Democracy Paradox
Topic: Interviews with political scientists and other scholars to discuss their arguments on democracy, governance, and political life
Why I love it: It’s admittedly on-brand that I would choose a democracy-oriented podcast, but Democracy Paradox is truly a gem. Host Justin Kempf approaches each conversation with deep thoughtfulness, connecting his guests’ work to broader scholarly debates but never coming across as overly academic. His recent series on democracy in hard places (profiling a book of the same name) examined democratic survival in countries ranging from Indonesia to South Africa to Benin. It gave a much more nuanced understanding of democracy’s fortunes in each place and even a bit of that rarest of feelings in the democracy field: hope.
—Frances Z. Brown, Vice President for Studies
The China in Africa Podcast
Topic: An in-depth analysis of Chinese economic engagement in Africa and the socio and geopolitical implications of these relationships
Why I love it: This podcast has been consistently producing high-quality analysis for more than a decade, and the hosts make the effort to feature a wide variety of experts from Africa, China, the United States, Europe, and other parts of the world.
—Zainab Usman, Director, Africa Program
Net Assessment
Topic: A biweekly debate of key issues in U.S. foreign policy from War on the Rocks
Why I love it: Hosts Zack Cooper, Melanie Marlowe, and Christopher Preble have deep disagreements and don’t hesitate to air them with candor and civility. I can’t think of another foreign policy podcast so adept at exploring differences of perspective.
—Stephen Wertheim, Senior Fellow, American Statecraft Program
The Energy Transition Show with Chris Nelder
Topic: The global transition from dirty fossil fuels to clean energy
Why I love it: While this isn’t strictly a foreign policy podcast, it is about the global move toward low-carbon energy—and one of our beliefs on the Carnegie climate team is that climate policy is foreign policy. Check it out for deep dives on everything from the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report to nuclear power in Japan to how Russia is dealing with Western energy sanctions.
—Noah J. Gordon, Fellow, Europe Program
The Lawfare Podcast
Topic: Covers a variety of both domestic and foreign policy issues, with a focus on national security, including interviews with policymakers, scholars, journalists, and analysts
Why I love it: I enjoy Lawfare’s podcast because it is not solely a foreign policy podcast. It does a great job of marrying omestic and foreign policy and helps me keep up with events and topics that have an impact on U.S. national security, whether at home or abroad. I am not a lawyer, so I find the approach by the hosts and guests very helpful in translating what are often complicated issues into an easily digestible format.
—Sarah Yerkes, Senior Fellow, Middle East Program
Carnegie Connects
Topic: A biweekly live show hosted by Aaron David Miller featuring conversations with journalists, policymakers, historians, and experts on pressing foreign policy issues
Why I love it: I listen to Carnegie Connects because it’s where the sharpest global thinkers get asked the most incisive questions.
—James Acton, Co-director, Nuclear Policy Program
The Seen and the Unseen with Amit Varma
Topic: A podcast on all things India—covering topics from arts and culture to politics and foreign policy
Why I love it: The Seen and the Unseen is not so much a podcast as it is an eclectic collection of oral histories—episodes are often measured in hours rather than minutes. Varma is not searching for ephemeral click-bait but rather building an audio encyclopedia for the long haul.
—Milan Vaishnav, Director, South Asia Program and host of Grand Tamasha
Your Undivided Attention
Topic: Explores the current co-evolution of society with some of the most far-reaching technological advances: the rise of social media, artificial intelligence, and global developments in cybersecurity and information ecosystems
Why I love it: The podcast from the Center for Humane Technology explores some of the most challenging tech-fueled conundrums we find ourselves in today (disinformation campaigns, social media addiction, cyber warfare, algorithmic discrimination) with an appreciation for the dynamic interplay between technology and the many different contributors to our social fabric (psychology, sociology, even anthropology, as well as the “medieval institutions” that confine us). The team brings on experts to discuss not only how we got here but also why, recognizing that technology’s pace of evolution often exceeds our ability to make meaningful sense of its implications, let alone ensure that it is a force for good in society.
—Aubra Anthony, Senior Fellow, Technology and International Affairs Program
