Podcasts by Know Your Enemy

UNLOCKED: A New Pink Tide? (w/ Thea Riofrancos&David Adler) from 2022-05-25T23:57:38

A conversation with David Adler and Thea Riofrancos about the return of the Latin American left — unlocked from Patreon in advance of hugely consequential Listen

TEASER: Yinzer Country from 2022-05-21T00:25:59

In this bonus episode, Matt takes Sam on a tour of his native state, Pennsylvania, where a number of key primaries were held this week. The results brought some hopeful news: Lt. Gov. John Fette...

TEASER: A New Pink Tide? (w/ Thea Riofrancos&David Adler) from 2022-05-15T18:27:16

Hope for the American left is at a fairly low ebb, at the moment, but our counterparts in Latin America are on the march and succeeding at beating back repressive right wing governments across t...

The Right Kind of Worker (w/ Gabriel Winant) from 2022-04-30T18:20:49

Since Donald Trump was elected president — partially on the strength of white working class support in the Rust Belt — we've heard that the GOP is a working class party; that liberals sold out A...

Macron vs. Le Pen (w/ Cole Stangler) from 2022-04-22T19:53:47

Did this week's one-on-one debate between Emmanuel Macron and Marine Le Pen change the race in any significant ways? Why is Le Pen drawing notably more support this time around than she did in 2...

The Other Side of the Story (w/ Michael Kazin) from 2022-04-13T17:22:40

Matt and Sam are joined by Georgetown University historian and co-editor emeritus of Dissent, Michael Kazin, to discuss his new book, Listen

Red Diaper Baby (w/ Ari Brostoff) from 2022-03-30T18:53:54

Matt and Sam are joined by Ari Brostoff, author of  Missing Time: Essays, to explore David Horowitz's 19...

The Anti-Trans Agenda (w/ Gillian Branstetter) from 2022-03-20T17:49:46

Matt and Sam talk to Gillian Branstetter,  press secretary for the National Women’s Law Center, about the spate of anti-trans laws sweep...

TEASER: Disinformation, Peter Thiel, and the Vibe Shift (w/ Joe Bernstein) from 2022-03-11T19:42:20

In the first half of this conversation with Buzzfeed’s Joe Bernstein, Sam asks: What is “disinformation?” Who gets to decide? And does it explain what's wrong with our politics? And in th...

Mothers of Conservatism (w/ Michelle Nickerson) from 2022-02-27T00:08:28

Matt and Sam talk to Michelle Nickerson about her brillia...

TEASER: How To Be Normal (w/ Phil Christman) from 2022-02-17T15:56:30

Matt talks to writer Phil Christman about his new essay collection, How To Be Normal. They talk about the meaning of "normal" (especially in these pandemic times), religious fundamentalis...

School Wars (w/ Jennifer Berkshire) from 2022-01-28T22:29:55

It seems almost every  big culture-war battle of the moment—from "Critical Race Theory" to COVID mandates—is being fought in America's schools. Meanwhile, Democrats, anxious about a midterm rout...

TEASER: Cancel Jay Caspian Kang (w/ Jay Caspian Kang) from 2022-01-21T14:00

Author, podcaster, and New York Times Magazine staff writer Jay Caspian Kang joins Matt and Sam for a spirited discussion of some treacherous topics: identity politics, critical race theo...

Joan Didion, Conservative (w/ Sam Tanenhaus) from 2022-01-13T20:11:20

When Joan Didion died at the age of 87 in December, her early conservatism figured into a number of obituaries and commentaries, but was rarely discussed in detail. Matt and Sam turned to Sam Ta...

Hindsight is 2021 from 2021-12-22T21:58:02

With another year of the podcast, the pandemic, and American decline in the rearview, we turn to Know Your Enemy's absurdly brilliant listeners for guidance and intellectual stimul...

Young, Radical, and on the Right (w/ Nate Hochman) from 2021-12-15T22:45:23

Finally, another enemy! This time Matt and Sam are joined by Nate Hochman, a rising star on the intellectual Right and one of the subjects of Sam's recent New Republic article about today...

