
WSJ Opinion: Free Expression
Based on his Wall Street Journal Opinion column "Free Expression," Editor-at-Large Gerry Baker speaks every week with some of the world's leading writers, influencers and thinkers about a variety of subjects. Baker will welcome his guests from the worlds of politics, philosophy, and culture for wide-ranging dialogues that will enlighten and fascinate listeners. Episodes will be released each week.
Latest episodes

Mar 22, 2023 • 35min
New York v. Trump: Politics v. The Law?
Is Donald Trump in legal peril, or is he the target of a political prosecution? On this episode of the Free Expression Podcast, legal scholar Jonathan Turley tells Wall Street Journal Editor at Large Gerry Baker why Alvin Bragg's pursuit of an indictment is a true abuse of the justice system, how the case can be used to Donald Trump's advantage, and why the Mar-a-Lago investigation is the legal jeopardy the former President should be concerned about the most.
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Mar 16, 2023 • 35min
A Puzzling Bailout and A Perilous Economy
At the end of a tumultuous week for U.S. banks, former FDIC Chair Sheila Bair tells Wall Street Journal Editor at Large Gerry Baker on this episode of Free Expression why the feds were wrong to rescue Silicon Valley Bank’s depositors and how the bailout may make things worse for the U.S. financial system. She also warns that the Federal Reserve should pause its interest rate increases next week or risk tipping the economy into a deeper crisis.
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Mar 8, 2023 • 38min
The Rising Backlash Against ESG Investing
Is the ESG craze over? On this episode of the Free Expression Podcast, Wall Street Journal Editor at Large Gerry Baker speaks with veteran investment manager Terrence Keeley about why environmental, social and governance-based investing is in retreat under pressure from investors, conservative critics and Republicans on Capitol Hill. They also discuss whether restoring investing for shareholder returns rather than in pursuit of political ideology should again be the proper objective of asset managers.
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Mar 1, 2023 • 37min
The Perilous State of Geopolitics
On this episode of the Free Expression Podcast, Wall Street Journal Editor at Large Gerry Baker and geopolitical analyst Ian Bremmer survey escalating crises around the world, including China’s deepening partnership with Russia, Ukraine's need for more military and financial assistance, how Joe Biden would defend Taiwan, the growing threat from Iran, and the U.S. Energy Department's conclusion that Covid started in a Chinese lab.
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Feb 24, 2023 • 42min
Russia's Invasion of Ukraine, One Year Later
On this episode of the Free Expression Podcast, Wall Street Journal Editor at Large Gerry Baker and historian Robert Kagan take stock of the war between Russia and Ukraine on the first anniversary of the conflict. After Joe Biden’s visit to Kyiv this week they discuss America's large and continuing commitment to Ukraine, Vladimir Putin's options as his military is depleted, China's role and why it should be wary of military action against Taiwan, and how, after a century as the world’s dominant power, the US can maintain its global status.
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Feb 15, 2023 • 26min
Is There Hope for Free Speech and Ideological Diversity in American Universities?
On this episode of the Free Expression Podcast, president of the University of Chicago Paul Alivisatos talks with The Wall Street Journal's Editor at Large, Gerry Baker about improving the climate for free speech at American universities and colleges, creating more ideological and intellectual diversity in the faculty, and how American higher education can continue to be a force for socially and economically valuable research and discovery.
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15 snips
Feb 8, 2023 • 28min
Is There a Financial Crisis in our Future?
On this episode of the Free Expression Podcast, economist Ken Rogoff talks to The Wall Street Journal's Editor at Large, Gerry Baker about why the U.S. faces a significant chance of recession, the risks of a new financial crisis, and how China is struggling to deal with the realities of its modern economy.
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Jan 30, 2023 • 29min
War in Europe and the Biden Administration on the World Stage
On this episode of the Free Expression Podcast, international relations expert and commentator John Chipman tells The Wall Street Journal's Editor-at-Large, Gerry Baker why Ukraine is in a must-win stage in its war with Russia as the one-year anniversary of the conflict nears, how seriously to take fears of escalation, and what the world makes of the Biden administration’s handling of challenges in the Middle East and China.
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Jan 25, 2023 • 32min
Inflation, Recession, the Fed - and Free Speech on Campus
On this episode of Free Expression, former U.S. Treasury Secretary Lawrence H. Summers tells Wall Street Journal Editor at Large Gerry Baker how much further the Federal Reserve will need to go to contain inflation, whether it will cause a recession and weighs in on the threat to expression and intellectual diversity in universities.
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Jan 18, 2023 • 28min
Paul Ryan on Populism and the Return to Conservatism
On this episode of Free Expression, former Speaker of the House Paul Ryan sits down with Wall Street Journal Editor at Large Gerry Baker at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. The two discuss how the tumultuous vote to make Kevin McCarthy Speaker of the House could yield positive results for the Republican Party, the debate over raising the debt ceiling, and how the GOP needs to get past Donald Trump to secure a victory in 2024.
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