Book Club with Michael Smerconish

After the collapse of the Soviet Union, six US presidential administrations of both parties pursued policies for Russia, Ukraine, and Eurasia that emboldened Russia, playing into its imperialist, centuries-long mythos of regional hegemony. The result: military aggression and full-scale invasion. It was all too foreseeable.In The Folly of Realism, leading national security expert and bestselling author Alexander Vindman argues that America’s mistakes in Eastern Europe result from policymakers’ fixation on immediate, short-term problem-solving and misplaced hopes and fears. He proposes a new long-term, values-based approach that insists on the fundamentals of liberal democracy and a rules-based world order.Alexander Vindman, lieutenant colonel US Army (retired), was the director for European Affairs on the White House’s National Security Council, former Political-Military Affairs Officer for Russia, and diplomat at the American Embassies in Moscow and Kyiv. He is a senior fellow at the Foreign Policy Institute, the author of the New York Times–bestselling memoir Here, Right Matters, and leads the Here Right Matters Foundation organization which focuses on helping Ukraine win the war against Russia.Michael previously spoke with Col. Vindman about his book "Here, Right Matters" in 2022, listen in Episode 162. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Technology: your master, or your friend? Do you feel ruled by your smartphone and enslaved by your email or social-network activities? Digital technology is making us miserable, say bestselling authors and former tech executives Vivek Wadhwa and Alex Salkever. We’ve become a tribe of tech addicts—and it’s not entirely our fault. Michael talks with Vivek Wadhwa, co-author of "Your Happiness Was Hacked: Why Tech Is Winning the Battle to Control Your Brain--and How to Fight Back." In the book, learn how we can reclaim our lives without dismissing technology by how to avoid getting hooked on tech and how to define and control the roles that tech is playing and could play in our lives. Original air date 25 June 2018. The book was published on 26 June 2018. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Since his election to the U.S. Senate in 2006, Ohio’s Sherrod Brown has sat on the Senate floor at a mahogany desk with a proud history. In "Desk 88: Eight Progressive Senators Who Changed America", he tells the story of eight of the Senators who were there before him. Listen to his conversation with Michael from 26 November 2019. The book was published on 5 November 2019. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Yoni Appelbaum is a deputy executive editor of The Atlantic and a social and cultural historian of the United States. Before joining The Atlantic, he was a lecturer on history and literature at Harvard University. He previously taught at Babson College and at Brandeis University, where he received his PhD in American history. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The epic story of how America turned the world economy into a weapon, upending decades of globalization to take on a new authoritarian axis—Russia, China, and Iran. It used to be that ravaging another country’s economy required blockading its ports and laying siege to its cities. Now all it takes is a statement posted online by the U.S. government. In Chokepoints, Edward Fishman, a former top State Department sanctions official, takes us deep into the back rooms of power to reveal the untold history of the last two decades of U.S. foreign policy, in which America renounced the gospel of globalization and waged a new kind of economic war. Listen to his conversation with Michael about "Chokepoints: American Power in the Age of Economic Warfare." Original air date 5 February 2025. The book was published on 25 February 2025. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In Craig Fehrman’s groundbreaking work of history, "Author in Chief: The Untold Story of Our Presidents and the Books They Wrote" opens a rich new window into presidential biography. Listen to his conversation with Michael here to experience a different side of Presidents past and present. From volumes lost to history—Calvin Coolidge’s Autobiography, which was one of the most widely discussed titles of 1929—to ones we know from more recent times—Barack Obama’s Dreams from My Father, which was very nearly never published—Fehrman unearths countless insights about the presidents through their literary works. Presidential books have made an enormous impact on American history, catapulting their authors to the national stage and even turning key elections. Original air date 14 February 2020. The book was published on 11 February 2020. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Michael welcomes Nicholas Carr, author of "Superbloom: How Technologies of Connection Tear Us Apart," a bracing exploration of how social media has warped our sense of self and society. From the telegraph and telephone in the 1800s to the internet and social media in our own day, the public has welcomed new communication systems. Whenever people gain more power to share information, the assumption goes, society prospers. Superbloom tells a startlingly different story. As communication becomes more mechanized and efficient, it breeds confusion more than understanding, strife more than harmony. A celebrated commentator on the human consequences of technology, Nicholas Carr reorients the conversation around modern communication, challenging some of our most cherished beliefs about self-expression, free speech, and media democratization. Original air date 30 January 2025. The book was published on 28 January 2025. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

