Jake Werner of the Quincy Institute makes his case for what a progressive China policy could look like. Then Gabriel Hetland reviews the record of Colombian president Gustavo Petro, a leftist trying to govern a deeply conservative country. Behind the News, hosted by Doug Henwood, covers the worlds of economics and politics and their complex interac…

Beneath the Surface features interviews with leading thinkers and activists on the important issues of the day, with a focus on deeper analysis.

Featuring Sunaura Taylor on her book Beasts of Burden: Animal and Disability Liberation. What does it mean to rethink socialism and Marxism through the frameworks of disability liberation and animal liberation? How do we relate to human difference and also to non-human animals? Where does the struggle against industrial agriculture fit into the fig…

During the 2012 election cycle, Pauly Shore went to Washington to take the temperature on American and Her Problems. His resulting comedy special, PAULY SHORE'S PAULY-TICS (2012), accidentally foreshadows some of the bad vibes of the years to come. PLUS: We chart one Oscar blogger's evolution from #StillWithHer to MAGA. Michael and Us is a podcast …

Russian dissident activists and scholars Ilya Budraitskis and Grusha Gilayeva last spoke to us after the Marxist critic Boris Kagarlitsky lost his appeal and was sent to a penal colony on a trumped-up charge of “justifying terrorism.” A few days later, Alexei Navalny died. Suzi talks to Ilya and Grusha to get their views about the complex multi-pri…

Arielle Klagsbrun of the All Eyes on Yass Campaign sheds light on the insufficiently known right-wing funder Jeff Yass. Then Sohrab Ahmari and Hamilton Nolan debate the existence, real or imagined, of pro-worker Republicans. Behind the News, hosted by Doug Henwood, covers the worlds of economics and politics and their complex interactions, from the…

Ten years ago, Indonesia elected a new president named Jokowi who was supposed to represent a clear break with the legacy of Suharto’s dictatorship. He defeated the most notorious representative of the old guard, a former general called Prabowo. Prabowo was involved in some of the worst atrocities of the Suharto regime during the occupation of East…

Beneath the Surface features interviews with leading thinkers and activists on the important issues of the day, with a focus on deeper analysis.

Tony Buba chronicled the decline of his hometown of Braddock, Pennsylvania in a series of acclaimed documentaries that elevated him to national notoriety. But in the extraordinary documentary/fiction hybrid LIGHTNING OVER BRADDOCK: A RUST BOWL FANTASY (1988), he asks what it means when his success is tied to so many people's poverty. Michael and Us…

Heidi Matthews analyzes the World Court’s declaration of Israel’s occupations illegal. Molly White looks at how crypto is spending its money in politics. And lastly, Nausicaa Renner, author of a recent article for Parapraxis, psychoanalyzes Joe Biden. Behind the News, hosted by Doug Henwood, covers the worlds of economics and politics and their com…

Featuring Jeremy Corbyn and Laleh Khalili on internationalism and left-wing politics. A special Dig co-hosted with the Verso Podcast in front of a live London audience. Support The Dig at Patreon.com/TheDig The Socialism Conference will be held in Chicago from Aug 30 - Sept 2. Learn more and register at socialismconference.org Buy Twilight Prisoner…

In Barry Levinson and David Mamet's WAG THE DOG (1997), a political spin-doctor teams with a movie producer to fake a war and save an incumbent president. You've heard of manufacturing consent, but to what extent can Hollywood and Washington manufacture reality? We're joined by Daniel Bessner and Derek Davison of the American Prestige podcast to di…

Dan just did a live Dig in London with Jeremy Corbyn and Laleh Khalili. It was part of a podcast doubleheader that included this live episode of the economics podcast Macrodose featuring Asad Rehman, James Meadway, and Thea Riofrancos. The live Dig with Corbyn and Khalili on internationalist and anti-imperialist politics will be posted in a few day…

Cole Stangler talks about the monumentally inconclusive French elections. David Palumbo-Liu explores the Silicon Valley world that launched J. D. Vance as a politician. Plus: a brief bit from the late Jane McAlevey on power. Behind the News, hosted by Doug Henwood, covers the worlds of economics and politics and their complex interactions, from the…

Featuring Abdel Razzaq Takriti, this is the SIXTEENTH and final episode of Thawra (Revolution), our series on Arab radicalism in the 20th century. Today’s installment traces a massive defeat for the Palestinian Revolution: Israel’s 1982 invasion of Lebanon and brutal siege of Beirut. Under severe pressure and isolated in the wake of Egypt’s normali…

Suzi talks to writer Micah Sifry, who covers US & Middle East politics on his Substack newsletter The Connector, about whether he thinks a Harris presidency could change the dynamic of the Israel-US relationship, what it will mean for the war on Gaza, as well as Netanyahu’s political survival. The withdrawal of Biden from the presidential race has …

Beneath the Surface features interviews with leading thinkers and activists on the important issues of the day, with a focus on deeper analysis.

It's a politics-only episode, because we've got a big subject: It's time to say goodbye to your favorite American president, Joe Biden. We welcome back Branko Marcetic to tally #46's successes and failures—and do a vibe check on the Democratic Party following the ouster of its standard-bearer. PLUS: Branko reports on the Republican National Convent…

Last week, the International Court of Justice issued a landmark ruling on the status of Israel’s occupation of Gaza, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem. Israel is currently facing several challenges through the international legal system. The ICJ has also been hearing a South African case that accuses Israel of genocide in Gaza. And the prosecutor o…