Best Dani Rodrik Podcasts (2025)

1
Ideas of Globalisation: What’s Gone Wrong? w/Dani Rodrik 54:05

18d ago54:05

54:05

For the final episode in this series David talks to the leading economist Dani Rodrik about the case he made in the early 2000s that globalisation was unsustainable in its current form. How does he think this prediction has been borne out? What forms of globalisation might work in the 21st century? Where are the strengths and weaknesses of the exis…

1
Politics on Trial: Mary Queen of Scots vs the Secret State 55:42

23h ago55:42

55:42

In today’s episode an extraordinary political trial that culminated in the execution of one queen at the behest of another: Mary Queen of Scots, convicted of treason in 1586 and beheaded in 1587. But who really wanted her dead, Queen Elizabeth or Elizabeth’s powerful political servants? Why did Mary demand to be tried before parliament rather than …

1
Politics on Trial: Thomas More vs the King 58:14

4d ago58:14

58:14

In today’s episode another trial that forms the basis for great drama: the case of Thomas More, tried and executed in 1535, events dramatised by Robert Bolt in A Man for All Seasons and Hilary Mantel in Wolf Hall. How did More try to argue that silence was no evidence of treason? Why was his defence so legalistic? Was he really ‘the Socrates of Eng…

1
Politics on Trial: Joan of Arc vs the Church 1:01:01

8d ago1:01:01

1:01:01

Today’s political trial took place in 1431 though it was still being re-litigated right through to the twentieth century: the case of Joan of Arc, charged with heresy by the Church and burned at the stake. Why was a political prisoner tried in an ecclesiastical court? Why were her interrogators so obsessed by her choice in clothes? How did Joan see…

1
Ep62 “The Cost of Social Compliance: Exploring Preference Falsification" with Timur Kuran 33:37

11d ago33:37

33:37

Is the emperor wearing clothes? Hosts and finance professors Jonathan Berk and Jules van Binsbergen are joined by economist and political scientist Timur Kuran who wrote the book, Private Truths, Public Lies: The Social Consequences of Preference Falsification. This 30-year-old book explains the social phenomenon where people express preferences th…

1
Politics on Trial: Socrates vs Democracy 54:57

11d ago54:57

54:57

The first political trial in our new series is the one that set the template for all the others: the trial of Socrates in Athens in 399 BCE, which ended with a death sentence for the philosopher and a permanent stain on the reputation of Athenian democracy. Why, after a lifetime of philosophy, was Socrates finally prosecuted at the age of 70? Was t…

1
Politics on Trial: A History of Lawfare 52:06

15d ago52:06

52:06

To introduce our new series about historic political trials – from Socrates to Marine Le Pen – David explores what makes political confrontations in a court of law so fascinating and so revealing. Why do even the worst of dictators still want to play by the rules? What happens when realpolitik and legal principles collide? How does the political sy…

1
Ideas of Globalisation: The Crisis of the 1970s (and Trump!) 1:04:18

22d ago1:04:18

1:04:18

David talks to historian Meg Jacobs about how the 1970s changed everything for America’s understanding of its place in the global economy. How did first the Nixon Shock and then the Oil Shock reshape American politics? Why did America’s politicians respond to these shocks not with tariffs or sabre-rattling but with calls to national self-sacrifice?…

1
Ideas of Globalisation: Central Banks vs the People (and Trump!) 56:53

25d ago56:53

56:53

Today David talks to political and economic theorist Leah Downey about the role that central banks in general – and the Federal Reserve in particular – have played in the story of globalisation. How has the Fed tried to reconcile its obligations to American democracy with its obligations to the global order? Is the Eurodollar a token of American st…

1
Ep61 “Pursuit for Academic Freedom” with Richard Saller 30:58

26d ago30:58

30:58

If universities believe they should be free from government interference and that students and faculty have the right to freely express whatever viewpoints they hold, then the universities should be held to the same standard, right? Hosts and finance professors Jonathan Berk and Jules van Binsbergen are joined by Richard Saller, an American classis…

