News, politics, history and more from Jacobin. Featuring The Dig, Long Reads, Confronting Capitalism, Behind the News, Jacobin Radio with Suzi Weissman, and occasional specials.
From Madrid to Paris, tenants and teenagers are forcing their crises onto the agenda. Suzi talks to Agustín Santos Maraver, Spain’s former UN ambassador and Sumar MP, who explains how the eviction of 87-year-old Maricarmen Abascal ignited a national housing uprising, why the Catalan right sank the government’s rent decrees, and why a general strike on the eve of the November 29 snap election is a first for Spain. Then Verso’s European editor Sebastian Budgen explains why France’s high-school revolt began in the banlieues rather than the city centers, why the government has doubled down on…
The Left looks poised to pick up some big electoral wins in the midterm elections. But with virtually all of the Left’s victories since the first Sanders presidential primary coming through elections, are socialists and progressives at risk of devolving into electoralism? On this latest episode of Confronting Capitalism , Vivek Chibber and Melissa Naschek examine the structural and institutional pressures facing left-wing politicians and how we can build greater power outside the state. Read Vivek’s obituary for Anwar Shaikh here:…
Sam Stein, author of A Right to Housing? , investigates that proposition skeptically. Natasha Lennard, author of On Un/Certainty , talks about how doubt can be a mask for certainty. Behind the News , hosted by Doug Henwood, covers the worlds of economics and politics and their complex interactions, from the local to the global.
After three years of slaughter in Gaza, some leading officials of the Biden administration are trying to justify their record. Figures like Antony Blinken and Brett McGurk have been on media tours recently giving their version of the story. Meanwhile Akbar Shahid Ahmed, diplomatic correspondent for the Washington Sun , has been working to provide a serious account of what really happened. Akbar has been a guest on Long Reads several times before. He returns to the podcast to discuss his new book, Crossing the Red Line: Biden, His Advisors, and Israel’s War in Gaza . Long Reads is a Jacobin…
Featuring Chris Brooks on labor’s crisis and the strategic, militant class struggle that can turn it all around. Brooks, former chief of staff to UAW President Shawn Fain, urges organizers to be flexible in their methodology, explains the federal monitor’s anti-left lawfare against the UAW over Gaza—and why labor must build for 2028. Support The Dig at Patreon.com/TheDig Read more: “Is Labor at the Point of No Return?” by Chris Brooks in New Labor Forum newlaborforum.cuny.edu/2026/01/15/is-labor-at-the-point-of-no-return “Is Labor at the Point of No Return?” by Chris Brooks in New Labor…
Owen Zidar, co-author of The Everywhere Millionaire , reveals the world of the hidden rich. Plus: Jake Werner surveys the latest in US-China relations. Behind the News , hosted by Doug Henwood, covers the worlds of economics and politics and their complex interactions, from the local to the global.
Featuring Ben Tarnoff and Quinn Slobodian on their book Muskism: A Guide for the Perplexed . What the world’s bizarre richest man reveals about our financially fabulist, hard tech, far-right political-economic era. Support The Dig at Patreon.com/TheDig Find Against Tech Oligarchy at Haymarketbooks.org Learn more about Hate Speech at UCPress.edu The Dig goes deep into politics everywhere, from labor struggles and political economy to imperialism and immigration. Hosted by Daniel Denvir.
Karl Marx famously declared that he was not a Marxist. But his theoretical work spawned many branches of research, political movements, and heated debate. Can we identify a set of unifying ideas that make up Marxism? On this latest episode of Confronting Capitalism , Vivek Chibber and Melissa Naschek look at the foundations of Marx’s writing and explain how Marxism has both developed and degenerated over the past century. The latest issue of Catalyst is out and you can subscribe for just $20 using the code CONFRONTINGCAPITALISM:…
Pulitzer Prize winner Benjamin Moser joins Suzi to discuss his new book, Anti-Zionism: A Jewish History , which recovers a century of Jewish opposition to Zionism, told through twelve lives, from an assassinated Dutch dissident to Hannah Arendt to the photographer Nan Goldin. Moser opens with his own grandfather’s copy of Theodor Herzl’s The Jewish State — the one object the family carried out of Nazi Germany — and traces his break with an unexamined liberal Zionism to a 2016 trip to Hebron: “It’s not that Israel is doing things that are wrong,” he said. “It’s that Israel itself is wrong.”…
Kristin Kobes Du Mez, author of Live Laugh Love , dives into the world of right-wing evangelical Christian women. Behind the News , hosted by Doug Henwood, covers the worlds of economics and politics and their complex interactions, from the local to the global.
