Intelligence Squared

Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/intelligencesquared ------ Democracy is in crisis, and unaccountable and untraceable flows of money are helping to destroy it. According to Peter Geoghegan, politicians lie gleefully, making wild claims that can be shared instantly with millions of people on social media. Donald Trump, Boris Johnson, Jair Bolsonaro and populists in many other countries...

Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/intelligencesquared. -------- Race, class, gender. These are the categories that are commonly thought to define our lives. But Pulitzer Prize-winning author Isabel Wilkerson argues that ultimately the determining factor in societies is a more powerful, unspoken system of divisions: caste. On August 17 Wilkerson came to Intelligence Squared to talk about...

Ian Urbina, investigative reporter of The New York Times for 17 years returns to the podcast to discuss a new investigation, which he believes to uncover the largest known case of illegal fishing perpetrated by a single industrial fleet operating in another nation’s waters (a Chinese fleet of squid boats fishing in North Korean waters in violation of UN sanctions). He spoke to Rosamund Urwin about...

The division of the Indian subcontinent in 1947 into India and Pakistan saw millions uprooted and resulted in unspeakable violence. It happened far away, but it would shape modern Britain. In this week's episode Kavita Puri speaks to Rajini Vaidyanathan about how she tracked down and uncovered remarkable testimonies from former subjects of the Raj who are now British citizens - and persuaded them...

As Covid-19 continues to suspend normal life across much of the globe, many commentators have argued the present moment offers a unique opening to re-imagine our societies and economic system. On this week's episode we delved into this topic with impact investor, Warren Valdmanis, and Michelle Meagher, founder of the inclusive Competition Forum, to discuss whether businesses can be a part of the s...

In this week's podcast Nina Schick speaks to Carl Miller about the rise of Deepfakes and what she believes is an impending 'Infocalypse'. Advances in AI mean that by scanning images of a person (for example using Facebook), a powerful machine learning system can create new video images and place them in scenarios and situations which never actually happened. When combined with powerful voice AI, t...

There are few big thinkers better placed to explain the implications of the Covid-19 pandemic than historian Niall Ferguson. In addition to his profound understanding of past crises, since early March he has been meticulously collating and analysing data about the one we are facing now – tracking how the pandemic began, how we got to where we are today and extrapolating what the future is likely t...

In this week's episode world-leading privacy expert Ivana Bartoletti speaks about the reality behind the AI revolution, from the low-paid workers who train algorithms to recognise cancerous polyps, to the rise of data violence and the symbiotic relationship between AI and social media anger. She spoke to author and writer Yassmin Abdel-Maggied. To find out more about the book click here: https://a...

In celebration of the 250th anniversary of the birth of G.W.F. Hegel, Slavoj Žižek speaks to Shahidha Bari about the philosophical giant that changed our way of thinking about posthumanism. Together they investigate what he might have had to say about the idea of the 'singularity' and the 'wired brain' – what happens when a direct link between our mental processes and a digital machine emerges. Fo...

In this rare public appearance together, chaired by the BBC’s Rajini Vaidyanathan, the former Labour prime minister Tony Blair and cabinet minister Andrew Adonis discussed how the man known as ‘the working-class John Bull’ grew to become one of this country’s greatest political leaders and what lessons can be learned from his legacy today for politics and crisis today.  Support this show http://su...

Medicine, education, health, parenting – wherever it really matters, we look to science for guidance and answers. In this episode Stuart Ritchie discusses his new book 'Science Fictions' and reveals the disturbing flaws that undermine our understanding of all of these fields and more. He spoke to Tom Whipple the science editor at The Times and to find out more about the book click here: https://am...

Award-winning journalist and documentary-maker Jenny Kleeman takes us on a journey into the world of the people who are changing what it means to be human. Focusing on the central pillars of the human experience–birth, food, sex, and death. to find out more about the book click here: https://amzn.to/3ewD59X ------------------------------ Intelligence Squared+. The world's best speakers. Your quest...

Why are measures of stress and anxiety on the rise, when economists and politicians tell us we have never had it so good? While statistics tell us that the vast majority of people are getting steadily richer the world most of us experience day-in and day-out feels increasingly uncertain, unfair, and ever more expensive. In this week's podcast Professor Mark Blyth and Eric Lonergan speak to economi...

