The Long View

Recorded live at The LINE Hotel’s Banneker Ballroom in Washington, D.C., this special edition of The Long View features M. Gessen, journalist, author, opinion columnist for The New York Times , and host of The Idiot podcast, in conversation with Maria Lipman and Michael Kimmage. The conversation explores Gessen’s journey from the Soviet Union to the United States and back to Russia, the role of li...

Michael Kimmage is joined by sociologist Ekaterina Klimenko and Alicja Curanovic, Professor at the University of Warsaw, for a discussion on the role of Kievan Rus in contemporary Russian politics and the ways historical narratives shape national identity, state legitimacy, and foreign policy. The conversation examines how Russia’s political leadership has drawn on medieval history to construct a...

Michael Kimmage speaks with historian Nicole Eaton about the remarkable transformation of Königsberg into Kaliningrad and the ways Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union each sought to remake the city and its inhabitants. Drawing on her book, German Blood, Slavic Soil , Eaton explores the history of East Prussia, the destruction of Königsberg during World War II, the expulsion of its German population,...

In this episode of The Long View , Bradley Gorski and Yasha Klots discuss the evolution of Russian literature after the collapse of the Soviet Union. The conversation explores the transition from Soviet era ideological publishing to the chaotic and dynamic literary marketplace of the 1990s, the lifting of censorship, the return of previously banned works, and the emergence of new literary voices a...

In this episode of The Long View , Ian Buruma discusses his book Stay Alive: Berlin, 1939–1945 and reflects on the broader question of how war is written and remembered. The conversation considers life in Berlin during the Second World War, the cultural and human dimensions of wartime experience, and the moral complexities faced by individuals living under authoritarian rule. It also expands beyon...

In this episode of The Long View , Lana Estemirova, journalist and human rights activist, joins Elizabeth Culp for a conversation on growing up during the Chechen wars and the lasting impact of conflict on personal and political life. Drawing from her memoir, Please Live: The Chechen Wars, My Mother and Me , Estemirova shares an intimate account of her childhood shaped by war, as well as the endur...

In this episode of The Long View , Michael Kimmage speaks with Oxana Shevel (Tufts University) and Serhii Plokhy (Harvard University) about the history and future of Ukrainian studies. The conversation explores how Ukrainian studies emerged in North America through the efforts of diaspora communities and scholars who sought to develop academic research on Ukraine’s language, history, and culture....

In this episode of The Long View , historian Jochen Hellbeck discusses his book World Enemy No. 1: Nazi Germany, Soviet Russia, and the Fate of the Jews . Drawing on newly uncovered archival materials and firsthand accounts from both German and Soviet sources, Hellbeck explores how Nazi ideology shaped Germany’s war against the Soviet Union and its Jewish population. The conversation examines the...

In this episode of The Long View , historian Maurice Casey discusses his book Hotel Lux: An Intimate History of Communism’s Forgotten Radicals . The conversation explores Moscow in the 1920s as a global hub for revolutionary movements and focuses on the Hotel Lux, a residence for foreign communists connected to the Comintern. At its peak, the hotel brought together activists, intellectuals, and po...

Sophie Pinkham joins The Long View to discuss The Oak and the Larch , her cultural and historical study of forests in Russia and its empires. This episode explores how forests function as symbols of identity, power, refuge, and destruction. Pinkham connects literary traditions, imperial expansion, and contemporary geopolitics, showing how landscapes shape national narratives. From Chekhov and Tols...

In this episode of  The Long View , historian Alissa Klots discusses her book  Domestic Service in the Soviet Union: Women’s Emancipation and the Gendered Hierarchy of Labor . Rather than portraying domestic labor simply as a vestige of inequality, Klots explores how it functioned differently within the Soviet system. Women were not confined to service roles. They could and often did move between...

The recording is a conversation with Professor Susan Grunewald about her book "From Incarceration to Repatriation: German Prisoners of War in the Soviet Union." The discussion covers the historical context and treatment of German POWs by the Soviets, the methods used in Grunewald's research, and the political implications of POW re-education. Grunewald shares insights into the archiv...

What does the Russian economy look like after years of war and sanctions, and could Western businesses ever return? In this episode of The Long View , Charles Hecker and Thane Gustafson discuss how Russia’s business landscape has changed since Western companies exited the market. They examine the political dimensions of commercial engagement, the rise of new domestic players, and why re entering R...

In this episode of  The Long View , Michael Kimmage is joined by  S. Frederick Starr , founding director of the Kennan Institute, for a wide ranging conversation about his memoir  Blue Skies: My Life in Many Worlds . Starr reflects on the places and experiences that shaped his scholarly career, the founding of the Kennan Institute in 1974, and the role of cultural history in understanding Russia,...

In this episode of  The Long View , Michael Kimmage speaks with journalist and author  Mikhail Zygar  about  The Dark Side of the Earth  and the human dimensions of the Soviet Union’s collapse. Zygar presents a personal and cultural history of the late Soviet period, highlighting how individual decisions, moral dilemmas, and cultural life shaped political outcomes. The conversation examines the si...

Historian  Ben Nathans  joins Michael Kimmage and Maria Lipman to discuss the Soviet dissident movement and the research behind his new book,  To the Success of Our Hopeless Cause . The conversation explores how dissidents used law, rights, and decentralized samizdat networks to challenge an authoritarian state that had lost ideological conviction. Nathans reflects on the movement’s key turning po...

Michael Kimmage speaks with journalist and author Michael Thumann and writer Linda Kinstler about Thumann’s books  Eisiges Schweigen  and  Revanche . The conversation examines the importance of place in journalism, shifts in Russia’s political environment since 2012 and the growing sense of isolation from Europe. Thumann and Kinstler discuss the experiences of foreign correspondents and Russian jo...

Michael Kimmage speaks with Celeste Marcus about the life and legacy of Chaim Soutine. The conversation explores Soutine’s childhood in present-day Belarus, his move to Paris and the ways identity, displacement and environment shaped his art. Marcus discusses the energy that defines Soutine’s work, the influence of nationalism and conflict on artists of his era and the contrasting interpretations...

Western business in post Soviet Russia was full of hope, risk, and hard lessons. Charles Hecker and Thane Gustafson break down what Western companies expected, what they encountered, and how geopolitics shaped everything. They also discuss their new books,  Zero Sum  and  The Perfect Storm , and share insights on what the future of Western business in Russia might look like.

In this episode, we sit down with historian Michael David-Fox to discuss  Crucibles of Power: Smolensk Under Stalinist and Nazi Rule . The conversation goes deep into the historical significance of Smolensk, unpacking how this city became a unique lens for understanding life under two brutal regimes. We explore the complexities of archival research, the experiences of ordinary people during WWII,...