Clearer Than Truth

Peter Pomerantsev is a best-selling author, journalist, and leading expert on propaganda, disinformation, and modern information warfare. He is the author of Nothing Is True and Everything Is Possible and This Is Not Propaganda, widely regarded as essential books for understanding how authoritarian regimes manipulate media and reality itself. Pomerantsev has advised governments and institutions on counter-disinformation strategies and regularly contributes to major global outlets on democracy, power, and the battle over truth.Support the show

Nicolas Niarchos is a staff writer at The New Yorker covering foreign affairs, geopolitics, and global power dynamics. He’s the author of The Elements of Power: Gadgets, Guns, and the Struggle for a New Global Order, a deeply researched book that explores how control over critical elements like rare minerals, weapons, and technology shapes international politics. Niarchos’s work brings sharp insight into how resources and innovation influence statecraft in the 21st century, blending narrative reporting with expert analysis.Support the show

Stephen M. Walt is a renowned columnist for Foreign Policy and the Robert and Renée Belfer Professor of International Relations at the Harvard Kennedy School. A leading scholar in foreign policy theory and U.S. grand strategy, Walt is best known for his work on realism, alliance politics, and international security. His influential books include The Origins of Alliances, Taming American Power, The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy, and International Relations: One World, Many Theories. Walt’s writing and commentary challenge conventional wisdom and shape debates on America’s role in the world.Support the show

Tim Bouverie is a British historian, journalist, and bestselling author specializing in World War II and modern European history. His acclaimed debut, Appeasing Hitler: Chamberlain, Churchill and the Road to War, explores the diplomatic failures that paved the way for conflict, and his latest book, Allies at War, examines the fractious wartime relationship between Britain and the United States. A former political journalist for Channel 4 News, Bouverie brings deep research and sharp narrative skill to his writing on power, diplomacy, and the lessons of history.Support the show

Yaakov Katz is an Israeli-American author, journalist, and senior fellow at the Jewish People Policy Institute in Jerusalem. He served as editor-in-chief of The Jerusalem Post from 2016 to 2023 and continues to write a popular weekly column while appearing regularly as an analyst on CNN and the BBC. Katz is the author of Shadow Strike: Inside Israel’s Secret Mission to Eliminate Syrian Nuclear Power, Weapon Wizards: How Israel Became a High-Tech Military Superpower, and Israel vs. Iran: The Shadow War, and his upcoming book While Israel Slept: How Hamas Surprised the Most Powerful Military in the Middle East is a national bestseller. He previously spent nearly a decade as the paper’s military reporter and defense analyst, served as a senior policy adviser to Israel’s government, and was a Nieman Fellow at Harvard.Support the show

Max Boot is a senior columnist for The Washington Post and a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations. A leading voice on U.S. foreign policy, national security, and military history, he has advised senior policymakers and served as a defense analyst for multiple administrations. Boot is also the author of several acclaimed books, including The Road Not Taken, Invisible Armies, and War Made New, and is a frequent commentator on global affairs and American strategy.Support the show

Ilan Berman is Senior Vice President of American Foreign Policy Council (AFPC) in Washington, D.C., and a leading expert on security issues in the Middle East, Central Asia, and Russia. He has consulted for the CIA and U.S. Defense and State Departments, and advised congressional offices on foreign policy and national security. Berman is also an adjunct professor at the Institute of World Politics and associated faculty at Missouri State University’s Department of Defense and Strategic Studies. He is the author and editor of numerous books on Iran, Russia, warfare, and global security — including a forthcoming work titled The New Imperialists.Support the show

Edward Fishman is a leading scholar of economic statecraft and a former U.S. diplomat who helped design sanctions policies at the State Department and Treasury. He is currently a Senior Research Scholar at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs and also teaches at its Center on Global Energy Policy. His book Chokepoints: American Power in the Age of Economic Warfare (2025) offers a gripping, behind-the-scenes account of how the U.S. turned global finance, technology, and energy infrastructure into tools of geopolitical influence.Support the show

Barry R. Posen is the Ford International Professor of Political Science at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Director Emeritus of its MIT Security Studies Program. A leading scholar in grand strategy and defense policy, his influential works include Restraint: A New Foundation for U.S. Grand Strategy and The Sources of Military Doctrine. Posen continues to shape debates on global power shifts, U.S. force posture, and military intervention through his teaching, research, and commentary.Support the show

Scott Kennedy is Senior Adviser and Trustee Chair in Chinese Business and Economics at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). A leading authority on Chinese economic policy and U.S.–China commercial relations, he has traveled to China for nearly four decades and focuses on China’s industrial policy, tech innovation, and global economic governance. His publications include The Business of Lobbying in China, The Fat Tech Dragon, and numerous policy reports on U.S.–China tensions. Support the show