Talk Cocktail

My guest Christine Wenc was present at the creation, as The Onion evolved from a Madison coupon delivery vehicle to America's finest news source. In a world drowning in existential threats, political polarization, and assaults on truth, humor and satire aren't just entertainment—they're essential lifelines for our collective sanity and democracy. For over 35 years, The Onion has masterfully wielde...

In this WhoWhatWhy podcast , I talk with China expert Dinny McMahon who explains how Beijing is desperately racing to innovate its way out of demographic disaster — replacing construction-led growth with advanced manufacturing and automation. But as the collapsing property market exposes mountains of municipal debt, and rising global trade barriers threaten China’s export-driven strategy, the sust...

David Denby, long time New York Magazine film critic and acclaimed New Yorker writer, joins me to discuss his captivating new book " Eminent Jews." He examines how Leonard Bernstein, Mel Brooks, Betty Friedan, and Norman Mailer—all born within eight years of each other—wielded their Jewish heritage as a creative weapon in post-WWII America. In our conversation, Denby reveals how these boundary-bre...

Why is California the first state to file suit against the Trump administration over trade? Olaf Groth, a futurist and professor at the UC Berkeley Haas School of Business, examines how global trade tensions, artificial intelligence advancements, and economic shifts are reshaping California’s position in the world economy. Groth explores AI’s transformative effects on employment, the emerging defe...

In this recent WhoWhatWhy podcast, I talk with John Lechner, author of Death Is Our Business . He details how private armies increasingly blur the lines between state power and mercenary force. The prospect of billionaires and politicians commanding their own military forces is no longer just a dystopian idea. John Lechner’s five-year investigation into Russia’s notorious Wagner Group reveals a di...

Americans see Canada as that friendly neighbor up north. Canadians now see America as their greatest threat. How did we get here, and what does it mean for both nations? Joining me on this week’s WhoWhatWhy podcast is veteran political analyst and Globe and Mail columnist Andrew Coyne . Trump’s talk of annexation and punitive tariffs has profoundly transformed Canada’s relationship with the US, cr...

Lili Anolik, author of the new book “ Didion & Babitz ,” delves into the complex and largely unexplored relationship between literary icons Joan Didion and Eve Babitz in 1960s Los Angeles. Anolik explains how these contrasting personalities — Didion’s calculated reserve and Babitz’s uninhibited sensuality — shaped our understanding of them and the era. Their story illuminates broader themes about...

For over two centuries, the American experiment has weathered crises that would have toppled lesser democracies — a resilience celebrated as uniquely American. But what if this story of perpetual reinvention through adaptation has reached its limits, our Constitution stretched too thin by the democratic achievements we cherish most? In this WhoWhatWhy podcast , Yale professor Stephen Skowronek tal...

Elsa Devienne takes us behind the iconic beaches of Los Angeles to reveal a hidden history of transformation, conflict, and reinvention. The author of “ Sand Rush ,” Devienne talks to me about how L.A.’s shores went from eroding, polluted strips in the 1920s and ’30s to expansive public spaces that defined the city’s image and culture. It was a time when government could actually change a city. Wi...

There was a time when geographic mobility defined America — one-third of the population relocated each year, chasing better jobs and brighter futures. But today, historian and journalist Yoni Appelbaum argues in his new book, Stuck: How the Privileged and the Propertied Broke the Engine of American Opportunity , that America’s once-robust engine of upward mobility is grinding to a halt. Appelbaum...

What if Donald Trump’s strange fixation on William McKinley isn’t just historical trivia, but the key to understanding what happens next? On this WhoWhatWh y podcast, long-time journalist and author Chris Lehmann argues we’re not necessarily headed for authoritarian collapse — we’re rewinding to the Gilded Age. How might McKinley’s transformation from economic nationalist to global imperialist mor...

The sports betting explosion has unleashed a $500 billion monster that engulfs everything game its path. Since the Supreme Court opened the floodgates in 2018, betting and its betting apps bombard fans during every game, turning each play into another chance to wager. As millions will trade their paychecks for the dopamine hit of a winning bet during March Madness, the same leagues that banned Pet...

