The World Unpacked

In October 2019, millions of Lebanese demonstrators took to the streets to protest widespread corruption amid deteriorating economic conditions. Since then, the economy has plunged into free fall, wit...

6 Aug 202042min

In the months since George Floyd’s murder by the police, protests have erupted across the US and spread around the world. Demonstrators are not only standing in solidarity with Black Americans but als...

23 Jul 202030min

In January, Russian president Vladimir Putin announced sweeping reforms to the country's constitution, resulting in the surprise resignation of his entire cabinet. The 200+ amendments make a number of...

9 Jul 202034min

The coronavirus pandemic, coupled with a massive reduction in global demand for oil, has left Saudi Arabia in a dire economic state. MBS has been forced to sideline his ambitious Vision 2030 plan whil...

25 Jun 202040min

Managing the coronavirus has been a challenge for both democracies and authoritarian regimes. In particular, the pandemic has further exposed the inequities and lack of trust present in many democrati...

11 Jun 202025min

Jen talks to longtime diplomatic correspondent Paul Richter about his book, The Ambassadors: America's Diplomats on the Front Lines.  Paul talks about four diplomats - Ryan Crocker in Afghanistan, Ann...

14 Mai 202025min

During the past several years, large-scale protests by citizens against their governments have erupted all over the world. Jen talks to Kai Thaler about what drives protest movements, the methods they...

30 Apr 202028min

In her recent book, Black Wave: Saudi Arabia, Iran, and the Forty-Year Rivalry That Unraveled Culture, Religion, and Collective Memory in the Middle East, Emmy-winning journalist and New York Times be...

16 Apr 202027min