How The World Works

Kevin Williamson is joined by Leah Ashburn, CEO and family owner of Highland Brewing Company in Asheville, North Carolina. They discuss Ashburn’s path from journalism and sales into the family business, the legacy of her father who founded Asheville’s first brewery, and the challenges of leading a company through industry slowdowns, a pandemic, and natural disasters. The conversation also explores...

Kevin Williamson is joined by Alex Danza, founder and CEO of the luxury bus company Vonlane. They discuss Danza’s unlikely path from delivering newspapers in Staten Island to reinventing bus travel for business and leisure passengers alike. The conversation explores the challenge of changing people’s perceptions of bus travel and how Vonlane built a loyal following by focusing obsessively on comfo...

Kevin Williamson is joined by Wayne Crews, a longtime policy expert on regulation and the administrative state. They discuss his career studying federal rules and his long-running Ten Thousand Commandments project, which tracks the scope and cost of regulations. The conversation also touches on his family farm and a longshot bid for office as a libertarian candidate that ended with him being kicke...

Kevin Williamson is joined by Jonathan Farber, an investor with experience in both the oil business and venture capital. They discuss Farber’s path into the energy world, how his work expanded from traditional oil markets into media and journalism, and what he has learned along the way. The conversation also explores how people inside the energy sector think about shifting supply and demand, uncer...

Kevin Williamson is joined by Brian Berberich, a veteran commercial filmmaker whose career has taken him from hands-on production roles to producing major commercial campaigns. They discuss how he found his way into the business, the demands of high-end commercial filmmaking, and why making car commercials can be more dangerous than audiences realize. The conversation also explores how artificial...

Kevin Williamson is joined by Jason Samuels, a former train conductor and Marine Corps veteran now working in leadership within the American rail industry. They discuss Samuels’s path from military service to railroad operations, regulation, and research, and explore how modern freight rail actually works. The conversation covers safety, automation, drones, and the vital but often invisible role r...

Kevin Williamson is joined by Dr. Scott Jones, a resident at UVA Emergency Medicine with a diverse background including law, military service, and emergency medicine. Scott shares his journey from being a prosecutor to pursuing a medical career later in life, discussing the challenges and rewards of each profession. He reflects on his military training, experiences in the courtroom, and the realit...

Kevin D. Williamson is joined by Professor James Otteson of Notre Dame. They discuss the meaning of work, Adam Smith’s moral philosophy, and how Smith’s ideas connect to modern understandings of economics, ethics, and human motivation. They also discuss Otteson’s career path, the moral and philosophical underpinnings of capitalism, risk aversion, inequality, and how individuals can find purpose an...

Kevin D. Williamson is joined by Steve DelBianco, president and CEO of NetChoice, a trade association that works to make the Internet safe for free enterprise and free expression. They discuss the evolution of work, technology's impact on society, entrepreneurship, risk aversion, the rise of generative AI, and the challenges and opportunities these changes present for the labor force, regulat...

Kevin D. Williamson is joined by Tyler Griffin, founder of SwiftPro, a successful family-owned HVAC and plumbing business located in Northern Virginia. They discuss the current macroeconomic status of trade industries, the practicality of college degrees, and the often-irrational trade-off between prestige and income in contemporary America. 

Kevin D. Williamson is joined by Rachel Barkley, Director of Able Americans, a nonprofit, nonpartisan think tank project dedicated to advancing innovative, free-market solutions that empower Americans with intellectual, developmental, and physical disabilities. They discuss America’s extensive safety net, spanning more than 80 programs across 14 agencies, and how to better measure success. Rachel...

Kevin D. Williamson is joined by Adam Bellow, a leading figure in conservative publishing for more than 30 years. Together, they discuss the contemporary publishing landscape, literary controversies, and the complexities of publishing in today’s hyperpolitical climate.

Kevin D. Williamson is joined by Matthew Polstein, owner and operator of the New England Outdoor Center in Millinocket, Maine. The NEOC, founded in 1982, has progressed from a whitewater rafting operation on the Penobscot and Kennebec Rivers, to a full-fledged, year round outdoor adventure resort featuring rafting, snowmobiling, Nordic skiing, canoeing, lodging and dining. The two discuss Matthew&...

Kevin D. Williamson is joined by Mike Masnick, founder and editor of Techdirt. They discuss the evolving challenges of content moderation, the day-to-day realities of running an independent tech publication, and how the internet has changed over time from its early decentralized roots to a more complex and structured environment.

Kevin D. Williamson is joined by Miranda Rinaldi, owner and head baker of Nino’s Bakery in Washington, D.C., and a former Foreign Service Officer who served in Afghanistan and Milan. They discuss Miranda’s journey from diplomacy to pastries, her training in Italy and Chicago, and how her dachshund Nino inspired the beloved neighborhood bakery, renowned for its buttery, hand-laminated croissants.

Kevin D. Williamson is joined by David Rea, Senior Pastor at Providence Presbyterian Church in Dallas, Texas. They discuss David's day-to-day workload of running a church, the theology of work, and the nuances of shepherding a congregation in a hyper-political world. 

Kevin D. Williamson is joined by Marian L. Tupy, the founder and editor of Human​Progress​.org, and a senior fellow at the Cato Institute’s Center for Global Liberty and Prosperity. They discuss Marian's life behind the Iron Curtain, minimum wage jobs, and humanity's skyrocketing standard of living. YouTube Link: https://youtu.be/_iUr9hQZtbk

Kevin D. Williamson is joined by Jessica Melugin, director of the Center for Technology & Innovation at the Competitive Enterprise Institute. They discuss training horses, nostalgia for America's "golden age", and academia's disconnect from everyday Americans. 

Kevin D. Williamson is joined by Magatte Wade, Senegalese entrepreneur and one of the world's leading African prosperity activists. The two discuss her superhero origin story, the regulatory environment in Africa, and how contemporary narratives on African poverty are rooted in false assumptions.

Kevin D. Williamson is joined by Fr. Dominic Legge, Director of the Thomistic Institute and Associate Professor in Systematic Theology at the Pontifical Faculty of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C. The two discuss Fr. Dominic's professional and spiritual journey from Yale Law School to the Thomistic Institute.

October 30, 2024 - Kevin D. Williamson is joined by Charles C.W. Cooke, Senior Editor at National Review.  The two discuss their experiences working in the fast food industry, how Charles climbed the ranks at National Review, and his rapid integration into American culture.

September 25, 2024 - Kevin D. Williamson is joined by Chris Stirewalt, Senior Fellow at AEI, contributing editor and weekly columnist for The Dispatch, and the host of The Hill Sunday with Chris Stirewalt on NewsNation. The two discuss the dynamics of political media, and how shifting political dynamics over the last several decades have reflected themselves into the world of political commentary....

August 28, 2024 - Kevin D. Williamson is joined by John Guaspari, an author and management consultant to discuss the practical day-to-day work of a management consultant and Guaspari's views on leadership in the workplace.

July 31, 2024 - Kevin D. Williamson is joined by Joshua Bresnahan, an Airport Ramp Agent who's worked at various airports along the East Coast. Kevin and Joshua discuss how Airports operate behind the scenes, and how the uniquely challenging nature of tarmac operations goes unappreciated. 

Kevin D. Williamson is joined by Jill Erber, a notable restaurateur who's based in Northern Virginia and renowned for her expertise in cheese. Kevin and Jill discuss her journey from software development to the world of high-end foodservice, and the lessons she's learned along the way.