City Journal's 10 Blocks
367 episodes - English - Latest episode: 3 days ago - ★★★★★ - 558 ratingsCity Journal's 10 Blocks, a weekly podcast hosted by editor Brian C. Anderson, features discussions on urban policy and culture with City Journal editors, contributors, and special guests. Forthcoming episodes will be devoted to topics such as: predictive policing, the Bronx renaissance, reform of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, homelessness in Portland, Oregon, and more. City Journal is a quarterly print and regular online magazine published by the Manhattan Institute.
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Episodes
Bay Watch
May 05, 2021 14:33 - 16 minutes - 23 MBErica Sandberg joins Brian Anderson to discuss homelessness in San Francisco, the campaign to recall California governor Gavin Newsom, and the budding backlash against San Francisco district attorney Chesa Boudin.
High Stakes
April 28, 2021 15:17 - 17 minutes - 24.2 MBAllison Schrager joins Brian Anderson to discuss the problems with "stakeholder capitalism," the latest legislative proposals from Washington, and the danger of a government-managed, risk-averse U.S. economy.
Alternative Facts
April 22, 2021 13:30 - 27 minutes - 37.9 MBEric Kaufmann joins Brian Anderson to discuss progressive authoritarianism in universities, the distorted perception of racism in the U.S., and the genealogy of modern progressive ideology.
Gotham at the Bleeding Edge
April 14, 2021 13:42 - 16 minutes - 23.2 MBDanny Crichton joins Brian Anderson to discuss the importance of the New York tech industry, the effects of Covid-19 on its future, and the geopolitical importance of American innovation.
Solving the Homelessness Crisis
April 07, 2021 13:07 - 16 minutes - 22.6 MBStephen Eide joins Brian Anderson to discuss the homelessness crisis in New York City, the problems with Mayor de Blasio's approach, the right way forward for Gotham's next leader, and how cities across the country can tackle their homelessness problems.
Creating a Crime Wave?
March 31, 2021 15:32 - 23 minutes - 31.9 MBRafael Mangual joins Brian Anderson to discuss rising disorder in New York City, the city council's just-passed package of police reforms, the causes of the crime spike, and the future of public safety in U.S. cities.
New York’s Budget Reckoning
March 25, 2021 13:03 - 28 minutes - 39.2 MBSteven Malanga joins Brian Anderson to discuss New York City's massive expansion in government spending and hiring under Bill de Blasio, the potential long-term impact of Covid-19 on the city budget, and why the next mayor will face a fiscal nightmare. City Journal's special issue, New York City: Reborn, is now available.
Jails and Transit, Mayors and Governors
March 17, 2021 13:31 - 18 minutes - 24.9 MBNicole Gelinas joins Brian Anderson to discuss New York City's plan to replace the correctional complex on Rikers Island, how the city's transit system has fared amid the pandemic, the 2021 mayoral race, Governor Cuomo's problems, and more. City Journal's latest special issue, New York City: Reborn, is now available on the website.
Crisis of the Two Constitutions
March 10, 2021 16:53 - 37 minutes - 51.4 MBCharles Kesler joins Brian Anderson to discuss the divide between liberal and conservative visions of the Constitution, the "three waves of liberalism" that shaped America's twentieth century, and the future of the conservative movement, post-Trump. Kesler's latest book is Crisis of the Two Constitutions: The Rise, Decline, and Recovery of American Greatness.
How “Openness” Defines Human Progress
March 03, 2021 14:12 - 31 minutes - 43.5 MBSwedish author and scholar Johan Norberg joins Brian Anderson to discuss his new book Open: The Story of Human Progress, a finalist for the Manhattan Institute's 2021 Hayek Book Prize. Learn more about the Hayek Prize here.
