Departures Podcast featuring Sergei Guriev, author of ‘Spin Dictators: The Changing Face of Tyranny in the 21st Century’

By Editor | Published: February 10, 2023

In the age of information and with growing calls around the world for democracy, Vladimir Putin, Lee Kuan Yew and Alberto Fujimori are redefining what it means to be a dictator in the 21st century. Through the manipulation of information, media, and using censorship, this new breed of despots are covertly monopolizing power under the […]

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Departures Podcast featuring Kimberly Kay Hoang, author of ‘Spiderweb Capitalism: How Global Elites Exploit Frontier Markets’

By Editor | Published: January 30, 2023

In international finance, the difference between what is legal and normal and what is criminal and corrupt is often unclear, a disparity made worse by an overlapping series of laws and regulations which in some cases can put U.S. competition at a disadvantage. These networks of illicit finance, shell corporations, and offshore structures used by […]

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Departures Podcast featuring Owen Matthews, author of ‘Overreach: The Inside Story of Putin and Russia’s War Against Ukraine’

By Editor | Published: January 20, 2023

As we approach the one-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, a number of journalists and authors have published highly detailed chronicles from the battlefield, stories of resilience and heroism of the Ukrainian resistance, and geopolitical analyses across the spectrum. But few of these books view the war through Russian eyes, understanding the thinking that […]

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Departures Podcast featuring Deborah Cohen, author of ‘Last Call at the Hotel Imperial: The Reporters Who Took On a World at War’

By Editor | Published: January 12, 2023

The role of foreign correspondents, especially during times of war, can be extraordinarily important not only in shaping public perceptions and strategic decisionmaking at the highest level, but also in informing on revolutionary shifts in social norms, as these reporters find themselves bringing their personal lives into the public and the newsmaking process into their […]

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Departures Podcast featuring Luke Harding, author of ‘Invasion: The Inside Story of Russia’s Bloody War and Ukraine’s Fight for Survival’

By Editor | Published: December 29, 2022

After almost 23 years in power, Russian President Vladimir Putin currently appears more weakened and vulnerable than during any other period of his presidency, thanks in large part to his disastrous decision to invade Ukraine. On this week’s Departures, we bring back the veteran journalist Luke Harding, who for years serving the Guardian’s correspondent in […]

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Departures Podcast featuring Anna Aruntunyan, author of ‘Hybrid Warriors: Proxies, Freelancers and Moscow’s Struggle for Ukraine’

By Editor | Published: December 14, 2022

When we talk about the gig economy, we usually are referring to rideshare drivers, errand runners, and all sorts of service industry freelancers. But we rarely think about the freelancers and non-state actors which take part in wars and armed conflict, doing the sometimes violent fighting and often disruptive hacking, as playing a very important […]

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