The Exchange | Long-form interviews from the New Statesman

Since the publication of No Logo in 1999 - a critique of big brands and consumer culture - Naomi Klein has been one of the most influential voices in leftist politics in the world. In the past 3 decades, she’s explored the intersection of capitalism, war, climate, and conspiracies.Now in her latest work, and first written collaboration, she turns to fascism. As she sees it, we’ve entered “End Times Fascism” - a perfect storm of the rise of right-wing authoritarianism, tech evangelism, and ever-growing inequality. “The most powerful people in the world are preparing for the end of the world,” she warns with co-author Astra Taylor, “an end they themselves are frenetically accelerating.” It’s a difficult conversation to have, contemplating the destruction of our world. But if there’s one person who can articulate this clearly and precisely, it’s Naomi Klein. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In Japan, couples can rent a grandchild in order to make them feel less bereft on special occasions. In South Korea, dog stroller sales have overtaken pram sales. And in France, deaths outnumbered births for the first time since the Second World War in 2025. So what's actually going on? Award winning journalist Camilla Cavendish joins Oli Dugmore to discuss her new book, Generation Maybe: Why We're Having Fewer Children, and What It Means for Us All. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Then social media came along. This is one of the reasons social psychologist Jonathan Haidt believes whole heartedly in the social media ban for under 16s, which has been rolled out in Australia, and will be brought into effect in the UK early next year.But is the ban really working in Australia? Is banning a solution? And is there a way to let young people benefit from the opportunities of the internet safely? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Children's laureate, screenwriter, author of Millions, architect of the 2012 Olympic opening ceremony, and father of seven, Frank Cottrell-Boyce joins Oli Dugmore to discuss what childhood means in Britain today.Over two years visiting schools, prisons and asylum hotels, he found a country that has quietly stopped looking after its youngest citizens. He talks about the NEETs crisis, furniture poverty, what summer holidays now mean to children who dread them, and why the most radical thing you can do for a child is sit on a sofa and read to them. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Are AI companies the new empires?Journalist Karen Hao says the parallels are striking. This disruptive sector requires vast amounts of land, minerals and water – not to mention data and content from individuals. Hao interviews subjects ranging from those close to Open AI CEO Sam Altman to workers in the Global South who’ve been traumatised by their jobs in AI content moderation.She joins Oli Dugmore on The Exchange.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Charleston Festival is running until May 25. Find out more here.Ten years on from the referendum that redirected the course of British politics, the New Statesman's editor Tom McTague is joined by Caroline Lucas, Anand Menon and Marina Wheeler to consider how we should think about our relationship with Europe. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rather than a relic of the past, Mary Beard sees the classical world as a powerful tool for understanding the present.It's an idea she has explored in over twenty books on ancient history and numerous documentaries on the BBC and elsewhere, all of which have made her Britain’s best known classicist.She joins culture editor Tanjil Rashid in the studio.-Mary Beard's new book Talking Classics: The Shock of the Old is available now. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Anthony Seldon, historian, educator and one of Britain's leading political biographers, has been for a long walk.His new book, The Path of Light, recounts his extraordinary 1300 kilometre passage to Auschwitz.Tracing stories of courage, resistance and moral clarity across a continent once consumed by darkness - it's a journey that speaks not only to the past, but powerfully to the world we're living in today. Anthony joins Tom McTague to discuss his journey, as well as his biographer's perspective on Britain's recent Prime Ministers. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.