On with Kara Swisher

Latest Episodes:

Barry Diller on Biden, AI and the Hollywood Shutdown Aug 31, 2023

Show notes

Billionaire mogul and power broker Barry Diller doesn’t hold back (at all) as he takes us inside Washington, Silicon Valley and Hollywood. The legendary executive breaks down why Biden isn’t his “fave,” how we can save the news business and “the republic” from AI, and how the “evil genius” of Netflix factors into the ongoing WGA and SAG strikes. That, and more, in what Kara and Nayeema dub “the Mediterranean ‘ratf*ck’ episode.”

Questions or comments? Email us at on@voxmedia.com or find us on social media. We’re on Instagram/Threads as @karaswisher and @nayeemaraza

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WTF Can We Do About Deadly Wildfires? Aug 28, 2023

Show notes

From the tragedy in Hawaii — which has left at least 115 dead, and over a thousand more missing, making it the deadliest blaze in the last century of US history — to recent fires in Canada, California, Indonesia and Brazil, the world seems to be engulfed in a megafire crisis fueled by climate change. We bring on a panel of practitioners to discuss what’s behind these megafires, and how we can work to mitigate the crisis. Matt Weiner is the CEO of the nonprofit Megafire Action, with a background in policymaking; Lenya Quinn-Davidson is Director of University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources Fire Network; and Chad Hanson is the Director of the John Muir Project of Earth Island Institute, a research and advocacy organization focused on federal public forestlands.

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Why We Can’t Quit Elon with Ronan Farrow & William Cohan Aug 24, 2023

Show notes

We’re talking about Elon – again – but this time we're looking at the big picture: the tech titan’s “unprecedented power” over our the federal government and national security, as encapsulated in Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter Ronan Farrow's latest New Yorker profile. William Cohan, a financial journalist and founding partner of Puck News, also joins to break down the varying fortunes of SpaceX, Tesla and Twitter, and the sustainability of those companies under a leader that is ambitious, but capricious. Stay til the end to hear Kara tell Nayeema why, despite his shenanigans, she still has empathy for Elon Musk.

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Ron DeSantis Won’t Stop Imani Rupert Gordon Aug 21, 2023

Show notes

Today after Kara and Nayeema take a quick walk down Rudy Giuliani memory lane, we turn to our guest: Imani Rupert-Gordon, Executive Director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights, to discuss the intensifying threat against LGBTQ+ rights in states from North Carolina to Florida. On the agenda: why trans kids are a target for hate, which rights could be on the chopping block next, and why the legal battles are so enmeshed with disinformation and narrative wars.

Questions or comments? Email us at on@voxmedia.com or find us on social media. We’re @karaswisher and @nayeemaraza on Instagram/Threads.

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Big Companies Are Scared of These Lawyers Aug 17, 2023

Show notes

Kara and Nayeema are back with a fresh episode, and this time they’re tackling the DOJ’s antitrust efforts. Our guests are Jonathan Kanter, Assistant Attorney General for the DOJ's Antitrust Division, and Principal Deputy AAG Doha Mekki. Alongside the FTC, this duo has helped craft new draft merger guidelines that put Amazon, Apple, Google, Meta and every other big company, from supermarket chains to airlines, on notice.

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Where Should We Begin? with Esther Perel: Friendship — My Reliable Gift Aug 14, 2023

Show notes

Today, we’re sharing an episode of Where Should We Begin?, a Vox Media podcast hosted by the iconic psychotherapist Esther Perel. Listen in as real people in search of insight bare the raw, intimate, and profound details of their stories.

In this episode, a Where Should We Begin first, Esther sits down with two friends. They’ve been close for so long they feel like brothers, with all of the baggage that comes with family but none of the certainty. There are things that go unspoken between them, issues they have skimmed over in their two decades of friendship. Esther creates the space for the conversation they didn't know quite where to begin. This session was recorded in collaboration with NPR's Invisibilia and a sibling episode with Esther can be heard on their podcast.

Kara & Nayeema will be back Thursday with a fresh episode of ON.

You can find Esther Perel on Instagram @estherperelofficial

Listen and follow Were Should We Begin? with Ester Perel

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Aging, Death and other Uplifting Topics with Mike Birbiglia Aug 10, 2023

Show notes

Today, we’re re-airing one of Blakeney Schick’s favorite episodes: an interview with her former yoga student, comedian and writer, Mike Birbiglia. Aging, parenting by mortality and dying alone or kinless: these are just some of the uplifting topics Kara and Nayeema tackle before the interview.

When we originally published this episode, Mike was deep in his latest Broadway show, “The Old Man and the Pool.” (The show completed its Broadway run in January, and will open for a limited run in London next month.) In it, Birbiglia doesn’t shy away from such heavy topics either. Birbiglia and Kara discuss mortality, parenthood, their last words and finding comedy in all of life — even the sad bits.

Questions? Comments? Email us at on@voxmedia.com or find us on Instagram. We’re @karaswisher and @nayeemaraza.

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Esther Perel on Grief — In Memory of Blakeney Schick Aug 07, 2023

Show notes

Kara & Nayeema are joined by Esther Perel in a tribute to our colleague and friend, senior producer Blakeney Schick, and a conversation about how to live through grief.

NOTE: If you are hearing the wrong episode play, please close and reopen your podcast app to fix the issue. If that doesn't work, please click "remove download" and then re-download the episode.

You can hear more of Esther Perel on her podcast Where Should We Begin?

Questions? Comments? Email us at on@voxmedia.com or find us on Instagram. We’re @karaswisher and @nayeemaraza.

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Is Chris Christie Really the Anti-Trump? Aug 03, 2023

Show notes

Today, we turn to Chris Christie. The former governor of New Jersey and Trump sidekick is running to be president (again). His most avid supporters? Folks who hate Trump — amused Democrats and the oh-so-small band of (still) Never Trump Republican primary voters. Nonetheless, Christie seems determined to do his best to kamikaze the former president.

But who is Chris Christie? What does he stand for, really? And after he’s flipped and flopped on Trump, can we trust him to not bend the knee again?

Questions? Comments? Email us at on@voxmedia.com or find us on Instagram. We’re @karaswisher and @nayeemaraza.

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Vinod Khosla’s View of the Future, From AI to China Jul 31, 2023

Show notes

After Kara and Nayeema discuss Senators Warren and Graham’s unlikely alliance on tech regulation, we turn to today’s guest: longtime venture capitalist Vinod Khosla. We discuss his take that AI will “free humanity from the need to work,” his early investments in climate tech, and what happens in the techno-economic war between the United States and China.

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