The Gray Area with Sean Illing
The Gray Area with host Sean Illing is a philosophical take on culture, politics, and everything in between. We don’t pretend to have the answers, but we do offer a space for real dialogue. Resist certainty, embrace ambiguity, and get some cool takes on a very hot world. Formerly the Vox Conversations podcast. New episodes drop every Monday and Thursday.
1
A veteran reporter on how to fix the news
Sean Illing talks with James Fallows, former White House speechwriter and longtime reporter & editor, on what's wrong with the political press in America — and how to fix it
50 min
2
The end of social media
Sean Illing talks with technology writer and philosopher Ian Bogost about the state of social media — and what Elon's Twitter takeover has revealed
49 min
3
If society is making us sick, how can we heal?
Sean Illing talks with Dr. Gabor Maté, who argues that Western culture is making us sick, and the Western paradigm of health has gotten some very important things wrong
52 min
4
The free-market century is over
Sean Illing is joined by economist and author Brad DeLong, whose new book tells the economic history of mankind's most consequential era — and explains how and why it just ended
51 min
5
Your identity is a story you tell yourself
Sean Illing talks with neuroscientist and author Gregory Berns, whose new book argues that the idea of a unified "self" is just a delusion
39 min
6
James Carville unpacks the midterms
Sean Illing is joined by political strategist James Carville to process the surprising outcomes in the midterm elections, and assess the state of both parties in the aftermath
43 min
7
Why are billionaires prepping for the apocalypse?
Sean Illing talks with Douglas Rushkoff about the apocalyptic mindset of Silicon Valley tech billionaires, and why the ultra-wealthy are preparing for the end times
49 min
8
Today's Republicans were made in the 1990s
Sean Ililing talks with author Nicole Hemmer, who shows how the GOP became what it is today
60 min
9
Yuval Noah Harari thinks humans are unstoppable
Sean is joined by Yuval Noah Harari, whose bestselling books take a zoomed-out view of the history of human beings — and a glimpse at what our future might hold
56 min
10
Dying with dignity
Sean Illing talks with journalist Katie Engelhart about the morality and legality of physician-assisted dying — asking what a death with dignity really looks like
54 min
11
Finding hope in a world on the brink
Sean talks with philosopher and psychoanalyst Jonathan Lear about how to keep flourishing as human beings in a world that feels like it's falling apart all around us
53 min
12
The new American Reconstruction
Sean Illing talks with author and historian Peniel Joseph about whether we're living in a new era of reconstruction, and the two warring ideas shaping American history
61 min
13
Is America losing its religion?
Sean is joined by religious scholar and bestselling author Reza Aslan to discuss the state of religion in America today
48 min
14
How we got to January 6th
Sean talks with reporter Luke Mogelson, who was amongst the rioters as they broke into the Capitol on Jan. 6, about how it happened, what led up to it, and what comes next
53 min
15
Neil deGrasse Tyson gets political
America's personal astrophysicist takes on our most vexing societal problems. But can science really make political struggles disappear?
53 min
16
Introducing The Gray Area
Embrace uncertainty
1 min
17
Best of: Why America's obsession with rights is...
54 min
18
A GOP insider on why the party went Trump
56 min
19
How do we fix the harm we cause?
45 min
20
A new philosophy of love
55 min
21
The politics of 'Yellowstone'
25 min
22
How society sexualizes us
51 min
23
The Parent Trap
How society is failing parents and children
55 min
24
40 Acres: Reaching reconciliation
28 min
25
40 Acres: The old Jim Crow
43 min
26
40 Acres: $14 trillion and no mules
44 min
27
40 Acres: The original promise
49 min
28
What Clarence Thomas really thinks
And why he's the most misunderstood Supreme Court Justice, according to the author of The Enigma of Clarence Thomas
59 min
29
Even Better: Don't call it a budget
45 min
30
The quest for authenticity
Better living through the existentialism of Simone de Beauvoir
46 min
31
Even Better: Setting your boundaries
43 min
32
Your gut instinct is usually wrong
A data scientist on how to make decisions
49 min
33
Even Better: Workplace equality 2.0
51 min
34
Why we're still postmodern (whatever that means)
53 min
35
Even Better: Activism when you don't know where...