He doesn't believe in diets, and says we should exercise less. Meet Dr. Fredrik Nystrom, professor of medicine at Linkoping University in Sweden. He joins Michael with his book "Lighten the load on your shoulders!" Dr. Nystrom is professor and senior consultant in internal medicine in the Department of Health, Medicine and Caring Sciences. Original air date 28 January 2025. The book was published on 29 October 2024. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Michael talks with Tim Harford, author of "The Data Detective: Ten Easy Rules to Make Sense of Statistics." Today we think statistics are the enemy, numbers used to mislead and confuse us. That’s a mistake, Tim Harford says in The Data Detective. We shouldn’t be suspicious of statistics—we need to understand what they mean and how they can improve our lives: they are, at heart, human behavior seen through the prism of numbers and are often “the only way of grasping much of what is going on around us.” If we can toss aside our fears and learn to approach them clearly—understanding how our own preconceptions lead us astray—statistics can point to ways we can live better and work smarter. Original air date 10 February 2021. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

From the New York Times bestselling authors of "The Nazi Conspiracy" and "The Lincoln Conspiracy" comes a true, little-known story about the first assassination attempt on John F. Kennedy, right before his inauguration. What most Americans don’t know is that JFK’s historic presidency almost ended before it began―at the hands of a disgruntled sociopathic loner armed with dynamite, named Richard Pavlick, on December 11, 1960. Listen to Michael's conversation with Brad Meltzer, co-author (w/Josh Mensch) of "The JFK Conspiracy: The Secret Plot to Kill Kennedy―and Why It Failed" to learn all about it. Original air date 24 January 2025. The book was published on 14 January 2025. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Organizational psychologist Adam Grant is an expert on opening other people's minds--and our own. Listen to him discuss "Think Again: The Power of Knowing What You Don't Know" with Michael in this podcast. Intelligence is usually seen as the ability to think and learn, but in a rapidly changing world, there's another set of cognitive skills that might matter more: the ability to rethink and unlearn. In our daily lives, too many of us favor the comfort of conviction over the discomfort of doubt. We listen to opinions that make us feel good, instead of ideas that make us think hard. We see disagreement as a threat to our egos, rather than an opportunity to learn. We surround ourselves with people who agree with our conclusions, when we should be gravitating toward those who challenge our thought process. The result is that our beliefs get brittle long before our bones. Original air date 3 February 2021. The book was published on 2 February 2021. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Jesse Ventura has had many lives as a Navy SEAL, a star of pro wrestling, an actor, and as governor of Minnesota. Listen to Michael's 2008 conversation with Ventura about his then-new book "Don't Start the Revolution Without Me!" - the story of his controversial gubernatorial years and his life since deciding not to seek a second term as governor in 2002. Written with award-winning author Dick Russell at a secluded location on Mexico's Baja Peninsula, Ventura's bestselling book reveals for the first time why he left politics and what might be next. Original air date 23 May 2008. The book was published on April 1, 2008. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Michael talks to William Cohan, author of "The Price of Silence: The Duke Lacrosse Scandal, the Power of the Elite, and the Corruption of Our Great Universities." The bestselling author presents his stunning account of the 2006 Duke lacrosse team scandal that reveals the pressures faced by America’s elite colleges and universities and pulls back the curtain, in a riveting narrative, on the larger issues of sexual misconduct, underage drinking, and bad-boy behavior—all too prevalent on campuses across the country. Original air date 15 April 2014. The book was published on 8 April 2014. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Before he became a full-time talk radio host, Michael worked for a Philadelphia-based trial lawyer, James E. Beasley, who passed away in 2004. Listen to this special conversation where Michael spoke to Ralph Cipriano, who immortalized Beasley in his book "Courtroom Cowboy: The Life of Legal Trailblazer Jim Beasley." Also joining in this conversation is Beasley's son, Jim Beasley Jr. Beasley Sr. was a high school dropout driving a Greyhound bus when, on an impulse, he decided to change his destiny. He left the bus station behind and enrolled in Temple University and then its law school on the GI Bill. It was a fateful choice for Beasley and for hundreds of clients who would need a warrior to fight for them. In the courtroom Beasley was a scrapper, standing up for the underdog and winning more million-dollar verdicts than any other trial lawyer in the country. Original air date 2008, the book was published in 2008. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Through Stan's life lessons, you'll discover how perseverance, anticipating change, and creating a shared vision for your team can help you build an enduring and successful business. Learn how Stan overcame early failures, survived the 2008 financial crisis, and led his mortgage firm to become an industry leader when competitors faltered. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

