Keen On

EPISODE 1823: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Branko Milanovic, author of VISIONS OF INEQUALITY, about how different economists have made sense of economic inequality over the last 250 yearsBRANKO MILANOVIC is a Senior Scholar at the Stone Center on Socio-Economic Inequality at the CUNY Graduate Center and the author of the forthcoming Visions of Inequality: From the French Revolution to the End of the Cold War. Branko’s main area of work is income inequality, in individual countries and globally, including in pre-industrial societies. He has published articles in The Economic Journal, Review of Economics and Statistics, Journal of Economic Literature, Economic History Review, and Journal of Political Philosophy, among others. His book, The Haves and the Have-nots (2011) was selected by The Globalist as the 2011 Book of the Year. His book Global Inequality (2016), was awarded the Bruno Kreisky Prize for the best political book of 2016, and Hans Matthöfer Prize in 2018, and was translated into sixteen la

EPISODE 1822: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Ray Suarez, author of "That Sinking Feel", about his fear of being poor in the America of the inegalitarian Twenties.Ray Suarez has had a more than 40-year career in print, radio, and television news. He recently completed an appointment as a visiting professor of political science at NYU Shanghai. He currently hosts the radio program and podcast On Shifting Ground for KQED, the podcast Going for Broke for the Economic Hardship Reporting Project, and the podcast series The Things I Thought About When My Body Was Trying to Kill Me, on cancer, for Evergreen Productions. He was host of the daily news program Inside Story on Al Jazeera America. Before that Suarez was Chief National Correspondent for the PBS NewsHour. He came to PBS from NPR, where he was the host of the midday news program Talk of the Nation. He has contributed writing to many books, and is the author of three, most recently Latino Americans: The 500-Year Legacy That Shaped a Nation. Suarez’ jou

EPISODE 1821: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Anand Varma, author of NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC INVISIBLE WONDERS, on about his lifelong curiosity with the natural worldAnand Varma is a National Geographic Explorer and award-winning photographer based in Berkeley, California. He has devoted years of his life to developing innovative techniques—even building some of his own equipment—to create intimate, dramatic and surprising images of nature. He holds a degree in integrative biology from University of California, Berkeley and uses photography to share the story behind the science on topics from honeybee health to hummingbird biomechanics. Varma has photographed numerous stories for National Geographic magazine, including the 2014 cover story, “Mindsuckers.” His accolades include TED speaker, World Press Photo Award, and Rita Allen Civic Science Fellow. Varma's ultimate goal is to spark a sense of wonder about our world. He sees the camera not just as a tool to capture what is visible, but as a way to illumina

EPISODE 1820: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talk: Peter Sarris on Justinian, the legendary 6th century Byzantine ruler who resurrected the Eastern Roman Empires to Peter Sarris, author of JUSTINIAN, about the legendary 6th century Byzantine ruler who resurrected the Eastern Roman Empire and confounded a narrative of decline. Peter Sarris read Modern History at Balliol College, Oxford (1990-93), after which he was elected to a Prize Fellowship (by examination) at All Souls College, Oxford (where he was a Fellow from 1993 to 2006). He came to Cambridge as a University Lecturer and Fellow of Trinity College in 2000, and has held Visiting Fellowships at Rice University, Texas, and the Dumbarton Oaks Research Library, Washington D.C. (Harvard University). He has published extensively on the history of the Early Middle Ages both East and West, and is a leading authority on the 'Plague of Justinian' and the 'Age of Justinian' more generally. His latest book JUSTINIAN: EMPEROR, SOLDIER, SAINT was published in the US b

EPISODE 1819 In this KEEN ON show, Andrew interviews Alexander Sammon, author of "Forbidden Fruit: The Anti-Avocado militias of Michoacan, about the sordid history of the avocado, the thirstiest fruit on the planetAlexander Sammon is a writer based in New York. His latest piece in Harpers is “Forbidden Fruit”Named as one of the "100 most connected men" by GQ magazine, Andrew Keen is amongst the world's best known broadcasters and commentators. In addition to presenting KEEN ON, he is the host of the long-running How To Fix Democracy show. He is also the author of four prescient books about digital technology: CULT OF THE AMATEUR, DIGITAL VERTIGO, THE INTERNET IS NOT THE ANSWER and HOW TO FIX THE FUTURE. Andrew lives in San Francisco, is married to Cassandra Knight, Google's VP of Litigation & Discovery, and has two grown children. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit keenon.substack.com/subscribe

