The Ezra Klein Show
Ezra Klein brings you far-reaching conversations about hard problems, big ideas, illuminating theories, and cutting-edge research. Want to know how Stacey Abrams feels about identity politics? How Hasan Minhaj is reinventing political comedy? The plans behind Elizabeth Warren’s plans? How Michael Lewis reads minds? This is the podcast for you. Produced by Vox and the Vox Media Podcast Network.
1
Is the cure worse than the disease?
Are we overreacting to coronavirus? An economist and a bioethicist weigh in.
62 min
2
An economic crisis like we’ve never seen
Annie Lowrey on the coronavirus depression
79 min
3
"The virus is more patient than people are"
Obama's Ebola Czar on why coronavirus is much worse
75 min
4
A master class in organizing
116 min
5
Weeds 2020: The coronavirus election
Ezra and Matt on dueling pandemic response plans from Sanders and Biden, and Trump's oval office address.
51 min
6
Dan Pfeiffer on Joe Biden, beating Trump, and s...
The former Obama White House communications director has some critical feedback for the Democratic party
92 min
7
Are you a "political hobbyist?" If so, you're t...
Political scientist Eitan Hersh on how political hobbyism is ruining politics
80 min
8
What would a Sanders or Biden presidency look l...
Matt Yglesias and I talk foreign policy, staffing, the Democratic Party and more.
69 min
9
Rebecca Solnit on Harvey Weinstein, feminism, a...
The radical wisdom of Rebecca Solnit
102 min
10
Weeds 2020: The Bernie electability debate
Welcome to Weeds 2020! Every other Saturday Ezra and Matt will be exploring a wide range of topics related to the 2020 race.
55 min
11
Tracy K. Smith changed how I read poetry
America’s two-time poet laureate on love, language, and erasure
84 min
12
Barbara Ehrenreich on UBI, class conflict, and ...
Ezra Klein and Barbara Ehrenreich discuss our most pervasive cultural myths from rugged individualism to positive thinking
62 min
13
What Donald Trump got right about white America
AEI's Tim Carney on how social breakdown killed the American Dream
69 min
14
Ta-Nehisi Coates on my “cold, atheist book”
Ezra is joined by Ta-Nehisi Coates to discuss "Why We're Polarized" live from Brooklyn, NY.
70 min
15
If God is dead, then … socialism?
Philosopher Martin Hagglund and Vox's Sean Illing discuss the meaning of life
59 min
16
Tim Urban on humanity’s wild future
The Wait But Why creator thinks the human species is at an existential fork-in-the-road. Is he right?
84 min
17
Jill Lepore on what I get wrong
Easily the toughest interview of my book tour so far
79 min
18
Is Tom Steyer the solution to our dysfunctional...
Why the presidential candidate thinks we need another billionaire to beat Trump
60 min
19
Why We're Polarized, with Jamelle Bouie (live!)
In conversation with Jamelle Bouie on my new book, "Why We're Polarized"
70 min
20
Antisemitism now, antisemitism then
Antisemitism is called “the oldest hatred.” But what is it, and where, exactly, does it come from?
86 min
21
Book excerpt: A better theory of identity politics
A special preview of Ezra's book; Why We're Polarized.
58 min
22
The war on Muslims (with Mehdi Hasan)
Mehdi Hasan on the rise of global Islamophobia
85 min
23
Post-debate special!
Matt Yglesias and I unpack the debate that did, and didn't happen.
54 min
24
An “uncomfortable” conversation with Cory Booker
Cory Booker is one of most promising candidates in the 2020 Democratic field. So, why is his campaign struggling?
88 min
25
The conservative mind of Yuval Levin
The AEI scholar discusses human nature, the conservative movement, and the case against socialism
75 min
26
How an epidemic begins and ends
A preview of season 3 of Vox's The Impact
37 min
27
Nathan Robinson’s case for socialism
The editor of Current Affairs discusses Bernie Sanders, libertarian socialism, utopian thinking and more
97 min
28
How to topple dictators and transform society (...
