Cheap Talk

Moritz Graefrath joins Cheap Talk to discuss the new international relations board game World Order; the role of IR theory in the design of the game; how board games can teach us about the world; the state of board games today; some recommendations for getting started in gaming; and Marcus doesn’t play board games

Moritz Graefrath is a Security and Foreign Policy Postdoctoral Fellow at William & Mary’s Global Research Institute. He is an academic advisor for the new board game World Order, available for backing on Kickstarter until December 5.

The opinions expressed on this podcast are solely our own and do not reflect the policies or positions of William & Mary.

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What to expect from the new Trump administration’s foreign policy; uncertainty about Trump’s foreign policy views; new risks for Ukraine; fewer limits on Israeli action in the Middle East; tariffs and trade barriers with China; poor prospects for cooperative efforts on climate change; hope for a new deal with North Korea but worries about South Korean security; the important role of foreign policy professionals in government; and Marcus will allow an opening statement if he gets a rebuttal

The opinions expressed on this podcast are solely our own and do not reflect the policies or positions of William & Mary.

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Dan Maliniak joins Cheap Talk to discuss the recent elections in the country of Georgia; evidence of irregularities; how much of this is Russia’s fault; European identity in Georgia; the path forward from here; the little-known fact that wine started in Georgia; what the US can do; and Marcus is a big Dave Matthews Band guy

Dan Maliniak is an associate professor of government at W&M. Check out his research on Google Scholar.

The opinions expressed on this podcast are solely our own and do not reflect the policies or positions of William & Mary.

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Further Reading/Watching:
Jesse Driscoll and F. Daniel Hidalgo. 2014. “Intended and unintended consequences of democracy promotion assistance to Georgia after the Rose Revolution.” Research & Politics 1(1).

Dave Matthews Band. 2024. Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony.

The Nobel Peace Prize awarded to atomic bomb survivors; the importance of living memory in international relations; the policy effect of first-person testimony; living through history and thus not repeating it; how society collectively understands history; and Marcus is not actually undecided

The opinions expressed on this podcast are solely our own and do not reflect the policies or positions of William & Mary.

Please subscribe to Cheap Talk on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your podcast player of choice to be notified when new episodes are posted.

Please send us your questions or comments!

Further Reading:
Remarks by President Obama and Prime Minister Abe of Japan at Hiroshima Peace Memorial, May 27, 2016.

Rebecca Davis Gibbons. 2018. “The humanitarian turn in nuclear disarmament and the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.” The Nonproliferation Review 25 (1–2): 11–36.

Michael C. Horowitz, Allan C. Stam, and Cali M. Ellis. 2015. Why Leaders Fight. Cambridge University Press.

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How long it would take for Iran to have a nuclear weapon; where these estimates come from; Iran’s strategy of nuclear hedging; why the Iran deal failed and the prospects for nuclear diplomacy; Israel’s ability to strike Iran’s nuclear program; NotebookLM and the arrival of AI podcasts; and Marcus is pretty sure he’s human and not AI

The opinions expressed on this podcast are solely our own and do not reflect the policies or positions of William & Mary.

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The chain of events that led to Israel’s attacks against Hezbollah; what could lead to a cessation of hostilities; Iran’s attack on Israel and Israel’s possible response; calls for Israel to attack Iran’s nuclear program; the folly of “restoring deterrence” in the Middle East; diminished US leverage; and Marcus is still undecided

The opinions expressed on this podcast are solely our own and do not reflect the policies or positions of William & Mary.

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Israel’s aims in its attacks on Hezbollah; Iran’s role in the current conflict; what is a crisis, really; the US perspective; how to get to a ceasefire from here; OpenAI’s new ChatGPT model; evaluating model risk; deceptive alignment; and Marcus is still an AI optimist

The opinions expressed on this podcast are solely our own and do not reflect the policies or positions of William & Mary.

Please subscribe to Cheap Talk on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your podcast player of choice to be notified when new episodes are posted.

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Further reading:
OpenAI. 2024. “OpenAI o1 System Card.”

Signal Samuel. 2024. “The new followup to ChatGPT is scarily good at deception,” Vox.

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The exploding pager attacks in Lebanon; the use of pagers as communications infrastructure; supply chain vulnerabilities; the supposed safety of outdated technology; Israeli motivations for the attacks; the risk of escalation in the Middle East; and Marcus consults a focus group

The opinions expressed on this podcast are solely our own and do not reflect the policies or positions of William & Mary.

Please subscribe to Cheap Talk on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your podcast player of choice to be notified when new episodes are posted.

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Trash balloons on the Korean Peninsula; unification policy and public diplomacy; checking in on anarchy in the international system; why there isn’t a world government; reasons to study (or ignore) international relations paradigms; the importance of thinking big thoughts in IR; and Marcus reveals he is anti-science

The opinions expressed on this podcast are solely our own and do not reflect the policies or positions of William & Mary.

Please subscribe to Cheap Talk on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your podcast player of choice to be notified when new episodes are posted.

Please send us your questions or comments!

Further reading:
Jin Yu Young. 2024. “North Korea Launches New Salvo of Balloons, but the South Barely Shrugs.” New York Times.

David A. Lake. 2009. Hierarchy in International Relations. Cornell University Press.

David A. Lake. 2011. “Why "isms" Are Evil: Theory, Epistemology, and Academic Sects as Impediments to Understanding and Progress.” International Studies Quarterly 55(2): 465–480.

John J. Mearsheimer and Stephen M.Walt. 2013. “Leaving theory behind: Why simplistic hypothesis testing is bad for International Relations.” European Journal of International Relations 19(3): 427–457.

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Cheap Talk makes a triumphant return for its 5th season: sauna diplomacy; what Olympic medal counts say about international prestige; our new secret nuclear plan; transparency and nuclear deterrence; Ukraine’s Kursk offensive; political vs. military goals in Ukraine; US restrictions on Ukraine’s military efforts; and Marcus discovers long-standing concepts in international relations

Please subscribe to Cheap Talk on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your podcast player of choice to be notified when new episodes are posted.

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Further Reading:
Alyson Krueger. 2024. ‘Whatever Happens in the Sauna Stays in the Sauna’: Diplomacy, Conducted in the Nude.” The New York Times.

Robbie Gramer. 2023. “The Finnish Art of Sauna Diplomacy.” Foreign Policy.

J. Patrick Rhamey, Jr. and Bryan R. Early. 2013. “Going for the gold: Status-seeking behavior and Olympic performance.” International Area Studies Review 16(3): 244-261.