Q & A, Hosted by Jay Nordlinger
613 episodes - English - Latest episode: about 2 hours ago - ★★★★★ - 225 ratingsJay Nordlinger is a senior editor of <a href="http://nationalreview.com"><em>National Review</em></a> and the music critic of <a href="http://www.newcriterion.com"><em>The New Criterion</em></a>. His guests are from the worlds of politics and culture, talking about the most important issues of the day, and some pleasant trivialities as well.
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Episodes
A Ukrainian on Ukraine
May 14, 2024 15:18 - 38 minutes - 30.6 MBIllia Ponomarenko is one of the leading war reporters and defense analysts in Ukraine. He himself is Ukrainian—from the east of the country. He went to college in Mariupol, which has now been bludgeoned and taken over by Putin’s forces. Ponomarenko has come out with a book, mid-war: “I Will Show You How It Was: The Story of Wartime Kyiv.” Jay talks with him about issues that gnaw at a great many.
Scholar, and Explainer, of Islam
May 06, 2024 19:20 - 38 minutes - 31.1 MBMohamad Jebara grew up in Ottawa, Canada, the son of Lebanese immigrants. He, and they, were “cultural Muslims.” But he soon became a scholar of Islam, and a philologist. He is a man of formidable learning, and he has a gift for imparting what he knows to a general audience. From ages ten to twelve, he memorized the Koran. It is still there, in his head. He practices while driving or working out. His new book is “The Life of the Qu’ran.” Jay asks him some basic questions, questions to which m...
Law, Economics, and Life, with an Italian Couple
April 23, 2024 16:01 - 55 minutes - 44.6 MBSimone Sepe and Saura Masconale teach at the University of Arizona. He is in the law school; she is in the Department of Political Economy and Moral Science. They are both associated with the Center for the Philosophy of Freedom. He is from Rome, she is from Verona. They are married, with three excellent children. Jay talks with them about their interests (and his).
Economist of Freedom
April 18, 2024 14:51 - 1 hour - 59.9 MBVernon L. Smith is one of the leading economists of our time. He was born in Wichita, on January 1, 1927. In 2002, he shared the Nobel Memorial Prize with Daniel Kahneman. Professor Smith has taught at many universities. He is a classical liberal, in the mold of a Smith of yore: Adam. With Jay, he talks about his life, his findings, and freedom—glorious, precious freedom.
A Distinguished American Couple from Europe
April 15, 2024 15:03 - 1 hour - 48.4 MBRobert Mundheim is a leading professor of law, who has also worked in the private sector and in government. (He worked on the Iran hostage crisis, in particular.) He started out in Germany in 1933. His wife, Guna Mundheim, is an artist, who started out in Riga in 1936. They have much to impart, in this wide-ranging conversation.
A Righteous, Patriotic Lightning Rod in Arizona
April 09, 2024 21:34 - 54 minutes - 43.5 MBStephen Richer has been at the center of election controversies in Arizona. He is the recorder of Maricopa County. Donald Trump defamed him. So did Kari Lake. So have many others. Lake, he actually sued. She capitulated. Richer is a conservative Republican who has had a fascinating journey in our democracy—too fascinating for comfort. With Jay, he has a frank, engrossing conversation.
Propaganda: Its Art and Its Artists
March 29, 2024 18:30 - 41 minutes - 32.9 MBPeter Pomerantsev is an authority on propaganda—and counter-propaganda. He is a Soviet-born British writer and teacher. His latest book is “How to Win an Information War: The Propagandist Who Outwitted Hitler.” That propagandist was Sefton Delmer, a fascinating personality. World War II offers parallels to our own day, of course. Pomerantsev is a master of a slippery and critical subject.
Howard Buffett, Ukraine, and the World
March 20, 2024 20:50 - 39 minutes - 31.7 MBHoward G. Buffett is, among other things, the head of the foundation that bears his name. He has been “many, many things in life,” as Jay says: “businessman, farmer, politician, lawman, conservationist, anti-poverty activist, author, philanthropist,” and more. To date, Buffett has donated more than $500 million to Ukraine. He and Jay discuss that, plus a range of other issues: law enforcement, drug policy, poverty alleviation, conservation—and growing up as Warren’s son. A superb conversation...
An American-Russian Film Director and His Sensational Movie
March 13, 2024 19:49 - 41 minutes - 33.1 MBMichael Lockshin is a film director, who grew up in both the United States and Russia. (Actually, he grew up in the Soviet Union, too.) He has made a magnificent movie: “The Master and Margarita,” based on Bulgakov’s classic novel. It is a sensation in Russia. It has been denounced by the authorities, for hitting too close to home: for depicting the struggle of artists against dictatorship. With Jay, Lockshin talks about literature, movies, identity, and Russia today.
