Current Affairs

Current Affairs
  • 4.6 (636)
  • NEWS
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A podcast of politics and culture, from the editors of Current Affairs magazine.

  1. 15H AGO

    “Progress” Is Making Things Worse (w/ Sam Miller McDonald)

    🌹 Use the code "15OFF" for a discount on Current Affairs: https://www.currentaffairs.org/membership Sam Miller McDonald is a writer and longtime Current Affairs contributor. He joins Nathan Robinson to discuss his new book Progress: How One Idea Built Civilization—and Now Threatens to Destroy It, a sweeping critique of the belief that history is a story of constant improvement. 🌀 Buy Sam's book: https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250278319/progress/ 🌀 Read Sam's articles: https://www.currentaffairs.org/news/author/samuel-miller-mcdonald 0:00-8:30 critiquing the Pinker-style narrative of progress 8:30-19:43 “progress” as destruction: industrialization and ecological collapse 19:43-23:34 what actually constitutes wellbeing 23:34-30:15 why the idea of “progress” is misleading 30:15-36:42 how “progress” justifies violence (Nazism, colonialism) 36:42-41:37 imagining values beyond “progress” 🦩Subscribe to Current Affairs: https://www.currentaffairs.org/membership 🦩 Merch: https://shop.currentaffairs.org/

    42 min

  2. 5D AGO

    Meanwhile, Zohran Is Just Getting Things Done

    🌹 Use the code "15OFF" for a discount on Current Affairs: https://www.currentaffairs.org/membership As Trump creates economic havoc and commits war crimes, the socialist mayor of New York City demonstrates what serious, responsible government looks like. 🗽 Read the article: https://www.currentaffairs.org/news/meanwhile-zohran-is-just-getting-things-done 🦩SUBSCRIBE TO CURRENT AFFAIRS MAGAZINE: https://www.currentaffairs.org/membership 🦩 PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/c/CurrentAffairs 🦩THE MYTH OF AMERICAN IDEALISM: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/738224/the-myth-of-american-idealism-by-noam-chomsky-and-nathan-j-robinson/

    11 min

  3. APR 25

    The Phony Virtue of Cory Booker

    🌹 Use the code "15OFF" for a discount on Current Affairs: https://www.currentaffairs.org/membership After being a leading Democratic enabler of the genocide of Palestinians, Cory Booker now has the audacity to publish a book about moral virtue. 🦩Subscribe to Current Affairs: https://www.currentaffairs.org/membership 🦩 Merch: https://shop.currentaffairs.org/

    32 min

  4. APR 21

    Liberal Media Helped Destroy Gaza (w/ Adam Johnson)

    🌹 Use the code "15OFF" for a discount on Current Affairs: https://www.currentaffairs.org/membership Adam Johnson is a media analyst and co-host of the podcast Citations Needed, whose work has appeared in The Nation, The Intercept, and other major outlets. He joined Current Affairs Editor-in-Chief Nathan Robinson to discuss his new book How to Sell a Genocide: The Media’s Complicity in the Destruction of Gaza, an analysis of how U.S. corporate media covered Israel’s assault on Gaza. 🇵🇸 Buy Adam's new book: https://www.plutobooks.com/product/how-to-sell-a-genocide/ 🇵🇸 Follow Adam on Twitter: https://x.com/adamjohnsonCHI 🇵🇸 Citations Needed: https://citationsneeded.libsyn.com/ 0:00–5:51 Yes, it's a genocide 5:51–9:32 How liberal media failed 9:32–16:25 The myth of journalistic neutrality 16:25–21:40 The “Hamas-run” framing 21:40–28:03 How Hamas is portrayed as ISIS 28:03–34:22 Erasing historical context 34:22–37:46 Media double standards 37:46–47:05 Biden’s role and response 47:05–51:04 Whose voices are excluded 51:04–54:39 What happens to dissenting journalists 54:39–59:43 The Atlantic (ugh) 🦩Subscribe to Current Affairs: https://www.currentaffairs.org/membership 🦩 Merch: https://shop.currentaffairs.org/

    1 hr

  5. APR 18

    Trump Has No Idea What He’s Doing (w/ Mouin Rabbani)

    🌹 Use the code "15OFF" for a discount on Current Affairs: https://www.currentaffairs.org/membership Mouin Rabbani is a Middle East analyst and researcher, and one of the most incisive commentators on U.S. foreign policy in the region. He joined Current Affairs Editor-in-Chief Nathan Robinson to discuss the latest escalation in Gaza, Lebanon, Iran, and the broader Middle East, including ceasefire negotiations, U.S.-Israel relations, and the shifting balance of power. 🇵🇸 Buy Mouin's new book: https://orbooks.com/catalog/gaza-apocalypse/ 🇵🇸 Follow Mouin on Twitter: https://x.com/MouinRabbani 0:00–6:04 Trump’s ceasefire claim and what’s actually happening 6:04–10:15 Who controls U.S. policy, Washington or Israel? 10:15–14:39 Zionism and the crackdown on dissent 14:39–16:59 How criticism of Israel gets suppressed 16:59–24:46 Why the pro-Israel consensus is breaking down 24:46–29:40 The gap between Trump’s rhetoric and reality 29:40–32:26 What Trump’s threats reveal about the war 32:26–39:45 The moral case against the war 🦩Subscribe to Current Affairs: https://www.currentaffairs.org/membership 🦩 Merch: https://shop.currentaffairs.org/