47 min
36
The Supreme Court's power grab
60 min
37
How middlemen took over the economy
60 min
38
The necessity — and danger — of free speech
Free speech is essential for democracy. It may also be democracy's downfall.
50 min
39
Hacking coral sex to save the reefs
49 min
40
The price of keeping secrets
47 min
41
Does China control Hollywood?
58 min
42
Steve Bannon is still at war
45 min
43
The Fortress of Solitude saw it all coming
Constance Grady talks with author Jonathan Lethem about his prescient 2003 novel
34 min
44
The Philosophers: Stoic revival
59 min
45
Station Eleven's creator on the end of the world
Showrunner Patrick Somerville on why hope is necessary for survival
47 min
46
The racist origins of fat phobia
49 min
47
The fight for Ukraine — and democracy
49 min
48
The war on trans people
49 min
49
Michael Ian Black on being a better man
50 min
50
Carmen Maria Machado's haunted feminine
36 min
51
The rise and fall of America's monuments
45 min
52
The Philosophers: America's philosophy, with Co...
55 min
53
Why accidents aren't accidental
47 min
54
Rethinking the "end of history"
56 min
55
Anita Hill finally gets even
55 min
56
Elites have captured identity politics
52 min
57
The moral dangers of dirty work
54 min
58
Did the sexual revolution go wrong?
53 min
59
Who decides how to conserve nature?
55 min
60
The Philosophers: Loneliness and totalitarianism
58 min
61
The War in Ukraine, Explained — Part 4: The fut...
59 min
62
Michael Lewis on why Americans distrust experts
52 min
63
The War in Ukraine, Explained — Part 3: The nuc...
51 min
64
The case for regret
45 min
65
The War in Ukraine, Explained — Part 2: Sanctions
56 min
66
The spirituality of parenting
43 min
67
The War in Ukraine, Explained — Part 1: Why did...
55 min
68
The Philosophers: Resisting despair
How can Albert Camus help us understand the war in Ukraine, post-pandemic life, and the absurdity of our modern world?
51 min
69
What happened to American conservatism?
55 min
70
The limits of forgiveness
46 min
71
The madness behind The Method
62 min
72
David Cross is disappointed in you guys
44 min
73
Author Kiley Reid on why we read novels
42 min
74
The conversation about guns we're not having
59 min
75
Why does middle school suck?
60 min
76
Russia's war with Ukraine — and reality
33 min
77
Robert Glasper on why Black Radio is back
The 4-time Grammy winner is creating a new genre of music
51 min
78
Could we lose delicious foods forever?
60 min
79
What Don't Look Up is really about
The film's co-writer doesn't think it was smug.
56 min
80
Democracy in crisis, part 2: The two-party problem
53 min
81
Why we can't pay attention anymore
59 min
82
Democracy in crisis, part 1: Ross Douthat isn't...
First in a two-part series on the dangers facing American democracy, hosted by Zack Beauchamp
60 min
83
Pod Save the Democrats
55 min
84
A Yellowjackets creator spills his guts
39 min
85
A scientist's case for "woo-woo"
55 min
86
Imagine a future with no police
59 min
87
Novelist Lauren Groff on the other Matrix
42 min
88
Are we living in a simulation?
Philosopher David Chalmers on the question: what is reality, anyway?
63 min
89
Rep. Jamie Raskin on living through the unthink...
52 min
90
Best of: Why fascism in America isn't going away
44 min
91
Best of: Clint Smith III on confronting the leg...
56 min
92
Best of: We need to talk about UFOs. Seriously.
Professor Alex Wendt tells Sean Illing why he thinks the aliens might already be here
57 min
93
Chris Bosh on winning (and losing everything)
53 min
94
The cult of toughness
61 min
95
Is ethical investing a scam?
52 min
96
The good life is painful
49 min
97
The father of environmental justice
45 min
98
Jill Lepore on Elon Musk's imaginary world
57 min
99
E.O. Wilson's plan to save the world
51 min
100
Workers of the world, stay home!
57 min