The Gist - Mikhail Zygar: From Glasnost Whiplash to Social-Media Smog
Russian journalist in exile Mikhail Zygar traces an information system so sealed even Gorbachev couldn't get the facts in The Dark Side of the Earth: Russia's Short-Lived Victory Over Totalitarianism. He draws a straight psychological line from late-Soviet overload to our current tech-firehose, arguing humans don't change much; institutions do (and the Soviet Union didn't have many worthy of the name). Plus: a quote-counting tour through Chris Whipple's Vanity Fair Susie Wiles interviews: "an alcoholic's personality," "conspiracy theorist," "ketamine user," "right-wing absolute zealot."
Produced by Corey Wara
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The Bulwark Podcast - Will Sommer: Conspiracy Theorists Are Behind the Wheel in the Republican Party
Will Sommer joins Tim Miller.
show notes
- Will's "False Flag" newsletter
- The recent Atlantic piece that Tim referenced
- Vanity Fair's interview with Susie Wiles
- Exclusive $35 off Carver Mat at https://on.auraframes.com/BULWARK.
Promo Code BULWARK
Federalist Radio Hour - ‘Real Journalism’: How Courage Fueled The Federalist’s Award-Winning Russia Collusion Hoax Reporting
Read more of The Federalist's award-winning journalism exposing the plot to destroy President Donald Trump here.
The Federalist Foundation is a nonprofit, and we depend entirely on our listeners and readers — not corporations. If you value fearless, independent journalism, please consider a tax-deductible gift today at TheFederalist.com/donate. Your support keeps us going.
The Commentary Magazine Podcast - Who Are the ‘Palestine Firsters’?
Eli Lake joins the podcast to discuss "The Palestine Firsters," his lead article in the January issue of COMMENTARY. Why do Ben Rhodes and a cast of others on the left and right want America to work against its core interests by breaking the U.S.-Israel alliance? Give a listen.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
The Daily - Inside the Tech Company Powering Trump’s Most Controversial Policies
Warning: This episode contains strong language.
Palantir, a data analysis and technology company, has secured federal contracts worth hundreds of millions of dollars during President Trump’s second presidency, including to develop software to help Immigration and Customs Enforcement deport people.
Michael Steinberger, who spent six years interviewing Palantir’s chief executive, Alex Karp, for the book “The Philosopher in the Valley,” explains how Mr. Karp went from a self-described lifelong Democrat to a champion of Mr. Trump, and the impact this transformation could have on American democracy.
Guest: Michael Steinberger, a contributing writer to The New York Times.
Background reading:
- Listen to an interview with Mr. Karp from the DealBook Summit this month.
- In May, the Trump administration tapped Palantir to compile data on Americans.
- Here is Mr. Steinberger’s book, which this episode is based on.
For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
The Ezra Klein Show - What Does It Mean to Give Well?
“This lightbulb went off that almost no one was asking these questions.”
In 2006, Elie Hassenfeld and a few of his friends pooled some money they wanted to donate to charity. And they wanted to find charities where their money would go the farthest in improving lives. That information, it turned out, was incredibly hard to find.
That was the seed of GiveWell. For almost a decade, GiveWell has dedicated itself to rigorously researching the impact of charities around the world and channeling donations to the ones that are the most effective at saving lives. It might sound simple, but this was a radically new approach in the world of charitable giving, and the work itself isn’t simple at all.
I’ve supported GiveWell through the years. So as the year winds down and other people might be thinking about giving to a charity, I wanted to invite Hassenfeld, GiveWell’s chief executive, on the show to talk through this work. How does it measure impact? Are there limits to what you can measure? As an organization, has it made mistakes? What does it really mean to give well?
If you like what you hear, I hope you’ll also consider donating to GiveWell. Learn more at givewell.org.
Mentioned:
“Trust in Radical Truth and Radical Transparency” by Ray Dalio
Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI)
Book Recommendations:
Factfulness by Hans Rosling with Ola Rosling and Anna Rosling Rönnlund
Poor Economics by Abhijit V. Banerjee and Esther Duflo
Behind the Beautiful Forevers by Katherine Boo
Thoughts? Guest suggestions? Email us at ezrakleinshow@nytimes.com.
You can find transcripts (posted midday) and more episodes of “The Ezra Klein Show” at nytimes.com/ezra-klein-podcast, and you can find Ezra on Twitter @ezraklein. Book recommendations from all our guests are listed at https://www.nytimes.com/article/ezra-klein-show-book-recs.
This episode of “The Ezra Klein Show” was produced by Jack McCordick. Fact-checking by Michelle Harris, with Kate Sinclair. Our senior engineer is Jeff Geld, with additional mixing by Isaac Jones. Our executive producer is Claire Gordon. The show’s production team also includes Marie Cascione, Annie Galvin, Rollin Hu, Kristin Lin, Emma Kehlbeck, Marina King and Jan Kobal. Original music by Aman Sahota and Pat McCusker. Audience strategy by Kristina Samulewski and Shannon Busta. The director of New York Times Opinion Audio is Annie-Rose Strasser.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Pod Save America - Donald Trump, Empath in Chief
Trump says the savage murder of Rob and Michele Reiner was the result of their own "Trump Derangement Symptom" and says Reiner was bad for the country. The one real surprise: the number of Republicans in Congress, and even Trump's own social media followers, who denounced the post. Jon, Tommy, and Lovett discuss the Republican pushback and the weekend's (many) other tragedies, including shootings at Brown and Bondi Beach, and the death of two U.S. service members in Syria. Then they look at MAGA voters' growing disappointment with their president, Erika Kirk trying to stop Candace Owens from spreading conspiracy theories about her husband's assassination, and growing speculation about Kamala Harris and Gavin Newsom's political futures. Finally, CNN's Jake Tapper talks to Tommy about the fate of his network now that its parent company is for sale, the sham Pentagon press corps, and his new book, "Race Against Terror: Chasing an Al Qaeda Killer at the Dawn of the Forever War."
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Chapo Trap House - 995 – The Numerology Guys feat. Alex Nichols (12/15/25)
The Gist - Chris Dalla Riva: “Billboard’s become a Christmas chart.”
Data journalist Chris Dalla Riva brings charts, facts, and plenty of fight to Uncharted Territory: What Numbers Tell Us About the Biggest Hit Songs and Ourselves, a tour through every Billboard Hot 100 #1 and the strange incentives that pick our "popular." They debate whether streaming makes the charts more accurate or just more boring—why Christmas songs now squat in the Top 10, why covers almost always slow songs down, and what the early "wilderness years" of the Hot 100 were missing. There's also a detour into the power of platform kings (hello, Sean Parker) and how a playlist can turn "Royals" into destiny. Plus: Trump's ghoulish Rob Reiner post, a reminder of Reiner's unreal directing run, and a weekend that managed to be both pointless and ugly.
Produced by Corey Wara
Email us at thegist@mikepesca.com
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