https://simplecast.com Interesting Times The first draft of our future. Mapping the new world order through interviews and conversations. Every Thursday, from New York Times Opinion. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app. © 2018-2025 THE NEW YORK TIMES COMPANY; The New York Times encourages the use of RSS feeds for personal use in a news reader or as part of a non-commercial blog, subject to your agreement to our Terms of Service. en Thu, 10 Sep 2026 09:00:00 +0000 Thu, 10 Sep 2026 16:34:00 +0000 https://www.nytimes.com/column/matter-of-opinion Interesting Times https://image.simplecastcdn.com/images/b9b38a6f-973d-4a17-9c70-9e57a4f29f71/bfabc906-0884-48e9-9d5e-a6f10fd0be9d/3000x3000/cropped_1788273133405.jpg?aid=rss_feed https://www.nytimes.com/column/matter-of-opinion episodic The first draft of our future. Mapping the new world order through interviews and conversations. Every Thursday, from New York Times Opinion. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app. New York Times Opinion false https://feeds.simplecast.com/bS1LZG8m journalism, news, new york times, ross douthat New York Times Opinion interestingtimes@nytimes.com cc0e5ef7-7df8-495b-9cc9-fb790d76a913 Trump Is Getting Even Richer. Is That a Crime? President Trump made more than $2 billion last year — far exceeding his presidential salary of $400,000. His growing fortunes are raising questions about his allegiance to investors, particularly foreign ones, as he makes policy decisions and shapes the direction of the country.

The contributing Opinion writer Christopher Caldwell and the Harvard law professor Jack Goldsmith discuss how the president has amassed this fortune, whether it’s legal and if the United States is becoming a kleptocracy.

Note: As we work on relaunching 'Interesting Times,' the show will feature a series of guest hosts in the coming months.

00:00 Why Trump’s Wealth Is Unusual
01:30 Presidential Ethics Before Trump
02:28 Trump’s Crypto and Foreign Money Flows
06:12 Is It a Kleptocracy?
07:36 What’s Unconstitutional About Trump’s Finances
10:43 The U.A.E. and Trump’s Foreign Policy
13:41 How Trump’s Weaponization Is Changing Government
16:42 What Congress Could Do
18:59 The Tit for Tat Weaponization
24:13 Can Trump Pardon Himself?
26:57 The “Deep-State” Crackdown
36:59 Oversight Norms and Voter Verdict
42:46 Closing Thoughts

(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.)

Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com. Please subscribe to our YouTube Channel, Interesting Times.


 

Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.


Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

]]> Thu, 10 Sep 2026 09:00:00 +0000 interestingtimes@nytimes.com (New York Times Opinion) https://www.nytimes.com/2026/09/10/opinion/interesting-times-jack-goldsmith.html President Trump made more than $2 billion last year — far exceeding his presidential salary of $400,000. His growing fortunes are raising questions about his allegiance to investors, particularly foreign ones, as he makes policy decisions and shapes the direction of the country.

The contributing Opinion writer Christopher Caldwell and the Harvard law professor Jack Goldsmith discuss how the president has amassed this fortune, whether it’s legal and if the United States is becoming a kleptocracy.

Note: As we work on relaunching 'Interesting Times,' the show will feature a series of guest hosts in the coming months.

00:00 Why Trump’s Wealth Is Unusual
01:30 Presidential Ethics Before Trump
02:28 Trump’s Crypto and Foreign Money Flows
06:12 Is It a Kleptocracy?
07:36 What’s Unconstitutional About Trump’s Finances
10:43 The U.A.E. and Trump’s Foreign Policy
13:41 How Trump’s Weaponization Is Changing Government
16:42 What Congress Could Do
18:59 The Tit for Tat Weaponization
24:13 Can Trump Pardon Himself?
26:57 The “Deep-State” Crackdown
36:59 Oversight Norms and Voter Verdict
42:46 Closing Thoughts

(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.)

Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com. Please subscribe to our YouTube Channel, Interesting Times.


 

Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.


Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

]]> Trump Is Getting Even Richer. Is That a Crime? New York Times Opinion 00:43:05 President Trump made more than $2 billion last year — far exceeding his presidential salary of $400,000. His growing fortunes are raising questions about his allegiance to investors, particularly foreign ones, as he makes policy decisions and shapes the direction of the country. The contributing Opinion writer Christopher Caldwell and the Harvard law professor Jack Goldsmith discuss how the president has amassed this fortune, whether it’s legal and if the United States is becoming a kleptocracy. Note: As we work on relaunching 'Interesting Times,' the show will feature a series of guest hosts in the coming months. President Trump made more than $2 billion last year — far exceeding his presidential salary of $400,000. His growing fortunes are raising questions about his allegiance to investors, particularly foreign ones, as he makes policy decisions and shapes the direction of the country. The contributing Opinion writer Christopher Caldwell and the Harvard law professor Jack Goldsmith discuss how the president has amassed this fortune, whether it’s legal and if the United States is becoming a kleptocracy. Note: As we work on relaunching 'Interesting Times,' the show will feature a series of guest hosts in the coming months. false full 19ebe348-033f-4098-bf6d-eafcdac55109 Ross Douthat and Ezra Klein on the Art of Persuasion “Interesting Times” is on a brief hiatus. Before we return next month, we’re bringing you an interview from “The Ezra Klein Show” with Ross Douthat about his 17 years as a conservative columnist at The New York Times. But Ross and Ezra go back even further, to the nascent days of political blogging. They talk about the seismic changes they’ve witnessed in the media industry over the years and the art of changing minds.

(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website here.)

Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com. Please subscribe to our YouTube Channel, Interesting Times.

Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.


Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

]]> Thu, 27 Aug 2026 09:00:00 +0000 interestingtimes@nytimes.com (New York Times Opinion) https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/11/opinion/ezra-klein-podcast-ross-douthat.html “Interesting Times” is on a brief hiatus. Before we return next month, we’re bringing you an interview from “The Ezra Klein Show” with Ross Douthat about his 17 years as a conservative columnist at The New York Times. But Ross and Ezra go back even further, to the nascent days of political blogging. They talk about the seismic changes they’ve witnessed in the media industry over the years and the art of changing minds.

(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website here.)

Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com. Please subscribe to our YouTube Channel, Interesting Times.

Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.


Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

]]> Ross Douthat and Ezra Klein on the Art of Persuasion New York Times Opinion 01:13:57 “Interesting Times” is on a brief hiatus. Before we return next month, we’re bringing you an interview from “The Ezra Klein Show” with Ross Douthat about his 17 years as a conservative columnist at The New York Times. But Ross and Ezra go back even further, to the nascent days of political blogging. They talk about the seismic changes they’ve witnessed in the media industry over the years and the art of changing minds. “Interesting Times” is on a brief hiatus. Before we return next month, we’re bringing you an interview from “The Ezra Klein Show” with Ross Douthat about his 17 years as a conservative columnist at The New York Times. But Ross and Ezra go back even further, to the nascent days of political blogging. They talk about the seismic changes they’ve witnessed in the media industry over the years and the art of changing minds. false full 8cddf437-871d-4877-8db0-fff799a79ecd Bryan Johnson’s Blueprint for a 150-Year Life: Is It Worth It? For my final episode as host of “Interesting Times,” I wanted a fitting finale — a conversation that encapsulates the ambition of this show: examining how seemingly radical ideas are steadily entering the mainstream of American politics, technology and culture. Few ideas are as radical as the hope of significant life extension and the quest to live forever.

My guest today thinks he can outrun death. After selling his tech company for hundreds of millions of dollars and experiencing a profound religious crisis, Bryan Johnson turned his own body into the ultimate science project, centered on an explicit mission: Don’t die.

But why does Johnson want to live forever, and what lessons can his algorithmically driven lifestyle bring to the rest of us?

It’s been an honor hosting this podcast and navigating these strange waters with you. “Interesting Times” will be back with new episodes and new hosts in the fall.

  • 0:00 Why Bryan Johnson Wants to Defeat Death
  • 1:18 The Core Premise of "Don't Die" vs. Immortality
  • 3:26 Selling Braintree/Venmo & Personal Collapse
  • 6:33 Leaving the Mormon Church & Searching for Meaning
  • 7:45 Launching Project Blueprint: Body as Philosophy
  • 11:35 Bryan Johnson’s Daily Longevity Routine & Biological Age Metrics
  • 15:06 How AI Builds "Autonomous Health" for the Human Body
  • 17:58 The Best Habits to Optimize Health: Sleep & Heart Rate
  • 21:32 Blueprint Products, Supplements, & Testing
  • 23:46 Reversing Biological Aging: Saunas & HBOT
  • 25:24 Can Psychedelics Extend Lifespan? Psilocybin Longevity Trials
  • 31:07 How Falling in Love Has Changed His Perspective
  • 34:06 Diagnosed with an Incurable Autoimmune Disease
  • 35:51 The Risk of Gerontocracy
  • 53:53 Can Humanity Defeat Death? Societal & Philosophical Impacts

(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.)

Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com. Please subscribe to our YouTube Channel, Interesting Times with Ross Douthat.

Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.


Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

]]> Thu, 13 Aug 2026 09:00:00 +0000 interestingtimes@nytimes.com (New York Times Opinion) https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/13/opinion/interesting-times-bryan-johnson.html For my final episode as host of “Interesting Times,” I wanted a fitting finale — a conversation that encapsulates the ambition of this show: examining how seemingly radical ideas are steadily entering the mainstream of American politics, technology and culture. Few ideas are as radical as the hope of significant life extension and the quest to live forever.