From the archives, Michael's conversation with Louis J. Freeh, author of "My FBI: Bringing Down the Mafia, Investigating Bill Clinton, and Fighting the War on Terror." Freeh led the Federal Bureau of Investigation from 1993 to 2001, through some of the most tumultuous times in its long history. This is the story of a life in law enforcement, and of one man’s determined struggle to strengthen and reform the FBI while ensuring its freedom from political interference. Original air date 6 December 2005. The book was published on 11 October 2005. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

For a quarter century, Peggy Noonan has been thinking aloud about America in her much-loved Wall Street Journal column. In this new collection of her essential recent work, Noonan demonstrates the erudition, wisdom and humor that have made her one of America’s most admired writers. Michael welcomes the Pulitzer-prize winning Wall Street Journal columnist and New York Times bestselling author with her new book, "A Certain Idea of America: Selected Writings." Original air date 25 November 2024. The book was published on 19 November 2024. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Michael spoke to historian Douglas Brinkley about the book he wrote the year of the 50th anniversary of the first lunar landing. In the bestselling "American Moonshot," the award winning historian and perennial New York Times bestselling author takes a fresh look at the space program, President John F. Kennedy’s inspiring challenge, and America’s race to the moon. Original air date 3 April 2019. The book was published on 2 April 2019. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

From deep in the archives, Michael's conversation with Richard Dawkins, author of "The Greatest Show on Earth: The Evidence for Evolution (A Brief History of the Natural World)." In the New York Times bestselling book, he launches a fierce counterattack against proponents of "Intelligent Design." "Intelligent Design" is being taught in our schools; educators are being asked to "teach the controversy" behind evolutionary theory. There is no controversy. Dawkins sifts through rich layers of scientific evidence—from living examples of natural selection to clues in the fossil record; from natural clocks that mark the vast epochs wherein evolution ran its course to the intricacies of developing embryos; from plate tectonics to molecular genetics—to make the airtight case that "we find ourselves perched on one tiny twig in the midst of a blossoming and flourishing tree of life and it is no accident, but the direct consequence of evolution by non-random selection." Original air date 23 November 2009. The book was published on 22 September 2009. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The heartwarming and unforgettable story of a family and the wondrously neurotic dog who taught them what really matters in life. Is it possible for humans to discover the key to happiness through a bigger-than-life, bad-boy dog? Just ask the Grogans. John and Jenny were just beginning their life together. They were young and in love, with not a care in the world. Then they brought home Marley, a wiggly yellow furball of a puppy. Life would never be the same. Listen to Michael speak with John Grogan, author of "Marley & Me: Life and Love with the World's Worst Dog." Original air date 14 November 2006. The book was published in 2005. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Michael talks to Chris Wallace about his book "Countdown 1960: The Behind-the-Scenes Story of the 312 Days that Changed America's Politics Forever." The riveting new book on the momentous year, campaign, and election that shaped American history. It’s January 2, 1960: the day that Massachusetts Senator John F. Kennedy declared his candidacy; and with this opening scene, Chris Wallace offers readers a front-row seat to history. From the challenge of primary battles in a nation that had never elected a Catholic president, to the intense machinations of the national conventions—where JFK chose Lyndon Johnson as his running mate over the impassioned objections of his brother Bobby—this is a nonfiction political thriller filled with intrigue, cinematic action, and fresh reporting. Original air date 1 November 2024. The book was published on 8 October 2024. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Bob Woodward tells the revelatory, behind-the-scenes story of three wars—Ukraine, the Middle East and the struggle for the American Presidency. Michael welcomes the legendary journalist for a conversation about his book "War" - an intimate and sweeping account of one of the most tumultuous periods in presidential politics and American history. Original air date 28 October 2024. The book was published on 15 October 2024. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

