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
Mar 12, 2026 • 36min
The Magical Realist United States: Jazmine Ulloa on El Paso as America’s New Ellis Island
Jazmine Ulloa, national immigration reporter for The New York Times and author of El Paso: Five Families and 100 Years of Blood, Migration, Race, and Memory, brings a personal El Paso perspective. She explores El Paso as America’s modern gateway. She traces shifting border identities, bipartisan enforcement of detention and deportation, and how border tactics are spreading into US cities. She weaves history, storytelling, and memory.
Mar 11, 2026 • 36min
Move Fast and Break the World: Jonathan Taplin on Trump as an Interregnum
Jonathan Taplin, author and media veteran, offers stark takes on Silicon Valley’s sway over war and policy. He likens Trump to an interregnum and maps a rising digital military-industrial complex led by tech billionaires. He discusses AI-enabled targeting tragedies, corporate consolidation choking R&D, and fragile political futures. The conversation ends on culture, resistance, and a surprising Taco Tuesday aside.
Mar 10, 2026 • 29min
So Are All Immigrants Manchurian Candidates? Peter Schweizer on How Mexico, China, and the Muslim Brotherhood Are Weaponizing Immigration
Peter Schweizer, investigative author known for books on foreign influence, argues that foreign governments and networks can 'weaponize' migration. He discusses consular political organizing, Mexico’s diaspora influence, Chinese birth-tourism and its long-term effects, and historical models like the Mariel boatlift. The conversation explores vetting, border strategy, and whether some immigration flows pose strategic risks.
Mar 9, 2026 • 33min
Gatsby Without the Romance: Michael Wolff on Why Trump and Epstein Are the Same Person
Michael Wolff, journalist and bestselling author known for insider books on media and politics, discusses his long experience with Jeffrey Epstein and his view that Epstein and Donald Trump are morally the same. He recounts publishers rejecting his Epstein work, critiques media discomfort around the scandal, and paints Epstein as a mysterious social middleman—Gatsby without the romance.
Mar 8, 2026 • 43min
How to Reclaim the Internet: Olivier Sylvain on Platforms and Policy
Olivier Sylvain, Fordham law professor and former FTC senior advisor, argues that legal choices like Section 230 shaped the internet we have. He discusses how design and business models engineer attention, why calling companies "platforms" misleads, the limits of decentralization, and how AI repeats past regulatory mistakes.
Mar 7, 2026 • 44min
No AI Good Guys? Andrew & Keith Ask If Altman Amodei, & Hegseth Have All Failed the Leadership Test
Keith Teare, tech entrepreneur and weekly commentator on tech policy and AI leadership, labels Altman, Amodei and Hegseth as failing the leadership test. He critiques rapid U-turns, legal ambiguities around "no unlawful use," and how wartime choices exposed company-government entanglements. The conversation contrasts US AI theater with China’s strategic planning and calls for real democratic governance of AI.
Mar 7, 2026 • 39min
What Would Daniel Ellsberg Say About Iran? His Son Michael on America’s Most Famous Whistleblower
Michael Ellsberg, writer who co-edited his father Daniel Ellsberg’s posthumous collection. He discusses why publishing Daniel’s notebooks matters now. Short conversations cover civic courage, whistleblowing from Pentagon Papers to Snowden, moral definitions of terrorism, and how Daniel might view U.S. policy toward Iran and congressional oversight.
Mar 5, 2026 • 51min
From the Muckers to the Mullahs: Christopher Clark on the Lessons of History
Christopher Clark, Regius Professor of History at Cambridge and author of The Sleepwalkers, explores the fake Mucker scandal in 19th-century Königsberg and what it reveals about social panic and elite overreach. He connects how rumor, religious divides, and failures of empathy shape politics. The conversation ends with reflections on present risks and the uncertain fallout of actions toward Iran.
Mar 4, 2026 • 1h 8min
How To Fix Big Med: Halle Tecco and Robin Blackstone on American Healthcare and its Discontents
Robin Blackstone, surgeon and author focused on AI in medicine, and Halle Tecco, health entrepreneur, investor, and professor, discuss America's healthcare collapse. They debate corporatization, monopoly medicine, the rise of payvider models, AI's role and guardrails, physician burnout, patient-owned data, and the case for funding primary care and public health.
12 snips
Mar 3, 2026 • 42min
The Coming Storm: Odd Arne Westad Asks If We're On the Brink of World War Three
Arne Westad, Yale historian of global affairs and author of The Coming Storm, warns the 2020s echo pre-1914 multipolar dangers. He traces parallels between rising China, a retreating US, shrinking decision time from tech, and volatile regional flashpoints. He names surprising hotspots beyond Taiwan and urges urgent Great Power compromise to avoid a large-scale war.