EPISODE 1818:  In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Sandra Newman, author of JULIA;A NOVEL, about Julia, Winston Smith and the totalitarianism of gender that George Orwell ignored in his iconic dystopiaSandra Newman is the author of the novels The Men, The Heavens (a New York Times Notable Book of the Year), and The Country of Ice Cream Star, longlisted for the Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction and named one of the best books of the year by the Washington Post and NPR, as well as several other works of fiction and nonfiction. Her writing has appeared in Harper’s and Granta, among other publications. She lives in New York City.Named as one of the "100 most connected men" by GQ magazine, Andrew Keen is amongst the world's best known broadcasters and commentators. In addition to presenting KEEN ON, he is the host of the long-running How To Fix Democracy show. He is also the author of four prescient books about digital technology: CULT OF THE AMATEUR, DIGITAL VERTIGO, THE INTERNET IS NOT THE ANSWER and HOW TO FI

EPISODE 1817: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to David Leonhardt, author of OURS WAS THE SHINING FUTURE, about on unions, constitutional reform, immigration and the need for a progressive populismDavid Leonhardt is a senior writer at The New York Times, where he writes its flagship newsletter, “The Morning.” He has also been the newspaper’s Washington bureau chief, an op-ed columnist, a staff writer for The New York Times Magazine, and the founding editor of “The Upshot.” He has won the Pulitzer Prize for commentary. OURS WAS THE SHINING FUTURE (2023)  is his first book.Named as one of the "100 most connected men" by GQ magazine, Andrew Keen is amongst the world's best known broadcasters and commentators. In addition to presenting KEEN ON, he is the host of the long-running How To Fix Democracy show. He is also the author of four prescient books about digital technology: CULT OF THE AMATEUR, DIGITAL VERTIGO, THE INTERNET IS NOT THE ANSWER and HOW TO FIX THE FUTURE. Andrew lives in San Francisco, is married

EPISODE 1816: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to concept artist Karla Ortiz about the existential "theft" at the heart of the AI revolutionKarla Ortiz is a Puerto Rican, internationally recognized, award-winning artist. With her exceptional design sense, realistic renders, and character-driven narratives, Karla has contributed to many big-budget projects, including Jurassic World, World of Warcraft, Rogue One: A Starwars Story, Marvel's Thor Ragnarok, Black Panther, Infinity Wars, Loki, Eternals, Miss Marvel, and most notably her design of Doctor Strange for Marvel's Doctor Strange. Karla's work is also recognized in the fine art world, showcasing her figurative and mysterious art in notable galleries, such as Spoke Art and Hashimoto Contemporary in San Francisco, Nucleus Gallery, Thinkspace, Maxwell Alexander Gallery in LA, and Galerie Arludik in Paris. She currently lives in San Francisco with her cat, Bady.Named as one of the "100 most connected men" by GQ magazine, Andrew Keen is amongst the world's be

EPISODE 1815: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Christian Lorentzen, author of the new Liberties Quarterly essay "In Dreams Begin Responsibilities: a Memoir", about the half-life of a literary critic in our digital age of cultural decay and disinformationChristian Lorentzen's writing has appeared in the London Review of Books, Harper’s Magazine, Bookforum, Artforum, n+1, the Times Literary Supplement, the New Republic, the Paris Review, the Baffler, the New York Times, Slate, the Literary Review, and the New Leader. From 2015 to 2018, he was the book critic for New York Magazine.Named as one of the "100 most connected men" by GQ magazine, Andrew Keen is amongst the world's best known broadcasters and commentators. In addition to presenting KEEN ON, he is the host of the long-running How To Fix Democracy show. He is also the author of four prescient books about digital technology: CULT OF THE AMATEUR, DIGITAL VERTIGO, THE INTERNET IS NOT THE ANSWER and HOW TO FIX THE FUTURE. Andrew lives in San Francisco,

EPISODE 1814: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to John Parrington, author of CONSCIOUSNESS, about how human brains, unlike those of all other species, can turn matter into meaningJohn Parrington is an Associate Professor in Molecular and Cellular Pharmacology and a Tutorial Fellow in Medicine at the University of Oxford. He is the author of three previous books and over 110 peer reviewed articles. His research focuses on how chemical signals regulate important processes in the body.Named as one of the "100 most connected men" by GQ magazine, Andrew Keen is amongst the world's best known broadcasters and commentators. In addition to presenting KEEN ON, he is the host of the long-running How To Fix Democracy show. He is also the author of four prescient books about digital technology: CULT OF THE AMATEUR, DIGITAL VERTIGO, THE INTERNET IS NOT THE ANSWER and HOW TO FIX THE FUTURE. Andrew lives in San Francisco, is married to Cassandra Knight, Google's VP of Litigation & Discovery, and has two grown children