The Democracy Man
March 07, 2024 17:49 - 46 minutes - 37.1 MBCarl Gershman was the founding president of the National Endowment for Democracy, serving in that position from 1984 to 2021. Jay talks with him about his life: starting with his boyhood in New York. Along the way, Gershman touches on Max Shachtman, Sidney Hook, Leszek Kołakowski, Pat Moynihan, Jeane Kirkpatrick, Ronald Reagan, Natan Sharansky . . . Wonderful stories, wonderful points—grave and important issues.
A Man of Parts (All of Them Interesting)
March 01, 2024 20:44 - 37 minutes - 29.6 MBPatrick Chovanec, as Jay says in his introduction, is a hard man to sum up: an econ whiz; a China man; a politico (of a sort); a writer. Now he is a pilot. His new book is “Cleared for the Option: A Year Learning to Fly.” Jay talks with him about a slew of issues, relating to what Chovanec has done and learned in his life. Get to know this interesting and versatile fellow.
AI: The Whys and Wherefores
February 26, 2024 21:44 - 1 hour - 50.8 MBDavid Zuluaga is an intellectual, a philosopher, a management consultant, a politico—many things. He is also a friend of Jay’s. And he has been spending a lot of time on artificial intelligence: studying it, explaining it. In this “Q&A,” he discusses some fundamental issues concerning AI. He also talks some philosophy in general—a delight.
Burning Issues, with Bret Stephens
February 23, 2024 17:55 - 52 minutes - 41.9 MBBret Stephens is a columnist for the New York Times. Previously, he was a columnist for the Wall Street Journal. In 2013, he won the Pulitzer prize for commentary. Earlier in his life, he was the editor of the Jerusalem Post. He and Jay talk about Russia and Ukraine. And about Israel, Gaza, and antisemitism. And about the U.S. media. A rich, multilayered conversation.
The U.S. in the World: Basic and Blunt Questions
February 09, 2024 20:46 - 35 minutes - 28.8 MBLuke Coffey is an expert on foreign policy and national security. He works at the Hudson Institute. He was in the Army, serving in Afghanistan. Jay asks him about Afghanistan: Did we achieve anything in that country, in our 20 years there? Or was it all for naught? Discussion then turns to Ukraine: Is it in the U.S. interest? Why? What would be the consequences of a Putin victory over Ukraine? What do you think Americans ought to know? A blunt and bracing conversation.
About Ukraine, Essential Questions
January 31, 2024 20:02 - 37 minutes - 29.6 MBPhillips O’Brien is a professor of strategic studies at the University of St Andrews in Scotland. He has had a British career. He was born and bred in Boston, however. In recent years, he has thought and written a lot about Ukraine—and he has valuable things to say about all the essential questions. For instance, who’s arming whom, and how? He and Jay go over these questions.
Mark Helprin on Love, War, and More
January 25, 2024 02:49 - 44 minutes - 35.8 MBThe latest novel by Mark Helprin is “The Oceans and the Stars.” What’s it about? Helprin gives this summation, in his conversation with Jay: “love and war.” The book is also a hymn to the U.S. Navy. Helprin and Jay talk about the writing life and life at large.
Let’s Play Off!
January 20, 2024 15:21 - 54 minutes - 43.5 MBJay hosts a sportscast, with his usual gurus, David French and Vivek Dave. How ’bout them Lions? How about Bill Belichick? And Nick Saban? NBA-wise, how about Wemby? And LeBron? And others? A wide-ranging, lively, and sometimes contentious conversation. Good stuff.
The Professor-Ambassador Who Combats the Antisemites
January 14, 2024 17:30 - 42 minutes - 33.6 MBDeborah Lipstadt is a well-known scholar of modern Jewish history, antisemitism, and Holocaust denial. She has written many books. In the 1990s, she was involved in a famous trial against David Irving, the notorious English Holocaust-denier. (She won.) The case was depicted in a 2016 movie, “Denial,” in which Prof. Lipstadt was portrayed by Rachel Weisz. Today, Prof. Lipstadt works in the State Department: as the U.S. special envoy for monitoring and combating antisemitism. She has a lot to s...
From Ukraine, a War Correspondent
January 09, 2024 19:49 - 42 minutes - 34.2 MBYaroslav Trofimov is the chief foreign-affairs correspondent of the Wall Street Journal. He was that paper’s bureau chief in Afghanistan and Pakistan. His previous books have been about the Middle East and the broader Muslim world. But he was born in Ukraine—and has been covering that war, intensely. His new book is “Our Enemies Will Vanish: The Russian Invasion and Ukraine’s War of Independence.” Jay asks him about essential things.