Harvard political scientist Erica Chenoweth on why nonviolent resistance succeeds -- and fails
47 min
29
Ask Ezra Anything
Ezra answers listener questions about free will, polarization, capitalism, Twitter and more
88 min
30
Best of: Work as identity, burnout as lifestyle
Anne Helen Petersen and Derek Thompson on what happens when work becomes an identity, and capitalism becomes a religion.
77 min
31
Republicans vs. the planet
Vox's Dave Roberts on the politics of climate change
97 min
32
The geoengineering question
Jane Flegal on the idea that could shatter the link between emissions and global warming
71 min
33
How to solve climate change and make life more ...
Entrepreneur Saul Griffith on why we have all the tools we need to fix climate change
91 min
34
Paul Krugman on climate, robots, single-payer, ...
The Nobel-prize winning economist explains it all
84 min
35
The moral philosophy of The Good Place (with Mi...
The geniuses behind TV's most philosophically-inclined sitcom discuss what it means to be a good person
99 min
36
When doing the right thing makes you a criminal
Direct Action Everywhere co-founder Wayne Hsiung explains why he decided to risk his freedom to expose extreme injustice.
99 min
37
Peter Singer on the lives you can save
Ezra chats with Peter Singer about the re-release of his book "The Life You Can Save".
73 min
38
Best of: The age of "mega-identity" politics
A conversation with Lilliana Mason about identity politics
75 min
39
Because podcast
Gretchen McCulloch on how the internet revolutionized language
77 min
40
There’s more to life than profit
Yancey Strickler on climate change, founding Kickstarter and the perils of profit
89 min
41
Having a bad day? Dave Eggers can help.
Dave Eggers and I discuss satire, the Trump presidency and the importance of disconnecting.
80 min
42
How Whole Foods, yoga, and NPR became the hallm...
Elizabeth Currid-Halkett and Ezra Klein discuss why today’s rich are far less materialistic, but a far greater threat to equality
68 min
43
How social media makes us antisocial
Andrew Marantz explains the symbiotic relationship between social media platforms and the alt-right
89 min
44
ICYMI: Edward Norton’s theory of mind, movies, ...
107 min
45
Introducing Reset
Arielle Duhaime-Ross hosts Reset - the new tech podcast from Recode.
42 min
46
What a smarter Trumpism would sound like
Michael Lind discusses the new class war, China, and his theory of political settlement
82 min
47
The climate crisis is an oceans crisis
Dr. Ayana Elizabeth Johnson explains why oceans are essential to human life and how we are killing them.
69 min
48
We live in The Good Place. And we’re screwing i...
How bad is climate change? Scientist Kate Marvel explains.
81 min
49
Neoliberalism and its discontents
Wendy Brown and Noah Smith try to define one of the most confusing concepts in modern political discourse
89 min
50
The four words that will decide impeachment
Ezra Klein and Gene Healy discuss the meaning of "High Crimes and Misdemeanors"
52 min
51
We don’t just feel emotions. We make them.
A mind-blowing conversation with Lisa Feldman Barrett on how emotion is made
90 min
52
How politics became a war against reality
Peter Pomerantsev on modern propaganda, post-truth politics, and the authoritarian resurgence
84 min
53
The loneliness epidemic
A deeply personal conversation with Vivek Murthy about loneliness and its impact on the mind, body, and soul
76 min
54
Ibram X. Kendi wants to redefine racism
Is racism solely about policies that widen racial inequality? Ibram X. Kendi and Ezra Klein discuss.
85 min
55
Malcolm Gladwell’s Stranger Things
Ezra Klein and Malcolm Gladwell discuss Cuban spies, talking to strangers, the process of creative storytelling, and much more
91 min
56
An inspiring conversation about democracy
Danielle Allen and Ezra Klein discuss what a democratic policy agenda would looks like, how to talk to strangers, and why we need to reform civic education.
87 min
57
Samantha Power’s journey from foreign policy cr...
A conversation about human nature, China, and the blurry line between morality and strategy in US foreign policy
87 min
58
When meritocracy wins, everybody loses
Is meritocracy responsible for rampant inequality, waning social mobility, and widespread dissatisfaction? Ezra Klein and Daniel Markovits discuss.
