Keen On America
Andrew Keen
Nobody asks sharper or more impertinent questions than Andrew Keen. In KEEN ON, Andrew cross-examines the world’s smartest people on politics, economics, history, the environment, and tech. If you want to make sense of our complex world, check out the daily questions and the answers on KEEN ON.
Named as one of the "100 most connected men" by GQ magazine, Andrew Keen is amongst the world's best-known technology and politics broadcasters and commentators. In addition to presenting KEEN ON, he is the host of the long-running show How To Fix Democracy and the author of four critically acclaimed books about the future, including the international bestselling CULT OF THE AMATEUR.
Keen On is free to listen to and will remain so. If you want to stay up-to-date on new episodes and support the show, please subscribe to Andrew Keen’s Substack. Paid subscribers will soon be able to access exclusive content from our new series Keen On America – keenon.substack.com
Named as one of the "100 most connected men" by GQ magazine, Andrew Keen is amongst the world's best-known technology and politics broadcasters and commentators. In addition to presenting KEEN ON, he is the host of the long-running show How To Fix Democracy and the author of four critically acclaimed books about the future, including the international bestselling CULT OF THE AMATEUR.
Keen On is free to listen to and will remain so. If you want to stay up-to-date on new episodes and support the show, please subscribe to Andrew Keen’s Substack. Paid subscribers will soon be able to access exclusive content from our new series Keen On America – keenon.substack.com
Episodes
Mentioned books
May 13, 2026 • 45min
Where Are the Firefighters? Jonathan Vigliotti on How Los Angeles Was Left to Burn
Jonathan Vigliotti, CBS national correspondent and award-winning reporter who covered the January 2025 Los Angeles wildfires and wrote Torched. He recounts chaotic first hours in the Palisades, why fire crews could not reach blazes, and how past warnings echoed earlier disasters. He also explores leadership failures, the rush to rebuild for the 2028 Olympics, and risky reconstruction choices.
May 13, 2026 • 38min
What Would You Do With the Last 19 Minutes of Your Life? Vincent Yu on an Apocalypse that Fizzled
Vincent Yu, a debut novelist and former biologist turned writer, explores what people do when they think the world is ending. He discusses a false missile alert that reveals hidden truths. Conversations hit honesty under threat, why the story focuses on the aftermath, and his ‘petri dish’ method of pressure-testing characters.
May 11, 2026 • 41min
A Nation of Strangers: Ece Temelkuran on Rebuilding Home in a Homeless World
Ece Temelkuran, Turkish writer who chronicles exile and populism, reflects on four forms of homelessness today. She discusses using personal exile to tell a universal story. She examines friendships as survival, the politics of fear and far right appeal, globalization and new imaginaries of home, and how women’s work rebuilds belonging.
May 10, 2026 • 32min
That Sounds Incredibly Boring: Keith Teare's Vision of our Jobless AI Future
Keith Teare, British-American entrepreneur and publisher known for tech commentary, imagines a future where AI ends scarcity and paid work becomes optional. The conversation probes whether civilization moves in a single linear arc or in many unpredictable strands. They debate who shapes our AI future, the role of media and regulation, and what freedoms and scarcities might remain in an abundant world.
May 9, 2026 • 50min
Hong Kong Burning: Simon Elegant on the 2019 Protests
Simon Elegant, Hong Kong–born journalist and novelist who covered China for Time and the Washington Post, discusses his thriller City on Fire. He traces Hong Kong's colonial roots, the erosion of one country, two systems, and the mass 2019 protests. Short takes on police culture, identity, emigration after the crackdown, and why fiction can reveal moral complexity.
May 8, 2026 • 48min
Is London Really Falling? Bethanne Patrick on Patrick Radden Keefe, Freya India and the Collapse of Book Reviewing
Bethanne Patrick, Los Angeles Times book critic and founder of #FridayReads, navigates books about collapse and resilience. She discusses Patrick Radden Keefe’s London Falling and true-crime allure, Freya India’s Girls and the commodification of youth, Mac Barnett’s Make Believe for children, Joanna Stern on AI as a tool, and worries about the decline of book reviewing.
May 8, 2026 • 46min
Never Trust a Handsome Soldier: Becky Holmes on the Past, Present and Future of Fraud
Becky Holmes, writer and researcher on fraud and online scams, author of Keanu Reeves Is Not In Love With You and The Future of Fraud. She traces fraud from ancient cons to modern AI-powered romance and pig‑butchering scams. She explains how the internet and AI erase red flags, why education and better policing matter, and how scammers exploit trust in communities.
May 7, 2026 • 43min
The Mysterious Mr Murdaugh: James Lasdun on Why a Father Annihilated His Son
James Lasdun, Anglo-American poet and crime writer behind The Family Man, probes the baffling Murdaugh killings. He explores motive, the family annihilator label, the boat crash and staged shooting, power and corruption in a legal dynasty, plus jury interference and the strange psychological gaps that keep the case mysterious.
May 6, 2026 • 55min
Why History Keeps Happening: Patrick Wyman on Human Failure and Success in Building Civilizations,
Patrick Wyman, popular public historian and author of Lost Worlds, explores how civilizations arise through trial, failure, and unexpected consequences. He showcases new archaeological tools and uses vivid cases like Ötzi to rethink the progress narrative. Short, surprising stories reveal deep-time variety, resilience after collapse, and why our present is a middle, not an end.
May 5, 2026 • 52min
How Politicians Broke Our World: Ian Shapiro on Raising Ourselves Up After the Fall
Ian Shapiro, Sterling Professor of Political Science at Yale and author, argues that political choices — not inevitability — produced today’s democratic crisis. He spotlights 2008 as the turning point, critiques NATO expansion and neoliberal elites, and calls for big public investments and new political ideas. The conversation ranges from Russia and China to rebuilding trust through infrastructure and policy innovation.
