Keen On America

EPISODE 1801: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Jon Doyle, CEO of LOST IN CULT, about the glory years of video gaming when handheld devices provided their users with a simultaneously social and intimate experience. Jon Doyle is an award-winning creative director and designer specializing in product concept and development. Creator of the smash hit gaming journal [lock-on], Jon Doyle has coordi...

EPISODE 1800: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Joe Nocera, the co-author of THE BIG FAIL, about why he believes American capitalism needs to be radically reformed if it is to successfully confront the next pandemic Joe Nocera is an op-ed columnist for The New York Times. His previous books include All the Devils Are Here (with Bethany McLean), Good Guys and Bad Guys, and A Piece of the Action...

EPISODE 1799: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to M.R. O'Connor, author of IGNITION: LIGHTING FIRES IN A BURNING WORLD, about the life-giving force of fire to regenerate nature M.R. O’Connor is a journalist who writes about the politics and ethics of science, technology, and conservation. Her work has appeared in The New Yorker, The Atavist, Slate, Foreign Policy, Nautilus, UnDark and Harper’s....

EPISODE 1798: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Vincent Bevins, author of IF WE BURN, about the global mass protests between 2010 and 2020 that mostly failed to bring about radical change Vincent Bevins is an award-winning journalist and correspondent. He covered Southeast Asia for the Washington Post, reporting from across the entire region and paying special attention to the legacy of the 19...

EPISODE 1797: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Rikki Schlott, co-author of THE CANCELING OF THE AMERICAN MIND, about how she believes cancel culture threatens the free speech of both conservatives and liberals Rikki Schlott is a New York Post columnist, News Features reporter, and author of "The Canceling of the American Mind." Schlott completed a research fellowship with the Foundation for I...

EPISODE 1796: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Richard Rhodes, author of SCIENTIST, about E.O. Wilson and the great biologist's life in nature Richard Rhodes is the author or editor of 22 books, including The Twilight of the Bomb, the last volume in a quartet about nuclear history. The first, The Making of the Atomic Bomb, won the Pulitzer Prize, a National Book Award, and a National Book Cri...

EPISODE 1795: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to David H. Rosmarin, PhD, author of THRIVING WITH ANXIETY,  about why anxiety is healthy and how to thrive with it David H. Rosmarin, PhD, is an associate professor at Harvard Medical School, a program director at McLean Hospital, and founder of Center for Anxiety, which services over one thousand patients per year in multiple states. Dr. Rosmarin...

EPISODE 1794: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to the co-author of THE BIG FAIL, Bethany McLean, about what the Covid pandemic reveals about American healthcare, innovation and capitalism Bethany McLean is a writer for Vanity Fair and the coauthor of The Smartest Guys in the Room. She was previously editor at large of Fortune and spent three years working at Goldman Sachs. She lives in Chicago....

EPISODE 1793: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Alexander Hall Hall, the co-host of the Global Disorder podcast, about Israel, Gaza, the Ukraine, Brexit and her long career as a British diplomat Ambassador Alexandra Hall Hall is a former British diplomat with over 30 years’ experience, including as the British Ambassador to Georgia from 2013 to 2016, and as Brexit Counsellor at the British Emb...

EPISODE 1792: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Premilla Nadasen, author of CARE: THE HIGHEST STAGE OF CAPITALISM, about why we need to bring care back to what she calls the "care" economy of healthcare and teaching Premilla Nadasen is a professor of history at Barnard College, Columbia University, where she is co-director of the Barnard Center for Research on Women. She is the author of Welfa...

EPISODE 1791: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Trond Undheim, author of ECO TECH, about how to avert the end of the world before 2075 Trond Undheim is a futurist, scholar, podcaster, venture partner, nonresident Fellow at the Atlantic Council, co-founder of Yegii, and Lead Ecosystem evangelist at Tulip. He formerly worked with MIT, WPP, Oracle, and the EU. He’s a co-author (with Natan Linder)...

EPISODE 1790: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Angela C. Sutton, author of PIRATES OF THE SLAVE TRADE, about the battle of Cape Lopez in 1722 and the birth of chattel slavery as an American institution ANGELA SUTTON is a social and digital historian of the Atlantic World interested in the tools and methods that preserve and widen access to the sources that help refine and redefine popular und...

