The Gray Area with Sean Illing

The Gray Area with Sean Illing takes a philosophy-minded look at culture, technology, politics, and the world of ideas. Each week, we invite a guest to explore a question or topic that matters. From the the state of democracy, to the struggle with depression and anxiety, to the nature of identity in the digital age, each episode looks for nuance and honesty in the most important conversations of our time. New episodes drop every Monday.

Philosophy
Politics
News Commentary
451
The art of attention (with Jenny Odell)
85 min
452
Matt Yglesias and Jenny Schuetz solve the housi...
Matt Yglesias and Jenny Schuetz solve the housing crisis
59 min
453
What kind of news is cable news? (With Brian St...
82 min
454
Contrapoints on taking the trolls seriously
75 min
455
The purpose of political violence
75 min
456
Ask Ezra Anything 3: Endgame
Ezra answers listener questions
90 min
457
The disillusionment of David Brooks
93 min
458
Emily Oster schools me on parenthood
51 min
459
Lessons from Vox’s first 5 years
90 min
460
Work as identity, burnout as lifestyle
79 min
461
How social democrats won Europe — then lost it
64 min
462
In defense of white-backlash politics
96 min
463
Identity, nationalism, and fatherhood
103 min
464
An ex-libertarian’s quest to rebuild the center...
81 min
465
How whiteness distorts our democracy, with Eddi...
86 min
466
Pete Buttigieg’s theory of political change
56 min
467
Meet the policy architect behind the Green New ...
79 min
468
The somewhat fractured state of American conser...
58 min
469
American politics after Christianity, with Ross...
74 min
470
Why Gov. Jay Inslee is running for president on...
62 min
471
ICYMI: Julia Galef
88 min
472
The roots of extremism, with Deeyah Khan
79 min
473
ICYMI: Paul Krugman
94 min
474
Pop music can make you smarter
21 min
475
Life after climate change, with David Wallace-W...
69 min