
Background Briefing with Ian Masters
Background Briefing goes far beyond the headlines and deep under the radar to bring forward truths unheard elsewhere in American media. Background Briefing features international and national news, expert guests, policymakers, and critics offering analysis and insight on national security, foreign and domestic policy, political, cultural, and social issues.
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Latest episodes

Apr 14, 2025 • 1h 4min
April 14, 2025 - Ben Wizner | Ana María Méndez-Dardón | Steven Simon
Is Trump Using El Salvador's Techno-Autocrat Bukele as an Excuse to Defy the Supreme Court? | Trump and Erik Prince's Plans to Rendition 100,000 Prisoners from American Jails to El Salvador | The New Hegemon in the Middle East: Israel
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Apr 13, 2025 • 1h 2min
April 13, 2025 - Manuel Pastor | Stephen Walt | Christopher Whipple
How to Ruin a Country | From a Nation of Immigrants to a Nation of Hate, Xenophobia, Exclusion and Cruelty | An Inside Look Into the Fateful Campaign That Brought Back Trump to Finish Off America
Host: Ian Masters
Producer: Graham FitzGibbon
Assistant Producer: Asher Price

Apr 10, 2025 • 1h
April 10, 2025 - Joseph Stiglitz | Barry Eichengreen | Christopher Meissner
Trump's MAGA Economy Driven by Greed, Stupidity and Cowardice | Will Trump's Weakening of the Dollar Lead to a New Global Reserve Currency? | The Hollow Nature of Trump's Promise of Gain After the Pain
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Apr 9, 2025 • 1h 3min
April 9, 2025 - Robert Hockett | Matt Gold | Gregory Brew
Trump's Amateurism on Display or is He Shorting the Market for His Family and Cronies? | An Assessment of the Amount of Damage Ahead From Trump's Trade War | Today's Drop in Oil To $56 From $72 a Barrel Last Week and What Kind of a Deal Could Emerge Between the US and Iran on Saturday?
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Apr 8, 2025 • 59min
April 8, 2025 - Barry Naughton | Trita Parsi | Alexander Sammon
Chinese Response to 104% Tariffs and Insults From Vance | Trump Announces Talks Between Iran and the US in Oman on Saturday | Trump's DOJ Will No Longer Stop Crypto Scams and Cyber Command Will No Longer Stop Ransomware Attacks
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Apr 7, 2025 • 1h 1min
April 7, 2025 - William Cohan | Mike Lofgren | Michael Kazin
Trump Urges Americans Not to Be "Weak or Stupid" as the Meltdown on Wall Street Continues | Who Benefits From Trump and Musk's Deliberate Destruction of the American Economy, Our Government and Our Standing in the World? | Saturday's 1,200 "Hands Off" Demonstrations in American Towns and Cities and Others Around the World
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Apr 6, 2025 • 1h 2min
April 6, 2025 - Denver Riggleman | Stephen Wertheim | Karthik Sankaran
Trump's Looney Girlfriend Purges the NSC and NSA | The Future of NATO and a Europe Without the US | In Search of a Methodology Behind the Economic Lunacy of Trump's Tariffs?
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Apr 3, 2025 • 59min
April 3, 2025 - Jeremi Suri | Sarang Shidore | Jonathan Cohn
The Growing Grassroots Revolt Against the Slash and Burn of the American Government, Our Institutions and Our Democracy by Trump and Musk | Trump's Broadside of Tariffs Amid a Blizzard of Lies From the Rose Garden | After Trump, Musk and RFK Jr. Have Purged Scientists, Researchers, Innovators and Experts, Who Will Make America Great Again?
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Apr 2, 2025 • 1h 2min
April 2, 2025 - Richard Parker | Jonathan Guyer | Simon Billenness
Hope on the Horizon for Democrats | Trump's Erratic Middle East Policy as He Threatens to Bomb Iran While Israel Annexes Gaza | Will the Earthquake in Myanmar Spell the End of the Military Junta?
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4 snips
Apr 1, 2025 • 1h 3min
April 1, 2025 - Michael Martin | Matthew Klein | Michael John Williams
Thanks to Musk, the US is Not Helping the Victims of the Earthquake in Myanmar Because There Are Only 15 Employees Left at USAID | Who Will be Freed on Trump's "Liberation Day" Tomorrow When We'll All Be Paying More? | More Nuclear Proliferation as Europeans Plan to Develop Their Own Nuclear Deterrent and Tactical Battlefield Nukes
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