Retvrn of the National Conservatives from 2021-11-25T03:31:31

It's rare for nearly all the inhabitants of the KYE podcast universe to gather in one place, but it happened earlier this month in—as you might guess—Florida, where the National Conservatism 2 c...

TEASER: I Am The GooseKing (w/ Ben Firke) from 2021-11-15T20:10:34

Matt talks with playwright Ben Firke about I Am The GooseKing, which just finished its debut run at The Tank theater in New York City. Here's a description of the play:

...

Listen

Frank Meyer: Father of Fusionism from 2021-11-10T19:39:26

Matt and Sam dedicate an entire episode to an under appreciated but indispensable figure in the founding of post-war conservatism: Frank Meyer, the father of "fusionism."

Meyer was  a man ...

TEASER: Reporting for Duty (w/ Dave Weigel) from 2021-10-29T15:27:56

Subscribe to Know Your Enemy on Patreon to listen to this bonus episode, and all of our bonus content: https://www.patreon.com/knowyourenemy Listen

The American Right's Hungary Hearts (w/ Lauren Stokes and John Ganz) from 2021-10-25T13:25:56

Matt and Sam are joined by historian Lauren Stokes and writer John Ganz to unpack the American Right's ongoing embrace of Viktor Orbán's Hungary, from Rod Dreher's springtime junket there  to Tu...

God, Death, and the Pandemic (w/ Sarah Jones) from 2021-10-16T17:12:22

Matt is joined by Know Your Enemy favorite Sarah Jones to discuss her recent New York Magazine essay, "An Atheist Reconsiders God in the Pandemic." They discuss their shared religious upb...

TEASER: The Texas Bounty Hunter Bill (w/ 5-4's Rhiannon) from 2021-09-30T15:06:59

Subscribe to Know Your Enemy on Patreon to listen to this bonus episode, and all of our bonus content: https://www.patreon.com/knowyourenemy

TEASER: Coup, Covid, Congress from 2021-09-25T19:38:02

Subscribe to Know Your Enemy on Patreon to listen to this bonus episode, and all of our bonus content: https://www.patreon.com/knowyourenemy

Twenty Years of Terror (w/ Spencer Ackerman) from 2021-09-15T19:00:17

It's impossible to comprehend the state of conservative politics — or American politics in general — without looking closely at the wars we've been waging for the past two decades. The story we'...

TEASER: Where's the Rest of Him? from 2021-08-30T21:52:23

Subscribe to Know Your Enemy on Patreon to listen to this bonus episode, and all of our bonus content: https://www.patreon.com/knowyourenemy

Buckley for Mayor (w/ Sam Tanenhaus) from 2021-08-23T18:02:39

Finally, a deep-dive on William F. Buckley, Jr.! Matt and Sam are joined by Buckley's biographer, Sam Tanenhaus, to talk about WFB's 1965 campaign for mayor of New York City. Topics include: how...

TEASER: Woke Capital from 2021-07-31T17:42:49

Subscribe to Know Your Enemy on Patreon to listen to this bonus episode, and all of our bonus content: https://www.patreon.com/knowyourenemy

After Nationalism (w/ Samuel Goldman) from 2021-07-28T20:59:03

In this episode, Matt and Sam are joined by political theorist and conservative intellectual Samuel Goldman—a very sensible and polite "enemy"—to discuss his brilliant new book, Listen

The Afterlife of January 6th from 2021-07-19T19:49:31

It's been over seven months since pro-Trump protestors breached the Capitol on January 6, 2021. The meaning of the event remains contested. Was it a genuine coup attempt by an extra-parliamentar...

TEASER: How (Not) to Talk About Racism from 2021-06-30T17:23:14

Subscribe to Know Your Enemy on Patreon to listen to this bonus episode, and all of our bonus content: https://www.patreon.com/knowyourenemy Listen

Unraveling Allan Bloom and Saul Bellow from 2021-06-21T13:30:53

In this episode Matt and Sam discuss Ravelstein, Saul Bellow's roman à clef about the Straussian political philosopher Allan Bloom, who achieved late-in-life wealth and fame after publish...