1
Ideas of Globalisation: Hoover and Smoot-Hawley (and Trump!) 1:02:00

29d ago1:02:00

1:02:00

David talks to historian Gary Gerstle about the last time the Republican party got caught up in a tariffs disaster and how it changed American politics. The Smoot-Hawley Act of 1930 brought tariffs back and helped bring down both the Republican Party and the global economy. Why didn’t Hoover stop it? What did the fiasco reveal about the limits of p…

1
Ideas of Globalisation: Chamberlain and the Tariff Wars (and Trump!) 58:06

1M ago58:06

58:06

Today we explore the explosive fight over tariffs that took place in Britain in the first decade of the twentieth century. David talks to historian Robert Saunders about how Joseph Chamberlain made tariff reform a great popular cause and how it nearly destroyed his party. Are there parallels with Trump’s tariff wars today? Yes! Are there lessons fo…

1
Ideas of Globalisation: Trade, Race and Empire (and Trump!) 1:00:08

1M ago1:00:08

1:00:08

We start a new mini-series on the history of ideas of globalisation by exploring how arguments from 150 years ago foreshadow what’s happening with Trump today. David talks to economic historian Marc Palen about the nineteenth-century fight between economic nationalists and the champions of an open economy. Was free trade for everyone or just for wh…

1
The History of Revolutionary Ideas: Lenin and Trotsky 56:24

1M ago56:24

56:24

To conclude this part of our revolutionary ideas series, we explore the overlapping lives and thinking of two emblematic twentieth-century revolutionaries: Lenin and Trotsky. David talks to historian of Russia Edward Acton about what inspired them, what connected them and what divided them. How were they radicalised? How did they interpret the fail…

1
Ep60 “A Trade Deficit? More Like a Capital Surplus” with John Cochrane 28:17

1M ago28:17

28:17

What exactly is a trade deficit? And why are so many policymakers fixated on it? Lately, the trade deficit in the U.S. is taking the bulk of the blame for the economic situation we’re in and it’s one of the reasons the Trump administration is pushing for sweeping tariffs. But tariffs are likely not the answer, and a trade deficit might be better re…

1
PPF Live Special: Churchill – The Politician With Nine Lives w/Robert Saunders 1:03:37

1M ago1:03:37

1:03:37

Today’s episode is the second of our two recent live recordings of PPF, this one in front of an audience at the Bath Curious Minds Festival. David talks to historian Robert Saunders about the life of Winston Churchill and all its twists and turns of fortune: from disgrace in WWI, economic disaster in the 1920s, wilderness in the 1930s, through to r…

1
The History of Revolutionary Ideas: The Rite of Spring w/Dominic Dromgoole 46:53

2M ago46:53

46:53

Our third Parisian revolution is another explosive night in the theatre, this time in the world of dance. David talks to Dominic Dromgoole about Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring, which provoked absolute outrage when it premiered in 1913. Is that what its impresario Diaghilev wanted? How did Nijinsky cope? Did the response foreshadow the trauma to co…

1
The History of Revolutionary Ideas: Ubu Roi w/Dominic Dromgoole 46:01

2M ago46:01

46:01

Today’s Parisian revolution is a theatrical performance that produced a riot. David talks to theatre director Dominic Dromgoole about Alfred Jarry’s Ubu Roi (1896), which only ran for a couple of nights but left an indelible mark on the culture of the age and has resonated ever since. Why did a play effectively written by children provoke such a st…

1
The History of Revolutionary Ideas: Salon Des Refusés w/Dominic Dromgoole 42:44

2M ago42:44

42:44

Today’s episode is the first of three this week with the theatre director and writer Dominic Dromgoole, exploring revolutionary events in the world of art and theatre, starting with the opening of the Salon des Refusés in Paris in May 1863. How did the Emperor Napoleon end up sponsoring such a counter-cultural event? Why did it provoke such public …

1
The History of Revolutionary Ideas: Marx and the Paris Commune 56:24

2M ago56:24

56:24

Today the first of four episodes about Parisian revolutions. We start with the definitive nineteenth-century revolutionary and his definitive revolution: David talks to historian Bruno Leipold about why Karl Marx thought the Paris Commune in 1871 was the model of a workers' uprising and provided a vision of the socialist future. How had the Communa…

