Conversations with Coleman

My guest today is Bhaskar Sunkara. He’s the founding editor of Jacobin magazine and currently serves as president at The Nation. Bhaskar is a proud democratic socialist; he was even vice-chair of the Democratic Socialists of America, and he’s the author of a book titled The Socialist Manifesto: The Case for Radical Politics in an Era of Extreme Inequality. In this conversation, we dive into the pr...

I’m joined by Ben Shapiro, a controversial figure who for many needs no introduction. Ben is a political commentator, author, and co-founder of The Daily Wire. He joins me to discuss his new book, Scavengers and Lions. We explore the central metaphor of the book and what it says about the moral choices facing our culture today. Ben lays out his argument about the rise of intellectual scavengers wh...

It’s been nearly two years since October 7, when Hamas took over 250 people hostage. Since then, families of the captives have led a relentless campaign to bring them home, but they haven’t always agreed on how to get there. As a new ceasefire deal is on the table, I speak with three voices from that struggle. One is Dalia Cusnir-Horn, who has one brother-in-law, Iair Horn, who was captured and th...

Greg Lukianoff is an attorney, author, and president of FIRE, the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression. You may know him from his previous books, The Coddling of the American Mind and The Canceling of the American Mind. His latest book, which was published earlier this summer, is The War on Words, Ten Arguments Against Free Speech—and Why They Fail.  In this episode, we get into why Luk...

This week on Conversations with Coleman, I’m joined by writer and cultural critic Adam Szetela, author of That Book Is Dangerous!, a trenchant look at how moral panic, social media, and identity-driven outrage are reshaping the publishing industry. We discuss the rise of so-called sensitivity readers who vet books to ensure they are as inoffensive as possible, and how an obsession with controlling...

I watched the eight-hour series on the French First Lady by podcaster Candace Owens, so you don't have to. It’s a fascinating window into a mind gripped by extreme apophenia: the tendency to see patterns where none exist. So just how and why did Candace Owens spread this lie? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

You might think you know what a Washington Post columnist sounds like, but Megan McArdle is not your typical liberal media voice. She’s spent years inside the most established outlets in journalism: The Atlantic, Bloomberg, The Economist and yet she’s managed to surprise and infuriate readers on the left with sharp critiques that don’t always toe the party line. Today on Conversations we talk abou...

In this special episode, I take on probably the most controversial and emotionally fraught topic of the moment: the Israel-Hamas conflict.  I think war crimes have been committed on both sides. But that doesn’t mean I think the two sides are morally equivalent. Today, I argue that there’s a fundamental asymmetry between Israel and Hamas, one that’s too often blurred or ignored by the mainstream me...

Filmmaker and digital rights activist Justine Bateman joins me for a conversation on how AI is warping Hollywood and why the content we consume feels increasingly hollow. We dive into the decline of originality, the studios' addiction to algorithms, and how the “double-screen” era (watching while scrolling) has rewired audience expectations, pushing creators toward louder, faster, and shallower st...

This week I sat down with political analyst Galen Druke to talk about what actually moves public opinion and shifts voter behavior. We got into why some people viewed Donald Trump as the more moderate choice in 2016, what that says about how voters think, and how Democrats might get back into the national conversation in a real way. We also talked about how polls work, when they matter, and what t...

Josh Hammer is the author of Israel and Civilization: The Fate of the Jewish Nation and the Destiny of the West. He joins me to explore the big stuff: God, geopolitics, Zionism, the future of the U.S. We also get into the complexities of interfaith marriage and the role of religion in modern culture. The conversation delves into the challenges and nuances of maintaining religious and ethnic contin...

New York City’s mayor on Zohran Mamdani and Andrew Cuomo; socialism and corruption; policing and power; rats and redemption. New York City mayor Eric Adams has had a controversial time in office. So why should New Yorkers trust him for another four years? In this episode, we talk about Adams’ criticisms of Zohran Mamdani, his call to Andrew Cuomo to step aside, and yes: rats, e-bikes, and trash. A...

