. Featuring The Dig, Long Reads, Confronting Capitalism, Behind the News, Jacobin Radio with Suzi Weissman, and occasional specials.

2 HR AGO

The Dig: Primary Struggle w/ Claire Valdez

Featuring New York U.S. House candidate Claire Valdez, Colorado U.S. House candidate Melat Kiros, Michigan U.S. House candidate William Lawrence, Massachusetts state Senate candidate Erika Uyterhoeven, New York State Assembly candidate Conrad Blackburn, and Washington D.C. mayoral candidate Janeese Lewis George. The second episode in a series of short interviews with left-wing and socialist candidates at every level of US politics. Support The Dig at Patreon.com/TheDig Our huge new Thawra study guide and resource website thawraproject.com RSVP to the May 20 Dig party in Seattle! eventbrite.com/e/the-dig-x-house-our-neighbors-party-tickets-1986843010930 RSVP to the May 26 Dig party in LA! eventbrite.com/e/a-party-in-la-for-the-dig-friends-tickets-1987008568116? Buy Revolutions of Our Times at Haymarketbooks.org Find Queering Economics at UCPress.edu The Dig goes deep into politics everywhere, from labor struggles and political economy to imperialism and immigration. Hosted by Daniel Denvir.

1hr 43min
1 DAY AGO

Jacobin Radio: The Cost of Speaking Out Against Russia’s War w/ Simon Pirani

Suzi speaks with Simon Pirani about his book Voices Against Putin’s War: Protesters’ Defiant Speeches in Russian Courts and the film Try Me For Treason. Russian exile activist Aleksandra Zapolskaia also joins the conversation to discuss Azat Miftakhov’s case, one of thousands. Currently, there are more political prisoners in Russia than at any time since the post-Stalin thaw of the 1950s, and the state is killing them; at least seven political prisoners died in Russian custody in the first four months of 2026. We will also hear actors from the film read courtroom speeches from Igor Paskar and Andrei Trofimov. Paskar, who was tortured after protesting at an FSB office, asked the court what future generations will be told about these times. Trofimov received three additional years of imprisonment for his initial courtroom statements; his second speech concludes with the line that gave the film its title: “Try me for treason. I betrayed your deranged state.” Aleksandra Zapolskaya (Sasha) shares the story of Azat Miftakhov, the mathematician and anarchist who was tortured at an Arctic penal colony just down the road from where Navalny was killed. After his torturers were publicly identified, prison officials called Azat to their office and promised to treat him “respectfully” if he would stop talking to the media. “Being silent doesn’t help,” Sasha says. “Being loud helps.” The discussion covers prisoner solidarity, the duration of the war, and the implications of Russia’s current trajectory. Sasha offers a warning to Western listeners regarding the speed of political shifts: “It changes very slowly. And then it happens very fast.” Watch the film: youtube.com/watch?v=7FHacVH8tK8 Jacobin article: https://jacobin.com/2026/05/film-russia-ukraine-antiwar-prisoners Jacobin Radio with Suzi Weissman features conversations with leading thinkers and activists, with a focus on labor, the economy, and protest movements.

1hr 12min
2 DAYS AGO

Behind the News: The US-Israeli War on Iran w/ Laleh Khalili and Mouin Rabbani

Two views of the US–Israeli war on Iran: Laleh Khalili and Mouin Rabbani. Behind the News, hosted by Doug Henwood, covers the worlds of economics and politics and their complex interactions, from the local to the global.