1
Ep59 “Why Tariffs Are Not The Ultimate Trade Weapon” with Dani Rodrik 32:16

2M ago32:16

32:16

With President Trump’s tariffs on Canada, Mexico, China, and other countries now in full swing, what consequences from an economic standpoint could the U.S. be facing? And what was the path that led us here? Hosts and finance professors Jonathan Berk and Jules van Binsbergen put the tariffs question to economist and author Dani Rodrik. Rodrik is t…

1
The History of Revolutionary Ideas: Free Speech 1:03:38

2M ago1:03:38

1:03:38

Today’s revolutionary idea is one with a long history, not all of it revolutionary: David talks to the historian Fara Dabhoiwala about the idea of free speech. When did free speech first get articulated as a fundamental right? How has that right been used and abused, from the eighteenth century to the present? And what changed in the history of the…

1
PPF Live Film Special: Network w/Helen Lewis 1:06:00

2M ago1:06:00

1:06:00

We take a brief break from revolutionary ideas for a special live episode of PPF recorded in front of an audience at the Regent Street Cinema in London. David talks to writer and journalist Helen Lewis about Network (1976), a film still best remembered for its catchphrase: ‘I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take this anymore!’ Just how prophetic…

1
The History of Revolutionary Ideas: Darwin w/Adam Rutherford 54:38

2M ago54:38

54:38

David talks to geneticist and science writer Adam Rutherford about the book that fundamentally altered our understanding of just about everything: Darwin’s On The Origin of Species (1859). What made the idea of natural selection so different from the theories of evolution that preceded it? How did Darwin arrive at it? What changed when he published…

1
The History of Revolutionary Ideas: The Taiping Revolution 1:06:48

2M ago1:06:48

1:06:48

Today’s revolutionary ideas come from China: David talks to historian Julia Lovell about the Taiping Revolution, another massive mid-19th-century upheaval that nearly overturned the established order. How did Christianity inspire an uprising against the Qing dynasty? Was it a revolution or a civil war? What was the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom? And whe…

1
Ep58 How Rich Are The Ivy League Universities, Really? University Endowments Explained 24:36

2M ago24:36

24:36

The recent crackdown on federal spending has universities sweating despite the fact that many of them boast huge billion-dollar endowments. So what gives? Why would less money from the federal government be a cause for concern? Where does all that money go? And could there be more to this budget picture than meets the eye? In this episode, hosts an…

1
The History of Revolutionary Ideas: 1848: The Radical Revolution w/Chris Clark 53:30

2M ago53:30

53:30

In our second of three episodes on the revolutions that swept through Europe in 1848 David and Chris Clark explore the forces demanding radical change. What was ‘the Social Question’ and who was asking it? Where did the violence that erupted in the summer of 1848 come from? What, if anything did it achieve? And who paid the price? Out tomorrow: a f…

1
The History of Revolutionary Ideas: 1848: The Liberal Revolution w/Chris Clark 56:55

2M ago56:55

56:55

In the first of three episodes about the revolutions that swept through Europe in 1848 David is joined by historian Chris Clark to explore the ideas behind this continental upheaval. We start with the ‘Liberal Revolution’: Who were the liberals and what had turned them into revolutionaries? How did the original French Revolution overshadow their ho…

1
The History of Revolutionary Ideas: The Bayesian Revolution w/David Spiegelhalter 1:01:36

3M ago1:01:36

1:01:36

Today’s revolutionary idea is something a bit different: David talks to statistician David Spiegelhalter about how an eighteenth-century theory of probability emerged from relative obscurity in the twentieth century to reconfigure our understanding of the relationship between past, present and future. What was Thomas Bayes’s original idea about doi…

1
The History of Revolutionary Ideas: Slave Uprising: The Haitian Revolution 58:01

3M ago58:01

58:01

Today’s episode is about a very different revolution from any we’ve discussed so far: David talks to historian Hank Gonzalez about the Haitian Revolution, which for the first time in history saw a slave revolt result in an independent free state. How did the Haitian Revolution intersect with the American and French Revolutions that preceded it? Why…

