The Close Read Podcast

Andrew Roberts, author of the new book Churchill: Walking with Destiny, joins Spencer to discuss the legacy of Winston Churchill and the lessons we can draw from his greatness. Plus: a sneak peek at Roberts’s forthcoming defense of King George III.

Dr. James Poulos, executive editor of The American Mind, joins Spencer to discuss humanity's identity crisis as machines and algorithms—piloted by Big Tech—threaten to usurp us as rulers of the earth. In a world increasingly dominated by invisible technology, the question becomes: who will catechize the bots?

Professor James Hankins joins Spencer to discuss China's present position on the world stage, where it's trying to go, and how the U.S. should respond. Hankins, a professor of history at Harvard University, uses China's ancient past to paint a nuanced picture of modern China's political situation.

The Right has been grappling with an identity crisis for some time. President Trump seems to have ushered in a new era—but an era of what, exactly? Daniel McCarthy, editor of Modern Age and a 2020 Lincoln Fellow, joins Spencer to talk about the Right's present trajectory and where it's likely headed next.

The CRB’s winter edition takes a cumulative look at the aftermath of the 2020 election, the dismay among conservatives, and the two radically different philosophies competing for American hearts. Join Dr. Kesler and Spencer as they discuss these major themes, and the deepening rifts beneath the surface of it all.

Our education system has devolved from a source of edification to a hotbed of radicalization. Teachers and curricula at schools all across the country—even in red states—are out to villainize everyone they can. Dr. Robert Royal joins Spencer to discuss the problems with this slippery slope and the truth about one of our most maligned figures: Christopher Columbus.

Plummeting confidence in higher education is leading to drastically reduced enrollment--these alarming developments have been under-reported, but the coronavirus phenomenon has made them increasingly difficult to conceal. Professor John Ellis joins Spencer to discuss what widespread online learning is doing to affect the fate of our highly politicized academy.

“Cancel one, cancel all!” wokesters religiously chant as they close in on another brand or person they don’t like. Cancel culture is spreading its abhorrent tendrils through American culture from boardrooms to classrooms at the behest of the self-righteous, yet all-too-often guilty media and elite classes. Professor Richard Samuelson joins Spencer to poke a few witty holes in the flawed logic of cancel culture, complete with a case study: The New York Times.

Join Dr. Kesler and Spencer as they dive into the latest CRB and its major themes. Dr. Kesler highlights the effects of rioting and statucide on America’s bedrock foundations. The summer issue charts America’s crisis in detail--Spencer and Dr. Kesler explain some of the dysfunction currently plaguing the country and contemplate possible solutions.

As Trump’s first term draws to a close, former senior national security advisor Michael Anton joins Spencer to discuss the political phenomenon that is Trump: are we better off now than we were four years ago? Anton, author of the forthcoming book The Stakes: America at the Point of No Return, argues there’s little wrong with Trump that more Trump can’t solve.