City Journal Audio

Robert P. George, Princeton jurisprudence professor and director of the James Madison Program, joins to unpack the Founders' design for limited government. He discusses Madison’s realism about human nature and how structural checks, separation of powers, and federalism constrain factions. They also explore the proper roles of courts, Congress, universities, and civic education in sustaining liberty and equal dignity.

City Journal Editor Brian Anderson and Rafael Mangual explore the magazine's history, its influence on urban policy, and the challenges associated with technological change. They discuss City Journal's distinctive approach to policy journalism and the importance of style and accessibility in conservative media.

Allison Schrager, a financial economist and author who studies risk and incentives, joins to explore conservative economic thought and free markets. Short conversations cover how prices coordinate trade, why temporary profits drive medical innovation, the role of incentives in welfare design, and how risk tolerance shapes policy preferences.

Stephen Eide, a Manhattan Institute senior fellow who studies homelessness and mental illness, reflects on how family breakdown and untreated psychiatric disorders drive street homelessness. He critiques housing-first simplifications. Short, pointed conversations cover limits of voluntary care, when coercion becomes necessary, and the tradeoffs between liberty, public safety, and realistic urban policy.

Lionel Shriver, novelist and columnist known for provocative fiction, discusses her book A Better Life. She explains how a mayoral proposal sparked the story and why mass migration demanded a novelistic approach. Conversations explore hosts' dilemmas, contested vetting and bureaucracy, performative altruism, ambiguous migrant characters, and themes of property, national confidence, and cultural tension.

Douglas Murray, author and cultural commentator on Western civilization, outlines why Western values need active defense. He discusses rising anti-Semitism, threats to free speech, mass migration and integration, and cultural self-abnegation in Britain. He also explores the role of clear writing, institutions, and practical cultural action to push back.

Leor Sapir, a senior fellow and researcher on gender policy who led an HHS review of pediatric gender-dysphoria treatment, discusses how gender discourse and policy shifted over the past decade. He examines medicalization of school and legal fights, reviews the evidence base for youth interventions, and explores social influence, institutional dynamics, and definitional problems around gender identity.

John O. McGinnis, George C. Dix Professor in Constitutional Law and author, argues wealthy individuals can widen political pluralism and fund bold experiments. He discusses the entrepreneurial origins of modern wealth, private philanthropy’s distinct public benefits, tech and AI risks tied to wealth taxes, and how rich patrons sustain urban cultural life.

Manhattan Institute Legal Policy Fellow Tal Fortgang and Rafael Mangual explore the differences between civil terrorism and civil disobedience. Fortgang explains how some organizations exploit legal loopholes to avoid accountability for lawless behavior, and why current laws often fail to address coordinated disruption and destruction.

Rob Henderson, Theodore Dalrymple, and Rafael Mangual examine the real drivers of antisocial behavior and crime—and the growing disconnect between policymakers and the communities most affected by violence. They explore how elite "luxury beliefs" shape public narratives around criminality, often minimizing harm while insulating decision-makers from the consequences of their ideas.