    40 min

  6. APR 16

    Ben and Jerry's Co-Founder Takes on America's War Machine (w/ Ben Cohen)

    🌹 Use the code "15OFF" for a discount on Current Affairs: https://www.currentaffairs.org/membership  Ben Cohen is the co-founder, along with Jerry Greenfield, of the Ben and Jerry's ice cream company. But he has also been involved throughout his life with a number of major activist efforts on issues of peace, social justice, anti-racism, and climate change.  He is currently heading the Up In Arms campaign to rein in military spending. Cohen was a national co-chair of Bernie Sanders' 2020 presidential campaign. He has been arrested multiple times in the course of his activism, including disrupting an RFK Jr. Senate hearing to protest the genocide in Gaza. He is the author of the book Above The Law: How Qualified Immunity Protects Violent Police (OR Books, featuring an introduction by Killer Mike) and he is currently running a campaign to "free Ben and Jerry's" from its corporate overlords to protect its social activism.  🍦 Ben's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yobencohen/  🍦 Ben's Book: https://orbooks.com/catalog/above-the-law/  🍦 Up in Arms Campaign: https://upinarms.life/  0:00–10:16 War, military spending, and moral priorities  10:16–15:10 U.S. security logic and NATO expansion  15:10–17:56 The profit motive behind war  17:56–21:16 Impunity and lack of accountability  21:16–28:12 Explaining militarism with BBs and Oreos  28:12–33:50 Ben & Jerry’s social mission explained  33:50–41:34 The Unilever/Magnum fight  41:34–46:04 Should you boycott Ben & Jerry’s?  🦩Subscribe to Current Affairs: https://www.currentaffairs.org/membership  🦩 Merch: https://shop.currentaffairs.org/

    46 min

  7. APR 12

    How Media Silences Anti-War Voices (w/ Amy Goodman)

    🌹 Use the code "15OFF" for a discount on Current Affairs: https://www.currentaffairs.org/membership Amy Goodman is the longtime host of Democracy Now!, the independent news program she helped launch 30 years ago, which has since grown from a small network of community radio stations into a global media institution. She spoke to Current Affairs Editor-in-Chief Nathan Robinson and Digital Editor John Ross, alongside filmmakers Carl Deal and Tia Lessin, about the new documentary Steal This Story, Please!, which traces the history of Democracy Now! and Goodman’s career in independent journalism. 🗽 Watch Steal This Story, Please!: https://stealthisstory.org/ 0:00–4:51 What makes Democracy Now! different from corporate media 4:51–9:14 Amy Goodman’s approach to journalism 9:14–12:48 How antiwar voices get sidelined in corporate media 12:48–20:26 Who corporate media really serves 20:26–25:15 Objectivity vs. taking a stance 25:15–36:53 What Democracy Now! adds to the historical record 🦩Subscribe to Current Affairs: https://www.currentaffairs.org/membership 🦩 Merch: https://shop.currentaffairs.org/

    37 min

  8. APR 9

    California’s Democratic Field Is Embarrassingly Weak (w/ Dr. Butch Ware)

    🌹 Use the code "15OFF" for a discount on Current Affairs: https://www.currentaffairs.org/membership Dr. Butch Ware is a historian, public intellectual, and the Green Party candidate for Governor of California. He is an associate professor at UC Santa Barbara, a former Green Party vice presidential nominee, and an advocate for universal healthcare, housing, and divestment from war. He spoke to Current Affairs Editor-in-Chief Nathan Robinson about his campaign to get on the ballot and what he describes as efforts by the Democratic Party to block third-party candidates. 🍊 Butch Ware's website: https://www.butchware4gov.com/ 🍊 Follow Butch on Twitter: https://x.com/butchware?lang=en 🍊 Follow Butch on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/butchware/?hl=en 0:00–11:37 ballot access battle 11:37–17:36 blocking third parties 17:36–23:58 UK Green Party surge 23:58–33:34 Gavin Newsom critique 33:34–37:21 abortion & trans rights 37:21–42:02 Butch Ware’s vision for California 🦩Subscribe to Current Affairs: https://www.currentaffairs.org/membership 🦩 Merch: https://shop.currentaffairs.org/

    42 min
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4.6
out of 5
636 Ratings

About

A podcast of politics and culture, from the editors of Current Affairs magazine.

Information

  • Creator
    Current Affairs
  • Years Active
    2018 - 2026
  • Episodes
    600
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Show Website
    Current Affairs

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