1,181 episodes

Intelligence Squared is the home of lively debate and deep-dive discussion. Follow Intelligence Squared wherever you get your podcasts and enjoy four regular episodes per week taking you to the heart of the issues that matter in the company of the world’s great minds. We’d love to hear your feedback and what you think we should talk about next, who we should have on and what our future debates should be. Send us an email or voice note with your thoughts to podcasts@intelligencesquared.com or Tweet us @intelligence2. 

And if you’d like to support our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations, as well as ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content, early access and much more, become a supporter of Intelligence Squared today. Just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. 

Intelligence Squared Intelligence Squared

    • Society & Culture
    • 4.3 • 691 Ratings

Listen on Apple Podcasts
Requires subscription and macOS 11.4 or higher

Intelligence Squared is the home of lively debate and deep-dive discussion. Follow Intelligence Squared wherever you get your podcasts and enjoy four regular episodes per week taking you to the heart of the issues that matter in the company of the world’s great minds. We’d love to hear your feedback and what you think we should talk about next, who we should have on and what our future debates should be. Send us an email or voice note with your thoughts to podcasts@intelligencesquared.com or Tweet us @intelligence2. 

And if you’d like to support our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations, as well as ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content, early access and much more, become a supporter of Intelligence Squared today. Just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more. 

Listen on Apple Podcasts
Requires subscription and macOS 11.4 or higher

    How Technology Has Made Us What We Are, with Tom Chatfield

    How Technology Has Made Us What We Are, with Tom Chatfield

    Tom Chatfield is a tech philosopher whose new book looks at how humans have lived side by side with technology for millennia and offers ideas for how humanity will fare in the imminent AI-powered future. Chatfield's work often focuses on the cross-section of society and tech. He is a creator of textbooks and courses training in critical thinking and his previous non-fiction books include How To Thrive in the Digital Age. Not only that but he's also a novelist, having published a thriller – This is Gomorrah – in 2019. Joining Chatfield in conversation is Stephanie Hare. She is a researcher, broadcaster and author focusing on issues such as technology, politics and history and is the author of Technology Is Not Neutral: A Short Guide to Technology Ethics.
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    • 45 min
    Misogyny and the Middle-Aged Woman, with Victoria Smith, Hadley Freeman and Sonia Sodha, Part Two

    Misogyny and the Middle-Aged Woman, with Victoria Smith, Hadley Freeman and Sonia Sodha, Part Two

    This is Part Two of a three-part discussion. Why are middle-aged women these days subject to so much rage and hatred – frequently from people who see themselves as kind and ‘on the right side of history’? What explains the popularity of the Karen meme, which references a stereotypically privileged white woman whom everyone feels entitled to loathe? Why does this age-old misogyny feel so very now? As writer Victoria Smith approached middle age she made her peace with her sagging neckline and having to cope with ageing parents. But the disdain and vitriol she experienced as a woman in mid-life came as a shock. In her acclaimed book Hags: The Demonisation of Middle-Aged Women she traces the prejudice that has been directed towards older women down the ages and explores the prevalence of witch hunts in recent years. Smith joined us on stage at The Tabernacle in London in March 2024, where she was joined by fellow writers Hadley Freeman and Sonia Sodha. Together they explored why women who have the temerity to exist beyond the age at which they are conventionally deemed desirable to men are seen as superfluous to society; and they looked for solutions which can benefit all women – whether they are hags or hags-in-waiting.
    This is the second of a three-part discussion. Intelligence Squared Members can listen to all three instalments, including the Members-only Part Three, immediately.
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    For £4.99 per month you'll also receive:
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    - Our member-only newsletter The Monthly Read, sent straight to your inbox
    ...
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    • 34 min
    Misogyny and the Middle-Aged Woman, with Victoria Smith, Hadley Freeman and Sonia Sodha, Part One

    Misogyny and the Middle-Aged Woman, with Victoria Smith, Hadley Freeman and Sonia Sodha, Part One

    This is Part One of a three-part discussion. Why are middle-aged women these days subject to so much rage and hatred – frequently from people who see themselves as kind and ‘on the right side of history’? What explains the popularity of the Karen meme, which references a stereotypically privileged white woman whom everyone feels entitled to loathe? Why does this age-old misogyny feel so very now? As writer Victoria Smith approached middle age she made her peace with her sagging neckline and having to cope with ageing parents. But the disdain and vitriol she experienced as a woman in mid-life came as a shock. In her acclaimed book Hags: The Demonisation of Middle-Aged Women she traces the prejudice that has been directed towards older women down the ages and explores the prevalence of witch hunts in recent years. Smith joined us on stage at The Tabernacle in London in March 2024, where she was joined by fellow writers Hadley Freeman and Sonia Sodha. Together they explored why women who have the temerity to exist beyond the age at which they are conventionally deemed desirable to men are seen as superfluous to society; and they looked for solutions which can benefit all women – whether they are hags or hags-in-waiting.
    This is the first of a three-part discussion. Intelligence Squared Members can listen to all three instalments, including the Members-only Part Three, immediately.
    If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all of our longer form interviews and Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more.
    For £4.99 per month you'll also receive:
    - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts
    - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series
    - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events
    - Our member-only newsletter The Monthly Read, sent straight to your inbox
    ...
    Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99:
    - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts
    - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series
    ...
    Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content, early access and much more
    ...
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    • 35 min
    Misogyny and the Middle-Aged Woman, with Victoria Smith, Hadley Freeman and Sonia Sodha, Part Three