Over the past few weeks, Yemen’s Ansar Allah movement, also known as the Houthis, has launched a major offensive. The offensive could have major implications for the world economy, as it involves one of its most important trade routes through the Red Sea. It certainly has major implications for Saudi Arabia. Long Reads is joined by Helen Lackner, an expert on the politics of Yemen and the author of several books about the country. This is the third time Helen has joined us on the podcast. In this week’s episode, we’re going to cover events since the last time Helen spoke to us more than two…
Jennifer Berkshire talks about the anti-school voucher backlash. Heather Berg, author of Notes from the Sex Worker Left , discusses what that formation brings to politics. Read Jennifer’s article for Jacobin , “Americans Are Turning Against School Vouchers,” here: https://jacobin.com/2026/09/school-choice-vouchers-public-opposition Behind the News , hosted by Doug Henwood, covers the worlds of economics and politics and their complex interactions, from the local to the global.
Featuring Ben Shanahan, the architect of socialist David Morales’ victorious campaign to be the Democratic nominee for mayor of Providence, Rhode Island. The Providence left ran a slate of left-wing candidates that not only elected Morales but also swept every single contested city council seat on a platform of capping the rent and building social housing. Read Dennis Hogan’s essays on the Providence win in n+1 and Dissent : nplusonemag.com/online-only/online-only/the-hi-neighbor-mayor/ dissentmagazine.org/online_articles/david-morales-providence-municipal-socialism/ Support The Dig at…
It’s all too common for people to associate the mere existence of markets with capitalism. But because we know markets had a life before capitalism, we can also imagine them having a life after. On this latest episode of Confronting Capitalism , Vivek Chibber and Melissa Naschek compare how markets operated in pre-capitalist economies versus modern capitalist economies to see if markets may prove useful in future socialist societies. The latest issue of Catalyst is out and you can subscribe for just $20 using the code CONFRONTINGCAPITALISM:…
A prisoner is held, in theory, for something they did. The people inside America’s roughly 250 immigration detention camps are held for who they are, or where they’re from. That distinction anchors journalist John Washington’s new book, How to Close a Camp: Dispatches from the Fight Against Immigrant Detention . He joins Suzi to trace the bipartisan machinery behind ICE detention — from the reservation system to today's $240 billion buildout — and the local permits, contracts, and licenses that make these camps more vulnerable than they look. In Surprise, Arizona, a thousand residents showed…
Garrison Lovely, author of Obsolete , discusses the terrors and possible promise of artificial intelligence. Dave Zirin looks back on the life and work of Howard Zinn, the subject of his new biography . Behind the News , hosted by Doug Henwood, covers the worlds of economics and politics and their complex interactions, from the local to the global.
The US Federal Reserve appointed a new chair earlier this year. Kevin Warsh replaced Jerome Powell, who had been under constant fire from the Trump administration. For many, Warsh’s appointment represented a turn towards the overt politicization of monetary policy. Is the age of central bank independence coming to an end? And is it something that the Left should mourn or celebrate? Martijn Konings, professor of political economy at the University of Sydney and author of The Bailout State: Why Governments Rescue Banks, Not People , joins Long Reads to discuss the state of central banking.…
Featuring Daniel Denvir and Ben Mabie answering questions posed by you, our listeners. Submit a question for our next mailbag: speakpipe.com/ListenerMailbag Support The Dig at Patreon.com/TheDig Read the piece Ben mentioned, “From the Camp to the Picket: Reflections from the UC Strike for Palestine”: longhaulmag.com/uc-strike-for-palestine Learn more about The Shadow Court and Disability Revolution at UCPress.edu The Dig goes deep into politics everywhere, from labor struggles and political economy to imperialism and immigration. Hosted by Daniel Denvir.
Alejandro Velasco looks at Trump’s oil grab in Venezuela. Alex Vitale imagines a post-carceral future. Behind the News , hosted by Doug Henwood, covers the worlds of economics and politics and their complex interactions, from the local to the global.
