
109 episodes

On with Kara Swisher New York Magazine
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- News
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4.2 • 1.4K Ratings
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It’s On. Get to the heart of what makes powerful people tick — in interviews that have them sit back, relax and get grilled. Twice a week, Kara Swisher and her executive producer Nayeema Raza invite a guest to be “On with Kara Swisher.”
So why do newsmakers show up? “Smart people,” says Kara, “like difficult questions.” They may even find it fun.
Mondays and Thursdays from New York Magazine and the Vox Media Podcast Network.
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Sheila Johnson Talks BET, Entrepreneurship and Why She Doesn’t Love Being Called “America’s First Black Female Billionaire”
Sheila Johnson is best known for co-founding BET, a network she launched with her ex-husband, Bob Johnson, and which they eventually sold to Viacom for billions. She’s since built a hospitality brand, been an active philanthropist and is an owner or partner in three professional sports teams. But many of those achievements came at great cost, as Sheila writes in her new memoir, “Walk Through Fire: A Memoir of Love, Loss, and Triumph.” We discuss how she navigated her success and independence in a time where “women were defined by their husbands.” We also talk about the future of BET and the role of identity-driven programming in American media.
Questions or comments? Email us at on@voxmedia.com or find us on social media. We’re on Instagram/Threads as @karaswisher and @nayeemaraza.
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Is Biden the Best Democrats Can Do?
Biden’s poll numbers are atrocious, and in recent columns from The Washington Post to The New York Times and The National Journal, the punditocracy has started to sour on the president’s 2024 ambitions. Columnists have weighed in on why Biden could lose to Trump — and whether it’d be better for him to step aside. Is this a phase, a pipe dream or an actual crisis?
We convene an all-star panel to discuss. Our guests: Franklin Foer, staff writer for The Atlantic and author of the recently released The Last Politician, a look a Biden’s first two years in office; Astead Herndon, national political reporter for The New York Times and host of The Run-Up; Jen Psaki, former White House press secretary for the Biden administration and host of Inside with Jen Psaki on MSNBC; and Alex Thompson, national political correspondent for Axios.
Questions or comments? Email us at on@voxmedia.com or find us on social media. We’re on Instagram/Threads as @karaswisher and @nayeemaraza.
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The Walter Isaacson-Kara Swisher Showdown
Walter Isaacson and Kara are friends — but that doesn’t mean she’s going to go easy on him as they discuss Isaacson’s new hit biography: Elon Musk, which is causing much consternation among readers and reviewers. Kara pushes Walter on whether the book equivocates or excuses too much of Elon’s bad behavior. And Walter, well, he pushes back.
Questions or comments? Email us at on@voxmedia.com or find us on social media. We’re on Instagram/Threads as @karaswisher and @nayeemaraza
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How Twitter Took Alex Edelman to IRL White Supremacists
A Jewish comedian walks into an apartment in Queens to meet a group of white supremacists … This isn’t the setup to a bad joke — it’s the inciting incident in Alex Edelman’s hit one-man show, “Just For Us,” which recently wrapped a nine-week run on Broadway.
We talk to Edelman about the value of entering rooms with people you vehemently disagree with, Elon Musk’s threat to sue the ADL, and whether there should be any uncrossable lines in comedy.
Questions or comments? Email us at on@voxmedia.com or find us on social media. We’re on Instagram/Threads as @karaswisher and @nayeemaraza
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Conan O'Brien Talks to His Accountant
Late-night legend and podcasting impresario Conan O’Brien joins Kara to talk about the decline of late night, the writers’ strike, his $150 million deal with SiriusXM and his new HBO Max show, Conan O’Brien Must Go. They also trade notes on interviewing and … accounting.
Questions or comments? Email us at on@voxmedia.com or find us on social media. We’re on Instagram/Threads as @karaswisher and @nayeemaraza
Photo credit: Gage Skidmore via Flickr
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What Naomi Klein Found Down the Steve Bannon Rabbit Hole
For years, Naomi Klein has had a problem: the author and Guardian columnist has been chronically confused with Naomi Wolf, a conspiracy theorist and favorite guest of Steve Bannon’s podcast. This is the premise of Klein’s new book, Doppelganger: A Trip Into the Mirror World, where she investigates how her dark twin fell down the conspiracy theory rabbit hole – and what that tells us about the lure of conspiratorial thinking and its dangerous use as a political strategy. Today, we talk to Klein about her journey deep into Steve Bannon’s podcast archive, anti-vaxx groups online, and more realms of what she calls “The Mirror World.”
You can find Kara and Nayeema on Instagram/Threads @karaswisher and @nayeemaraza and Naomi Klein @naomiaklein.
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Customer Reviews
Kara’s Honesty is a Breath of Fresh Air
I can’t believe how many reviewers don’t cope well with Kara telling it like it is. That’s what I’m here for - hearing from one of the few voices in the media not pulling punches.
The chorus is where it falls apart - one tired take after another.
“Yes I should have”
Poor Walter. I lol’ed.
Is Kara okay?
Kara comes across like a scorned lover. I don’t want Walter Isaacson to tell me if he likes Musk personally, and for her keep pushing that feels so strange and desperate. I’m not a big fan of Elon Musk, but Kara’s hatred towards him seems to consume here. Sweetie, he doesn’t think of you at all.