Critical “Race” to the Bottom
February 24, 2021 16:09 - 19 minutes - 26.3 MBChristopher Rufo joins Brian Anderson to discuss his recent work on critical race theory (CRT) in American schools, the whistleblowers behind much of his reporting, and President Biden's decision to revoke former president Donald Trump's executive order banning CRT-inspired training in the federal government. Read Rufo's series on CRT in American schools: Failure Factory (Buffalo, NY) Gone Crazy (Manhattan, NY) Bad Education (Philadelphia, PA) Spoiled Rotten (UN International School...
Cuomo, de Blasio, and New York’s Future
February 19, 2021 14:35 - 19 minutes - 26.6 MBSeth Barron joins Brian Anderson to discuss New York governor Andrew Cuomo's handling of the pandemic, Bill de Blasio's time as mayor of New York City and the race to succeed him, and the condition of city politics today. Seth's book, The Last Days of New York, is due out in May.
Congress and the Balance of Power
February 10, 2021 13:36 - 17 minutes - 23.5 MBChris Pope joins Brian Anderson to discuss the balance of power on Capitol Hill, some major legislation that the new Congress is considering—such as a $15 minimum wage or a "Green New Deal"—and why Senate Democrats are unlikely to abolish the filibuster.
Biden’s Retreat on Crime
February 03, 2021 12:55 - 16 minutes - 23 MBRafael Mangual joins Brian Anderson to discuss why the Biden administration’s policy on law enforcement and prosecution could spell disaster for American cities, last year’s nationwide increase in homicides and shootings, and what New York’s progressive political class has planned for criminal-justice “reform” in the future.
City Journal at 30: A Reflection
January 28, 2021 13:19 - 59 minutes - 81.6 MBBrian Anderson talks with long-time writers Heather Mac Donald, Steven Malanga, and Nicole Gelinas about how they came to the magazine, the issues that they have covered over the years, and the future of New York and other American cities. Fred Siegel also joins briefly to talk about City Journal's early years and its importance today. The audio for this episode is adapted from a recent virtual event (watch here).
On White Flight and “Whataboutism”
January 20, 2021 13:35 - 15 minutes - 21.2 MBWilliam Voegeli joins Brian Anderson to discuss the subjects of his two recent stories for City Journal the history of the mid-century exodus of whites out of cities, known as "white flight," and political reactions to the January 6 Capitol riot.
The Botched Vaccine Rollout
January 13, 2021 13:16 - 21 minutes - 29.1 MBPhysician Joel Zinberg joins Brian Anderson to discuss the slow rollout of coronavirus vaccines, why states like New York and West Virginia have widely different vaccination rates so far, and reasons for optimism that the pandemic's days are numbered.
San Francisco’s Lockdown Burdens
January 06, 2021 12:48 - 18 minutes - 25.8 MBErica Sandberg joins Seth Barron to discuss how San Francisco's small-business owners are handling the city's latest lockdown, how new outdoor dining facilities became a magnet for the homeless, and whether California public officials who violate Covid restrictions will face political consequences.
Ringing in the New Year, and Farewell to 2020
December 30, 2020 14:01 - 16 minutes - 23.1 MBThis special year-end episode of 10 Blocks features highlights from some of our favorite interviews this year, and City Journal editor Brian Anderson extends holiday wishes to listeners. If you're interested in supporting the Manhattan Institute and City Journal, please visit our website. Excerpts included in this episode: How the Plastic Panic Hurts Us—and the Planet, with John Tierney CHAZ to CHOP: Seattle's Radical Experiment, with Christopher Rufo Fearless Thinking in an Age of ...
Believe in People: A Conversation with Charles Koch and Brian Hooks
December 23, 2020 13:00 - 49 minutes - 67.5 MBCharles Koch and Brian Hooks join Howard Husock to discuss better approaches to solving America's social problems, how to help social entrepreneurs foster more resilient communities, and why Koch is now focused on building bridges across the political divide. Their new book is Believe in People: Bottom-Up Solutions for a Top-Down World.
Rise of the Muni-Socialists
December 16, 2020 13:14 - 24 minutes - 33.2 MBSteven Malanga joins Brian Anderson to discuss the growing prevalence of socialist-aligned candidates running for municipal offices, the Democratic Socialists of America’s plans for New York City in 2021, and the results of several big state referendums in this year’s election.
