The Nation Podcasts
The Nation Magazine
Here's where to find podcasts from The Nation. Political talk without the boring parts, featuring the writers, activists and artists who shape the news, from a progressive perspective.
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Top 10 The Nation Podcasts Episodes
Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best The Nation Podcasts episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to The Nation Podcasts for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite The Nation Podcasts episode by adding your comments to the episode page.
Basketball Butterfly Effect: 1993 Draft | Edge of Sports
The Nation Podcasts
11/13/23 • 37 min
On this episode of the Edge of Sports podcast, it's Part 5 of our series, Basketball Butterfly Effect, Arya Shirazi joins the show again to discuss the 1993 NBA draft and a crucial trade that takes place that changes the course of 90s basketball.
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The Families that Made Fortunes Selling Opium, plus the News from Haiti | Start Making Sense
The Nation Podcasts
02/14/24 • 38 min
The blue-blood families that made fortunes in the opium trade: Amitav Ghosh recounts the origins of much of the wealth for the 19th century New England elite on this episode of the Start Making Sense podcast. He wrote the cover story for The Nation's latest print issue. His new book is called Smoke and Ashes.
Also on this episode: The latest US moves in Haiti are framed in democratic rhetoric but are deeply anti-democratic in their effect. Amy Wilentz is on the podcast to explain. She’s written two books about Haiti, most recently the award-winning Farewell Fred Voodoo.
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Israeli Jews and Palestinians Standing Together; plus Blue Cities in Red States | Start Making Sense
The Nation Podcasts
04/03/24 • 38 min
Standing Together, Israel’s biggest Jewish-Palestinian grassroots movement, is organizing against the war and for a Palestinian state. Sally Abed, one of the group’s founders, explains their vision, their strategy, and their recent actions.
Also: Cities everywhere in America are Democratic, and often raising minimum wages and strengthening rent control. But in states where Republicans hold unchecked power, state governments are blocking cities from acting. Harold Meyerson, editor-at-large of The American Prospects. Reports on preemption—and on “pre-preemption.”
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What Elon Musk Won’t Tell You About Settling Mars w/ Zach Weinersmith | Tech Won't Save Us
The Nation Podcasts
03/28/24 • 63 min
On this episode of Tech Won't Save Us, Paris Marx is joined by Zach Weinersmith to discuss the impracticalities of space colonies some interested parties keep forgetting to mention.
Zach Weinersmith co-wrote A City On Mars: Can We Settle Space, Should We Settle Space, and Have We Really Thought This Through? with Kelly Weinersmith. He also makes the Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal comic.
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Israel and Iran, Mass Coral Bleaching, and US Allegedly Refusing to Leave Niger | American Prestige
The Nation Podcasts
04/19/24 • 35 min
Producer’s note: This was recorded on Thursday, April 18, before Israel’s strike on Iran, hence us releasing this earlier than usual. Overnight, Israel did launch a strike on Iran.
On this week's news episode of American Prestige, Danny and Derek bring you another world news roundup. This week: Israel's retaliation for Iran’s strike last week, Iran floats the possibility of developing nuclear weapons in response (0:31), and plans for an IDF Rafah operation in Gaza are underway (8:09); the US is still pursuing Saudi normalization with Israel (10:40) and vetoes a Palestinian statehood resolution at the UN (13:38); the US is trying to create an “independent” sanctions monitor for the DPRK/North Korea (15:11); in climate news, Australia’s Great Barrier Reef is suffering the “worst” bleaching event ever (17:19); in Sudan, the fighting expands into North Darfur (19:46); the UN’s Libya envoy quits in frustration (21:18); a whistleblower says that the US is ignoring the order to withdraw from Niger (23:44); the US pushes back over oil refinery attacks in Ukraine (26:41) while the House of Representatives will take up military aid bills (30:01); and the US will reinstate sanctions on Venezuela’s energy sector (32:12).
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Reasons for Hope in 2024: John Nichols, plus the Bill Gates Problem | Start Making Sense with Jon Wiener
The Nation Podcasts
01/03/24 • 35 min
Hope is different from optimism – it’s an embrace of uncertainty, and a basis for action. The polls look bad for Joe Biden, but Democrats’ chances are much brighter in the House, and perhaps the Senate. John Nichols talks about reasons for hope in 2024, starting in the tipping point state of 2020, Wisconsin.
Also: Bill Gates is now the 6th richest man in the world, with 104 billion dollars. He’s spent the last 20 years giving away some of his money--the Gates Foundation gave away $7 billion in 2022. But with the money comes a host of problems. Tim Schwab will explain; his new book has a great title: “The Bill Gates Problem: Reckoning with the Myth of the Good Billionaire.”
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Rebecca Solnit on Hope in the Dark; plus the Trump-Musk Bromance | Start Making Sense
The Nation Podcasts
11/13/24 • 43 min
Hope does not mean saying ‘this is not bad,’ Rebecca Solnit argues; it just means we will not give up—because we know that what we do matters, and we also know we’ve been surprised by good things we never expected.
Also: The bromance between Elon Musk and Donald Trump cannot last – historian David Nasaw will explain why.
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Haiti Gang Offensive, Sudan Crisis, Gaza | American Prestige
The Nation Podcasts
03/08/24 • 36 min
On this episode of American Prestige, Danny and Derek bring you news from around the world. This week: in Gaza, the U.S. makes airdrops while Biden announces a temporary port (0:30), some countries restore UNRWA funding (4:02), and more; a cargo ship is sunk and data cables cut in the Red Sea off the coast of Yemen (12:26); the parliament of Pakistan elects a new prime minister (16:15); a renewed attempt at a ceasefire in Myanmar (18:02); an update on the crisis in Sudan (20:17); a new date is set for Senegal’s presidential election (23:16); an attack in Odesa during a visit by Zelensky and the Greek prime minister (25:32); Sweden officially joins NATO (27:08); in Haiti, a new gang offensive threatens to oust Ariel Henry (28:33); and we continue to break new climate records (33:54).
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01/17/24 • 34 min
John Nichols reports on Monday’s Republican caucuses in Iowa, and explains why Iowa is the state with the biggest shift from blue to red between Obama in 2008 and Trump in 2020.
Also: The new film "American Fiction," starring Jeffrey Wright, takes up the question, do Black writers have to "write Black"? The film is based on the novel "Erasure" by Percival Everett, which is considerably wilder and more uncompromising than the film. John Powers comments—he’s critic at Large on NPR’s Fresh Air with Terry Gross.
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FAQ
How many episodes does The Nation Podcasts have?
The Nation Podcasts currently has 739 episodes available.
What topics does The Nation Podcasts cover?
The podcast is about News, News Commentary, Podcasts and Politics.
What is the most popular episode on The Nation Podcasts?
The episode title 'That Terrible Debate: John Nichols, plus Katha Pollitt on Melania' is the most popular.
What is the average episode length on The Nation Podcasts?
The average episode length on The Nation Podcasts is 42 minutes.
How often are episodes of The Nation Podcasts released?
Episodes of The Nation Podcasts are typically released every 6 days, 16 hours.
When was the first episode of The Nation Podcasts?
The first episode of The Nation Podcasts was released on Nov 18, 2015.
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