The David Frum Show
Making sense instead of making noise
The Atlantic
Show overview
The David Frum Show launched in 2025 and has put out 72 episodes, alongside 2 trailers or bonus episodes in the time since. That works out to roughly 65 hours of audio in total. Releases follow a weekly cadence.
Episodes typically run thirty-five to sixty minutes — most land between 53 min and 1h 1m — and the run-time is fairly consistent across the catalogue. None of the episodes are flagged explicit by the publisher. It is catalogued as a EN-language News show.
The show is actively publishing — the most recent episode landed 3 weeks ago, with 32 episodes already out so far this year. Published by The Atlantic.
From the publisher
To defend democracy, one has to believe in it. To believe in democracy, one has to understand it. Where it came from. How it works. What’s true. What’s not. What others did before you. How it could be better. How to make a difference. Each week, The David Frum Show digs deep into the big questions people have about our society, explains the progress Americans have made together, and reminds us that the American idea is worth defending.
Latest Episodes
View all 72 episodesWas Herbert Hoover America’s Most Misunderstood President?
The Fight That Could Decide 2028
Why Are Groceries So Expensive?
Social Security Is Running Out of Time
Is the Left Driving Women Away?
The American Experiment Is Worth Believing In
Did Trump Surrender to Iran?
Cuba Is Collapsing. Will Trump Invade?
Republicans vs. the Fourteenth Amendment
How to Save the Supreme Court From Itself
Has Trump Corrupted the Military?
Trump’s Iran War: America Loss Is China’s Win
What Happens if the U.S. Defaults?
How to Survive Losing a Child
Who Is the Real Base of the Democratic Party?
On the Brink of Global Recession
Is Anybody Actually Winning Trump’s Iran War?
What It Means to Be American
Ep 53Watching War From the Strait of Hormuz
In this episode of “The David Frum Show,” The Atlantic’s David Frum opens with his thoughts on the strange lack of information about the current war in Iran. He wonders why, despite the publicized tactical success of the United States’ campaign in Iran, the war seems to be progressing in an unfavorable way for the U.S. Then David is joined by his colleague at The Atlantic Graeme Wood to discuss Graeme’s recent reporting from the Persian Gulf. David and Graeme talk about Graeme’s experiences being bombed in Dubai and snorkeling in the Strait of Hormuz. They also discuss what happens next in Iran, Trump’s failure in political messaging on the war, and the state of the global energy market. David concludes with a discussion of Thomas Paine’s “Common Sense,” which was published 250 years ago this year. Sign up for David Frum’s newsletter alert. Get more from your favorite Atlantic voices when you subscribe. You’ll enjoy unlimited access to Pulitzer-winning journalism, from clear-eyed analysis and insight on breaking news to fascinating explorations of our world. Atlantic subscribers also get access to exclusive subscriber audio in Apple Podcasts. Subscribe today at TheAtlantic.com/Listener. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Ep 52The Far-Right Algorithm: Anti-Churchill, Anti-West
On this week’s episode of “The David Frum Show,” The Atlantic’s David Frum opens with his thoughts on President Trump’s recent comments that appear to show a desire to back away from his war in Iran. David argues that Trump is comfortable as a “wartime” president as long as the enemy is American Democrats, and then he compares the president’s rhetoric about Iran with his rhetoric about his fellow Americans. Then, David is joined by the historian and journalist Lord Andrew Roberts to discuss why right-wing podcasters seem so fixated on insisting that Winston Churchill was the villain of the Second World War. Frum and Lord Roberts discuss the origins of pseudo-historians and why they appeal so much to the American right. Finally, David ends the episode with a discussion of the novel “Burr,” by Gore Vidal, and the relationship between art and morality. Sign up for David Frum’s newsletter alert. Get more from your favorite Atlantic voices when you subscribe. You’ll enjoy unlimited access to Pulitzer-winning journalism, from clear-eyed analysis and insight on breaking news to fascinating explorations of our world. Atlantic subscribers also get access to exclusive subscriber audio in Apple Podcasts. Subscribe today at TheAtlantic.com/Listener. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices