Best Anglophone Podcasts (2026)

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Stuart Klawans, "Crooked, But Never Common: The Films of Preston Sturges" (Columbia UP, 2023) 52:08

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27m ago52:08

52:08

In a burst of creativity unmatched in Hollywood history, Preston Sturges directed a string of all-time classic comedies from 1939 through 1948--The Great McGinty, The Lady Eve, Sullivan's Travels, The Palm Beach Story, and The Miracle of Morgan's Creek among them--all from screenplays he alone had written. Stuart Klawans' Crooked, But Never Common:…

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Megan Bryson and Kevin Buckelew eds., "Buddhist Masculinities" (Columbia UP, 2023) 55:25

4d ago55:25

55:25

While early Buddhists hailed their religion's founder for opening a path to enlightenment, they also exalted him as the paragon of masculinity. According to Buddhist scriptures, the Buddha's body boasts thirty-two physical features, including lionlike jaws, thighs like a royal stag, broad shoulders, and a deep, resonant voice, that distinguish him …

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The Africa Report: Zambia lawmakers back constitutional amendment before election 7:04

26d ago7:04

7:04

Bongani Bingwa speaks to Justin Mulenga, Diamond TV correspondent, about Zambia’s Parliament backing proposed constitutional amendments ahead of the country’s next general election. The move is being presented as a step toward strengthening governance and modernising the country’s founding legal framework, often seen as a sign of a maturing democra…

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Mirya Holman, "The Hidden Face of Local Power: Appointed Boards and the Limits of Democracy" (Temple UP, 2025) 44:08

28d ago44:08

44:08

The Hidden Face of Local Power: Appointed Boards and the Limits of Democracy (Temple UP, 2025) by Dr. Mirya Holman explicates the purpose, role, and consequences of appointed boards in U.S. cities. Dr. Holman finds cities create strong boards that generate policy, consolidate power, and defend the interests of businesses and wealthy and white resid…

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Rapid collapse of Benin coup sparks broader concerns for West African democracy 6:12

1M ago6:12

6:12

Bongani Bingwa speaks with international relations expert Dr Charles Sinkala about reports that people in Benin are living in “total fear” following last week’s attempted coup, during which “violent clashes” broke out between the coup plotters and the Republican Guard at President Patrice Talon’s Cotonou residence, leaving “casualties on both sides…

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Sravana Borkataky-Varma and Anya Foxen, "The Serpent’s Tale: Kundalini, Yoga, and the History of an Experience" (Columbia UP, 2025) 1:05:25

1M ago1:05:25

1:05:25

The Serpent’s Tale: Kundalini, Yoga, and the History of an Experience (Columbia UP, 2025) traces the intricate global histories of Kuṇḍalinī, from its Sanskrit origins to its popularity in the West. Ranging from esoteric texts to global gurus, from the cliffs of California to the charnel grounds of Assam, they show that there has never been one sin…

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The Africa Report: China vying to replace the US for Africa’s affection? 6:45

1M ago6:45

6:45

Bongani Bingwa speaks to Dr Emmanuel Matambo, Research Director at the Centre for Africa-China Studies at UJ, about China’s decision to scrap all tariffs on exports from 53 African countries. The move marks a major policy shift, giving middle-income nations such as South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya, Egypt and Morocco duty-free access to the Chinese mark…

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John Kieschnick, "Buddhist Historiography in China" (Columbia UP, 2022) 49:10

1M ago49:10

49:10

Since the early days of Buddhism in China, monastics and laity alike have expressed a profound concern with the past. In voluminous historical works, they attempted to determine as precisely as possible the dates of events in the Buddha's life, seeking to iron out discrepancies in varying accounts and pinpoint when he delivered which sermons. Buddh…

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The Africa Report: Sudan peace efforts collapse as Burhan rejects ‘Worst’ Truce Plan 4:06

2M ago4:06

4:06

Ray White speaks to Kenneth Kgwadi, research fellow at the Middle East Africa Research Institute (MEARI), about the latest setback in Sudan’s stalled peace efforts after army chief General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan rejected the US-backed “Quad” truce proposal, dismissing it as the worst plan yet and accusing the UAE of quietly supporting the RSF. The …

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Luke Gibson, "Reading Sanskrit: A Complete Step-By-Step Introduction with Texts from the Buddhist Tradition" (Columbia UP, 2025) 41:02

2M ago41:02

41:02

This textbook offers a fresh approach to learning Sanskrit, the ancient language at the heart of South Asia’s vast religious, philosophical, and literary heritage. Designed for independent learners and classrooms alike, it provides a uniquely in-depth and immersive introduction to the language, exploring a rich selection of Sanskrit texts from the …

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The Africa Report: Tanzania cabinet reshuffle places family at the heart of power 5:13

2M ago5:13

5:13

Bongani Bingwa speaks with Tanzanian journalist Sammy Awami about the latest developments in Tanzania, where President Samia Suluhu Hassan has appointed her daughter and son-in-law to key positions, raising concerns over nepotism and the country’s fragile stability following a contested election. 702 Breakfast with Bongani Bingwa is broadcast on 70…

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The Africa Report: Turf War Between Rival Jihadist Groups in Nigeria Leaves 200 Dead 6:52

2M ago6:52

6:52

Bongani Bingwa speaks to Dr. Hussein Solomon, Senior Professor at the University of the Free State, about the deadly turf war in northeast Nigeria, where Boko Haram and ISWAP clashed near Lake Chad, leaving around 200 militants dead as the two rival jihadist groups battle for control of the region. 702 Breakfast with Bongani Bingwa is broadcast on …

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Ouattara secures fourth term as Ivory Coast faces questions over democracy and direction 7:39

2M ago7:39

7:39

Bongani Bingwa speaks to Sakaria Kone, Ivory Coast’s Ambassador to South Africa, as President Alassane Ouattara secures a fourth term in office with nearly 90% of the vote. The result, announced in the early hours in Abidjan, has stirred both celebration and concern, supporters hail Ouattara as the architect of stability and economic progress, whil…

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Africa’s Silence on Darfur: A Shameful Failure 8:23

2M ago8:23

8:23

Bongani Bingwa speaks with veteran journalist Mathatha Tsedu about the disturbing silence from South African leaders as Sudan faces the world’s deadliest humanitarian crisis, with staggering numbers of people killed and displaced. 702 Breakfast with Bongani Bingwa is broadcast on 702, a Johannesburg based talk radio station. Bongani makes sense of …

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Martin Moore and Thomas Colley, "Dictating Reality: The Global Battle to Control the News" (Columbia UP, 2025) 1:00:44

2M ago1:00:44

1:00:44

From the United States to China and from Brazil to India, an authoritarian approach to news is spreading across the world. Increasingly, the media is no longer a check on power or a source of objective information but a means by which governments and leaders can propagate their versions of reality, however biased or false. In Dictating Reality: The…

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The Africa Report: Paul Biya wins 8th term amid deadly unrest 5:45

3M ago5:45

5:45

Bongani Bingwa speaks with Dr. Pippie Hugues, a political analyst based in Yaoundé, Cameroon, about the unrest in the country following the controversial re-election of veteran leader Paul Biya for an eighth term. 702 Breakfast with Bongani Bingwa is broadcast on 702, a Johannesburg based talk radio station. Bongani makes sense of the news, intervi…

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Diane Ravitch, "An Education: How I Changed My Mind About Schools and Almost Everything Else" (Columbia UP, 2025) 1:02:58

3M ago1:02:58

1:02:58

For many years, Diane Ravitch was among the country’s leading conservative thinkers on education. The cure for what ailed the school system was clear, she believed: high-stakes standardized testing, national standards, accountability, competition, charters, and vouchers. Then Ravitch saw what happened when these ideas were put into practice and rec…

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Africa Report: World Bank Lifts Funding Freeze, Commits $2 Billion to Uganda 7:13

3M ago7:13

7:13

Bongani Bingwa speaks to Dr. Thokozile Madonko, Researcher at the Southern Centre for Inequality Studies and the Public Economy Project at Wits University, about a major boost for Uganda’s economy. After nearly two years of suspended funding due to concerns over human rights issues, the World Bank has announced it will resume financial support, wit…

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Jeffrey D. Sharon, "The Great Balancing Act: An Insider's Guide to the Human Vestibular System" (Columbia UP, 2025) 1:07:34

3M ago1:07:34

1:07:34

What's the secret to keeping your balance? The ear does more than hear: it helps us stay stable by perceiving movements and gravity. Elegant sensors deep within the skull detect every twist, turn, and tumble, powering swift reflexes that keep vision and balance steady. This is the vestibular system. It's primordial and ubiquitous: every animal has …

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Africa Report with Professor Gilbert Khadiagala 5:43

3M ago5:43

5:43

Bongani Bingwa speaks to Professor Gilbert Khadiagala, Director of the African Centre for the Study of the United States at Wits University, about Madagascar’s deepening political crisis following President Andry Rajoelina’s decision to dissolve Parliament amid growing unrest. What began as public frustration over water and power shortages, unemplo…

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Ragini Tharoor Srinivasan, "Overdetermined: How Indian English Literature Becomes Ethnic, Postcolonial, and Anglophone" (Columbia UP, 2025) 1:11:58

3M ago1:11:58

1:11:58

Why is it so difficult to account for the role of identity in literary studies? Why do both writers and scholars of Indian English literature express resistance to India and Indianness? What does this reveal about how non-Western literatures are read, taught, and understood? Drawing on years of experiences in classrooms and on U.S. university campu…

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Joshua Eisenman and David H. Shinn, "China's Relations with Africa: A New Era of Strategic Engagement" (Columbia UP, 2023) 1:42:23

3M ago1:42:23

1:42:23

Since Xi Jinping’s accession to power in 2012, nearly every aspect of China’s relations with Africa has grown dramatically. Beijing has increased the share of resources it devotes to African countries, expanding military cooperation, technological investment, and educational and cultural programs as well as extending its political influence. China'…

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Who really runs Congo? The rebels, Rwanda, or Kinshasa? 7:15

3M ago7:15

7:15

By Primedia Broadcasting

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Daniel K. Sodickson, "The Future of Seeing: How Imaging is Changing the World" (Columbia UP, 2025) 1:09:43

3M ago1:09:43

1:09:43

Over the centuries, we have learned to peer into what was once invisible. Imaging devices like cameras, telescopes, microscopes, and MRI machines map the world around, beyond, and within us in ways the naked eye could never see. In so doing, these technologies have transformed our understanding of our place in the universe and our conception of our…

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Wendell Marsh, "Textual Life: Islam, Africa, and the Fate of the Humanities" (Columbia UP, 2025) 53:46

4M ago53:46

53:46

Textual Life: Islam, Africa, and the Fate of the Humanities (Columbia University Press, 2025), is a groundbreaking book that recasts the role of knowledge in the making of a colonial and postcolonial nation. It makes a case for a new literary and intellectual-historical approach to Islam in Africa. The Senegalese Muslim scholar Shaykh Musa Kamara (…

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Mark Goble, "Downtime: The Twentieth Century in Slow Motion" (Columbia UP, 2025) 55:11

4M ago55:11

55:11

Slow motion is everywhere in contemporary film and media, but it wasn't always so ubiquitous. How did slow motion ascend to the dubious honor of becoming our culture's least "special" effect? And what does slow motion — a trick secured paradoxically through the camera's ever-racing speeds of capture — tell us about the temporalities and trajectorie…

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Wu Jianren, "New Story of the Stone: An Early Chinese Science Fiction Novel" (Columbia UP, 2025) 51:23

4M ago51:23

51:23

What happens if you took one of the classic characters of Chinese literary fiction and dropped him into early 20th-century China? That’s the premise of Wu Jianren’s novel, New Story of the Stone (Columbia UP, 2025), written in 1905, which takes Jia Baoyu, from the classic Dream of the Red Chamber, and takes him first to Qing China and the Boxer Reb…

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Katherine Fusco, "Hollywood's Others: Love and Limitation in the Star System" (Columbia UP, 2025) 43:30

4M ago43:30

43:30

We tend to think about movie stars as either glamorous or relatable. But in the 1920s and 1930s, when the Hollywood star system was taking shape, a number of unusual stars appeared on the silver screen, representing groups from which the American mainstream typically sought to avert its eyes. What did it mean for a white entertainment columnist to …

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Santiago Zabala, "Signs from the Future: Philosophy of Warnings" (Columbia UP, 2025) 53:45

4M ago53:45

53:45

Returning to NBN is the philosopher Santiago Zabala, here to introduce his new book Signs from the Future: A Philosophy of Warnings (Columbia University Press, 2025). Warnings, for Zabala, are not synonymous with predictions. They are instead as much about the present as the future. They point towards already present crisis and contradictions. They…

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Africa Report: Inside the controversy over Zambian Edgar Lungu’s burial 7:33

5M ago7:33

7:33

Bongani Bingwa speaks with Dr. Sishuwa Sishuwa, Zambian historian and senior lecturer in Stellenbosch University’s Department of History, about the Constitutional Court’s decision preventing the family of the late former President Edgar Lungu from directly appealing the Pretoria High Court ruling. The High Court had determined that the Zambian gove…

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Stephan Kieninger, "Securing Peace in Europe: Strobe Talbott, NATO, and Russia After the Cold War" (Columbia UP, 2025) 40:25

5M ago40:25

40:25

This deeply researched book offers new perspective on the NATO-Russia relationship through the eyes of Strobe Talbott, a deputy secretary of state for seven years under President Bill Clinton and the key US diplomatic broker for the former USSR. Stephan Kieninger traces the Clinton administration’s efforts to engage Russia and enlarge NATO at the s…

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Shennette Garrett-Scott, "Banking on Freedom: Black Women in U.S. Finance Before the New Deal" (Columbia UP, 2019) 41:58

5M ago41:58

41:58

Think running an insurance company or a bank is hard? Try doing it as an African-American woman in the Jim Crow South. Shennette Garrett-Scott's new book, Banking on Freedom: Black Women in U.S. Finance Before the New Deal (Columbia University Press, 2019) tells the fascinating story of just such an endeavor, first the Independent Order of St. Luke…

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AU takes a stand: Restoring Africa’s true size on the world map 6:57

5M ago6:57

6:57

Bongani Bingwa speaks to Lerato Mogoatlhe, from Africa No Filter, exploring how the Mercator map’s distortion continues to misrepresent Africa and why the Equal Earth projection offers a fairer picture of the continent. 702 Breakfast with Bongani Bingwa is broadcast on 702, a Johannesburg based talk radio station. Bongani makes sense of the news, i…

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Todd Mcgowan, "Pure Excess: Capitalism and the Commodity" (Columbia UP, 2024) 1:05:20

5M ago1:05:20

1:05:20

Todd McGowan forges a new theory of capitalism as a system based on the production of more than what we need: pure excess. He argues that the promise of more—more wealth, more enjoyment, more opportunity, without requiring any sacrifice—is the essence of capitalism. Previous socioeconomic systems set up some form of the social good as their focus. …

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Adriana Carranca, "Soul by Soul: The Evangelical Mission to Spread the Gospel to Muslims" (Columbia UP, 2024) 55:37

5M ago55:37

55:37

US-born Protestant evangelicalism has gone global to an extent of which many of us might be unaware. Soul by Soul: The Evangelical Mission to Spread the Gospel to Muslims (Columbia Global Reports, 2024) tells the story of Americans’ colossal mobilization to proclaim Christianity “to the ends of the Earth,” a movement that triumphed in the Global So…

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Matthew Facciani, "Misguided: Where Misinformation Starts, How It Spreads, and What to Do about It" (Columbia UP, 2025) 30:29

5M ago30:29

30:29

Why are people inclined to believe misinformation? Misguided: Where Misinformation Starts, How It Spreads, and What to Do about It (Columbia UP, 2025) is a wide-ranging and comprehensive book that shines a light on how false beliefs take root and spread, exploring the cognitive, emotional, and social factors that make us all susceptible to misinfor…

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The Africa Report – Cameroon at the Crossroads: Paul Biya’s long rule faces election and Anglophone crisis test 9:23

5M ago9:23

9:23

Dr. Pippie Hugues, Policy Analyst at the Governance and Democracy Division of the Policy, joins Bongani Bingwa as Cameroon stands at a critical political crossroads. President Paul Biya, now 92 years old, has ruled the country since 1982—longer than most Cameroonians have been alive. Despite surviving coups and crises, Biya has remained in power th…

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Vijay Selvam, "Principles of Bitcoin: Technology, Economics, Politics, and Philosophy" (Columbia UP, 2025) 58:41

5M ago58:41

58:41

Principles of Bitcoin presents a holistic, first-principles-based framework for understanding one of the most misunderstood inventions of our time. By stripping away the hype, jargon, and superficial analysis that often surrounds the crypto industry, this book uncovers the true ingenuity behind Satoshi Nakamoto’s creation—and its profound implicati…

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David J. Helfand, "The Universal Timekeepers: Reconstructing History Atom by Atom" (Columbia UP, 2023) 1:02:13

5M ago1:02:13

1:02:13

Atoms are unfathomably tiny. It takes fifteen million trillion of them to make up a single poppy seed—give or take a few billion. And there’s hardly anything to them: atoms are more than 99.9999999999 percent empty space. Yet scientists have learned to count these slivers of near nothingness with precision and to peer into their internal states. In…

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Africa Report - Rwandan government accepts migrants from the United States 5:15

5M ago5:15

5:15

Bongani Bingwa has a conversation with Crystal Orderson about escalating tensions in Angola, where civil society groups have accused security forces of using excessive force to quell violent protests, prompting concerns from the United Nations Human Rights Office. They also delve into a recent agreement between the United States and Rwanda, where R…

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The Africa Report: Ghana now plans crypto licensing 3:58

6M ago3:58

3:58

Bongani Bingwa speaks to Crystal Orderson about Ghana's central bank is taking steps to regulate the cryptocurrency industry by licensing platforms to track digital asset transactions. 702 Breakfast with Bongani Bingwa is broadcast on 702, a Johannesburg based talk radio station. Bongani makes sense of the news, interviews the key newsmakers of the…

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The Africa Report: DR Congo, M23 rebels sign deal in Qatar to end fighting in Eastern Congo 4:25

6M ago4:25

4:25

Bongani Bingwa speaks to Africa Report Correspondent ,Crystal Orderson about two major developments on the continent. In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, M23 rebels and the government have signed a declaration in Qatar aimed at ending the conflict in eastern Congo, an area long plagued by violence linked to the 1994 Rwandan genocide. While the…

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M’hamed Oualdi, "A Slave between Empires: A Transimperial History of North Africa" (Columbia UP, 2020) 41:41

6M ago41:41

41:41

In light of the profound physical and mental traumas of colonization endured by North Africans, historians of recent decades have primarily concentrated their studies of North Africa on colonial violence, domination, and shock. The choice is an understandable one. But in his new monograph, A Slave between Empires: A Transimperial History of North A…

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Africa Report: World's oldest leader seeks re-election to extend Cameroon's 43-year regime 3:57

6M ago3:57

3:57

Bongani Bingwa speaks with Crystal Orderson about Cameroon's 92-year-old President Paul Biya, the world's oldest head of state, confirming his bid for an eighth term in the October election, and Nigeria's former President Muhammadu Buhari, who died at the age of 82 in a London clinic, and when he will be buried. Bongani makes sense of the news, int…

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Noëlle McAfee, "Fear of Breakdown: Psychoanalysis and Politics" (Columbia UP, 2019) 57:08

6M ago57:08

57:08

In his classic essay on the fear of breakdown, Donald Winnicott famously conveys to a patient that the disaster powerfully feared has, in fact, already happened. Taking her cue from Winnicott, Noëlle McAfee’s Fear of Breakdown: Psychoanalysis and Politics (Columbia University Press, 2019), explores the implications of breakdown fears for the practi…

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Africa Report: Ethiopia Grand Renaissance mega dam project on the Nile is now complete 6:32

6M ago6:32

6:32

Bongani Bingwa chats with Crystal Orderson about Ethiopia's announcement of the completed Grand Renaissance Dam, set for a September inauguration, and the DRC’s celebration of 100 years since the birth of liberation icon Patrice Lumumba. Bongani makes sense of the news, interviews the key newsmakers of the day, and holds those in power to account o…

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The Africa Report - DRC with Rwanda signing a peace pack in Washington 4:28

6M ago4:28

4:28

Bongani Bingwa speaks to Crystal Orderson unpacking President Donald Trump’s claim of brokering peace between the DRC and Rwanda though doubts remain, especially with M23 excluded from the deal and vague language around troop withdrawals. She also looks at Spain’s new migration agreement with The Gambia, hailed by some as a lifeline for youth emplo…

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Ali Aslam, David W. McIvor, and Joel Alden Schlosser, "Earthborn Democracy: A Political Theory of Entangled Life" (Columbia UP, 2024) 52:20

6M ago52:20

52:20

Ecological crises threaten all forms of life on earth. Democracy too is endangered, as popular discontent, elite malfeasance, and unresponsive institutions imperil its survival. Present political concepts have proven inadequate to meeting these challenges, and their inadequacies are themselves symptoms of the failures of prevailing political, cultu…

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Africa Report with Crystal Orderson - One year anniversary of Kenya’s Gen Z deadly protest 4:12

7M ago4:12

4:12

Bongani Bingwa chats with Crystal Orderson on the one-year anniversary of the deadly crackdown on Gen Z activists in Kenya, and Interpol's most recent danger assessment states that cybercrime incidents now account for an increasing share of total crime in Africa. Bongani makes sense of the news, interviews the key newsmakers of the day, and holds t…

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Alison Griffiths, "Nomadic Cinema: A Cultural Geography of the Expedition Film" (Columbia UP, 2025) 1:02:25

7M ago1:02:25

1:02:25

From In Borneo, the Land of the Head-Hunters to The Epic of Everest to Camping Among the Indians, the early twentieth century was the heyday of expedition filmmaking. As new technologies transformed global transportation and opened new avenues for documentation, and as imperialism and capitalism expanded their reach, Western filmmakers embarked on …