LSE Podcasts

The 1990s were an important decade. They saw the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War, falling trade barriers, an expanding capitalist democratic order and the rise of what came to be called the liberal international order. But the 1990s also sowed the seeds of the rise of populism and anti-globalism in Western democracies that are now complicating global politics and governance. A new book, Rethinking the 1990s, Liberal World Order-Building in the Aftermath of the Cold War looks back at how important the 1990s were and to the opportunities that were missed at that time by politicians. In April 2026 the Phelan US Centre spoke with the book’s editors, Professor G. John Ikenberry and Professor Peter Trubowitz. The discussion covered what makes the 1990s such an important decade for the world today, how the US’ liberal bet on China failed, and how US and Western attempts to expand liberal internationalism were met with resentment abroad and at home. We also talked about the lessons the US can take from the decisions made in the 1990s that are still affecting global politics. Further reading and resources • Ikenberry, G John, and Peter Trubowitz (eds), Rethinking the 1990s: Liberal World Order-Building in the Aftermath of the Cold War (New York, NY, 2025; online edn, Oxford Academic, 22 Sept. 2025), https://doi.org/10.1093/9780197813133.001.0001 • Text of George F. Kennan’s “Long Telegram” - https://nsarchive2.gwu.edu/coldwar/documents/episode-1/kennan.htm Take the Ballpark Listener survey and enter the prize draw for £250 in vouchers! The Ballpark is ten years old in 2026, and we want to hear from you to make the podcast even better, so we’re running a listener survey. • Fill in our listener survey – it only takes a few minutes – here: https://forms.office.com/e/Vcj8V8uGM1 • Voucher prize draw terms and conditions are available here: https://www.lse.ac.uk/united-states/the-ballpark/terms-and-conditions-for-the-ballpark-listener-survey-voucher-prize-draw

What does the future of work really look like? Many workers today face unstable contracts, insecure employment, and widening inequalities. Yet, at the same time, rapid technological change and advances in AI are transforming productivity, reducing repetitive tasks, and opening new possibilities for creativity and flexible working. In this episode of LSE iQ, Maayan Arad explores how work is changing, and what it will take to ensure these shifts benefit everyone. He speaks to leading experts on job quality, AI, and remote work models that could reshape economies and communities worldwide. Dr Kirsten Sehnbruch from LSE’s International Inequalities Institute explains why improving job quality - not just quantity - is essential for tackling global inequalities and creating fairer labour markets. Professor Raj Choudhury from LSE’s Department of Management reveals how the ability to work from anywhere could reverse the ‘brain drain’ from smaller towns and rural regions. Fabien Curto Millet, Chief Economist at Google, discusses how artificial intelligence is reshaping creativity, productivity, and the nature of work - and gives advice for graduates entering the workplace. Together, they explore big questions about the future of work, from the rise of location flexible jobs to the impact of AI on human skills, innovation, and economic opportunity. Contributors: Kirsten Sehnbruch, Raj Choudhury, Fabien Curto Millet. Research links: Https://prithwirajchoudhury.com/the-world-is-your-office/ https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2025/10/19/jobs-ai-skills-training/ https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13504851.2022.2156460 https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/inequalities/2024/09/17/why-the-flexicurity-model-of-the-labour-market-is-not-sustainable/

Recent years have seen growth in the capability and use of AI tools across society, including by business, academia, the media, and in the economy more widely. Many institutions have embraced AI tools and models such as ChatGPT (OpenAI) and Gemini (Google) to provide solutions to a variety of challenges, from the everyday to the global. At the same time, many commentators have expressed concerns about bias in AI, its contribution to other global challenges like climate change, and that it may even be a threat to society or democracy. In 2025, the Phelan US Centre ran an essay competition for master’s students with the prompt, “Is AI a threat or an opportunity for the US?” In this episode we spoke to the author of the winning essay, Kayode Adeniyi, and the runners-up, Natasha Chávez and Francesca Nicolodi. We discussed their essays, the competition, what it’s like for students to engage with a wider audience, and the opportunity they had to present their essays in the UK parliament to MPs and the British-American Parliamentary Group. This episode was produced by Chris Gilson and Avan Fata. Read the essays from the winner and runners-up on the Phelan US Centre’s USAPP blog • AI in the US: The Next Space Race or the Next Subprime Crisis? - Kayode Adeniyi - LSE Department of Management (winner) • The AI race: will the US lead or fall behind? - Natasha Chávez - LSE Department of International Relations (runner-up) • Trump’s hunger for AI domination is allowing Silicon Valley to seize the state but not its people - Francesca Nicolodi - LSE Department of Social Policy (runner-up) Take the Ballpark Listener survey and enter the prize draw for £250 in vouchers! The Ballpark is ten years old in 2026, and we want to hear from you to make the podcast even better, so we’re running a listener survey until Monday 2 February 2026. • Fill in our listener survey – it only takes a few minutes – here: https://forms.office.com/e/Vcj8V8uGM1 • Voucher prize draw terms and conditions are available here: https://www.lse.ac.uk/united-states/the-ballpark/ballpark-listener-survey-prize-terms-conditions-2025