TEASER: Hot and Bothered from 2021-06-14T19:14:21

Subscribe to Know Your Enemy on Patreon to listen to this bonus episode, and all of our bonus content: https://www.patreon.com/knowyourenemy Listen

TEASER: Jaffa vs. Kendall from 2021-05-29T23:17:52

Subscribe to Know Your Enemy on Patreon to listen to this bonus episode, and all of our bonus content: https://www.patreon.com/knowyourenemy

What is the status of "equalit...

The Enemy Within (w/ Brandy Jensen) from 2021-05-24T20:33

For a slight change of pace, we invited our dear friend Brandy Jensen—author of the world's best advice column, Jezebel's Ask a Fuck-Up, ...

The Long Farewell to Majority Rule? (w/ Joshua Tait) from 2021-05-18T01:46:02

In this follow-up episode to "Democracy and Its Discontents" (listen here), historia...

TEASER: Why the New Deal Matters (w/ Eric Rauchway) from 2021-04-30T14:10:07

Subscribe at https://www.patreon.com/knowyourenemy to hear this and all our bonus content.

In this episode, Matt is joined by historian ...

Overheated (w/ Kate Aronoff) from 2021-04-23T23:43:48

At last, Know Your Enemy takes on climate change! Kate Aronoff, staff writer at The New Republic and Dissent editorial board member, joins Matt and Sam to discuss her new bo...

TEASER: Democracy and Its Discontents from 2021-04-14T00:43:26

To listen to this episode, and all of our bonus content, subscribe here: https://www.patreon.com/knowyourenemy

In state legislatures across the country, Republicans are un...

KYE Film Club: A Lost Cause (w/ Jesse Brenneman) from 2021-03-30T02:35:23

This episode is something different: the latest installment of the KYE Film Club, an ongoing series in which Matt and Sam's great friend (and the podcast's producer) Jesse Brenneman guides them ...

TEASER: A Royal Mess from 2021-03-21T20:51:49

To listen to this episode, and all of our bonus content, subscribe here: https://www.patreon.com/knowyourenemy

At last, Matt and Sam take on  the British royal family. Pri...

TEASER: France's War on Terror (w/ Cole Stangler) from 2021-03-14T01:04:43

Subscribe at https://www.patreon.com/knowyourenemy to hear this and all our bonus content.

In recent months, French president Emmanuel M...

TEASER: Keeping up with the Bozells from 2021-02-27T01:55:50

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From the union-busting, ad-man scion (Brent S...

How to Survive a Pandemic (w/ Peter Staley) from 2021-02-22T02:29:20

Matt and Sam have an in-depth conversation with HIV/AIDs activist Peter Staley to get his perspective on Dr. Anthony Fauci's role in America's response to two of the most devastating public-heal...

UNLOCKED: Midnight in the Garden of American Heroes from 2021-02-11T19:00:37

Matt and Sam explain West Coast Straussianism, the school of thought behind one of the last acts of the Trump administration: its publication of Listen

TEASER: West Coast Straussians and the"1776 Report" from 2021-01-23T22:32

Subscribe at https://www.patreon.com/knowyourenemy to hear this and all our bonus content.

Your hosts explain West Coast Straussianism, ...

Did It Happen Here? from 2021-01-17T19:50:37

Matt and Sam take up the question that's dominating The Discourse: Is Donald Trump—and the movement he leads—fascist? To provide an answer, they turn to the rich historiography of fascism and so...

TEASER: Trump the Dove? (w/ Stephen Wertheim) from 2020-12-26T17:15:43

Subscribe at https://www.patreon.com/knowyourenemy to hear this and all our bonus content.

An excerpt from our latest bonus episode on T...

