Bookstack

How does modern authoritarianism work? Daniel Treisman joins host Richard Aldous to talk Putin, Xi, Lee Kwan Yew, and the tools of modern state control—all discussed in his new book, co-authored with Sergei Guriev, Spin Dictators: The Changing Face of Tyranny in the 21st Century. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.persuasion.community/subscribe

With the Ukraine War heading into its fifth week, Christopher M. Smith joins host Richard Aldous to talk about the roots of Ukraine’s turn to the West, American policymaking at the State Department, and his new book Ukraine’s Revolt, Russia’s Revenge. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.persuasion.community/subscribe

Chris Armstrong joins our host Richard Aldous to talk about how existing governing institutions are failing to address one of our most important natural resources: the oceans. Listen to the conversation, and read Armstrong’s new book, A Blue New Deal: Why We Need a New Politics for the Oceans. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.persuasion.community/subscribe

Elon Musk once said that the future cannot be predicted, it can only be discovered. This week, Sebastian Mallaby joins host Richard Aldous to talk about innovation, technology, markets, and his new book The Power Law: Venture Capital and the Making of the New Future. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.persuasion.community/subscribe

What’s it like to be a part of history? With the 50th anniversary of Nixon’s famous trip to China taking place this year, Dwight Chapin joins host Richard Aldous to talk about his new book, The President’s Man: Memoirs of Nixon’s Trusted Aide. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.persuasion.community/subscribe

Walter F. White led two lives: one as a leader of the NAACP in the early twentieth century, and the other as a white newspaperman who covered lynching crimes in the Deep South. This week, A. J. Baime joins host Richard Aldous to discuss his new book, White Lies: The Double Life of Walter F. White and America's Darkest Secret. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.persuasion.community/subscribe

Happy Presidents’ Day! On the show this week, Iain Dale and Alvin Felzenberg join host Richard Aldous to talk about The Presidents: 250 Years of American Political Leadership, a collection of essays by a range of academics, historians, journalists and serving politicians, on all 45 men who have held the office over the last 250 years. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.persuasion.community/subscribe

How do we best think about the abolition movement—as a tepid first step towards righting a historic injustice or a moral breakthrough despite its flaws? Linda Hirschman joins host Richard Aldous to talk about her new book The Color of Abolition: How a Printer, a Prophet, and a Contessa Moved a Nation. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.persuasion.community/subscribe

What to do about the billionaire class? New York Times’ Global Economics Correspondent Peter S. Goodman joins host Richard Aldous to talk about inequality and wealth centralization in the 21st century, as well as his new book, Davos Man: How the Billionaires Devoured the World. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.persuasion.community/subscribe

What drove Hitler to declare war on the United States after Pearl Harbor, and what, if anything, can that fateful decision to kick off a truly world war tell us about today’s dangerous moment? Brendan Simms and Charlie Laderman join host Richard Aldous to discuss their new book, Hitler’s American Gamble: Pearl Harbor and Germany’s March to Global War. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.persuasion.community/subscribe