Uncommon Knowledge — audio edition

Recorded on March 29, 2018
Washington Post columnist and author, George F. Will, sits down with Peter Robinson in Austin, Texas to chat about the …

Recorded on February 27, 2018
What do Catholics think of Pope Francis’s changes to the Catholic Church? Ross Douthat explores that question in his new …

Recorded on February 25, 2018

“On Election Day in 2016, Donald Trump carried Ohio by eight percentage points. Our guest today carried the state by twenty-one. Senator of Ohio Rob Portman joins Peter Robinson at a special …

Natan Sharansky sits down with Peter Robinson to discuss Soviet communism and its impact on his personal life. He discusses his book Fear No Evil: …

Recorded on January 25, 2018
Shelby Steele, a Hoover Institution senior fellow and author of Shame: How America’s Past Sins Have Polarized Our Country …

Recorded on November 9, 2017
With social networks like Facebook and Twitter in abundance, the effects of networks on society in the twenty-first century are inarguable. However, Niall Ferguson, author of The Square and …

Recorded April 11, 2017

Historian James Wright, author of Enduring Vietnam: An America Generation and Its War, joins Peter Robinson on Uncommon Knowledge to discuss the challenges and successes of the Vietnam War. They …

Recorded on October 23, 2017
Could the Axis powers have won? What are the counterfactuals for World War II? Find out in part two of this episode as …

Recorded on October 23, 2017
How were the Axis powers able to instigate the most lethal conflict in human history? Find out in part one of this episode as military historian, editor of Strategika, and Martin and Illie …

Recorded on October 24, 2017
How old are entitlement programs in the United States? Entitlement programs are as old as the Republic, according to John …

Recorded on February 14, 2017
Norman Naimark, senior fellow at the Hoover Institution and an expert on Eastern Europe and genocides throughout history, brings his considerable expertise to Uncommon Knowledge to discuss …

Recorded on July 12, 2017
The Dilbert comic strip artist and political philosopher Scott Adams sits down with Peter Robinson to discuss his book How …

Recorded on July 23, 2017
Thirty years after Ronald Reagan’s famous denouncement of the Berlin Wall, Peter Robinson reflects on writing the …

Recorded on July 12, 2017
Ayaan Hirsi Ali joins Peter Robinson to discuss her new book, The Challenge of Dawa: Political Islam as Ideology and …

Recorded on February 27, 2017
In the latest episode from Uncommon Knowledge, Sir Roger Scruton, a formally trained political philosopher, talks about …

Recorded on June 10, 2017
Senator Rob Portman sits down with Hoover Institution fellow Peter Robinson to talk about the threats and problems related to Russia's meddling in democratic elections in the United States and …

Recorded on June 10, 2017
The forty-second governor of Illinois, Bruce Rauner, joins Peter Robinson on Uncommon Knowledge to discuss Illinois’s budget crisis. With the end of the fiscal year deadline (June 30) looming …

Recorded on June 2, 2017
Senator Benjamin Sasse joins Peter Robinson to discuss his book The Vanishing American Adult and the growing crisis in …

Today, we’re introducing Area 45, a new political podcast from the team behind Uncommon Knowledge, The Classicist, and the Libertarian. Host Bill …

Recorded on May 11, 2017
John Michael “Mick” Mulvaney, director of the Office of Budget and Management, sits down with Peter Robinson to discuss the …

Released May 18, 1996
In the 1996 first ever episode of Uncommon Knowledge, Peter Robinson discusses the origins of Uncommon Knowledge before invited guests former US attorney general Edwin Meese III and former San Jose …

Recorded on March 16, 2017

Although many people have heard of Carly Fiorina, former presidential candidate and first woman to lead a Fortune 20 company as CEO of Hewlett-Packard, few have had the chance to sit down and …

Recorded on February 14, 2017

CEO Robin Hayes and Hoover Institution board member Joel Peterson talk to Peter Robinson about how JetBlue has remained …

Recorded on March 22, 2017
In a lively debate Avik Roy and John Podhoretz discuss health care coverage and whether the American Health Care Act …

Recorded on December 2, 2016
Professor Douglas Irwin defends the benefits of free trade and explains why protectionism, high tariffs, and currency …

Senator Tom Cotton of Arkansas joins Peter Robinson to discuss the Reforming American Immigration for Strong Employment (RAISE) Act, an immigration reformation bill he is cosponsoring. He notes that American workers …

Former prime minister of Denmark, Anders Rasmussen, on America's indispensable role as the global leader.