Unions have more public support than just about anything else in the US, and yet, their membership has cratered. This poses an immense challenge to left-wing politicians, who won't be able to enact lasting change without a robust labor movement beside them. On this latest episode of Confronting Capitalism , Vivek Chibber addresses the age-old question of whether unions are inherently political, the importance (and limits) of internal democracy within unions, and why socialists have always been at the heart of the labor movement. The latest issue of Catalyst is out and you can subscribe for…
Producer and guest host Mel Figueroa speaks with economist Michael Roberts about the teetering house of cards that is the US and global economy, and how it is all connected to the Iran war and more: Scott Bessent, bond markets, the crisis in private credit, the AI bubble, de-dollarization, and inflation. Is a recession or a depression imminent? The media financial and economic discourse is wildly different from what we experience in our day-to-day struggles; we unpack why that is, and how anxiety at the top of this K-shaped economy will still have real consequences for the US working class.…
Featuring David Wallace-Wells, Madison Condon, and Moira Birss on how insurance companies profit off climate catastrophe — and, in doing so, ensure that people and the planet suffer the consequences. Guest hosted by Astra Taylor. Support The Dig at Patreon.com/TheDig Read “National Disaster Insurance for All: Single-Payer Disaster Insurance and Community Resilience Investments for Safer and More Affordable Housing”: climateandcommunity.org/research/national-disaster-insurance-for-all-single-payer-disaster-insurance-and-community-resilience-investments-for-safer-and-more-affordable-housing/…
David McNally, author of Slavery and Capitalism , discusses the political economy of the institution. Plus: Billy Fleming, author of Building Postcarbon Futures , explains how we might get from here to there. Behind the News , hosted by Doug Henwood, covers the worlds of economics and politics and their complex interactions, from the local to the global.
Mike Davis died in 2022, but his work is more urgent than ever. As record temperatures, fires, floods, El Niño, and megadroughts threaten the planet, we hear his prescient 1995 talk, “Reconceptualizing the Environment.” Mike challenged the idea of “natural disaster,” showing how market-driven development put Los Angeles in harm’s way while shifting costs onto the public and the poor. Our sponsor Equator magazine is running an online reading group of Mike’s Late Victorian Holocausts , his landmark study of how climate shocks, empire, and the world market combined to produce mass famine and…
Aurélie Daher, author of a piece for Responsible Statecraft , looks at the destruction Israel is visiting upon southern Lebanon. Annie McClanahan, author of Beneath the Wage , discusses nonstandard forms of work and compensation. Behind the News , hosted by Doug Henwood, covers the worlds of economics and politics and their complex interactions, from the local to the global.
Advanced capitalist countries have recently rediscovered the role of industrial policy to build out key economic sectors like semiconductors and AI. But what happens if business is the one calling all the shots? On this latest episode of Confronting Capitalism , we’re sharing Vivek Chibber’s keynote address from the 2026 IFAR Consortium Conference, hosted by the Indonesian International Islamic University. He discusses how developing countries used industrial policy in the past, why the US and Europe are now turning to greater state intervention, and how one could build a new…
Jodi Dean, who has a new Substack on the issue, surveys how AI has been terrible. Anatol Lieven, author of a new article for New Left Review ’s Sidecar blog, looks at the bloody stalemate that is the Russia–Ukraine war. Behind the News , hosted by Doug Henwood, covers the worlds of economics and politics and their complex interactions, from the local to the global.
Featuring Molly Crabapple on her book Here Where We Live Is Our Country: The Story of the Jewish Bund . The second in a two-part interview. Support The Dig at Patreon.com/TheDig Buy Decolonizing Money at Plutobooks.com Buy Femmephilia at Haymarketbooks.org The Dig goes deep into politics everywhere, from labor struggles and political economy to imperialism and immigration. Hosted by Daniel Denvir.
From the very start of the Gaza genocide, Western media outlets were happy to repeat the most outlandish claims from Israeli government officials. One of the most notorious examples was the allegation that dozens of Israeli babies were beheaded on October 7, 2023, a story amplified by CNN and promoted by the former US president, Joe Biden, who claimed to have seen “pictures of terrorists beheading children.” Of course, Biden was lying — it never happened. This failure to ask any serious questions before reporting the most inflammatory claims set the tone for media coverage of Gaza, right up…
“Men in hard hats were once the heart of America’s working class. Now it is women in scrubs,” says historian Gabriel Winant, author of The Next Shift , who joins Suzi to explain how deindustrialization made health care the country’s largest employer, but the jobs are lower paid, understaffed, and more precarious. That’s playing out now at UVM Medical Center, where Vermont's own regulator found the nonprofit hospital was over-earning. Its response? Cut union jobs while nineteen top executives split $3 million in bonuses. Three union leaders — Melissa LaVallee, Teagan Cook, and Emma Galvin —…
About Jacobin Radio
News, politics, history and more from Jacobin. Featuring The Dig, Long Reads, Confronting Capitalism, Behind the News, Jacobin Radio with Suzi Weissman, and occasional specials.
Jacobin Radio is a English news podcast from Jacobin. Melo plays each episode straight from the publisher's own feed — no ads added, no account needed — and remembers where you stopped, in this browser only.
The Melo app keeps playing with the screen off, works in the car and on your watch, wakes you to your station, and browses the whole catalogue offline. Free, no ads, no account.