We have the oldest and third oldest political parties in the world―the Democratic Party founded in 1832 to reelect Andrew Jackson, the Republican Party founded in 1854 to oppose slavery in the territories. They are older than almost every American business, most American colleges, and many American churches. Both have seemed to face extinction in the past, and have rebounded to be competitive again. How have they managed it? Michael talks to Michael Barone, longtime co-author of The Almanac of American Politics, on his book "How America’s Political Parties Change (and How They Don’t)." Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Michael's conversation with James B. Stewart, the bestselling author of "Deep State: Trump, the FBI, and the Rule of Law." There are questions that the Mueller report couldn't—or wouldn't—answer. What actually happened to instigate the Russia investigation? Did President Trump’s meddling incriminate him? There’s no mystery to what Trump thinks. He claims that the Deep State, a cabal of career bureaucrats—among them, Andrew McCabe, Lisa Page, and Peter Strzok, previously little known figures within the FBI whom he has obsessively and publically reviled—is concerned only with protecting its own power and undermining the democratic process. Conversely, James Comey has defended the FBI as incorruptible apolitical public servants who work tirelessly to uphold the rule of law. Original air date 8 October 2019. The book was published on 8 October 2019. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

UVA Professor Dr. Larry Sabato, author of "The Kennedy Half-Century: The Presidency, Assassination, and Lasting Legacy of John F. Kennedy." Because of his extraordinary promise and untimely death, JFK's star still resonates strongly. On the anniversary of his assassination, celebrated political scientist and analyst Larry J. Sabato-himself a teenager in the early 1960s and inspired by JFK and his presidency-explores the fascinating and powerful influence he has had over five decades on the media, the general public, and especially on each of his nine presidential successors. Original air date 18 October 2013. The book was published on 15 October 2013. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Michael's conversation with Julie Hirschfeld Davis, co-author (with Michael D. Shear) of "Border Wars: Inside Trump's Assault on Immigration." Two New York Times Washington correspondents provide a detailed, “fact-based account of what precipitated some of this administration’s more brazen assaults on immigration” (The Washington Post) filled with never-before-told stories of this key issue of Donald Trump’s presidency. No issue matters more to Donald Trump and his administration than restricting immigration. Original air date 9 October 2019. The book was published on 8 October 2019. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

From the New York Times bestselling former NATO commander comes a riveting historical novel that charts the coming-of-age of a gifted but immature young naval officer as he is tested in the crucible of World War II in the Pacific. Admiral James Stavridis is an acclaimed novelist, a decorated military leader, and a great student of military history. He draws on it all to capture the experience of being storm-tossed by the bloody first years of the Second World War. Scott Bradley James is a talented young officer, but he has a lot to learn. And war will have a lot to teach him. Listen to Michael's conversation with Admiral James Stavridis on the book "The Restless Wave: A Novel of the United States Navy." Original air date 9 October 2024. The book was published on 8 October 2024. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Michael's conversation with Vince Papale on his autobiography, "Invincible: My Journey from Fan to NFL Team Captain." The true story of the NFL’s oldest rookie In 1976, Vince Papale was thirty, a former schoolteacher and part-time bartender, and a season ticket-holder for his beloved Philadelphia Eagles. When he heard that Coach Dick Vermeil was holding open tryouts, he decided to give it a shot. Shocking himself and the coaches, he ran an explosive 40-yard-dash in just 4.5 seconds — a world-class time — and was offered a contract on the spot. When he joined the team, Papale became the oldest non-kicking rookie in NFL history, a fan favorite who played for four years and was named a team captain. Original air date 3 August 2006. The book was published on 6 August 2003. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