Victor Davis Hanson on the 2020 Election
December 09, 2020 12:51 - 1 hour - 86.5 MBVictor Davis Hanson joins Brian Anderson to discuss the 2020 election, the future of America's two main political parties, the Trump administration's foreign policy record, Joe Biden's Cabinet picks, and more. Audio for this episode is excerpted and edited from a Manhattan Institute eventcast. Find out more and register for future events by visiting our website, and subscribe to MI's YouTube channel to view previous discussions.
New York’s Ongoing Covid Struggle
December 02, 2020 12:40 - 23 minutes - 32.4 MBNicole Gelinas joins Seth Barron to discuss the financial shape of the New York region's transit system, the importance of midtown Manhattan to the city's economy, the disturbing spike in violent crime on streets and subways, and more.
America’s Shrinking Police Forces
November 25, 2020 12:48 - 15 minutes - 21.7 MBCharles Fain Lehman joins Brian Anderson to discuss the nationwide crisis of police recruitment and retention, the strong link between the size of a police force and the local crime rate, and policy changes that could stop the downward spiral. Lehman recently joined the Manhattan Institute as an adjunct fellow, working with its new Policing and Public Safety Initiative. His latest article for City Journal is "Police Departments on the Brink."
Invisible Hands: Mutual Aid in a Pandemic
November 18, 2020 12:42 - 19 minutes - 26.4 MBSimone Policano, cofounder of Invisible Hands, joins Brian Anderson to discuss how the nonprofit organizes volunteers to deliver groceries to the elderly and disabled during the pandemic, its experience working with government agencies and food pantries, and the personal stories of some of the people it has helped.
Election Outcomes and Disputes
November 11, 2020 13:30 - 31 minutes - 43 MBTom Bevan, cofounder and president of RealClearPolitics, joins Brian Anderson to discuss what happened in the 2020 election, the Trump campaign's legal challenges to the results, the issues with polling, and criticism concerning new state voting laws and "ballot harvesting."
A New America?
November 05, 2020 20:05 - 39 minutes - 54.6 MBIn a conversation recorded just before Election Day, Bruno Maçães joins Brian Anderson to discuss his striking vision of America’s future. Maçães’s new book is History Has Begun: The Birth of a New America.
An Insider's View of the Trump White House
October 28, 2020 12:29 - 45 minutes - 62.5 MBCasey Mulligan joins Allison Schrager to discuss his time on President Trump’s Council of Economic Advisers and the administration’s record on issues such as health care, the economy, immigration, and more. Mulligan’s new book is You’re Hired!: Untold Successes and Failures of a Populist President.
Shelby and Eli Steele on Michael Brown, Race, and Amazon
October 21, 2020 12:37 - 36 minutes - 49.6 MBHoward Husock talks with Shelby and Eli Steele about their new documentary, What Killed Michael Brown?, and Amazon's refusal to make the film available on its Prime Video streaming platform. The documentary is written and narrated by Shelby Steele, a scholar at the Hoover Institution, and directed by his filmmaker son, Eli Steele. It is available through their website, whatkilledmichaelbrown.com.
The Crisis of Liberalism
October 14, 2020 12:55 - 33 minutes - 46.7 MBFred Siegel joins Brian Anderson to discuss the history of modern American liberalism and its architects, how the 1960s mirrors today's politics, the uncertain future of New York City, and more. Siegel's new book is The Crisis of Liberalism: Prelude to Trump.
Looking Back: A Conversation with George Kelling
October 07, 2020 12:43 - 19 minutes - 26.2 MBIn an interview from 2016, Brian Anderson and the late criminologist and Manhattan Institute fellow George Kelling discuss the history of policing in Milwaukee and more. Watch the Manhattan Institute's inaugural George L. Kelling Lecture, delivered by former New York City Police Commissioner William J. Bratton, and learn more about its new Policing and Public Safety Initiative.
Radical Indoctrination in the Federal Bureaucracy
September 30, 2020 12:19 - 20 minutes - 28.7 MBChristopher Rufo joins Seth Barron to discuss his reporting on federal agencies using "critical race theory" as part of their personnel-training programs and President Trump;s decision to issue an executive order prohibiting it.
The Covid-19 Recession, Revisited
September 23, 2020 12:36 - 20 minutes - 28.6 MBAmity Shlaes joins Brian Anderson to discuss a classical liberal perspective on the coronavirus shutdown, the similar responses of U.S. mayors to violent disorder in both the late 1960s and in 2020, and the shift in what’s considered acceptable economic thought in journalism.
Fearless Thinking in an Age of Conformity
September 16, 2020 11:41 - 34 minutes - 47.3 MBHeather Mac Donald joins Brian Anderson to discuss how academic institutions responded to the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis and how academia’s monolithic belief in systemic racism has fueled recent riots across the United States. She also answers questions from a livestream audience. Audio for this episode is excerpted and edited from a Manhattan Institute eventcast, "Fearless Thinking in an Age of Conformity." Find out more and register for future events by visiting our website, an...
Policing’s New Challenge, with NYPD Commissioner Shea
September 09, 2020 12:11 - 43 minutes - 59.6 MBRafael Mangual interviewed NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea to discuss how recent legislative and policy shifts in New York present new challenges for police in America’s biggest city. Audio for this episode is excerpted and edited from a Manhattan Institute eventcast, "The New Challenge of Policing New York." Find out more and register for future events by visiting our website, and subscribe to MI's YouTube channel to view previous discussions.
China’s Nuclear Push
September 02, 2020 11:50 - 21 minutes - 30.1 MBMichael Shellenberger joins Brian Anderson to discuss America's nuclear industry, China's deal with Saudi Arabia to produce uranium "yellowcake" from uranium ore, and Shellenberger's new book, Apocalypse Never: Why Environmental Alarmism Hurts Us All.
California’s Neo-Feudal Future
August 26, 2020 12:36 - 24 minutes - 34.2 MBJoel Kotkin joins Brian Anderson to discuss California's "increasingly feudal" political and economic order, the impact of the Covid-19 lockdown on the state's lower- and middle-class residents, what Joe Biden's selection of Senator Kamala Harris means for the Democratic ticket and U.S. politics, and Kotkin's new book—The Coming of Neo-Feudalism: A Warning to the Global Middle Class.
Chicago’s Ransacking and Illinois’ Fiscal Blues
August 19, 2020 11:29 - 19 minutes - 27.2 MBJohn O. McGinnis joins Brian Anderson to discuss the economic condition of Illinois, the main players in its infamous "machine" politics, the recent looting in Chicago that tore through the city's Magnificent Mile, and more.
Trouble on the Upper West Side
August 12, 2020 12:10 - 20 minutes - 28.8 MBNicole Gelinas joins Seth Barron to discuss recent violence on New York's Upper West Side, why the decision to house homeless men in nearby hotels isn't good for them or their neighbors, and the risk that the city faces of losing wealthier residents due to quality-of-life concerns.
Playing with Fire: The Unwinding of Public Safety
August 05, 2020 12:04 - 22 minutes - 30.9 MBHeather Mac Donald joins Seth Barron to discuss YouTube's restriction of her livestreamed speech on policing, allegations of widespread racial bias in the criminal-justice system, and the ongoing reversal of public-safety gains in New York City.
Catholic Schools, Charters, and Choice
July 29, 2020 12:50 - 20 minutes - 27.8 MBNicole Stelle Garnett joins Brian Anderson to discuss the importance of Catholic schools, their struggle to compete with charter schools, and what the Supreme Court's recent Espinoza decision will mean for private-school choice—the subjects of her story, "Why We Still Need Catholic Schools," in City Journal's new summer issue.
