Podcast Episodes

Espresso Martini | Britain’s Flag Fight, America’s Role in Post-War Ukraine, Gabbard’s Purge, and a New Zealand Spy Trial

Season 10 Episode 1

Flags are flying across Britain—but behind the bunting lurks a far-right campaign. Chris and Matt kick off Season 10 with a look at "Operation Raise the Colours," the extremist-led push to turn patri…

Published on 1 day, 11 hours ago

How a Murder in Coal Country Toppled an American Dictator with Nicolo Majnoni

Season 9 Episode 66

In this episode, Matt speaks with Nicolo Majnoni, creator of The Shadow Kingdom podcast, about his new season investigating the murder of union reformer Jock Yablonski and the battle to reclaim Ameri…

Published on 1 week, 1 day ago

The Persuasion Game and How Influence Peddlers Target Democracy with Chad Lewis

Season 9 Episode 65

In this episode, Chris speaks with Chad Lewis, author of The Persuasion Game, about how foreign influence operations exploit Western political vulnerabilities. Chad discusses the rise of Kremlin-back…

Published on 2 weeks, 1 day ago

China’s Long Arm: Uyghur Repression From Xinjiang to Washington with John Beck

Season 9 Episode 64

Award-winning journalist John Beck joins Chris to discuss Those Who Should Be Seized Should Be Seized, his harrowing account of China’s campaign against Uyghurs, ethnic Kazakhs, and other Muslim mino…

Published on 3 weeks, 1 day ago

How Global Finance Influences Geopolitics with Emmanuel Daniel

Season 9 Episode 63

How does financial architecture shape the global order? Chris is joined by Emmanuel Daniel—author of The Great Transition and founder of TAB Global—for a sweeping look at how banking, capital markets…

Published on 4 weeks, 1 day ago

The Information Animal: Humans, Technology, and the Competition for Reality with Alicia Wanless

Season 9 Episode 62

How do we make sense of truth in a world saturated with content? This week, Chris speaks with Alicia Wanless—director of the Information Environment Project at the Carnegie Endowment and author of Th…

Published on 1 month ago

Terror Without a Cause: Nihilism, Youth, and the New Extremist Threat with Jacob Ware

Season 9 Episode 53

This week, Matt is joined by terrorism researcher Jacob Ware to unpack the rise of nihilistic violent extremism—attacks carried out by disaffected young men radicalized online without any clear polit…

Published on 1 month, 1 week ago

QAnon and the Mainstreaming of Extremism with Mike Rothschild

Season 9 Episode 60

Author and conspiracy researcher Mike Rothschild joins Chris to unpack the rise, evolution, and enduring influence of QAnon. They explore its blend of old and new conspiracies, its gamified social ap…

Published on 1 month, 1 week ago

Epstein Spy Rumors, Arctic Power Plays, and Trump’s Ukraine Reversal | Espresso Martini

Season 9 Episode 61

The MAGA movement cracks as Trump’s name surfaces in the Epstein files and his administration fails to deliver the promised disclosures. We unpack the backlash, the conspiracies, and the lingering qu…

Published on 1 month, 1 week ago

Service Announcement: Chris and Matt on DogShirtTV. No Espresso Martini this week, and a QAnon episode instead

Hi eveyone. Chris & Matt will be on Benjamin Wittes & Alicia Wanless's YouTube show "Dog Shirt TV", talking about Secrets & Spies, its origins, our interest in espionage and our thoughts on Spy Ficti…

Published on 1 month, 2 weeks ago