1
Rerun: Ep36 “Institutional Neutrality: Open Debate and Moral Stands” with John Etchemendy 25:04

3M ago25:04

25:04

All Else Equal is taking a little spring break, so on this episode we’re revisiting a fascinating conversation on what happens when universities step off the sidelines and take a stance on contentious issues. Are they boarding a roller coaster that they can’t ever get off? Hosts and finance professors Jonathan Berk and Jules van Binsbergen chat wit…

1
The History of Revolutionary Ideas: French Revolution 3: Paine 59:25

3M ago59:25

59:25

For our third episode on the ideas behind the French Revolution, David talks to Richard Whatmore about the ubiquitous Thomas Paine, the Englishman who championed revolutionary politics around the world. How did Paine come to see France as the locus of all his revolutionary hopes? How were those hopes ultimately disappointed? And what happened to Pa…

1
The History of Revolutionary Ideas: French Revolution 2: Robespierre 54:35

3M ago54:35

54:35

For our second episode on the people and ideas behind the French Revolution David talks to historian and biographer Ruth Scurr about the man who came to embody the revolution in all its radicalism and all its terror: Maximilien Robespierre. Who was he and how did he rise so fast once the upheaval was underway? How did he harness the power of the Ja…

1
The History of Revolutionary Ideas: French Revolution 1: Sieyès 58:35

3M ago58:35

58:35

In the first of three episodes about the people and ideas behind the French Revolution, David talks to Lucia Rubinelli about the man who helped kickstart it all: the Abbé Sieyès. How did an obscure cleric galvanise a nation? What did he mean by the Third Estate and why did he think it was everything? What went wrong with his idea of a new constitut…

1
The History of Revolutionary Ideas: American Revolution 2: The Constitution 1:04:53

3M ago1:04:53

1:04:53

In the second of our two episodes about the American Revolution David talks to historian Eric Nelson about the ideas that shaped the US Constitution. Was the office of President a victory for the people who still wanted a king or for those who never wanted one again? What was old and what was new about the idea of the separation of powers? What rea…

1
Ep57 “Effective Communication: Trump vs. Reagan” with Peter Robinson 36:40

3M ago36:40

36:40

One key to effective negotiation is to keep your opponent guessing by randomizing your strategy. And right now, there might not be a more prolific example of this kind of strategy than President Donald Trump’s communication style. In this episode, hosts and finance professors Jonathan Berk and Jules van Binsbergen are joined by Peter Robinson, a re…

1
The History of Revolutionary Ideas: American Revolution 1: The Declaration of Independence 1:01:02

3M ago1:01:02

1:01:02

Today it’s the first of two episodes about one of the most significant revolutions of all: the American Revolution. David talks to historian Eric Nelson about the ideas behind America’s Declaration of Independence in 1776. How did a fight with the British parliament become a repudiation of the British king? What turned royalists into republicans? W…

1
The History of Revolutionary Ideas: The Industrial Revolution 54:23

3M ago54:23

54:23

Today’s episode is about a revolution that started 250 years ago and is still going on (in the form of the digital revolution): the Industrial Revolution. David talks to economic historian Alexis Litvine about how new ways of making things changed human understanding of the world around us. Did the Industrial Revolution invent the idea of progress?…

1
The History of Revolutionary Ideas: English Revolution 2: 1688 57:03

4M ago57:03

57:03

In the second of our episodes with historian Clare Jackson on the English revolutions of the 17th century we discuss the one that usually gets called ‘Glorious’: the revolution of 1688. Was it a revolution or was it an invasion? What rights did parliament win and what powers did it acquire? Was this the beginning of the modern military state? And d…

1
The History of Revolutionary Ideas: English Revolution 1: Civil War 57:42

4M ago57:42

57:42

Today’s episode in our history of revolutionary ideas is about the event that is sometimes – but not always – called the English Revolution: the Civil War of the 1640s and the short-lived republic that followed. David talks to historian Clare Jackson about whether this really was a revolution and about the thinking that inspired it. What was old, w…