From Michael's archives, his conversation with former CIA official Michael Scheuer, author of "Imperial Hubris: Why the West Is Losing the War on Terror." From the description written for the book: Though U.S. leaders try to convince the world of their success in fighting al Qaeda, one member of the U.S. intelligence community would like to inform the public that we are, in fact, losing the war on terror. Further, until U.S. leaders recognize the errant path they have irresponsibly chosen, he says, our enemies will only grow stronger. According to the author Michael Scheuer, the greatest danger for Americans confronting the Islamist threat is to believe—at the urging of U.S. leaders—that Muslims attack us for what we are and what we think rather than for what we do. Original air date 9 March 2005. The book was published on 1 June 2004. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

From Johns Hopkins medical expert Dr. Marty Makary, the New York Times-bestselling author of 'The Price We Pay'-an eye-opening look at the medical groupthink that has led to public harm, and what you need to know about your health. More Americans have peanut allergies today than at any point in history. Why? In 2000, the American Academy of Pediatrics issued a strict recommendation that parents avoid giving their children peanut products until they're three years old. Getting the science perfectly backward, triggering intolerance with lack of early exposure, the US now leads the world in peanut allergies-and this misinformation is still rearing its head today. How could the experts have gotten it so wrong? Listen to his conversation with Michael about "Blind Spots: When Medicine Gets It Wrong, and What It Means for Our Health." Original air date 26 September 2024. The book was published on 17 September 2024. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Michael welcomes David Litt with his book "Democracy in One Book or Less: How It Works, Why It Doesn't, and Why Fixing It Is Easier Than You Think." The democracy you live in today is different—completely different—from the democracy you were born into. You probably don't realize just how radically your republic has been altered during your lifetime. Yet more than any policy issue, political trend, or even Donald Trump himself, our redesigned system of government is responsible for the peril America faces today. What explains the gap between what We, the People want and what our elected leaders do? How can we fix our politics before it's too late? And how can we truly understand the state of our democracy without wanting to crawl under a rock? That's what former Obama speechwriter David Litt set out to answer. Original air date 18 June 2020. The book was published on 16 June 2020. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Michael welcomes Melissa Fitzgerald & Mary McCormack, alumni of NBC's hit series "The West Wing," with their new book "What's Next: A Backstage Pass to The West Wing, Its Cast and Crew, and Its Enduring Legacy of Service." Hear a behind-the-scenes look into the creation and legacy of The West Wing, with compelling insights exploring what made the show what it was and how its impassioned commitment to service has made the series and relationships behind it endure. Original air date 19 September 2024. The book was published on 13 August 2024. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Democracy is broken because the way we vote is broken. But there is a solution: Mobile Voting. Listen to Michael speak with Bradley Tusk, author of "Vote With Your Phone: Why Mobile Voting Is Our Final Shot at Saving Democracy." Original air date 16 September 2024. The book was published on 17 September 2024. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Everyone is talking about the body language at the ABC News presidential debate between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump. Michael gets some expertise from Joe Navarro, who literally wrote the book on the topic: "What Every Body Is Saying: An Ex-FBI Agent's Guide to Speed-Reading People." He is a former FBI counterintelligence officer and a recognized expert on nonverbal behavior, explains how to "speed-read" people: decode sentiments and behaviors, avoid hidden pitfalls, and look for deceptive behaviors. You'll also learn how your body language can influence what your boss, family, friends, and strangers think of you. Original air date 12 September 2024. The book was published in 2008. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Son of the Midwest, movie star, and mesmerizing politician―America’s fortieth president comes to three-dimensional life in this gripping and profoundly revisionist biography. Michael talks to writer Max Boot, author of "Reagan: His Life and Legend, wherein he illuminates the untold story of Ronald Reagan, revealing the man behind the mythology. Boot draws on interviews with over one hundred of the fortieth president’s aides, friends, and family members, as well as thousands of newly available documents. Original air date 9 September 2024. The book was published on 10 September 2024. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Michael is an alum of Lehigh University, so he was thrilled to have this conversation with Dr. Laura Katz Olson, who has Distinguished Professor of Political Science at Lehigh University for 50 years - starting teaching in 1974. She's written the new novel, "Wrinkled Rebels." Now 80 years old, retirement and advanced age have dissipated the spirit of six college radicals of the 1960s, who jointly had participated in civil rights campaigns and anti-war protests. Having engaged in only periodic communication over the decades, they suddenly receive an invitation to reunite for an extended weekend. Struggling with whether to go, each of them has divergent qualms and expectations for the proposed gathering. Original air date 6 September 2024. The book was published on 23 July 2024. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

