Are We Crazy To Think Putin Is Crazy?

Historian Molly Worthen discusses her new book Spellbound: How Charisma Shaped American History from the Puritans to Donald Trump — arguing that charisma isn't charm but a polarizing story that tells followers who the heroes are, who the villains are, and where they fit in. Also: ...  Show more

Mickey Bergman, who negotiates the release of political prisoners, returns to explain how freeing hostages from the world's most hostile regimes runs entirely on emotional intelligence, not geopolitical leverage. He walks through two cases — using Bill Richardson's death to unloc ...  Show more

University of Chicago professor Paul Poast breaks down Yevgeny Prigozhin's rebellion, Vladimir Putin's weakness, Russia's military incompetence, and the long-term implications of Saturday's bizarre 36-hour rebellion. If you have questions, observations, or ideas for future episod ...  Show more

The presidents of Russia and the United States will soon meet face to face, a big coup for Putin, who has been boycotted by Western leaders since invading Ukraine. And even President Trump admits his envoy's visit to Moscow this week yielded no concrete result. Trump has long bel ...  Show more

Today on the show, Fareed speaks with former Ukrainian defense minister Andriy Zagorodnyuk about Ukraine’s incursion into Russia and what it might mean for peace negotiations.    Next, Russian journalist and author Mikhail Zygar joins the show to discuss how the incursion into Ku ...  Show more

Kremlin defender Tulsi Gabbard is the US’s new spy chief, while the US and Russia are holding peace talks without European and Ukrainian officials at the table. The vibe has officially shifted. This episode was produced by Avishay Artsy, edited by Amina Al-Sadi, fact-checked by L ...  Show more