The Virus of Antisemitism
January 08, 2024 03:53 - 38 minutes - 30.5 MBShai Davidai is a professor at the Columbia business school. Recently, he has been writing about the explosion of antisemitism on his campus—an explosion that is nationwide and nearly worldwide. Davidai has never experienced anything like this before; neither have many. He and Jay talk over some of the crucial issues.
Soccer, Etc.: A Writer at Large
January 02, 2024 15:51 - 31 minutes - 25.1 MBSimon Kuper is a jack of many journalistic trades. He is a columnist for the Financial Times. He is a prominent soccer writer. He has written a book about George Blake, the British spy for the Soviets. He recently wrote a bracing column titled “What if Russia wins?” He has lived in many parts of the world. He has highly interesting things to say about sports and the rest. Spend a bit of time with him.
A Warrioress for Truth about Israel and Jews
December 08, 2023 15:11 - 32 minutes - 26.1 MBSince October 7, Aviva Klompas has provided an extraordinary service. She has brought a wealth of information about that day’s attack. And about the people held hostage by Hamas. And about instances of antisemitism around the world. She has done this mainly through Twitter, or X. She has devoted her life to combating antisemitism through education. She does not fear to deal with some of the darkest elements around us. An extraordinary person, Aviva Klompas. She and Jay discuss some of the big...
Sharansky on the Present Crisis
December 04, 2023 21:13 - 40 minutes - 32.4 MBIntroducing Natan Sharansky, Jay Nordlinger calls him “the great dissident and refusenik; the Israeli politician; the Jewish leader; the human-rights activist.” In this episode of “Q&A,” Jay has Sharansky discuss October 7; the hostages; the role of Iran; the question of Russia; the position of the United States; the nature of antisemitism; and more. No one is better equipped to discuss these matters than Sharansky. A highly valuable conversation.
Amid the Anti-Israel Storms at Yale
November 09, 2023 04:18 - 24 minutes - 19.6 MBSahar Tartak is an undergraduate at Yale University. She was an intern at National Review magazine last summer. She is a Jewish, pro-Israel student in a largely hostile environment. Jay asks her, “How has it been?”
George Weigel on Our Perilous Times
November 03, 2023 19:39 - 45 minutes - 36.6 MBGeorge Weigel is one of America’s leading political writers and social critics. His biography of John Paul II—“Witness to Hope”—is one of the great modern biographies. With Jay, Weigel talks about his growing up in Baltimore. The conversation moves to Ukraine, Israel, and some key questions of American politics today. George Weigel is both sagacious and blunt.
Shakespeare and Power and Life
October 30, 2023 16:16 - 36 minutes - 29.2 MBEliot A. Cohen, the scholar of international affairs, is a favorite guest of “Q&A.” He has written a new book, a Shakespeare book: “The Hollow Crown: Shakespeare on How Leaders Rise, Rule, and Fall.” Shakespeare knew . . . everything. Professor Cohen knows a great deal too. At the end of his conversation with Jay, he talks about Ukraine and Israel and the immense challenge facing us all.
Israel in This Moment
October 17, 2023 19:38 - 51 minutes - 41.3 MBOnce more, Jay speaks with Haviv Rettig Gur, the Israeli journalist, about what is going on in Israel and the profound meaning of this moment.
Thrash-Metal Reaganite Kid as Economic-Policy Guru
October 12, 2023 17:06 - 47 minutes - 37.9 MBA conversation with Brian Riedl, a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute, about the economy, politics, and life.
Haviv Rettig Gur: For Israel, ‘a New Era, a New World’
October 09, 2023 13:12 - 58 minutes - 46.9 MBHaviv Rettig Gur is one of the leading journalists in Israel. He is the senior analyst of the Times of Israel. He is a regular guest on “Q&A.” Listeners want to hear from him, for a deeper understanding of what is going on in Israel and in the Middle East more broadly. With Jay, he has discussed the Hamas attack and the war to come. Most illuminating.
Maestro Fischer, in Session
September 29, 2023 20:55 - 44 minutes - 35.5 MBAdam Fischer is a noted Hungarian conductor (as is his brother, Ivan). He conducted at the Salzburg Festival in August. And, in an event hosted by the Salzburg Festival Society, Jay had a conversation with him. Very interesting man, Maestro Fischer. Bright, experienced, candid. One learns from him.
Globalization: Yes
September 22, 2023 15:11 - 56 minutes - 45.3 MBJay’s guest is Scott Lincicome of the Cato Institute. He and Cato have launched a defense of globalization, or the right of people in different nations to trade with one another. He and Jay talk about this and a host of other issues: growing up; going to school; words such as “capitalism” and “neoliberal”; economics and demagogues; the problem of China; the travails of Detroit’s “Big Three”; and more (including Lincicome’s jihad against expiration dates on food products).
Maestro Sunshine
September 15, 2023 15:06 - 43 minutes - 35 MBMarco Armiliato is a veteran conductor from Italy. He has spent most of his career in opera, and in Italian opera in particular. He is a regular at the Met, the Vienna State Opera, and other important venues. Last month, he conducted at the Salzburg Festival, and he was a guest in the series of conversations hosted by the Salzburg Festival Society. Jay does the questioning. In the course of their talk, Armiliato says that Luciano Pavarotti, the late tenor, was full of sunshine. Just the same ...
Fighting for His Heroic Father, Jimmy Lai
September 07, 2023 15:08 - 34 minutes - 27.3 MBSebastien Lai is the son of Jimmy Lai, the great Hong Kong entrepreneur and publisher who is now a political prisoner: a symbol of the general struggle of Hong Kong against the tyranny that has engulfed it. Sebastien is campaigning around the world in his father’s behalf. He has many interesting things to say: about his dad, about Hong Kong, even about some deep things in life.
Of Economics and Termites
September 01, 2023 02:22 - 52 minutes - 42.1 MBMichael R. Strain is an economist at the American Enterprise Institute. Jay talks with him about his upbringing, his education, and how he arrived at his views, which favor economic freedom and freedom generally—the “open society.” What about our federal budget deficit and national debt? Is there bound to be a reckoning? Strain says that there are two kinds of reckoning: a horrendous, destructive bear, suddenly at your door; and termites, eating away at your foundations, day after day. We are...
George F. Will, Classically Conservative
August 25, 2023 21:47 - 35 minutes - 28.6 MBIn this conversation, Jay asks George Will about issues that both have been thinking about: the GOP presidential race; Ukraine; our fiscal house (wobbly); abortion; affirmative action; drug legalization. What else? Well, baseball, and Shohei Ohtani in particular. And books—books that left a political mark. And Jim Buckley, who passed away last week at 100. In 1976, he and Pat Moynihan ran against each other for a U.S. Senate seat. George Will tells a wonderful story about that. All in all, a ...
A Chat with Lea
August 21, 2023 20:03 - 38 minutes - 31.1 MBLea Desandre is an Italian-French mezzo-soprano and one of the brightest lights in singing today. She trained, for years, as a dancer. But music proved to be her calling. With Jay, she talks about her voice, her upbringing, Julie Andrews (yes), “The Little Prince,” and “life its ownself.” A visit with this young woman, you will find, is enchanting.
A Soprano on the Rise
August 15, 2023 14:37 - 39 minutes - 31.4 MBAdriana González is a star of the Salzburg Festival this year. She is a soprano from Guatemala—an unusual place for a classical musician to be from. Sitting on a terrace in Salzburg, Jay talks with her about her life and art. Adriana is a breath of fresh air.
Truth in Movies? Etc.
August 06, 2023 20:57 - 1 hour - 49.6 MBIssue upon issue: climate; “Barbenheimer”; political labels; conspiracy theories; transgenderism; Ukraine; books . . . Like many other people, Kevin D. Williamson and Jay are thinking about these issues, and jaw about them. A candid and probing discussion.
A Wrestling Champion, and Human-Rights Champion, from Iran
July 28, 2023 18:29 - 30 minutes - 24.7 MBSardar Pashaei is an Iranian-American athlete and democracy activist. He comes from a family of dissidents. Also a family of athletes. He and his brothers were wrestlers. One of them, Saman, is in prison. Sardar was World Youth Champion in 1998. (Also Asian Youth Champion.) His government denied him the right to compete in the Olympic Games. He has been in America since 2009. An extraordinary man.
A Great Singer: Our Friend Flicka
July 19, 2023 19:30 - 58 minutes - 46.9 MBFrederica von Stade—“Flicka,” universally—is one of the outstanding singers of our age. She is an American mezzo-soprano. With Jay, she talks about music and life. She even does a little singing, as a bonus. Get to know this remarkable person.
Scholar, and Friend, of the Chinese
July 12, 2023 03:22 - 48 minutes - 38.8 MBEarlier, Jay spoke with Perry Link about Liu Xiaobo, the great Chinese democracy leader, of whom he has co-authored a biography. For that episode, go here. In the present episode, Jay speaks with Professor Link about being a China scholar—the language, the political pitfalls, and so on. As Jay says in his introduction, it is “a joy” to listen to Perry Link—“a joy and an education.”
A Great Man from China
July 10, 2023 15:15 - 40 minutes - 32.1 MBLiu Xiaobo was one of the great men of our age. He was a Chinese intellectual and democracy leader. In 2010, while in prison, he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. He died, still a prisoner, in 2017. Perry Link and Wu Dazhi have written a new biography: “I Have No Enemies: The Life and Legacy of Liu Xiaobo.” Jay talks with Professor Link, who is very interesting on this subject, as on so many others.
On Ukraine and Russia, from an Authority
June 30, 2023 01:54 - 1 hour - 65.6 MBKyle Parker, of the U.S. Helsinki Commission, is a fount of knowledge. He was key in the formation of the U.S. Magnitsky Act. That got him placed on Putin’s Most Wanted list. He was a guest on “Q&A” in 2018. When it comes to the Ukraine war, he not only has facts, he has perspective. To listen to him is an education and a pleasure, even when the subject is grim. Utterly authoritative, Kyle Parker is.
A Voice from Egypt
June 20, 2023 12:07 - 29 minutes - 23.4 MBSanaa Seif is a young woman from Egypt. She is a democracy campaigner. A human-rights campaigner. Egypt has about 60,000 political prisoners. One of them is Sanaa’s brother, Alaa. Sanaa herself has been in prison three times. She is very gentle, very soft-spoken—but obviously made of steel. Meet this extraordinary and compelling young woman.
Nazanin Boniadi, Actress and Human-Rights Activist
June 14, 2023 20:14 - 32 minutes - 26.2 MBNazanin Boniadi is a British actress who has been seen in many movies and television shows. Among the former, “Hotel Mumbai.” Among the latter, “How I Met Your Mother.” For Jay’s purposes, however, she is a splendid advocate for human rights in the country of her birth: Iran. What she has to say is both informed and moving.
The Joker, Coach Spo, and More
June 09, 2023 13:04 - 40 minutes - 32.4 MBA sportscast, with Jay’s gurus David French and Vivek Dave. They begin with the new marriage between the Saudis and the PGA Tour. And then they get to basketball — the NBA in particular. Have a listen to two affable and knowledgeable fellows (plus Jay).
Maestro Riccardo Muti and His World
May 30, 2023 16:48 - 58 minutes - 46.9 MBRiccardo Muti is one of the most renowned musicians before the public today. Born in 1941, he has conducted in Milan, Vienna, London, Philadelphia—many places. Since 2010, he has been the music director of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. He is leaving that position at the end of this season, which is nearing. After a recent concert, Jay sat with the maestro in his studio to talk about music, and life. A rich, interesting, frank, amusing, and sometimes poignant conversation. Lend an ear.
Helper of the Homeless
May 25, 2023 17:06 - 47 minutes - 38.3 MBBob McElroy is a powerful individual. He thinks, speaks, and acts powerfully. He has devoted his life to helping the homeless. He has been through all the problems they have. McElroy is the president and CEO of the Alpha Project, in San Diego. He is a “point of light”—so designated by Bush 41’s foundation. Jay wrote about McElroy in a piece on San Diego and homelessness. Homelessness is a problem—a scourge—throughout the country. Bob McElroy knows the why and wherefores. And he speaks with re...
Sharansky on Russia and Ukraine, Oppression and Freedom
May 16, 2023 01:49 - 50 minutes - 40 MBNatan Sharansky has been a world hero since the 1970s. He was a prisoner in the Soviet gulag for nine years. Afterward, he wrote one of the great prison memoirs: “Fear No Evil.” On May 8, he published an op-ed piece in the Washington Post: “Why Putin’s repression is worse than what I endured under the Soviets.” With Jay, he talks about the Kremlin’s current political prisoners, and the war on Ukraine, and related subjects. To listen to Sharansky is a bracing and instructive experience.
Soviet Girl, American Woman, Analyst of All
May 05, 2023 20:14 - 43 minutes - 35 MBIn journalism, Cathy Young is “an MVP of this era,” says Jay: “the era of the Ukraine war, and associated convulsions in the world.” Cathy Young is a writer at The Bulwark, in addition to contributing to Newsday, Reason, etc. She has been a columnist for many years. Born in Moscow, she grew up in the Soviet Union, coming to America at 17. With Jay, she talks about Russia, Ukraine, and America—and a bit more, including literature, music, and animals.