    Misogyny and the Middle-Aged Woman, with Victoria Smith, Hadley Freeman and Sonia Sodha, Part Three

    This is Part Three of a three-part discussion. Why are middle-aged women these days subject to so much rage and hatred – frequently from people who see themselves as kind and ‘on the right side of history’? What explains the popularity of the Karen meme, which references a stereotypically privileged white woman whom everyone feels entitled to loathe? Why does this age-old misogyny feel so very now? As writer Victoria Smith approached middle age she made her peace with her sagging neckline and having to cope with ageing parents. But the disdain and vitriol she experienced as a woman in mid-life came as a shock. In her acclaimed book Hags: The Demonisation of Middle-Aged Women she traces the prejudice that has been directed towards older women down the ages and explores the prevalence of witch hunts in recent years. Smith joined us on stage at The Tabernacle in London in March 2024, where she was joined by fellow writers Hadley Freeman and Sonia Sodha. Together they explored why women who have the temerity to exist beyond the age at which they are conventionally deemed desirable to men are seen as superfluous to society; and they looked for solutions which can benefit all women – whether they are hags or hags-in-waiting.

    This is the third of a three-part discussion. Intelligence Squared Members can listen to all three instalments, including the Members-only Part Three, immediately.

    Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content, early access and much more

    ...

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    The Long Shadow of AI, with Madhumita Murgia

    The Long Shadow of AI, with Madhumita Murgia

    As a writer who focuses on technology and as AI Editor for The Financial Times, Madhumita Murgia has been unable to ignore the increasing reach of AI into the infrastructure that helps run our societies. It's the subject of her new book, Code Dependent, a study of how technology and AI often designed with idealistic intent is beginning to have a significant effect on real people's lives and not always for the better. Joining Murgia in conversation for this episode is Carl Miller, co-founder of the Centre for the Analysis of Social Media at the think tank Demos and author of The Death of the Gods: The New Global Power Grab.
    Want to attend Intelligence Squared live events? Explore our upcoming line up of talks below:
    https://www.intelligencesquared.com/attend/
    If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all of our longer form interviews and Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more.
    For £4.99 per month you'll also receive:
    - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts
    - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series
    - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events
    - Our member-only newsletter The Monthly Read, sent straight to your inbox
    ...
    Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99:
    - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts
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    • 49 min
    How to Fix the Inequality of Wealth, with Liam Byrne

    How to Fix the Inequality of Wealth, with Liam Byrne

    The Labour MP Liam Byrne is Chair of the House of Commons Business and Trade Select Committee. He also served on the front bench for both prime ministers Gordon Brown and Tony Blair. So he is well-positioned to be thinking about some of society's more pressing economic questions and these are the focus of his recent book, The Inequality of Wealth: Why it Matters and How to Fix it. Joining Byrne in conversation for this episode by the economist and writer Tej Parikh, Economics Leader Writer for The Financial Times.
    Want to attend Intelligence Squared live events? Explore our upcoming line up of talks below:
    https://www.intelligencesquared.com/attend/
    If you'd like to become a Member and get access to all of our longer form interviews and Members-only content, just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more.
    For £4.99 per month you'll also receive:
    - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared episodes, wherever you get your podcasts
    - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series
    - 15% discount on livestreams and in-person tickets for all Intelligence Squared events
    - Our member-only newsletter The Monthly Read, sent straight to your inbox
    ...
    Or Subscribe on Apple for £4.99:
    - Full-length and ad-free Intelligence Squared podcasts
    - Bonus Intelligence Squared podcasts, curated feeds and members exclusive series
    ...
    Already a subscriber? Thank you for supporting our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations! Visit intelligencesquared.com to explore all your benefits including ad-free podcasts, exclusive bonus content, early access and much more
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    • 43 min

Customer Reviews

4.3 out of 5
691 Ratings

691 Ratings

Geoplanter ,

Pre-Brexit debate

We now know, through hindsight, that the Brexit decision was a bad one and the British people were sold a bill of goods.

The UK has or will soon have the slowest growing economy of all industrialized nations….including Russia!!!

As the British economy shrinks, so does its power and influence.

Johnson, Farage, and the other con artists that were more concerned about gaining power through demagoguery than in improving life for their citizens should be called to account!

damn__tam ,

Misogyny and MA women ep. 1

I’m surprised and initially disappointed by the discussion on “Karens” and the assumption that a hag can obviously be herself because it seems so out of touch and dismissive of intersectional feminism.

Norwich42 ,

Adam Grant

Too bad about the Part II segment. Would that be "hubris?"

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