My guest today thinks he can outrun death. After selling his tech company for hundreds of millions of dollars and experiencing a profound religious crisis, Bryan Johnson turned his own body into the ultimate science project, centered on an explicit mission: Don’t die.

But why does Johnson want to live forever, and what lessons can his algorithmically driven lifestyle bring to the rest of us?

It’s been an honor hosting this podcast and navigating these strange waters with you. “Interesting Times” will be back with new episodes and new hosts in the fall.

  • 0:00 Why Bryan Johnson Wants to Defeat Death
  • 1:18 The Core Premise of "Don't Die" vs. Immortality
  • 3:26 Selling Braintree/Venmo & Personal Collapse
  • 6:33 Leaving the Mormon Church & Searching for Meaning
  • 7:45 Launching Project Blueprint: Body as Philosophy
  • 11:35 Bryan Johnson’s Daily Longevity Routine & Biological Age Metrics
  • 15:06 How AI Builds "Autonomous Health" for the Human Body
  • 17:58 The Best Habits to Optimize Health: Sleep & Heart Rate
  • 21:32 Blueprint Products, Supplements, & Testing
  • 23:46 Reversing Biological Aging: Saunas & HBOT
  • 25:24 Can Psychedelics Extend Lifespan? Psilocybin Longevity Trials
  • 31:07 How Falling in Love Has Changed His Perspective
  • 34:06 Diagnosed with an Incurable Autoimmune Disease
  • 35:51 The Risk of Gerontocracy
  • 53:53 Can Humanity Defeat Death? Societal & Philosophical Impacts

(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.)

Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com. Please subscribe to our YouTube Channel, Interesting Times with Ross Douthat.

Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.


Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

]]> Bryan Johnson’s Blueprint for a 150-Year Life: Is It Worth It? New York Times Opinion 01:04:34 For my final episode as host of “Interesting Times,” I wanted a fitting finale — a conversation that encapsulates the ambition of this show: examining how seemingly radical ideas are steadily entering the mainstream of American politics, technology and culture. Few ideas are as radical as the hope of significant life extension and the quest to live forever. My guest today thinks he can outrun death. After selling his tech company for hundreds of millions of dollars and experiencing a profound religious crisis, Bryan Johnson turned his own body into the ultimate science project, centered on an explicit mission: Don’t die. But why does Johnson want to live forever, and what lessons can his algorithmically driven lifestyle bring to the rest of us? It’s been an honor hosting this podcast and navigating these strange waters with you. “Interesting Times” will be back with new episodes and new hosts in the fall. For my final episode as host of “Interesting Times,” I wanted a fitting finale — a conversation that encapsulates the ambition of this show: examining how seemingly radical ideas are steadily entering the mainstream of American politics, technology and culture. Few ideas are as radical as the hope of significant life extension and the quest to live forever. My guest today thinks he can outrun death. After selling his tech company for hundreds of millions of dollars and experiencing a profound religious crisis, Bryan Johnson turned his own body into the ultimate science project, centered on an explicit mission: Don’t die. But why does Johnson want to live forever, and what lessons can his algorithmically driven lifestyle bring to the rest of us? It’s been an honor hosting this podcast and navigating these strange waters with you. “Interesting Times” will be back with new episodes and new hosts in the fall. false full c9239365-7bac-4069-a039-7671f66816ba Introducing ‘Interesting Times’ There’s a saying that comes to mind these days: May you live in interesting times. It’s understood to be a curse, even though it sounds like a blessing.

“Interesting Times With Ross Douthat” is a new weekly podcast from New York Times Opinion. Every Thursday, he will map the new world order through interviews and conversations. Answering questions like: What does our new political era really look like? What is the future of democracy around the world, with American empire in retreat? What happens to movies and books — all of culture — in our digital and A.I.-dominated age?

Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com.

Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.


Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

]]> Sun, 6 Apr 2025 17:55:00 +0000 interestingtimes@nytimes.com (New York Times Opinion) https://nytimes.com/2025/04/07/opinion/interesting-times.html There’s a saying that comes to mind these days: May you live in interesting times. It’s understood to be a curse, even though it sounds like a blessing.

“Interesting Times With Ross Douthat” is a new weekly podcast from New York Times Opinion. Every Thursday, he will map the new world order through interviews and conversations. Answering questions like: What does our new political era really look like? What is the future of democracy around the world, with American empire in retreat? What happens to movies and books — all of culture — in our digital and A.I.-dominated age?

Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com.

Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.


Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

]]> Introducing ‘Interesting Times’ New York Times Opinion 00:03:04 false full