1
Ep56 “When Should We Lie for the Greater Good?” with John Ioannidis 34:10

4M ago34:10

34:10

Is it acceptable for doctors to lie to their patients, or withhold some of the truth, if it’s in the patient’s best interest? In this episode, hosts and finance professors Jonathan Berk and Jules van Binsbergen welcome back John Ioannidis, professor of medicine at Stanford University, to discuss the ethical implications of concealing the truth in t…

1
The History of Revolutionary Ideas: The Scientific Revolution 1:06:40

4M ago1:06:40

1:06:40

Today’s episode is about a revolution that took centuries to happen if it ever really happened at all: The Scientific Revolution. David talks to historian of science Simon Schaffer about what changed in human understanding – and what didn’t – in the age of Galileo and Newton. Was the new science a revolution of ideas or of practices? What did it me…

1
The History of Revolutionary Ideas: The Reformation (part 1): Luther 57:07

4M ago57:07

57:07

Today’s revolutionary thinker is Martin Luther, the man who upended the religious, political and intellectual life of Europe, maybe without entirely meaning to. David talks to historian Alec Ryrie about how a German monk took on the entire authority of the Catholic Church and survived the experience. What did he hope to achieve? Who were his princi…

1
The History of Revolutionary Ideas: Humanism 1:00:47

4M ago1:00:47

1:00:47

Today’s episode in our history of revolutionary ideas is about a medieval movement that used the ancient past to rethink and reimagine the present and the future. David talks to historian Eric Nelson about humanism and its enormous impact on the history of ideas. How did humanism emerge out of catastrophe? What did it do to the hold of Church and E…

1
The History of Revolutionary Ideas: Magna Carta 1:07:04

4M ago1:07:04

1:07:04

Today’s episode in our history of revolutionary ideas is about a medieval document that is sometimes thought to contain a ground-breaking promise of basic political rights. David talks to historian Nick Vincent about Magna Carta (1215) and what it did and didn’t actually say. Why did the warring parties agree to it? Was it a constitutional charter …

1
Ep55 “The Future Of The MBA: From 3 Top Business Schools” with Madhav Rajan 32:03

4M ago32:03

32:03

As more and more universities move away from full-time MBA programs, what does the future of business education look like? How should it look? In this episode, hear perspectives from three of the top business schools in the U.S.: Stanford Graduate School of Business, The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, and the Booth School of Busi…

1
The History of Revolutionary Ideas: Islam 1:03:07

4M ago1:03:07

1:03:07

Today’s episode in our history of revolutionary ideas explores the world-altering impact of Islam from the seventh century onwards. David talks to the leading Islamic scholar Tim Winter (Abdal Hakim Murad) about what changed – and what didn’t – with the appearance of Islamic law, Islamic culture and Islamic ideas of community. Was Islam really egal…

1
The History of Revolutionary Ideas: Christianity w/Tom Holland 57:44

4M ago57:44

57:44

Today’s episode in our series on revolutionary ideas is a conversation covering two millennia with the historian Tom Holland exploring the never-ending upending of human understanding brought about by Christianity. How can weakness be the ultimate strength? How can political order be built out of the glorification of suffering? How can a universal …

1
The History of Revolutionary Ideas: Socrates w/Agnes Callard 54:30

4M ago54:30

54:30

To begin our history of revolutionary ideas in earnest, David talks to the philosopher Agnes Callard about Socrates, the philosopher who changed – and can still change – everything. Just what is so radical about the Socratic method? How does it open up new ways of thinking about the meaning of life? Can anyone do it? And where does it leave 2000+ y…

1
The History of Revolutionary Ideas: What Makes a Revolutionary Idea? 55:44

5M ago55:44

55:44

To kick off our new series on revolutionary ideas past, present and future David talks to two regular PPF contributors – the philosopher Lea Ypi and the scientist Adam Rutherford – about what makes an idea truly revolutionary. Do revolutionary ideas change the world? Can the world be changed without them? Can bad ideas ever be revolutionary ideas? …

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Dani Rodrik Podcasts

Podcasts Worth a Listen

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