53 min
5 DAYS AGO

The Dig: Primary Struggle w/ Abdul El-Sayed

Featuring Michigan U.S. Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed, Tennessee US House candidate Justin Pearson, New York US House candidate Darializa Avila Chevalier, Oregon state House candidate Tammy Carpenter, Providence mayoral candidate David Morales, and DC City Council candidate Aparna Raj. The first episode in a series featuring short interviews with left-wing and socialist candidates at every level of US politics. Support The Dig at Patreon.com/TheDig Our huge new Thawra study guide and resource website thawraproject.com Dan debates the topic of Hasan Piker on Brian Lehrer wnyc.org/story/should-democrats-appear-with-hasan-piker/ Hasan’s analysis of the debate youtube.com/watch?v=fgkcuHZtsiM\\&t=1557s RSVP to the May 20 Dig party in Seattle! eventbrite.com/e/the-dig-x-house-our-neighbors-party-tickets-1986843010930 RSVP to the May 26 Dig party in LA! eventbrite.com/e/a-party-in-la-for-the-dig-friends-tickets-1987008568116? Buy How to End Family Policing at Haymarketbooks.org Get 50% off How to Sell a Genocide, or any first book purchase from plutobooks.com with code ‘DIG50’ The Dig goes deep into politics everywhere, from labor struggles and political economy to imperialism and immigration. Hosted by Daniel Denvir.

2h 2m
13 MAY

Confronting Capitalism: Why Soviet-Style Planning Fails

Over time, the Soviet Union developed a system of centralized planning that became synonymous with socialism. How did the system work? What did it get right? And why did it ultimately become so associated with shortages and stagnation? On the latest episode of Confronting Capitalism, Vivek Chibber and Melissa Naschek discuss the ambitions and challenges of economic planners, and why the defects may be hardwired into the structure of central planning. The latest issue of Catalyst is out and you can subscribe for just $20 using the code CONFRONTINGCAPITALISM: https://catalyst-journal.com/subscribe/?code=CONFRONTINGCAPITALISM Read show transcripts here: confrontingcapitalism.substack.com Have a question for us? Write to us by email: confronting.capitalism@jacobin.com Confronting Capitalism with Vivek Chibber is produced by Catalyst: A Journal of Theory and Strategy and published by Jacobin. Music by Zonkey.

1 hr
11 MAY

Behind the News: The New US Imperialism w/ Nikhil Pal Singh and Greg Grandin

Excerpts from an event sponsored by the NYC DSA’s Academy for Socialist Education on the domestic and foreign aspects of Trumpism, featuring historians Nikhil Pal Singh and Greg Grandin, moderated by DSA’s Gaya Sriskanthan. Behind the News, hosted by Doug Henwood, covers the worlds of economics and politics and their complex interactions, from the local to the global.

53 min
7 MAY

The Dig: Organizing Zohran’s NYC w/ Alina Shen and Fahd Ahmed

Featuring Alina Shen and Fahd Ahmed on organizing working-class Asian New Yorkers into Zohran Mamdani’s campaign and then building power under a democratic socialist mayor. A discussion with two of New York’s most talented community leaders on building mass bases and struggling through the contradictions of wielding state power — including with regard to the NYPD. Support The Dig at Patreon.com/TheDig Our huge new Thawra study guide and resource website: thawraproject.com RSVP to the May 20 Dig party in Seattle! eventbrite.com/e/the-dig-x-house-our-neighbors-party-tickets-1986843010930 RSVP to the May 26 Dig party in LA! eventbrite.com/e/a-party-in-la-for-the-dig-friends-tickets-1987008568116? Find Control Science: How Management Made the Modern World at Versobooks.com Get 50% off How to Sell a Genocide, or any first book purchase from plutobooks.com with code ‘DIG50’ The Dig goes deep into politics everywhere, from labor struggles and political economy to imperialism and immigration. Hosted by Daniel Denvir.

2h 16m
4 MAY

Behind the News: Yuppies w/ Dylan Gottlieb

Dylan Gottlieb, author of the new book Yuppies, explores how that often risible but pioneering social formation took over NYC. Ervand Abrahamian looks at the politics of Iran, a country under siege. Behind the News, hosted by Doug Henwood, covers the worlds of economics and politics and their complex interactions, from the local to the global.

53 min

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Melissa Naschek

Guest
Nikhil Pal Singh

Guest
Greg Grandin

Guest
Gaya Sriskanthan

Guest
Fahd Ahmed

Guest
Alina Shen

Guest
Ervand Abrahamian

Guest
Dylan Gottlieb

Guest
Doug Henwood

Guest
Denys Bondar

Guest

News, politics, history and more from Jacobin. Featuring The Dig, Long Reads, Confronting Capitalism, Behind the News, Jacobin Radio with Suzi Weissman, and occasional specials.