New Cold Wars: China's Rise, Russia's Invasion, and America's Struggle to Defend the West —the latest from the Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist and bestselling author David E. Sanger—is a fast-paced account of America’s plunge into simultaneous confrontations with two very different adversaries. Listen to his conversation with Michael here. Original air date 29 August 2024. The book was published on 16 April 2024. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

From the best-selling author of The Big Short and Flash Boys, the story of FTX’s spectacular collapse and the enigmatic founder at its center. When Michael Lewis first met him, Sam Bankman-Fried was the world’s youngest billionaire and crypto’s Gatsby. CEOs, celebrities, and leaders of small countries all vied for his time and cash after he catapulted, practically overnight, onto the Forbes billionaire list. Who was this rumpled guy in cargo shorts and limp white socks, whose eyes twitched across Zoom meetings as he played video games on the side? In Going Infinite Lewis sets out to answer this question, taking readers into the mind of Bankman-Fried, whose rise and fall offers an education in high-frequency trading, cryptocurrencies, philanthropy, bankruptcy, and the justice system. Listen to his conversation with Michael here, on "Going Infinite: The Rise and Fall of a New Tycoon." Original air date 26 August 2024. The book was published in October 2023, with the updated paperback version releasing on 27 August 2024. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Through the lens of her years spent as a sex worker, Charlotte Shane offers a provocative and tender reckoning of what it means to be a heterosexual woman and a feminist in a misogynistic society. Listen to her conversation with Michael on her new book "An Honest Woman: A Memoir of Love and Sex Work." Original air date 23 August 2024. The book was published on 13 August 2024. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Power, privilege, and blood—this is the definitive and thrilling true story of Alex Murdaugh’s violent downfall, from a veteran Wall Street Journal reporter who has become an authority on the case. Listen to Michael's conversation with Valerie Bauerlein, author of "The Devil at His Elbow: Alex Murdaugh and the Fall of a Southern Dynasty." Original air date 20 August 2024. The book was published on 20 August 2024. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Listen to Michael's conversation with Chris Matthews about "Tip and the Gipper: When Politics Worked".... a magnificent personal history of a time when two great political opponents served together for the benefit of the country. Matthews was an eyewitness to this story as a top aide to Speaker of the House Tip O’Neill, who waged a principled war of political ideals with President Reagan from 1980 to 1986. Together, the two men forged compromises that shaped America’s future and became one of history’s most celebrated political pairings—the epitome of how ideological opposites can get things done. Original air date 1 October 2013. The book was published on 1 October 2013. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