This year LSE is celebrating its 130th anniversary, and how it has shaped history and driven change across the world. Much of LSE’s history is linked to the United States, from philanthropic support from the US in LSE’s early days to famous alumni and American directors of the School. To talk about the LSE’s long and close relationship with the United States, in October 2025, the Phelan US Centre spoke to Professor Michael Cox. Professor Cox is a Founding Director of LSE IDEAS, LSE's foreign policy think tank, and was its Director between 2008 and 2019. He is also Emeritus Professor of International Relations at LSE and has been writing a history of LSE. This episode was produced by Chris Gilson and Avan Fata. Further reading and resources • Cox, Michael, John Ikenberry, and Takashi Inoguchi (eds), American Democracy Promotion: Impulses, Strategies, and Impacts (Oxford University Press, 2000) • Cox, M., & Stokes, D. (Eds.), US Foreign Policy (Oxford University Press, 2026) • Celebrating LSE's 130th anniversary Take the Ballpark Listener survey and enter the prize draw for £250 in vouchers! The Ballpark will be ten years old in 2026, and we want to hear from you to make the podcast even better, so we’re running a listener survey until 2 February 2026. • Fill in our listener survey – it only takes 15 minutes – here: https://forms.office.com/e/Vcj8V8uGM1 • Voucher prize draw terms and conditions are available here: https://www.lse.ac.uk/united-states/the-ballpark/ballpark-listener-survey-prize-terms-conditions-2025

It seems every week we hear a new report of a cyber-attack. Recent examples include the hacks on Marks and Spencer's, Jaguar Land Rover, and the Co-op, all causing massive economic disruption. While these attacks seem to have come from cyber criminals working within the UK rather than other nation states, they highlight the destruction that cyber-attacks can wreak. What if those attacks were on our critical infrastructure? Our national grid? Our water supply? Is the UK prepared? Charlotte Kelloway meets former Director of Operations and Intelligence for the British Secret Intelligence Service (MI6), Nigel Inkster, who discusses when a cyber-attack could constitute a declaration of war. She also talks to former Director Cyber in the Foreign Office and Associate Dean for Strategic Development at the LSE School of Public Policy Professor Alexander Evans about what the UK is doing defensively and offensively to prevent cyber-attacks. Dr Lauren Sukin from Nuffield College at the University of Oxford explains why there is a lack of regulation in the cyberwar space and explores if depictions of cyberwar in the media are realistic. Contributors: Professor Alexander Evans, Dr Lauren Sukin, Nigel Inkster Research links: Lauren Sukin: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/00220027231153580 Nigel Inkster: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Great-Decoupling-Struggle-Technological-Supremacy/dp/1787383830 LSE iQ is a university podcast by the London School of Economics and Political Science.

The last three decades have seen China’s economic rise. Alongside this, China has become much more influential on the global stage, emerging as a competitor to the United States in many arenas, including as a technology and innovation leader. China has accomplished all this while continuing to be an authoritarian state, which is at odds with many conventional ideas about the relationship between autocracies and technology. To discuss China’s technological rise in the context of its autocratic government, in October 2025 the Phelan US Centre spoke to Dr Jennifer Lind, Associate Professor of Government at Dartmouth College and a leading expert on the international relations of East Asia, about her new book, Autocracy 2.0 How China's Rise Reinvented Tyranny. This episode was produced by Chris Gilson and Avan Fata. Further reading and resources • Autocracy 2.0 How China's Rise Reinvented Tyranny by Jennifer Lind (Cornell University Press, 2025) • Jennifer Lind and Michael Mastanduno. Hard Then, Harder Now: CoCom’s Lessons and the Challenge of Crafting Effective Export Controls Against China - Texas National Security Review (2025) • Blue Blaze on Substack Take the Ballpark Listener survey and enter the prize draw for £250 in vouchers! The Ballpark will be ten years old in 2026, and we want to hear from you to make the podcast even better, so we’re running a listener survey until 2 February 2026. • Fill in our listener survey – it only takes 15 minutes – here: https://forms.office.com/e/Vcj8V8uGM1 • Voucher prize draw terms and conditions are available here: https://www.lse.ac.uk/united-states/the-ballpark/ballpark-listener-survey-prize-terms-conditions-2025

In August 2025, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization held its 25th annual summit in Tianjin, China, with the country’s leader Xi Jinping, hosting representatives from more than 20 countries including Russia’s Vladimir Putin and India’s Narendra Modi. The absence of the United States in this gathering of global leaders may tell us about how China is competing with the US and building its own global order. To discuss China’s strategic competition with the US, and how it is evolving under the Trump administration, in September 2025, the Phelan US Centre spoke to Professor Evan Medeiros, the Penner Family Chair in Asian Studies and the Cling Family Senior Fellow in US-China Relations at Georgetown University. This episode was produced by Chris Gilson and Avan Fata. Further reading and resources • “China and Russia Will Not Be Split”, Michael McFaul and Evan S. Medeiros, Foreign Affairs, 4 April 2025 • Medeiros, E. S., & Polk, A. (2025). China’s New Economic Weapons. The Washington Quarterly, 48(1), 99–123. • “U.S.-China Relations for the 2030s: Toward a Realistic Scenario for Coexistence”, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace”, 17 October 2024 • “The Delusion of Peak China”, Evan S. Medeiros, Foreign Affairs, 24 April 2024 Take the Ballpark Listener survey and enter the prize draw for £250 in vouchers! The Ballpark will be ten years old in 2026, and we want to hear from you to make the podcast even better, so we’re running a listener survey until 2 February 2026. • Fill in our listener survey – it only takes 15 minutes – here: https://forms.office.com/e/Vcj8V8uGM1 • Voucher prize draw terms and conditions are available here: https://www.lse.ac.uk/united-states/the-ballpark/ballpark-listener-survey-prize-terms-conditions-2025