EPISODE 1813: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Greg Lukianoff, co-author of THE CANCELING OF THE AMERICAN MIND, about why today's cancel culture might be as much of a threat to  American free speech as the McCarthyite Red Scare of the 1950sGreg Lukianoff is an attorney, New York Times best-selling author, and the President and CEO of the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE). He is the author of Unlearning Liberty: Campus Censorship and the End of American Debate, Freedom From Speech, and FIRE’s Guide to Free Speech on Campus. Most recently, he co-authored The Coddling of the American Mind: How Good Intentions and Bad Ideas Are Setting Up a Generation for Failure with Jonathan Haidt. This New York Times best-seller expands  on their September 2015 Atlantic cover story of the same name. Greg is also an Executive Producer of Can We Take a Joke? (2015), a feature-length documentary that explores the collision between comedy, censorship, and outrage culture, both on and off campus, and of Mi

EPISODE 1812: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Jeff Fuhrer, author of THE MYTH THAT MADE US, about the the existential crisis of economic inequality now threatening the United StatesJeff Fuhrer is a Non-Resident Fellow at the Brookings Institution and a Foundation Fellow at the Eastern Bank Foundation. He was previously Executive Vice President and Director of Research at the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, where he was also responsible for the bank’s diversity and inclusion functions.Named as one of the "100 most connected men" by GQ magazine, Andrew Keen is amongst the world's best known broadcasters and commentators. In addition to presenting KEEN ON, he is the host of the long-running How To Fix Democracy show. He is also the author of four prescient books about digital technology: CULT OF THE AMATEUR, DIGITAL VERTIGO, THE INTERNET IS NOT THE ANSWER and HOW TO FIX THE FUTURE. Andrew lives in San Francisco, is married to Cassandra Knight, Google's VP of Litigation & Discovery, and has two grown ch

EPISODE 1811: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Roger Moorhouse, author of THE FORGERS, about the forgotten story of a Polish diplomatic rescue operation to save the lives of Polish JewsRoger Moorhouse is a historian and author specialising in modern German and Central European history, with particular interest in Nazi Germany, the Holocaust and World War Two in Europe. A visiting professor at the College of Europe in Warsaw, he is also the author of a number of books on modern German history, including "Killing Hitler", "Berlin at War", "The Third Reich in 100 Objects" and "The Devils' Alliance: Hitler's Pact with Stalin, 1939-1941".  He is a regular commentator in the specialist and general press, and a consultant for film and television.Named as one of the "100 most connected men" by GQ magazine, Andrew Keen is amongst the world's best known broadcasters and commentators. In addition to presenting KEEN ON, he is the host of the long-running How To Fix Democracy show. He is also the author of four presc

EPISODE 1810: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to  Noa Yedlin, the Israeli writer and author of STOCKHOLM: A NOVEL, about the events of October 7, Benjamin Netanyahu, and how winning the Nobel prize might and might not change usNoa Yedlin is a bestselling Israeli author, the recipient of the Sapir Prize (the Israeli Man Booker) and the Prime Minister’s Literature Award. Yedlin is also the creator of a prize-winning television series based on her bestselling novel Stockholm. Another of her bestselling novels, People Like Us, is currently being developed for television, and a stage adaption of her novel House Arrest is playing at Beit Lessin Theater in Tel Aviv, where she lives.Named as one of the "100 most connected men" by GQ magazine, Andrew Keen is amongst the world's best known broadcasters and commentators. In addition to presenting KEEN ON, he is the host of the long-running How To Fix Democracy show. He is also the author of four prescient books about digital technology: CULT OF THE AMATEUR, DIGITAL V

EPISODE 1809: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Alissa Quart, an editor of GOING FOR BROKE and Executive Director of the Economic Hardship Reporting Project, about living on the edge in the world's richest countryAlissa Quart is the author of five acclaimed books of nonfiction including Bootstrapped: Liberating Ourselves from the American Dream (Ecco, 2023). They are Squeezed, Republic of Outsiders, Hothouse Kids, and Branded. She is the Executive Director of the non-profit the Economic Hardship Reporting Project. She is also the author of two books of poetry Thoughts and Prayers and Monetized. She has written for many publications including The Washington Post, The New York Times, and TIME. Her honors include an Emmy, an SPJ award and a Nieman fellowship. She lives with her family in Brooklyn.Named as one of the "100 most connected men" by GQ magazine, Andrew Keen is amongst the world's best known broadcasters and commentators. In addition to presenting KEEN ON, he is the host of the long-running How To