A timely, revelatory look at freedom of speech—our most basic right and the one that protects all the others. Listen to Michael's conversation with GW Law Professor Jonathan Turley, author of "The Indispensable Right: Free Speech in an Age of Rage." Original air date 13 August 2024. The book was published on 18 July 2024. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Looking back at the 2020 presidential campaign, listen to his conversation Michael had with political analyst Mark Halperin, author of "How To Beat Trump: Americas Top Political Strategists on What It Will Take." Drawing on dramatic and illuminating war stories from presidential campaigns past, America’s top political operatives explain how to meet the daunting challenge of beating Trump, who is one of the most talented pure political campaigners in modern history. Original air date 29 October 2019. The book was published on 29 October 2019. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

There is only one scenario other than an asteroid strike that could end the world as we know it in a matter of hours: nuclear war. And one of the triggers for that war would be a nuclear missile inbound toward the United States. Pulitzer Prize finalist Annie Jacobsen’s Nuclear War: A Scenario explores this ticking-clock scenario, based on dozens of exclusive new interviews with military and civilian experts who have built the weapons, have been privy to the response plans, and have been responsible for those decisions should they have needed to be made. Listen to her conversation with Michael now. Original air date 1 August 2024. The book was published on 26 March 2024. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

An account of the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome reveals the competition's unexpected influence on the modern world, in a narrative synopsis that pays tribute to such athletes as Cassius Clay and Wilma Rudolph while evaluating the roles of Cold War propaganda, civil rights, and politics. Enjoy this conversation Michael has with David Maraniss, author of "Rome 1960: The Olympics That Changed the World" with the backdrop of the 2024 Olympics in Paris. Original air date 21 July 2008. The book was published on 1 July 2008. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Journalist William J. Kole, reluctant but newly minted member of AARP, explores the looming era of super-aging—incredibly longer lifespans overall, and eight times more centenarians by the year 2050—through the lens of past, present, and future life at ages 50, 65, 80, and on to 100-plus. What happens to all of us when 65 is merely a life half-lived? Michael talks to him about his book "The Big 100: The New World of Super-Aging." Original air date 26 July 2024. The book was published on 3 October 2023. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Nelson DeMille comes a suspenseful new novel featuring Detective John Corey and an all-too-plausible conspiracy to detonate a nuclear bomb in two major American cities. Michael talks to him about "Wild Fire (A John Corey Novel, 4)". Welcome to the Custer Hill Club--an informal men's club set in a luxurious Adirondack hunting lodge whose members include some of America's most powerful business leaders, military men, and government officials. Ostensibly, the club is a place to gather with old friends, hunt, eat, drink, and talk off-the-record about war, life, death, sex and politics. But one Fall weekend, the Executive Board of the Custer Hill Club gathers to talk about the tragedy of 9/11 and what America must do to retaliate. Their plan is finalized and set into motion. Original air date 27 November 2006. The book was published on 6 November 2006. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The dishy, rollicking, and deeply personal story of what really happened in the 2016 election, as seen through the eyes of the New York Times reporter who gave eight years of her life to covering the First Woman President who wasn't. For a decade, award-winning New York Times journalist Amy Chozick chronicled Hillary Clinton’s pursuit of the presidency. Chozick’s front-row seat, initially covering Clinton’s imploding 2008 campaign, and then her assignment to “The Hillary Beat” ahead of the 2016 election, took her to 48 states and set off a nearly ten-years-long journey in which the formative years of her twenties and thirties became – both personally and professionally – intrinsically intertwined to Clinton’s presidential ambitions. Listen to her conversation with Michael here on the book "Chasing Hillary: Ten Years, Two Presidential Campaigns, and One Intact Glass Ceiling." Original air date 23 April 2018. The book was published on 24 April 2018. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Michael is joined by Joan Williams, Distinguished Professor of Law and Hastings Foundation Chair at University of California, in a chat about her book "White Working Class: Overcoming Class Cluelessness in America." Original air date 18 November 2019. The book was published on 16 May 2017. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Michael invites lawyer and writer Amy Chua to join him in a conversation about Chua's thought-provoking book "Political Tribes: Group Instinct and the Fate of Nations." Original air date 23 February 2018. The book was published on 20 February 2018. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.