EPISODE 1789: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Dylan C. Penningroth, author of BEFORE THE MOVEMENT, about the hidden histories of Black civil rights in 19th and 20th century America Dylan C. Penningroth is a professor of law and history at the University of California, Berkeley. Recipient of the MacArthur Fellowship and author of the award-winning The Claims of Kinfolk, he lives in Kensington...

EPISODE 1788: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Will Harris, author of A BOLD RETURN TO GIVING A DAMN, about the repellant nature of industrial farming and why the future of food should be local Will Harris is the owner of White Oak Pastures, a holistically managed, regenerative ranch and farm in Georgia’s semi-tropical Coastal Plain. Described by his daughters as an “organic icon” of the Real...

EPISODE 1787: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Michael L. Littman, author of CODE TO JOY, about why  - in our age of AI - everyone should learn a little computer programming Michael L. Littman, Ph. D. is a University Professor of Computer Science at Brown University and Division Director of Information and Intelligent Systems at the National Science Foundation. He studies machine learning and...

EPISODE 1786: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Abby Smith Rumsey, author of MEMORY, EDITED, about what we should remember and what we should forget about history Abby Smith Rumsey is an intellectual and cultural historian. She focuses on the impact of information technologies on perceptions of history, time, and identity, the nature of evidence, and the changing roles of libraries and archive...

EPISODE 1785: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Jonathan Shapiro, author of HOW TO BE ABLE LINCOLN, about the seven steps to finding a moral compass and living a worthy life Since 2000, Jonathan Shapiro has written and produced some of television’s most iconic legal dramas, including HBO’s The Undoing, Amazon Prime’s Goliath, and NBC Peacock’s The Calling. An Emmy and Humanitas Award-winner, S...

EPISODE 1784:  In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to  Keith Teare, THAT WAS THE WEEK newsletter author, about why, he suspects, OpenAI will be worth $5 trillion by 2028. Keith Teare is the founder and CEO of SignalRank Corporation. Previously, he was executive chairman at Accelerated Digital Ventures Ltd., a U.K.-based global investment company focused on startups at all stages. Teare studied at t...

EPISODE 1783: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Peter Slen, host of the CSPAN show BOOKS THAT SHAPED AMERICA, about Frederick Douglass and his 1845 autobiography about life as an American slave Peter Slen is the senior executive producer and a host at C-SPAN, a television and radio network known for its unbiased coverage of government proceedings. Named as one of the "100 most connected men" b...

EPISODE 1782: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Douglas Dillon, author of THE DILLION ERA, about Douglas Dillon and mainstream Republicanism in the Eisenhower, Kennedy and Johnson administrations Richard Aldous is Eugene Meyer Professor of British History and Culture at Bard College. He is also author of Schlesinger: The Imperial Historian, which was a New York Times notable book and Reagan an...

EPISODE 1781: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Cameron McWhirter and Zusha Elinson, co-authors of AMERICAN GUN, about the history of the AR-15, an assault weapon that captures America's contemporary love affair with technology, freedom and guns Cameron McWhirter is a national reporter for The Wall Street Journal, based in Atlanta. He has covered mass shootings, violent protests and natural di...

EPISODE I780: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Lisa Carmen Wang, author of BAD B***H BUSINESS BIBLE, about how to seize control of your body, boundaries and bank account Lisa Carmen Wang is the Founder of BAD B***H EMPIRE, a global community platform building unapologetic worth and wealth for women. She is a former Olympic-level, four-time USA National Champion and USA Hall of Fame gymnast, s...

EPISODE 1779: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Christopher Bosso, author of WHY SNAP WORKS, about a history, and defense, of the US Food Stamp program Christopher Bosso is Professor of Public Policy and Politics in the School of Public Policy and Urban Affairs at Northeastern University, Boston. His current areas of research and teaching interest are in food and environmental policy. His newe...

EPISODE 1778: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Craig R. Smith M.D., author of NOBILITY IN SMALL THINGS, about his life as one of America's most celebrated heart surgeons As a surgeon at Columbia University and the New York Presbyterian Hospital, Dr. Craig R. Smith has been no stranger to pressure—fromperforming President Bill Clinton’s quadruple bypass, to openly massaging patients’ hearts. B...

EPISODE 1777: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to John J. Berger, author of SOLVING THE CLIMATE CRISIS, about the three essential dimensions to saving the earth JOHN J. BERGER Ph. D. is an environmental science and policy specialist, prize-winning author, and journalist. A graduate of Stanford and the University of California, he has written and edited 11 books, including three previous books on...