Policing on the Brink: A Conversation with William Bratton
July 22, 2020 11:57 - 26 minutes - 36.2 MBFormer NYPD and LAPD commissioner William J. Bratton joins Brian Anderson to discuss the troubling state of crime and law enforcement in America, the NYPD's decision to disband its plainclothes unit, the challenges of police morale and recruitment, and more.
Nursing Homes: The Center of the Pandemic
July 15, 2020 11:55 - 30 minutes - 41.3 MBSteven Malanga and Chris Pope join Brian Anderson to discuss how long-term-care facilities have borne the brunt of the Covid-19 pandemic, innovative approaches to nursing-home staffing and training, and what we can learn from the experience to be better prepared next time. Audio for this episode is excerpted and edited from a live Manhattan Institute Eventcast, entitled "The Center of the Pandemic: How Long-Term-Care Facilities Bore the Brunt of Covid-19."
A Summer of Violence?
July 08, 2020 11:50 - 24 minutes - 34 MBRafael Mangual joins Seth Barron to discuss the surge in gun violence in New York City and other American cities, the impact of newly enacted criminal-justice reforms on policing, and the connection between "low-level" enforcement and major-crime prevention.
Navigating the Pandemic Economy
July 01, 2020 11:49 - 14 minutes - 20.7 MBAllison Schrager joins Brian Anderson to discuss economic trends in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, how the stock market has performed during the crisis, and why expensive infrastructure projects are a risky strategy for reviving the economy.
“Woke” Schools
June 24, 2020 11:54 - 16 minutes - 23.2 MBMax Eden joins Brian Anderson to discuss how America's latest culture war appears headed for public schools—the topic of Eden’s latest story, "'There Is No Apolitical Classroom.'" Across the country, schools are preparing to reopen in September with rigorous hygiene protocols to protect against Covid-19. Now, in the aftermath of nationwide protests in response to George Floyd's death in Minneapolis, activists are making a renewed push to incorporate "antiracism" content into classrooms. Ac...
CHAZ to CHOP: Seattle’s Radical Experiment
June 16, 2020 21:03 - 24 minutes - 33.2 MBChristopher Rufo joins Brian Anderson to discuss Seattle's activist-controlled "autonomous zone" in the Capitol Hill neighborhood of the city, established after police evacuated the local precinct building. In the aftermath of George Floyd's death in Minneapolis, activists and police in Seattle clashed until the city decided to abandon the East Precinct and surrender the neighborhood to protesters, who declared it the Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone (CHAZ). More than a week later, the future ...
How Our Social Nature Makes Everything Contagious
June 10, 2020 11:30 - 18 minutes - 25 MBKay Hymowitz joins Brian Anderson to discuss how our social instincts, and especially our social networks, affect our behavior and choices, in areas as wide-ranging as divorce, obesity—and even rioting. Humans are social animals, as the saying goes. Our social nature, Hymowitz writes in her new story, "The Human Network," makes nearly everything contagious, from viruses to behaviors. For example, new research suggests that people can, in effect, "catch" divorce from their friends or extend...
Race, Riots, and the Cops
June 04, 2020 12:42 - 28 minutes - 38.8 MBCity Journal contributing editors Coleman Hughes and Rafael Mangual discuss the protests and riots across the United States—including attacks on police officers—and the dispiriting state of American racial politics. The unrest began last week, in the aftermath of George Floyd's death in police custody in Minneapolis. The disorder should not be surprising, Mangual notes, because "police have been the targets of a poisonous, decades-long campaign to paint law enforcement as a violent cog in ...
Bedlam in New York
June 03, 2020 12:19 - 25 minutes - 34.9 MBSeth Barron and Nicole Gelinas discuss the eruption of lawlessness in Midtown Manhattan and other parts of New York City and the inability of Mayor de Blasio and the NYPD to quell the worst criminal violence. In the wake of George Floyd’s death in police custody in Minneapolis, cities across the nation have seen large demonstrations in the last week. Many have degenerated into urban riots, with violence, looting, and property destruction, in a wholesale collapse of public order. In New Yor...