Best Davis Center Podcasts (2024)

1
Amb. Krol (Ret): America Discovers Central Asia, Central Asia Discovers America 1:15:29

8d ago1:15:29

1:15:29

Former Deputy Assistant Secretary of State and U.S. Ambassador to Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan George Krol will discuss the development of relations between the United States and the Central Asian states from the inception of diplomatic relations in 1992 to the present time. Drawing on personal experiences and insights gained from his 36 years as a ca…

1
The MapMaker: Episode 6 - The Day Watermelons Almost Toppled the Russian Empire 1:04:26

2M ago1:04:26

1:04:26

Dr. Kelly O'Neill recounts the convoluted events of the so-called Watermelon Rebellion, a little-known episode in Russian imperial history full of intrigue, deception, espionage, personal animosities, and… watermelons.By The Davis Center

1
The MapMaker: Episode 5 - Water, Memory, and the Steppe 34:05

2M ago34:05

34:05

REECA alumna Jackie Erlon-Baurjan talks with Kelly about water: about how it was conceptualized and managed on the Kazakh steppe in the 19th century, and about how it (or the lack of it) shaped her own family's traditions near the Altai Mountains.By The Davis Center

1
The MapMaker: Episode 4 - Shakespeare versus Stalin: Why Place Names Matter 29:23

3M ago29:23

29:23

Graduate student Valerie Browne shares her research into the history of Crimean place names. She explains how Stalin attempted to remake the map after World War II and how Wikipedia allowed her to reconstruct the stories of lost, forgotten, and renamed villages.By The Davis Center

1
The MapMaker: Episode 3 - The Antidote to Misinformation 22:17

4M ago22:17

22:17

Lily and Kelly discuss an enterprising official of the East India Company and how he turned a dusty old Russian military map into a game-changing weapon for the British Army.By The Davis Center

1
The MapMaker: Episode 2 - The Art of Map-Listening 26:14

4M ago26:14

26:14

Lily and Kelly dig into what it was like to live in Crimea as a subject of the Russian Empire. They explore power-relations, the survival of local practices, imperial ideology, and yes, the art of map-listening.By The Davis Center

1
The MapMaker: Episode 1 - Crimea as Queen Victoria Saw It 23:33

4M ago23:33

23:33

In our first episode, Dr. O'Neill goes to the Harvard Map Collection with high-school student Lily Grodzins to investigate a map of Crimea produced in 1855 and dedicated to Queen Victoria. What they find is a map bigger than most kitchen tables, riddled with misinformation, and full of everything from mountains to mud volcanos. Who made the map? An…

1
How to Kill a Superpower: Episode 5 - Scrambled Beans 20:54

3y ago20:54

20:54

The signatories of the Belavezha agreement believe it should serve as a consensus model for the world—an example of diplomacy, civil discourse, and nonviolent means of conflict resolution. The events at Belavezha are among the most momentous in modern history. But, unlike the fall of the Berlin Wall, most people have never heard of them. In the con…

1
How to Kill a Superpower: Episode 4 - The Hero of Tetris 20:06

3y ago20:06

20:06

Boris Yeltsin’s trip to a supermarket in Clear Lake, Texas, planted a seed of the USSR’s destruction. The United States won the Cold War with free-market capitalism—and Jell-O pudding pops. Still, astoundingly, the collapse of the USSR was not what the U.S. government wanted. In this episode, Dr. Yelena Biberman and Zachary Troyanovsky evaluate the…

1
How to Kill a Superpower: Episode 3 - Liquid Courage 20:40

3y ago20:40

20:40

Dr. Yelena Biberman and Zachary Troyanovsky explore the role of spontaneity at Belavezha, narrowing in on the exact moment of dissolution: a dinner party. The seating arrangement, a late arrival, and the sequence of phone calls all influenced the outcome. Did vodka? For a transcript of this episode and more, visit https://daviscenter.fas.harvard.ed…

1
How to Kill a Superpower: Episode 2 - History Made Them, and They Made History 30:55

3y ago30:55

30:55

How much agency did the signatories of the Belavezha Accords have? Factors outside of their control shaped their behavior in ways that even they could not have predicted. In this episode, Dr. Yelena Biberman and Zachary Troyanovsky seek wisdom from Fyodor Dostoevsky and Leo Tolstoy to understand the dissolution of the USSR, as well as their own unu…

1
How to Kill a Superpower: Episode 1 - Do You Believe in Miracles 26:21

3y ago26:21

26:21

The Soviet Union drew its last breath on Sunday, December 8, 1991, in a hunting lodge inside the primeval Belavezha forest. The life of a global superpower—offering the last ideological alternative to liberalism—ended over a boisterous weekend. Many believe that it was doomed because of flawed ideals, but few know the story of the Belavezha Accords…

1
Episode 20: The Collapse of the USSR 21:13

6+ y ago21:13

21:13

Episode 20: The Collapse of the USSR by The Davis CenterBy The Davis Center

1
Episode 19: Russian News Media and Elections with Anna Veduta 26:16

6+ y ago26:16

26:16

Anna Veduta of the independent media outlet Meduza discusses the challenges of journalism in Russia and the media landscape surrounding the recent Russian presidential election.By The Davis Center

1
Episode 18: "Red Famine" with Anne Applebaum 19:57

7y ago19:57

19:57

In this episode, we talk with Anne Applebaum about her new book, Red Famine. Applebaum argues that the 1932–1933 famine in the Soviet Union was part of a deliberate operation by Stalin to rid the USSR of Ukrainians who resisted the Bolsheviks and their policy of agricultural collectivization.By The Davis Center

1
Episode 17: The Life and Legacy of Gorbachev with William Taubman 24:15

7y ago24:15

24:15

Mikhail Gorbachev, revered by many in the West for his commitment to “openness” and democratizing reforms, has a more mixed reputation in Russia, where he is associated with the fall of an empire. In this episode, Bill Taubman discusses his new biography of Gorbachev, emphasizing how the leader's personal history and character were reflected in his…

1
Episode 16: Eurovision: Music, Kitsch, and Politics with James Evans and Yuval Weber 21:46

7y ago21:46

21:46

Politics increasingly pervades our everyday lives, including our entertainment and pop culture. The Eurovision Song Contest was created in 1956 as an opportunity to bring nations and people together in an expressly non-political fashion—through song. Now, 60 years later, Eurovision is often used as a specific political tool. James Evans and Yuval W…

1
Episode 15: The Graphic Revolution with Julia Alekseyeva and Hillary Chute 26:09

7+ y ago26:09

26:09

Two decades after immigrating from Kiev to Chicago, Julia Alekseyeva found her great-grandmother’s hidden memoirs of a life spanning the Soviet 20th century. With input from comics scholar Hillary Chute, she turned a lifetime of secrets into a work of art.By The Davis Center

1
Episode 14: The New Jewish Diaspora with Zvi Gitelman 16:55

7+ y ago16:55

16:55

The vast majority of Russian-speaking Jews today live outside the former Soviet Union. We spoke with Zvi Gitelman about this population, their remarkable impact on the societies that send and receive them, and how traditional notions of "diaspora" and "homeland" have blurred in our globalized world.By The Davis Center

1
Episode 13: A Cold War Spy Story with Serhii Plokhii 32:03

7+ y ago32:03

32:03

In 1959, the KGB, determined to squash the movement for independence in Ukraine, sent Bogdan Stashinsky to assassinate Stepan Bandera using the most unusual of methods. Stashinsky was put on trial in what would become the most publicized assassination case of the Cold War. His story is rousingly depicted in Serhii Plokhii’s Man with the Poison Gun.…

1
Episode 12: Women of the Euromaidan with Olena Nikolayenko 20:46

7+ y ago20:46

20:46

Not merely helpers but makers of the revolution: researcher Olena Nikolayenko on the steadfast women who put their lives on the line for Ukraine's future.By The Davis Center

1
Episode 11: The State of the World with Rawi Abdelal 49:46

7+ y ago49:46

49:46

At this moment of great geopolitical change, Davis Center Director Rawi Abdelal looks at the fate of globalization through the lenses of great power transitions, national borders, and economic inequality. Rawi Abdelal is the Herbert F. Johnson Professor of International Management at Harvard Business School and the Director of Harvard's Davis Cente…

1
Episode 10: Innovation in Ancient Georgia with Nat Erb-Satullo 20:16

8y ago20:16

20:16

Archeologist Nat Erb-Satullo went to Georgia looking for evidence of how and why people of the ancient world put down their bronze objects and moved into the iron age. What he found sheds light on the social forces that spark innovation.By The Davis Center

1
Episode 9: Asking "What does war look like?" with Alisa Sopova and Anastasia Taylor-Lind 23:36

8y ago23:36

23:36

In 2014, British photographer Anastasia Taylor-Lind and Ukrainian journalist Alisa Sopova were both in Ukraine, questioning how to represent the ongoing conflict. When they met, they developed a creative collaboration that allowed them to do just that.By The Davis Center

1
Episode 8: Conflict and ideology in Cold War Afghanistan with Timothy Nunan 21:59

8y ago21:59

21:59

Historian Timothy Nunan takes us to Cold War Afghanistan—where Soviet and European rivalry played out not through tanks and guns, but through opposing ideas about international development and humanitarian aid.By The Davis Center

1
Episode 7: The Ghost of Soviet Science with Loren Graham 21:04

8y ago21:04

21:04

Decades after the theories of Soviet agronomist Trofim Lysenko were discredited, his name is back on the tongues of some Russian scientists. Historian of science Loren Graham explores Lysenko’s political legacy and the extent to which new developments in microbiology validate his controversial claims.…