Democrats once counted on the votes of blue-collar workers, but two rival teams of consultants saw change coming. Their fight over the party’s future still echoes today. Today, Democrats typically dominate America’s wealthiest zip codes while Republicans claim the mantle of the working class. What happened? In this WhoWhatWhy podcast, historian Timothy Shenk — author of Left Adrift: What Happened...

How did America transform from a nation of self-aware optimists to one of angry cynics in less than two decades? In this recent WhoWhatWhy podcast I talk with political scientist Yascha Mounk , an associate professor at Johns Hopkins’s School of Advanced International Studies. He witnessed this cultural metamorphosis first hand after arriving in the US in 2005; his insights on this podcast paint a...

In a recent special WhoWhatWhy podcast, I spoke with Sam Ramani, an Oxford-trained geopolitical expert and associate fellow at the Royal United Services Institute. Ramani, one of the foremost analysts of Russian global strategy, has become a trusted adviser to policymakers on both sides of the Atlantic. Unlike mainstream analysis with its simplistic narratives, Ramani offers granular understanding...

In this otherwise grim moment, I share a glimpse of what real heroism looks like. In this recent California Sun Podcast, I spoke with Dr. Shayan Rab, associate medical director at Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health, He explains his revolutionary, if controversial, approach to helping mentally ill homeless individuals. As the county’s first street psychiatrist. His innovative program co...

David Pakman, host of his eponymous podcast and program, joins me to talk about his book "The Echo Machine" and how right-wing extremism has methodically undermined America's shared information ecosystem over decades. Pakman and I discuss the deliberate fragmentation of media from talk radio through social media, explaining how this has eroded critical thinking and created parallel realities in Am...

On this recent WhoWhatWhy podcast I explore the tantalizing dream of an impenetrable missile defense and its sobering realities. In an age of hypersonic weapons and artificial intelligence, can any nation truly build an impenetrable shield against missile attacks? As President Donald Trump signs an executive order calling for an “Iron Dome for America,” I talk with Marion Messmer , senior research...

Renowned evolutionary biologist Neil Shubin joins me for an epic journey to Earth's most extreme polar frontiers. The author of the new book ' Ends of the Earth , explains why scientists are willing to brave bone-chilling environments where flesh freezes in seconds. Shubin shares with me stories of daring historical expeditions, cutting-edge climate research, and how these frozen landscapes hold t...

Is China’s unstoppable rise actually a carefully constructed illusion? In this recent WhoWhatWhy podcast , I talk with Timothy Heath , a senior international defense researcher at RAND Corporation who spent over 15 years in the US government analyzing military and political issues related to China. Heath peels back layers of propaganda to reveal a surprisingly fragile superpower wrestling with exi...

As the embers go cold, the smoke clears and the ashes are carted off in Los Angeles a stark reality emerges: not just winds but climate change played a significant role in this deadly and destructive event. A new World Weather Attribution study found that human-caused climate change increased the likelihood of extreme fire conditions by 35 percent and intensified their severity. In this recent Who...

Dr. Mara Einstein takes us beyond the shopping cart to explore how brands have become modern-day tribes, offering comfort and connection in a fragmented world. But are we shaping our brand choices, or are they shaping us—designed to appeal to our deepest needs? Drawing on insights from her book Hoodwinked: How Marketers Use the Same Tactics as Cults, reveals how cult-like marketing tactics, amplif...

On a recent WhoWhatWhy podcast , I spoke with Princeton historian Julian Zelizer who offers a provocative argument from his new book In Defense of Partisanship . At a time when nearly a third of Americans view both major parties with disgust and many blame partisan loyalty for our democratic decay, Zelizer says that strong, disciplined political parties — not feel-good Biden-style bipartisanship —...

From their Venice Beach studio, Charles and Ray Eames revolutionized design in post-war Los Angeles, shaping the modernist ethos of California and beyond. Known for their groundbreaking Case Study House No. 8 , furniture, and films, their work seamlessly blended art, science, and functionality. In my California Sun conversation, Daniel Ostroff, editor of “ An Eames Anthology ,” he shares fresh ins...

There has been a lot of talk this week about the futue of AI. But what if we’ve been asking the wrong question about AI and technology? Not “What can it do for us?” but “What is it doing to us?” In this recent WhoWhatWhy podcast I talk with Chris Colbert , former managing director of the Harvard Innovation Labs, to explore a provocative idea: that technology as we know it may be dead — and that’s...