Conversations with Tyler

Bob Spitz, veteran biographer and music-world insider, discusses the Rolling Stones' roots, what they added to the blues, and why albums like Beggars Banquet and Let It Bleed matter. He talks Charlie Watts and Brian Jones, Mick and Keith's longevity, the Stones versus the Beatles, and why popular music’s cultural sway has faded.

Craig Newmark, Craigslist founder and philanthropist, talks about why the web got uglier, why he gave up control early, and how customer service made him more trusting. He gets into scams, authenticity online, and why ratings systems are easy to game. There is also philanthropy, journalism, pigeons, Leonard Cohen, sci-fi, and the charm of awkward honesty.

Kim Bowes, a University of Pennsylvania archaeologist of Roman everyday life, tours the bustling world of ordinary Romans. She gets into colorful elite homes, weak sanitation, slow Christianization, gold in daily trade, family based lending, slavery’s messy economics, pepper and fashion as signs of consumer abundance, and the inflation and population decline behind Rome’s unraveling.

Arthur C. Brooks, Harvard professor and former French horn player turned economist, talks about reinvention, religion, and the science of happiness. They explore why scarcity and suffering shape meaning, how habits can outweigh happy genes, curiosity and self-deception, accepting death, Catholicism and ritual, AI and creativity, and his winding path from music to economics.

Paul Gillingham, Northwestern historian of Mexico and author of Mexico: A 500-Year History, explores why Mexico stayed united after independence. He gets into Yucatán’s surprising safety, Oaxaca’s political magic, Guerrero’s long violence, Mexico’s unusual freedom from military coups, and why new judicial reforms could reshape the country.

Harvey Mansfield, veteran political philosopher and longtime Harvard professor, dives into Machiavelli’s invention of “effectual truth,” conspiracies and secrecy in politics, and why modernity may be impossible to reverse. He also touches on Trump as a Shakespearean figure, Straussian reading and irony, Churchill’s democratic dignity, and the eclipse of manliness.

Henry Oliver, literary critic and author of Second Act, explores Shakespeare's Measure for Measure and its tangled moral politics. He traces links across English letters, praises Swift’s practical intelligence, and explains why many ads fail. They also debate late blooming, Austen’s debt to Adam Smith, and which works in English are over- and underrated.

Joe Studwell, journalist and author of How Asia Works and How Africa Works, brings a sharp, policy-focused perspective. He tackles population density, manufacturing prospects, state versus farmer-led infrastructure, ports and special economic zones, human capital and health gains, and why industrial policy succeeded in East Asia but faltered elsewhere. Short, incisive takes on where African and Asian development may head next.

Andrew Ross Sorkin, award‑winning financial journalist and DealBook founder, discusses 1929, leverage, and banking rules. He and Tyler debate whether 1929 prices were justified. They unpack margin calls, Fed choices, Glass‑Steagall origins, bank consolidation, narrow banking and stablecoins, retail access to private funds, and how history shapes modern regulation.

Diarmaid MacCulloch, a renowned historian of Christianity and Emeritus Professor at Oxford, shares insights on the complex relationship between Christianity and sex. He discusses the uneven correlation of monotheism and monogamy, challenges common narratives about gender equality in early Christianity, and critiques Michel Foucault's views on sexuality. MacCulloch also delves into the significance of Mary in both Christianity and Islam, the role of the Eucharist in societal change, and whether hell is necessary for Christianity's survival. His historical lens aims to unsettle settled facts for a deeper understanding.