I’m joined this week by someone who asks questions maybe all of us don’t ask enough: How do we become happier? And how do we date people we disagree with? And maybe most importantly: Why do people feel they are living lives without meaning? And how do we solve this?  My guest is Arthur C. Brooks, a Harvard professor, a best-selling author, a social scientist, and a co-author (with Oprah, no less)...

This week I sit down with writer and thinker Tim Urban, creator of the blog Wait But Why to talk: political polarization, AI, university campuses and even dating.  Tim brings his trademark clarity and curiosity to a conversation that covers the rise of tribal thinking, the challenge of nuance in a viral world, and how humanity can navigate the information overload of the digital age. ⁠www.moinkbox...

Mark Dubowitz, CEO of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, has long focused on Iran’s nuclear ambitions and advised multiple U.S. administrations on policy toward Iran. I invited him on Conversations with Coleman to explain the Iran nuclear issue at a deep level. We discussed the science of uranium enrichment, the differing Obama, Trump, and Biden policies on containment, and the history of...

I am proud to announce that I have relaunched my podcast, Conversations with Coleman, with The Free Press. My first guest is none other than Bari Weiss, who talks to me about the recent surge in antisemitism, what it means to speak out in a time when doing so can come at a cost, and how walking away from The New York Times has helped shape The Free Press. Join us as we also cover Trump, God, and t...

Conversations with Coleman is where deep thinkers and curious minds meet for sharp, surprising, and unfiltered chats. Hosted by Coleman Hughes, writer, thinker, and guy who asks the questions other people dodge - this podcast isn’t about debating. It’s about discovery. Politics, philosophy, race, culture, science: it’s all fair game. If you're done with hot takes and hungry for real-talk, come joi...

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Buy H.R. McMaster's book: https://www.amazon.com/At-War-Ourselves-Trump-White/dp/0062899503 Support the show at Patreon.com/colemanhughes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Listen to the rest of this episode : https://uncomfortableconversations.substack.com/listen Watch our event in Sydney at FODI: https://youtu.be/ZXZuI7TO3X0?si=LeSjD1PoUoFo01Xu Support my podcast: https://www.patreon.com/ColemanHughes     Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BUY TIX to SYDNEY, AUS SHOW 8/25: https://festivalofdangerousideas.com/program/a-colourblind-society-uncomfortable-conversations/#tickets BUY TIX to MELBOURNE, AUS SHOW 8/28: https://www.ticketmaster.com.au/uncomfortable-conversations-live-with-coleman-hughes-and-josh-szeps-melbourne-28-08-2024/event/130060E1D02C314C     Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BUY TIX to SYDNEY, AUS 8/25: https://festivalofdangerousideas.com/program/a-colourblind-society-uncomfortable-conversations/#tickets BUY TIX to MELBOURNE, AUS 8/28: https://www.ticketmaster.com.au/uncomfortable-conversations-live-with-coleman-hughes-and-josh-szeps-melbourne-28-08-2024/event/130060E1D02C314C Show Sponsor: https://www.jordanharbinger.com/     Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...

Buy Nellie's book here: https://a.co/d/09QQ9O52 Support the show: https://www.patreon.com/ColemanHughes 00:00 Introduction and Nelly Bowles' Background 11:07 The Reality of Homelessness and Drug Addiction 32:59 The Idealism and Limitations of Progressive Movements 39:02 Human Nature and Failed Systems 46:06 Origins and Evolution of Antifa in Seattle and Portland 57:47 Corruption and Lack of Scruti...

Buy Rob's book: https://a.co/d/gv8juH9 Support the podcast: https://www.patreon.com/ColemanHughes 00:00 Introduction and Background 03:19 The Importance of Early Life Experiences 07:07 The Overemphasis on Education 09:48 The Flawed Measurement of Success 12:03 The Narrative of Overcoming Trauma 15:15 The Limitations of Post-Traumatic Growth 26:58 Gender Differences in Foster Care 29:23 Addressing...

To support the show, visit my Patreon page:  https://www.patreon.com/ColemanHughes   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices