Best The Overton Window Podcast Podcasts (2025)

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Why Tech Sucks – Cory Doctorow on Enshittification and how to fix it 1:04:10

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2h ago1:04:10

1:04:10

It’s the word of the moment. “Enshittification” is the reason Google is all ads and no useful results, Amazon serves you crappy overpriced products, your phone spies on you and you can’t find your friends on social media – but you WILL be persecuted by bots, brands and Nazis all day long. So how are we going to fix it? Leading tech critic Cory Doct…

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Cruel Britannia – Labour loses it on migration 1:02:13

2h ago1:02:13

1:02:13

Labour’s controversial asylum plans have sparked a backlash and it’s not clear they’ll even work. So, why have they gone down this route? What options might be better? Plus, AI – the bubble is going to burst, but has it already broken our brains? Then in the extra bit for supporters – what would we want to bring back from 100 years ago? Escape Rout…

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EP 223: Susan Swan on Modern Feminism 54:44

1h ago54:44

54:44

In the wake of the #MeToo firing of the University of British Columbia creative writing professor Steven Galloway — which is once again in the news this week — our guest on the program today sat down to write a book of advice for young feminists. But her good friend Margaret Atwood convinced her that nobody likes unsolicited advice, and that she sh…

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Deface The Nation – Is Trump starting to lose? – with Molly Jong-Fast 55:27

7d ago55:27

55:27

Is Trump finally falling apart? His approval ratings are catastrophic, the Republicans took a hammering in the November elections, his gross-out distraction tactics no longer work… and as more Epstein emails are released, the scandal is lapping ever-higher around his cankles. Molly Jong-Fast of The Atlantic, Vanity Fair and the unmissable Fast Poli…

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Make Auntie Great Again – Will Trump destroy the BBC? 1:10:00

11d ago1:10:00

1:10:00

Trump and the right wing press are gleefully hounding the BBC over a clumsy speech edit – will they succeed in taking down the broadcaster? Plus, manifesto promises – there’s a huge fuss over Labour potentially breaking them, but is that anything new? And in the extra bit for supporters – reasons to be a Luddite! The panel rallies against smart tec…

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EP 222: Molly Jong-Fast on Gen X Overwhelm 25:55

12d ago25:55

25:55

Many women in Generation X are now finding themselves overwhelmed. The world is increasingly stressful. But our private lives are not much calmer, as we care for children and aging parents and spouses, stare down middle age, and mull over the legacy of previous generations of women. Our guest on the program today knows something about this — she gr…

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Budget ’25 – Why Rachel Reeves should hold her nerve 55:59

14d ago55:59

55:59

Tax rises! Cuts to everything! Here comes the pain! Seldom has a Budget been heralded with such dire warnings… if you believe the Toryform Press. But according to Giles Wilkes – Institute for Government fellow and former adviser to Vince Cable and Theresa May – Britain isn’t in such a disastrous state after all. In a weirdly optimistic conversation…

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Mamdani – First we take Manhattan 1:07:02

18d ago1:07:02

1:07:02

Zohran Mamdani’s victory in the New York mayoralty race electrifies the global Left, rocks the Democratic establishment and leaves Trump titanically unamused. What does it all mean? Plus: Do we need to save the Conservative Party? Former Digital Minister and Tory MP for Boston and Skegness Matt Warman helps us examine the drastic measures needed to…

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EP 221: Daniel Debow: It's Time for 'Bold Adventurism' 40:54

2d ago40:54

40:54

It’s budget day here in Canada. As Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government tables its first federal budget, we will get reaction and hear a lot of different visions for the country. On today’s episode we wanted to bring you one. Our guest on the program says that Canada is in crisis — and that it is now time for "bold adventurism." Daniel Debow is …

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Starmer’s dilemma – Electoral reform or Farage in No.10? 1:06:32

21d ago1:06:32

1:06:32

After decades of waving away electoral reform, Labour and the Tories suddenly have a reason to question First Past The Post – the nightmare prospect of a Reform government. Has proportional representation’s time finally come? How might it happen? And what system would work for Britain? Proud elections wonk David Klemperer of the Institute for Polic…

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System Failure – Why does British politics feel broken? 1:00:21

6d ago1:00:21

1:00:21

British politics feels stalled and the only people benefiting are Farage and the quick-fix demagogues of Reform UK. Why is the debate about our national future frozen and what can we do about it? Special guest Ben Ansell – author of Why Politics Fails – joins us to talk it over. Plus, a But Your Emails special where we answer as many of your questi…

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EP 220: Darrell Bricker on Canada's Breaking Point 36:18

8d ago36:18

36:18

One of the themes of the Lean Out podcast is the many crises that Canada is facing —and where we go from here. Our guest on the program today warns that we are at a breaking point, and in desperate need of a national reckoning. As we face threats from without, he says, we are divided from within, along the lines of gender, class, region, and, cruci…

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Scary Migrants, Super Creeps – Can Britain break out of migration madness? 1:01:46

28d ago1:01:46

1:01:46

A neurotic obsession with illegal migration is driving British politics rightwards, trapping the parties in an arms race of escalating harshness towards migrants. Now Tory far-righter Katie Lam wants to cancel legal migrants’ right to stay, evoking the racist “repatriation” talk of the 1970s National Front. Can Britain get out of the migration doom…

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Jumping out of the Overton window – Is brainrot taking over politics? 1:00:44

1M ago1:00:44

1:00:44

Reform UK just pulled off the sequel to the Jackie Weaver Handforth Parish Council Zoom meeting, and it’s excellent. The leaked Zoom meeting from Reform’s flagship Kent County Council shows things aren’t perhaps going as well for Nigel Farage’s party/business as he may have hoped. Is Reform having a bit of a wobble? Plus, is social media brainrot r…

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EP 219: Jason Guriel on Fandom 36:25

18d ago36:25

36:25

Before the Internet, before the literary world was overrun by online politics, before everything you read — and wrote — had to advance an agenda, there was the solitary person, in a room, losing themselves in the words on the page. There was the fan. Our guest on the program today has written a book of essays on fandom and his own obsessions. In th…

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Don’t mention the pension! – Can we avoid a two-tier society? 57:50

1M ago57:50

57:50

The papers still dangle the dream of a sun-dappled retirement. Yet millions have nowhere near the savings they’ll need, while a fortunate few are amassing family wealth that could change Britain forever. Meanwhile the generational wealth gap is forcing younger people to forget about starting families. Is the old “work hard and you’ll make it” model…

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Starmer’s China Syndrome – plus Green MP Siân Berry on the new power balance on the Left 1:03:37

1M ago1:03:37

1:03:37

After the collapse of the China spying case, do we have to accept that Britain is way past being able to spar with Beijing? Especially when we depend so much on their students? Green MP Siân Berry talks about the party’s future under new eco-populist leader Zach Polanski, how to square green infrastructure with their support’s suspicion of developm…

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EP 218: Adam Szetela on the Publishing Industry's 'Circular Firing Squad' 45:55

1M ago45:55

45:55

Many of us that are big readers have been scratching our heads for years, trying to figure out why so many books are now so tedious and moralistic. What’s happened to North American literary culture — and why hasn’t it bounced back? Our guest on the program today has some answers. He’s written a book about the decline of literary freedom in publish…

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Card Declined – Inside the Digital I.D. Wars 1:04:57

1M ago1:04:57

1:04:57

Labour want to bring in digital I.D. and many people do NOT like it. Are they right? Are they wrong? And what is the “Lethal Trifecta” that makes the plan so risky? Hannah Fearn is very opposed to digital I.D. on civil liberties grounds. Jonn Elledge thinks it’s not that big a deal. Special guest Alex Hern – The Economist’s correspondent on A.I. – …

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Is the Conservative Party dying? – Plus: What the Manchester terror attack means 1:01:02

2M ago1:01:02

1:01:02

The Tory Party looks fatally damaged. Who hijacked the corpse at their conference in Manchester – Reform or Robert Jenrick? Josh Glancy of The Sunday Times was there and he explains whether there’s any life in the old party yet. Plus, the horrific killings at a Manchester synagogue left many British Jews saying they feel unsafe in their own country…

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EP 217: Marc Dunkelman on Why Nothing Works 39:57

1M ago39:57

39:57

If you live in North America, chances are good that you spend a lot of time wondering why things feel so dysfunctional. Why can’t we make any progress on the big issues of our age, like housing? Our guest on the program today has some answers — and he has written a fascinating new book about why nothing works. Marc J. Dunkelman is an American autho…

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Who would win a war in Europe? 1:02:28

2M ago1:02:28

1:02:28

Nobody wants to imagine a large-scale war in Europe. But after Putin invaded Ukraine and Trump tore up Europe’s security guarantee, it’s horribly plausible. Is Russia as powerful as Putin wants us to think? Is there more to military power than tanks and guns? Why do strategists keep making the wrong predictions? And what does Pete Hegseth’s unhinge…

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Starmer vs. Farage – Keir finally picks his enemy 56:49

2M ago56:49

56:49

Keir Starmer’s conference speech is getting heaps of praise after he finally went hard against Farage. But has he done enough to show he’s in control, or is the Labour messaging still all over the place? Plus, the Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, isn’t going away. He says he wants the UK to rejoin the EU, but do they want us? And does Lab…

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EP 216: David Cayley on the CBC's Populist Era 53:06

2M ago53:06

53:06

In recent years, we have seen heated debate in this country around the CBC and its future. With the question of defunding no longer looming, it is a good time to pause, to look back at where our national public broadcaster has been, and to talk through where it might go from here. Our guest on today’s program is veteran CBC producer who has written…

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Build, baby, build – Is Labour losing the Regeneration Game? 1:03:52

2M ago1:03:52

1:03:52

Labour has staked its future on building hundreds of thousand of homes and fixing up crumbling communities. But does “regeneration” actually work? Housing expert and author of Big Capital: Who Is London For? Anna Minton joins OGWN regular and development wonk Hannah Fearn to look at the nightmare of trying to build houses in a system designed to in…

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Enoch, Enoch, Who’s There? – Reform’s deranged repatriation plans 1:03:12

2M ago1:03:12

1:03:12

The ghost of Enoch Powell punches the air as Farage announces jaw-dropping plans for mass deportations and tearing up Indefinite Leave to Remain, claiming it will save Britain over £230bn (it won’t). Is Reform succumbing to the gravitational pull of the far-far-far right or just showing its true, cruel face? And does Labour’s feeble response that “…

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EP 215: Brian Stewart on the 'Spinning Vortex' of News 51:40

2M ago51:40

51:40

Today, as we go to air, our guest on the program takes the stage at Toronto Metropolitan University to address the next generation. He is a legendary Canadian journalist and he’ll be reflecting on the highs and lows that he’s experienced in his ringside seat to history, and how to navigate what he calls “the spinning vortex of ever-more complex new…

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So wrong, it’s right wing – Could Project 2025 happen in Britain? 1:02:47

2M ago1:02:47

1:02:47

Project 2025 gave Trump a roadmap for his authoritarian presidency. As the UK turns to the right, Reform UK is on the rise and fears over a Farage general election victory loom, we ask whether such a project could be undertaken here? Peter Geoghegan of the Democracy for Sale blog joins Alison and Jonn to discuss. Escape Routes: • Jonn is watching T…

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Inside the new ‘Battle for Britain’ 1:01:03

2M ago1:01:03

1:01:03

British politics is increasingly divided – but where are voters really going as they shift between parties? And how should Labour recalibrate their tactics? The Economist’s Matthew Holehouse joins us to discuss the new ‘Battle for Britain’. Plus, the panel discusses the reaction to Charlie Kirk’s death worldwide and how it might change politics. An…

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EP 214: Justin Ling on Canada's 'Existential' Election 59:01

2M ago59:01

59:01

Earlier this year at Lean Out, we covered Canada’s federal election. It was a contest not just between candidates and parties but between dominant narratives about the challenges facing this country. Was our biggest problem the decline in material conditions, or was it Donald Trump? Our guest on today’s podcast was there, on the campaign trail. He’…

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Starmer drama – Who's in control of the Labour Party? 1:04:58

2M ago1:04:58

1:04:58

Starmer is Prime Minister and leader of the Labour Party – but does he feel totally in charge of things? Plus, the race to be Deputy Leader of the Labour Party is down to the final two. Who’s the most likely to take the role? And Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham is being increasingly tipped to swoop back to Westminster. Could he be the answ…

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Britain’s Got Tyrants – Can any party out perform Reform? 1:03:03

2M ago1:03:03

1:03:03

Reform UK kicked off party season in the weirdest way possible – will any of the other parties be able to overshadow them in the coming weeks? Perhaps not for singing and conspiracy theories, but hopefully in policy. The panel previews party conference season. Plus, we discuss who should be the next Labour deputy leader and in the extra bit dive in…

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EP 213: Aaron Pete on the Unmarked Graves Controversy 36:58

3M ago36:58

36:58

In 2021, Canada was rocked by a discovery at the site of a former residential school in Kamloops: what appeared to be the remains of more than 200 Indigenous children. The story went viral globally and was reported by The New York Times and others as a mass grave. But to date, no remains have been exhumed. Our guest on the program today is a First …

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Angela’s Ashes: Rayner fallout – plus The Crazy World of Tony Blair 1:04:00

3M ago1:04:00

1:04:00

The (former) Deputy Prime Minister resigns literally two minutes before we press “record”. Regulars Rafael Behr and Andrew Harrison plus special guest Steve Richards of the Rock’n’Roll Politics podcast rage at the brutal destruction of Angela Rayner and the uncontrolled power of the far-right press – and ask if there’s any place for flawed humans o…

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It never Rayners, it pours — EmergencyCast 21:57

3M ago21:57

21:57

Angela Rayner’s out. The resignation, which most of us saw coming, finally happened on a Friday afternoon. Was her position really untenable, or could she have toughed it out? Plus – what now and how does this leave Starmer’s party? Jacob Jarvis is joined by Ros Taylor, to react to Rayner’s decision and ask what it means for the future of the Labou…

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Reshuffles, Polanski, the EHRC on trans rights… and the Fight to Stay Sane 1:16:17

3M ago1:16:17

1:16:17

The Equality and Human Rights Commission new guidance on trans people’s rights is coming up. What will this mean for trans people in the UK and how did we get here? Plus: Reshuffle fun! Will Zack Polanski’s vow to never do a deal with Starmer be a gift to Reform? Labour succumbs to flags madness! And after a very special mid-show announcement we ta…

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EP 212: Andrew Coyne on Canada's Dysfunctional Democracy 46:06

3M ago46:06

46:06

September is here and Lean Out is back with a new season of conversations with writers and thinkers from around the world. We could not think of a more important topic to kick off our fall season than the state of Canadian democracy. Our guest on the program today has written a new book that serves as a wake-up call — he says that while we observe …

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How to fix the future – with lessons from the past 1:02:34

3M ago1:02:34

1:02:34

Warning: contains hope for tomorrow! It sometimes feels like the polycrisis of global heating, collapsing democracy, job-killing A.I. and radicalisation can’t be solved – but what if there are answers in similar turning points from the past? Roman Krznaric, author of History For Tomorrow : How The Past Can Inspire Our Future, joins Andrew Harrison …

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The Very, Very Cross of St George 1:12:43

3M ago1:12:43

1:12:43

Who let the flags out? We look at the mania for running a Cross of St George or Union Jack up the nearest lamp-post, who’s fomenting it and why it’s smart but dangerous politics for the far-right. Meanwhile Nigel Farage launches his completely uncosted, unrealistic, fantasy plan for mass deportations. Are the press so completely on the Reform bandw…

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EP 211: ENCORE - Tristin Hopper on What Happened to Canada 33:59

3M ago33:59

33:59

Lean Out is now on our annual summer hiatus. But we while we’re away, we wanted to bring you some popular encore episodes from our archives, including today’s show — from April of 2025. Enjoy, and we’ll see you in September! For some time now, writers and thinkers outside this country have been asking me: What happened to Canada? Our guest on the p…

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Confessions of an Unlikely MP – Chris Bryant on his astonishing life 1:01:45

3M ago1:01:45

1:01:45

One of the best-liked MPs in Westminster, Chris Bryant has led an incident-packed life as the title of his new autobiography A Life And A Half proves. In a frank, astonishing, sometimes dark but also very funny interview he explains how he went from a painful childhood to becoming an Anglican priest to winning a very traditional South Wales seat as…

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Why predict a riot? – The people who want Britain to explode 1:04:46

3M ago1:04:46

1:04:46

Robert Jenrick’s hanging out with the far-right at the migrant hotel protests, the Express claims “tens of millions” of Britons want a full-blown revolution, and Alison Pearson is hoping for a military coup. Why are the former law-and-order right so desperate for political violence to erupt? Plus, will Sally Rooney’s reign of terror ever end? As ca…

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EP 210: ENCORE - Ruy Teixeira on the End of the Progressive Moment in America 48:02

3M ago48:02

48:02

Lean Out is now on our annual summer hiatus. But we while we’re away, we wanted to bring you some popular encore episodes from our archives, including today’s show — from November of 2024. Enjoy, and we’ll see you in September! With Donald Trump winning the presidency, the popular vote, the Senate, and the House, in what The New York Times has desc…

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Israel and Gaza – The full picture and what happens next – with Dr Julie Norman 1:01:02

3M ago1:01:02

1:01:02

It seems like there’s no end to the horrors in Gaza, the torment of the Israeli hostages and Netanyahu’s expansionism. And the more events escalate, the less we understand this nightmare. Today we’re joined by UCL politics professor Julie Norman to take as sober a look as possible at how the Middle East has changed after the October 7 attacks and I…

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Ep 48 - The Passive Aggressive Game of Our New Secular Religion 34:31

3M ago34:31

34:31

We've come to the rootless, unhinged, and disingenuous endgame of our New Secular Religion. Claims are being made, lines are being drawn, and goalposts are ever moving in this movement towards group madness. Check out the video podcast at https://www.youtube.com/@paultrimble22/videos Support the show…

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“Farage will be found out” – ED DAVEY on how the Lib Dems can fight Reform and rival Labour 1:10:05

3M ago1:10:05

1:10:05

Ed Davey’s reborn Lib Dems are on a 100-year high with 72 MPs and a shot at becoming the conscience of progressive Britain. So why do Reform get all the coverage? He joins our regulars to talk about fighting Farage, Labour’s travails, the war on cruelty in politics, why all those General Election surfing and bungee stunts worked, and what the Lib D…

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EP 209: ENCORE - Nellie Bowles on America's Berserk Politics 32:30

3M ago32:30

32:30

Lean Out is now on our annual summer hiatus. But we while we’re away, we wanted to bring you some popular encore episodes from our archives, including today’s show — from May of 2024. Enjoy, and we’ll see you in September! 2020 was a turbulent year in American politics, and in the America media. The editor of The New York Times has conceded that th…

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Art of the Steal – Could Trump run for a third term? 1:03:32

3M ago1:03:32

1:03:32

The Constitution expressly forbids anyone from seeking a third term as US President. But since when did that ever stop Trump from doing anything? Ex-congressional staffer turned politics professor at George Washington University Casey Burgat joins Guardian leader writer Rafael Behr and Andrew Harrison to look at the many weird ways Trump could clin…

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EP 208: Thomas Chatterton Williams on 2020 and its Aftermath 36:34

4M ago36:34

36:34

The summer of 2020 was one of the most explosive periods of recent memory — with pandemic lockdowns, the death of George Floyd, nationwide protests and riots, and workplace purges and online mobbings. And yet, so much of what went on has now been forgotten. In his new book, our guest on the program today encourages us to take a good, hard look at t…

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Identity crisis – Are I.D. cards inevitable? 1:10:32

4M ago1:10:32

1:10:32

Is the hysteria around digital I.D. cards justified? Or should we simply realise this is the future and get on with it? Plus, how deep is the UK university crisis? Professor Glen O’Hara is a voice at the forefront of this issue and joins us to shed some light on the dire situation. And in the Extra Bit for Subscribers, the Channel 4 documentary 100…