1
Episode 6: The Last Days of Stalin with Joshua Rubenstein 19:36

8+ y ago19:36

19:36

Stalin’s death in March 1953 took the world by surprise. In the United States, the Eisenhower administration was on edge at the prospect of an armed confrontation with the Soviet Union. Meanwhile, a campaign against Soviet Jewry prompted speculation and bewilderment from observers around the world. Stalin’s passing marked a major turning point, but…

1
Episode 5: Standing in Line with Jillian Porter 21:44

8+ y ago21:44

21:44

How has the iconic image of standing in line shaped Russian identity? Literary scholar Jillian Porter examines how the queue has wound its way through narratives of revolution and continues to find expression in Russian political, social, and cultural life today.By The Davis Center

1
Episode 4: Race and Russia with Jennifer Wilson 16:26

8+ y ago16:26

16:26

From the Harlem Renaissance to Black Lives Matter to Pussy Riot, literary scholar Jennifer Wilson discusses intersections between critical race theory and Russian studies.By The Davis Center

1
Episode 2: The Red Web with Andrei Soldatov and Irina Borogan 20:05

8+ y ago20:05

20:05

Is the Internet in Russia a tool of totalitarianism or of freedom? Investigative reporters Andrei Soldatov and Irina Borogan—authors of The Red Web: The Struggle Between Russia's Digital Dictators and the New Online Revolutionaries—say perhaps it is both.By The Davis Center

1
Episode 3: Writing across Borders with Masha Gessen 20:16

8+ y ago20:16

20:16

Lives as well as words can be lost in translation. Three years after the Boston Marathon bombings, Masha Gessen, author of The Brothers: The Road to an American Tragedy, discusses identity, immigration, and her own experience navigating translation and censorship in Russia and America.By The Davis Center

1
Episode 1: The Price of Oil with Rawi Abdelal 32:32

8+ y ago32:32

32:32

What happens to the oil flowing across international borders as political relationships get chilly? What does the future hold for Russia and Turkey? Davis Center Director Rawi Abdelal, the Joseph C. Wilson Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School, discusses how state and commercial interests shape Russia’s current place on th…

Podcasts Worth a Listen

Davis Center Podcasts

Podcasts Worth a Listen

1
The Davis Center at Harvard University

The Davis Center

1
Amb. Krol (Ret): America Discovers Central Asia, Central Asia Discovers America 1:15:29

1
The MapMaker: Episode 6 - The Day Watermelons Almost Toppled the Russian Empire 1:04:26

1
The MapMaker: Episode 5 - Water, Memory, and the Steppe 34:05

1
The MapMaker: Episode 4 - Shakespeare versus Stalin: Why Place Names Matter 29:23

1
The MapMaker: Episode 3 - The Antidote to Misinformation 22:17

1
The MapMaker: Episode 2 - The Art of Map-Listening 26:14

1
The MapMaker: Episode 1 - Crimea as Queen Victoria Saw It 23:33

1
How to Kill a Superpower: Episode 5 - Scrambled Beans 20:54

1
How to Kill a Superpower: Episode 4 - The Hero of Tetris 20:06

1
How to Kill a Superpower: Episode 3 - Liquid Courage 20:40

1
How to Kill a Superpower: Episode 2 - History Made Them, and They Made History 30:55

1
How to Kill a Superpower: Episode 1 - Do You Believe in Miracles 26:21

1
Episode 20: The Collapse of the USSR 21:13

1
Episode 19: Russian News Media and Elections with Anna Veduta 26:16

1
Episode 18: "Red Famine" with Anne Applebaum 19:57

1
Episode 17: The Life and Legacy of Gorbachev with William Taubman 24:15

1
Episode 16: Eurovision: Music, Kitsch, and Politics with James Evans and Yuval Weber 21:46

1
Episode 15: The Graphic Revolution with Julia Alekseyeva and Hillary Chute 26:09

1
Episode 14: The New Jewish Diaspora with Zvi Gitelman 16:55

1
Episode 13: A Cold War Spy Story with Serhii Plokhii 32:03

1
Episode 12: Women of the Euromaidan with Olena Nikolayenko 20:46

1
Episode 11: The State of the World with Rawi Abdelal 49:46

1
Episode 10: Innovation in Ancient Georgia with Nat Erb-Satullo 20:16

1
Episode 9: Asking "What does war look like?" with Alisa Sopova and Anastasia Taylor-Lind 23:36

1
Episode 8: Conflict and ideology in Cold War Afghanistan with Timothy Nunan 21:59

1
Episode 7: The Ghost of Soviet Science with Loren Graham 21:04

1
Episode 6: The Last Days of Stalin with Joshua Rubenstein 19:36

1
Episode 5: Standing in Line with Jillian Porter 21:44

1
Episode 4: Race and Russia with Jennifer Wilson 16:26

1
Episode 2: The Red Web with Andrei Soldatov and Irina Borogan 20:05

1
Episode 3: Writing across Borders with Masha Gessen 20:16

1
Episode 1: The Price of Oil with Rawi Abdelal 32:32

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