85 min
59
Nikole Hannah-Jones on the 1619 project, choosi...
Ezra Klein and Nikole Hannah-Jones discuss America's founding contradiction, racial segregation, capitalism and more
98 min
60
Randall Munroe, the genius behind XKCD
A quirky, weird, illuminating, curious trip through the mind of a genius
82 min
61
Julián Castro's quiet moral radicalism
Why Julián Castro wants to decriminalize migration, admit climate refugees, reimagine our relationship with the homeless, and protect animals.
61 min
62
Political animals (with Leah Garcés)
Leah Garcés and Ezra Klein discuss how building coalitions with unlikely allies may just be the key to reducing animal suffering
87 min
63
John McWhorter thinks we're getting racism wrong
John McWhorter and Jane Coaston discuss the limits of third-wave antiracism
63 min
64
The rocky marriage between libertarians and con...
Jane Coaston and Conor Friedersdorf discuss the future of the GOP in Trump's America
83 min
65
A mind-bending, reality-warping conversation wi...
What psychedelics, burning money, and postmodernism have in common
85 min
66
Jia Tolentino on what happens when life is an e...
Ezra Klein and Jia Tolentino discuss how the Internet distorts identities, cheapens solidarity, and erodes morality
99 min
67
The original meaning of “identity politics” (wi...
Ezra Klein and Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor discuss the origins of identity politics and the future of Black liberation
79 min
68
Are bosses dictators? (with Elizabeth Anderson)
Elizabeth Anderson sits down with Ezra Klein to discuss workplace tyranny, the power of ideology, and a vision for a more democratic society
85 min
69
The Constitution is a progressive document
Gerrymandering, constitutionalism, and the future of the Supreme Court
56 min
70
Matt Bruenig’s case for single-payer health care
Ezra interviews Matt Bruenig
119 min
71
Can Raj Chetty save the American dream?
Ezra chats with Raj Chetty about the fading American dream.
77 min
72
Astra Taylor will change how you think about de...
Is democracy even possible? A conversation with Astra Taylor
76 min
73
Is big tech addictive? Nir Eyal and I debate.
Is big tech addictive? Nir Eyal and Ezra debate.
73 min
74
Generation Climate Change
Ezra sits down with Varshini Prakash of Sunrise Movement
91 min
75
Is the media amplifying Trump’s racism? (with W...
Ezra interviews Whitney Phillips
82 min
76
Rutger Bregman’s utopias, and mine
Ezra interviews Rutger Bregman
86 min
77
How white identity politics won the Republican ...
83 min
78
George Will makes the conservative case against...
70 min
79
What deliberative democracy can, and can’t, do ...
Ezra interviews Jane Mansbridge
51 min
80
Rod Dreher on America’s post-Christian culture ...
110 min
81
White threat in a browning America (Jennifer Ri...
73 min
82
Behind the panic in white, Christian America
91 min
83
An enlightening, frustrating conversation on li...
105 min
84
The cognitive cost of poverty (with Sendhil Mul...
93 min
85
Failing towards Utopia
20 min
86
Why liberals and conservatives create such diff...
90 min
87
Stacey Abrams and Lauren Groh-Wargo (Live!)
59 min
88
This changed how I think about love (with Aliso...
93 min
89
The plan behind Elizabeth Warren’s plans
49 min
90
Michael Lewis reads my mind
101 min
91
How Mitch McConnell convinced Michael Bennet to...
73 min
92
How the brains of master meditators change
68 min
93
Why good people are easily corrupted (with Lawr...
79 min
94
The art of attention (with Jenny Odell)
85 min
95
Matt Yglesias and Jenny Schuetz solve the housi...
Matt Yglesias and Jenny Schuetz solve the housing crisis
59 min
96
What kind of news is cable news? (With Brian St...
82 min
97
Contrapoints on taking the trolls seriously
75 min
98
The purpose of political violence
75 min
99
Ask Ezra Anything 3: Endgame
Ezra answers listener questions
90 min
100
The disillusionment of David Brooks
93 min