Why the Supreme Court Sucks (w/ the 5-4 podcast) from 2020-12-21T02:17:35

In this much anticipated crossover event, Matt and Sam take aim at the conservative legal movement with Rhiannon, Michael, and Peter—the brilliant and funny team behind the Listen

Talking Trump (w/ David Roth) from 2020-11-28T22:13

Who is Donald Trump? The great David Roth, co-owner of Defector Media and a columnist at the New Republic, joins Matt and Sam to answer that...

TEASER - What Happened? (w/ Eric Levitz and Dan Sherrell) from 2020-11-14T22:30:22

Subscribe at https://www.patreon.com/knowyourenemy to hear this and all our bonus content!

An excerpt from our election recap bonus epis...

Suburban Woman (w/ Dorothy Fortenberry) from 2020-10-29T22:37:13

Matt and Sam are joined by Dorothy Fortenberry for a wide-ranging conversation about women and politics. Topics include growing up in Washington, D.C; her experiences writing women characters in...

On the Road to Reaganland (w/ Rick Perlstein and Leon Neyfakh) from 2020-10-21T22:47:56

Matt and Sam talk to two esteemed guests, Rick Perlstein and Leon Neyfakh, about why U.S. politics took a right turn in the 1970s. “We organize discontent,” as one New Right activist put ...

How to Be Depressed from 2020-10-12T19:46:13

We released this bonus episode on depression and politics in July, and it quickly became a favorite of our Patreon subscribers. A number of them asked us to make it available in front of the pay...

Not Even Past (w/ Jamelle Bouie) from 2020-09-14T22:56:18

From the never-ending culture war over the New York Times's 1619 Project to arguments about the Black Lives Matter protests to President Trump's promise to Make American Great Again, toda...

KYE Extra: The Sad Truth (w/ Shuja Haider) from 2020-05-14T17:35:55

Matt and Sam are joined by writer and editor Shuja Haider to discuss a topic near and dear to all of our hearts: country music. We talk about country's conservative reputation, the problems with...

The Windbag City (w/ Marshall Steinbaum) from 2020-04-18T17:09:23

Matt and Sam are finally joined by the show's longtime bête noire, Marshall Steinbaum, for a deep dive into the Chicago school of economics and the wreckage it's supported—from welcoming the bir...

The Year the Clock Broke (w/ John Ganz) from 2020-03-15T18:47:49

Matt and Sam talk to John Ganz about paleoconservatism, the Island of the Misfit Toys of the American right. Along the way we're introduced to David Duke, Pat Buchanan, Sam Francis, and others, ...

What Happened to Norman? (w/ David Klion) from 2020-01-15T22:04:51

Making It is Norman Podhoretz's 1967 memoir about his journey from the working-class neighborhood of Brownsville, Brooklyn to his heady ascent in the New York literary scene of 1950s and ...

She's Got a Plan (w/ Rebecca Traister) from 2019-11-28T03:05:04

Matt and Sam talk to Rebecca Traister of New York magazine about sexism and electoral politics. How has patriarchy conditioned the political careers of politicians like Hillary Clinton an...

We Could Be Heroes (w/ Will Arbery) from 2019-11-11T15:51:36

Will Arbery's play "Heroes of the Fourth Turning"—about four conservative Catholic friends arguing under a night sky in Wyoming—feels like it was written to be discussed on Know Your Enemy. An o...

Trump Country (w/ Sarah Jones) from 2019-10-29T17:20:28

Sarah Jones joins Matt and Sam to discuss the myth of "Trump Country" and the pitfalls of reporting on rural America, and to address the most important question of all: is Donald Trump the Antic...

KYE EXTRA:"Morning Hate"(w/ Hannah Gais) from 2019-10-23T18:58:26

UNPAYWALLED:

Sam interviews journalist Hannah Gais about (1) the far right's ongoing efforts to infiltrate conservative media and (2) the self-...

Gunpower (w/ Patrick Blanchfield) from 2019-08-15T14:29:59

Matt and Sam's first ever guest, Patrick Blanchfield, is an Associate Faculty member at the Brooklyn Institute for Social Research and author of the forthcoming book Listen