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. From the Vox Media Podcast Network.

Philosophy
Politics
News Commentary
501
Is big tech addictive? Nir Eyal and I debate.
Is big tech addictive? Nir Eyal and Ezra debate.
73 min
502
Generation Climate Change
Ezra sits down with Varshini Prakash of Sunrise Movement
91 min
503
Is the media amplifying Trump’s racism? (with W...
Ezra interviews Whitney Phillips
82 min
504
Rutger Bregman’s utopias, and mine
Ezra interviews Rutger Bregman
86 min
505
How white identity politics won the Republican ...
83 min
506
George Will makes the conservative case against...
70 min
507
What deliberative democracy can, and can’t, do ...
Ezra interviews Jane Mansbridge
51 min
508
Rod Dreher on America’s post-Christian culture ...
110 min
509
White threat in a browning America (Jennifer Ri...
73 min
510
Behind the panic in white, Christian America
91 min
511
An enlightening, frustrating conversation on li...
105 min
512
The cognitive cost of poverty (with Sendhil Mul...
93 min
513
Failing towards Utopia
20 min
514
Why liberals and conservatives create such diff...
90 min
515
Stacey Abrams and Lauren Groh-Wargo (Live!)
59 min
516
This changed how I think about love (with Aliso...
93 min
517
The plan behind Elizabeth Warren’s plans
49 min
518
Michael Lewis reads my mind
101 min
519
How Mitch McConnell convinced Michael Bennet to...
73 min
520
How the brains of master meditators change
68 min
521
Why good people are easily corrupted (with Lawr...
79 min
522
The art of attention (with Jenny Odell)
85 min
523
Matt Yglesias and Jenny Schuetz solve the housi...
Matt Yglesias and Jenny Schuetz solve the housing crisis
59 min
524
What kind of news is cable news? (With Brian St...
82 min
525
Contrapoints on taking the trolls seriously
75 min