Podcast Episodes

Ep. 136 - Are Catholic Colleges Unique?

Season 1 Episode 136

As the fall semester begins, colleges and universities are bracing for fresh controversies over free speech, affordability, and the disruptive potential of artificial intelligence. 

On this episode, T…

Published on 1 year ago

Ep. 135 - When A Church Dies

Season 1 Episode 135

Religious disaffiliation, the drifting away of Americans from their churches, isn’t a new story. But it’s certainly a true one. 

And yet it’s also not the whole story, as veteran New Yorker journalist…

Published on 1 year, 1 month ago

Ep. 134 - Whose Paris?

Season 1 Episode 134

The 2024 Paris Olympics have brought massive investment to the City of Light, including the construction of new housing, sports facilities, and public transportation. 

Yet we shouldn’t let that obscur…

Published on 1 year, 1 month ago

Ep. 133 - ‘Live from Death Row’

Season 1 Episode 133

Alim Braxton, a convicted murderer who admits his guilt, has been incarcerated in North Carolina prison for more than thirty years, spending seven years in solitary confinement and many more on death…

Published on 1 year, 2 months ago

Ep. 132 - The Glory of ‘Too Much’

Season 1 Episode 132

Egalitarianism remains one of the core tenets of most liberals and progressives. But does the idea that everyone ought to be equal in the sphere of political economy also hold true for the realm of c…

Published on 1 year, 2 months ago

Ep. 131 - How to Talk About Having Kids

Season 1 Episode 131

In the past, having kids was simply taken for granted. It was just a thing a person did, like going to college or getting a job.

But now, in the face of rising costs and environmental degradation, mor…

Published on 1 year, 2 months ago

Ep. 130 - What Plants Know (And Why We Should Care)

Season 1 Episode 130

Can trees ‘hear’? Can flowers ‘see’? Are shrubs ‘intelligent’?

A decade ago, these questions might have seemed absurd. But an emerging scientific consensus posits that plants are much more like animal…

Published on 1 year, 3 months ago

Ep. 129 - Judaism’s Loving Heart

Season 1 Episode 129

One of the misconceptions about Judaism is that the religion is concerned primarily with justice and the law, not love and grace. 

That’s precisely backward, argues Rabbi Shai Held, president and dean…

Published on 1 year, 4 months ago

Ep. 128 - Diagnosing Disadvantage in America

Season 1 Episode 128

For decades, discussions of poverty and inequality in America have tended to focus on cities. That’s understandable—cities are often the places where income disparities are most visible. 

But as pover…

Published on 1 year, 4 months ago

Ep. 127 - Criticism as a Way of Life

Season 1 Episode 127

Vinson Cunningham is one of the most dynamic critics working today. Best known as the New Yorker’s theater critic and co-host of the weekly podcast Critics at Large, he’s also the author of the novel…

Published on 1 year, 5 months ago