EPISODE 1808: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Sophie Hannah, author of HERCULE POIROT'S SILENT NIGHT, about how to recreate the World's Greatest Detective.Sophie Hannah is a Sunday Times and New York Times bestselling writer of crime fiction, published in forty-nine languages and fifty-one territories. Her books have sold millions of copies worldwide. In 2014, with the blessing of Agatha Christie’s family and estate, Sophie published a new Poirot novel, The Monogram Murders, which was a bestseller in more than fifteen countries. She has since published three more Poirot novels: Closed Casket, The Mystery of Three Quarters and The Killings at Kingfisher Hill, all of which were instant Sunday Times Top Ten bestsellers. Her next Poirot novel will be published in October 2023. Sophie’s murder mystery musical, The Mystery of Mr E – co-written with her friend and composer Annette Armitage – is currently being filmed and will be released as a movie in 2023. The film is directed by Martyn Tott and produced/made

EPISODE 1807: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Seth Kaplan, author of FRAGILE NEIGHBORHOODS, on how to repair American society, one zip code at a timeSeth D. Kaplan is a leading expert on fragile states. He is a Professorial Lecturer in the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) at Johns Hopkins University, Senior Adviser for the Institute for Integrated Transitions (IFIT), and consultant to multilateral organizations such as the World Bank, U.S. State Department, U.S. Agency for International Development, and OECD as well as developing country governments and NGOs.Named as one of the "100 most connected men" by GQ magazine, Andrew Keen is amongst the world's best known broadcasters and commentators. In addition to presenting KEEN ON, he is the host of the long-running How To Fix Democracy show. He is also the author of four prescient books about digital technology: CULT OF THE AMATEUR, DIGITAL VERTIGO, THE INTERNET IS NOT THE ANSWER and HOW TO FIX THE FUTURE. Andrew lives in San F

EPISODE 1806: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Keith Teare, publisher of the THAT WAS THE WEEK tech newsletter, about the costs and benefits of abundant artificial intelligenceKeith Teare is the founder and CEO of SignalRank Corporation. Previously, he was executive chairman at Accelerated Digital Ventures Ltd., a U.K.-based global investment company focused on startups at all stages. Teare studied at the University of Kent and is the author of “The Easy Net Book” and “Under Siege.” He writes regularly for TechCrunch and publishes the “That Was The Week” newsletter.Named as one of the "100 most connected men" by GQ magazine, Andrew Keen is amongst the world's best known broadcasters and commentators. In addition to presenting KEEN ON, he is the host of the long-running How To Fix Democracy show. He is also the author of four prescient books about digital technology: CULT OF THE AMATEUR, DIGITAL VERTIGO, THE INTERNET IS NOT THE ANSWER and HOW TO FIX THE FUTURE. Andrew lives in San Francisco, is married to

EPISODE 1805: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Peter Slen, Executive Producer of the CSPAN series BOOKS THAT SHAPED AMERICA, about Oliver Wendell Holmes' classic text "Common Law", the 1881 book about the law that has most shaped AmericaPeter Slen is the senior executive producer and a host at C-SPAN, a television and radio network known for its unbiased coverage of government proceedings.Named as one of the "100 most connected men" by GQ magazine, Andrew Keen is amongst the world's best known broadcasters and commentators. In addition to presenting KEEN ON, he is the host of the long-running How To Fix Democracy show. He is also the author of four prescient books about digital technology: CULT OF THE AMATEUR, DIGITAL VERTIGO, THE INTERNET IS NOT THE ANSWER and HOW TO FIX THE FUTURE. Andrew lives in San Francisco, is married to Cassandra Knight, Google's VP of Litigation & Discovery, and has two grown children. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get acce

EPISODE 1804: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Lorraine Daston, author of RIVALS, about how scientists have learned to cooperate with each other over the last 300 yearsProfessor Lorraine Jenifer Daston is the Executive Director of the Max Planck Institute of the History of Science and an Honorary Professor at Humboldt Universitaet. She has done countless research on the history of the natural and human sciences from 16th-19th centuries. She has published on the history of probability and statistics (17th-19th cs.), natural history and natural philosophy (16th-18th cs.), the scientific persona (18th-19th cs.), changing standards of evidence and proof (16th-18thcs.), and the ideals and practices of scientific objectivity (18th-19th cs.). Current research interests include the moral authority of nature, the cognitive passions of wonder and curiosity, scientific drawing, and early modern ways of knowing. After graduating from Harvard University with her Ph.D., she taught at Brandeis University, University of