In this week's episode BBC presenter and DJ Ashley 'Dotty' Charles joins us to discuss her new book 'Outrage' and the insatiable appetite for anger in today's world. In conversation with Ash Sarkar, she explores how outrage culture has limited capacity to achieve social change and why we need to be more selective in our outrage for the fights that matter. To find out more and buy Dotty's book clic...

Former Moscow correspondent and investigative journalist Catherine Belton reveals the untold story of how Vladimir Putin and his entourage of KGB men seized power in Russia and built a new league of oligarchs. Through exclusive interviews with key inside players, Belton tells how Putin’s people conducted their relentless seizure of private companies, took over the economy, siphoned billions, blurr...

Is Iran an enemy to be confronted or a potential ally to engage with? In this week's podcast we debate 'Iran is not our enemy' with Mehdi Hasan, Azadeh Moaveni, Daniel Hannan and Salman Al-Ansari. The debate was chaired by the BBC's Lyse Doucet. ------------------------------ Intelligence Squared+. The world's best speakers. Your questions. £4.99 per month. Intelligence Squared+ will bring you liv...

In this week's episode writer and lawyer Antony Dapiran joins us from Hong Kong to discuss the protests and turmoil that have engulfed the city since the summer of 2019. He spoke to political economist Shirley Yu. Together they discussed the history of dissent in the city and the future of China's "One Country, Two Systems" as a new security law threatens Hong Kong's autonomy. To find out more and...

A great reckoning is taking place in the wake of the brutal killing of George Floyd and the protests that followed his death. Companies and organisations are looking afresh at how they can do a better job of combatting institutional bias and racism. Employees are increasingly speaking out about their experiences and calling for change. In this special event recorded on Thursday June 25 2020, Intel...

Amidst the current global conversation around police brutality in the United States and the experience of black people the world over, this week we speak to Layla Saad to investigate the role each of us has to play in dismantling white supremacy. Layla Saad spoke to author, academic and broadcaster Emma Dabiri about her book Me and White Supremacy to discuss her experience as both a black woman an...

In the wake of sweeping protests about racism and police brutality, this week we speak to Dr Pragya Agarwal to unravel the way our implicit or 'unintentional' biases affect the way we communicate and perceive the world. Dr Agarwal spoke to author and BBC broadcaster Kavita Puri about her new book 'Sway' and to answer questions like: is prejudice rooted in our evolutionary past? How has bias affect...

Why does Donald Trump have such a good relationship with white evangelical christians despite his questionable conservative credentials? In this week's episode Sarah Posner, author of 'Unholy: Why White Evangelicals Worship at the Altar of Donald Trump' speaks to Washington Post columnist and host of the 'Power Corrupts' podcast Brian Klaas to discuss. To find out more about the book click here: h...

Following the death of George Floyd, global Black Lives Matter protests, and debates raging over statues from Colston to Churchill, Intelligence Squared hosted an online discussion with historian David Olusoga, Labour MP Dawn Butler, and philosopher Susan Neiman who is author of 'Learning from the Germans: Confronting Race and the Memory of Evil'. The conversation was chaired by broadcaster Yassmi...

If we live to 100, will we ever really stop working? And how will an aging society change the way we love, manage and learn from others? In this week's episode Andrew J Scott and Lynda Gratton speak to Tom Whipple about their book 'The New Long Life: A Framework for Flourishing in a Changing World' and how we can navigate the challenges ahead. Find out more about the book here: https://amzn.to/3ha...

In his 2019 book Winners Take All, Anand Giridharadas launched a searing attack on the global elites. Now he turns his thoughts to the post-pandemic world. Is the crisis an opportunity to create a more egalitarian society? How can the powerful be prevented from exploiting the situation to further entrench their advantages? And could this moment be an opportunity to reinvent the relationship betwee...

Are the middle classes really dying off? Will robots really take our jobs? Contrary to common belief Adam Davidson argues the twenty-first-century economic paradigm offers new ways of making money, fresh paths toward professional fulfillment, and unprecedented opportunities for curious, ambitious individuals to combine the things they love with their careers. His new book  'The Passion Economy: Th...