The Permanent Questions With David Brooks

Latest episode

4 Oct 2026 · 44 min

Should We Ban AI for Kids?

Long before he became famous as the author of The Anxious Generation, Jonathan Haidt was a social psychologist whose work revolutionized the field. In this episode of The Permanent Questions, taped in front of a live audience at last month’s Atlantic Festival, David Brooks talks with Haidt about his biggest lessons from 40 years of studying human nature. David and Haidt discuss the role of the emotions in moral decision making, how to design a system that produces less loathsome elites, and why AI is “the neutron bomb for education.” Get more from your favorite Atlantic voices when you…

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Earlier episodes 4 most recent

1. 

   E3 · 27 Sep 2026 · 1 hr 5 min

   What Is the Meaning of Mystical Experience?

   What would it be like to wake up one day with the ability to greet the world with warmth, patience, grace, and affection? This is what happens to the main character in the Pulitzer Prize–winner Ayad Akhtar's magnificent new novel, The Radiance. It is a tale of spiritual transformation in which Akhtar gives a detailed description of our inner landscapes. David and Akhtar talk about what it's like to see the world with new eyes, and how difficult it is to move from the head to the heart. Get more from your favorite Atlantic voices when you subscribe. You’ll enjoy unlimited access to…

2. 

   E2 · 20 Sep 2026 · 56 min

   What Is Humanity’s Place in the Cosmos?

   For all of history, humans have been fascinated by the heavens above us. We’ve used the stars to navigate Earth, to predict the future, and to understand our place in the larger scheme of things. Changes in our view of the cosmos—from the Copernican revolution that “uncentered” the Earth to the discovery of the Big Bang and the recognition that the universe is expanding—have invariably changed our view of ourselves. In this episode of The Permanent Questions, David Brooks speaks with the astrophysicist Priyamvada Natarajan about the latest scientific view of the universe and what it says…

3. 

   E1 · 13 Sep 2026 · 1 hr 2 min

   What Is the Good Life?

   In the debut episode of The Permanent Questions With David Brooks, David speaks with the philosopher Meghan Sullivan about perhaps the most important question of them all: How should we live our lives? Sullivan is a co-author of The Good Life Method, based on a popular course she teaches at Notre Dame. Leading a good life, she argues, means not just maximizing our positive impact in the world, but cultivating virtue within our own souls. Along the way, David and Sullivan discuss Iris Murdoch, finding bliss at CVS, and exercising our philosophical muscles before life slaps us in the face. Get…

4. 

   4 Sep 2026 · 1 min

   Introducing The Permanent Questions with David Brooks

   How do you find your purpose? How do you confront your own mortality? How do you repair a broken community? There are a lot of podcasts about the latest developments in politics and finance, health and wellness, entertainment and tech. The Permanent Questions is a new show about the topics that never go away. Each week, the Atlantic staff writer David Brooks speaks with the world’s deepest thinkers about matters of enduring human concern. The Permanent Questions premieres on Sunday, September 13, and new episodes will appear every Sunday after that. Get more from your favorite Atlantic…

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