Professor Russell Muirhead argues that to do anything in politics you need a party but just because a party currently rules does not mean it will be …

The American economy’s biggest problem is growth. To achieve growth, Hoover Institution fellow John Cochrane argues, America needs to simplify the …

Robert Costa, an American journalist who writes for the Washington Post, joins Peter Robinson to discuss his insights into president-elect Donald Trump after covering him for the past several years. Costa discusses …

Matthew Continetti and Andrew Ferguson discuss Donald Trump’s nomination and what it means for conservatives in America. They argue that they are encouraged by whom Trump is nominating to different cabinet positions and …

Kellyanne Conway discusses her life working on a New Jersey blueberry farm as an adolescent in the summers and being brought up by her mother, …

Recorded on October 27, 2016
J.D. Vance chronicles his life and the history and issues of hillbillies in America. Vance, a former marine and Yale Law …

Recorded on September 21, 2016
Although Americans have great respect for the military, most civilians have lost touch with it. This means that US citizens are not attuned to what the military needs because so few …

Recorded on September 22, 2016
Hoover Institution fellow Victor Davis Hanson discusses Russia, China, and the danger of American withdrawal from the world stage. In addition, Hanson talks about immigration and …

Fred Barnes and Stephen Hayes discuss the media's role in the 2016 presidential election and how the media’s role have changed and become much more …

Hoover Institution fellow Thomas Sowell discusses inequality and how it is part of the human condition. Sowell notes that political and ideological …

Hoover Institution fellows Terry Moe and Peter Robinson have a lively discussion on whether the Constitution is outdated and thus incapable of dealing with societal and structural problems facing government today. For …

James Buckley discusses his life and upbringing as well as the genesis of Firing Line and the success of his brother Bill. James describes Bill as a fresh spirit who wanted to meet all types of people and listen to …

General Jack Keane briefly describes the history and rise of ISIS and its aim in the Middle East. Keane then discusses the concrete steps America …

John Hennessy discusses his tenure as president of Stanford University and how he helped make it into an elite school: encouraging technological …

Recorded on January 25, 2016
Hoover Institution fellow Michael McFaul and John O'Sullivan discuss the many problems Europe is facing including an …

Each branch of the federal government has strayed from its original purpose and no candidate for president will be able to fix the underlying issues that plague it. Governor Abbott makes his case for proposing a …

In Part II of our interview with Charles Koch, he covers politics and the role of corporations in our society. Koch, making the case to end corporate …

Charles Koch discusses his journey, from engaging in manual labor as a youth to attending MIT and working as a consultant. Having learned the …

Karl Rove discusses the amazing life and election of William McKinley. From his time as a soldier in the Civil War to his campaign in 1896, Karl Rove …

From members of Congress more concerned about reelection than debating the real problems to a president espousing post-constitutional ideas, Americans need a renewed understanding of the Constitution. Senator Sasse …

Secretary Shultz talks about his time in the Reagan White House, from negotiations with Andrey Gromyko to the meetings between Reagan and Gorbachev …

Recorded on July 9, 2015
The piano has been an important part of life for Condoleezza Rice and George Barth, her teacher. Although not as popular in …

Hoover Institution fellow Thomas Sowell discusses poverty around the world and in the United States. Poverty in America, he says, compared to the rest of the world, is not severe. Many poor people in poverty in the …

Recorded on October 7, 2015 - Niall Ferguson discusses the first half of Henry Kissinger's life, beginning with his being a young boy in Germany to becoming an intellectual celebrity at Harvard and finally an adviser to …

Recorded on July 29, 2015 - As part 2 begins, Lenin is dead and Stalin is trying to consolidate power. Although various people were vying for the …

Recorded on July 29, 2015 - Part 1: Stalin was born in a small town in Georgia in which he was educated to become a priest. After succeeding in …

John Yoo, former deputy assistant attorney general for President George Bush and now a professor at the University of California at Berkeley, and Hugh Hewitt, former Reagan administration official and now a talk radio …

Recorded on July 16, 2015 - Hoover fellows Charles Hill and James Mattis discuss the Iran deal and the state of the world on Uncommon Knowledge with …

In this episode of Uncommon Knowledge, Richard A. Epstein, the Peter and Kirsten Bedford Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution, discusses …

Senator John Hoeven discusses the Keystone pipeline, energy policy, the Middle East, and politics, noting that our country moves forward with …

In this episode of Uncommon Knowledge, Peter sits down with Senator Tom Cotton, a Republican from Arkansas, to examine the many issues facing the …

In this episode, the host of Uncommon Knowledge speaks with Jim Hake, founder of Spirit of America, a nonprofit organization created to save lives …

In this episode, Uncommon Knowledge is honored to have retired four-star General James Mattis. General Mattis retired from the Marine Corps as a full …

In this episode of Uncommon Knowledge Dartmouth professors of government Jennifer Lind and William Wohlforth join Peter for an in-depth conversation …

In this episode of Uncommon Knowledge, Peter sits down with one of America’s favorite political satirists, P. J. O’Rourke, to discuss his …

In this episode of Uncommon Knowledge, Peter Robinson interviews Hoover fellow and author Thomas Sowell, on his 5th edition of Basic Economics: A Common Sense Guide to the Economy. In this interview, Sowell brings the …

In this episode of Uncommon Knowledge, Peter sits down with David Kelley, author of Creative Confidence, professor of Stanford’s Hasso Plattner Institute of Design, and founder of IDEO, one of the world’s most …

In this episode of Uncommon Knowledge, guest Peter Thiel, one of Silicon Valley’s leading investors and thinkers, discusses his new book Zero to One. …

In this episode of Uncommon Knowledge, Peter sits down with Liam Fox, member of Parliament and former secretary of state for defense, who also remains on every journalist’s short list of those most likely to one day …

In this episode of Uncommon Knowledge, Peter interviews Hoover senior fellows and members of Hoover's Task Force on KÐ12 Education Paul Peterson and …

In this Uncommon Knowledge interview, Peter sits down with House majority leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Bakersfield, CA) to discuss what the majority leader does and what it takes to be one. McCarthy also gives his opinion …

Steve Wynn, founder of Wynn Resorts, in the second part of his interview, discusses further his life as an entrepreneur, what he does to motivate his employees, and how he creates experiences that keep customers …

Part I: Steve Wynn discusses his life, his dad’s death, being broke, and how he got into hotel and casino business. Wynn came to Las Vegas for a vacation, met Frank Sinatra, and fell in love with the city. Wynn’s …

In this special episode of Uncommon Knowledge, host Peter Robinson remembers Fouad Ajami, a Hoover senior fellow and renowned Middle East scholar, …

In this Uncommon Knowledge interview, Hoover fellow Peter Robinson speaks with Senator Rob Portman of Ohio. Portman discusses the state of US …

Hoover fellow Peter Robinson speaks with former US ambassador to Russia, Hoover senior fellow, and Stanford political science professor Michael …

Hoover fellow Peter Robinson speaks with political analyst, author, and journalist Yuval Levin. Levin is the founding editor of National Affairs, a …

Rumor has it that newspapers will inevitably disappear, but according to Uncommon Knowledge’s interview with Robert Thomson, chief executive officer of News Corp, that doesn’t need to happen. Thomson discusses how …

Utah Republican senator Mike Lee joins Peter to discuss the positive reforms he has put forth since being elected in 2010. The senator's legislation caused the New York Times to refer to him as the "one-stop shop for …

This week on Uncommon Knowledge, David Berlinski, a mathematician, philosopher, and biologist, discusses the current state of the scientific …

This week on Uncommon Knowledge, military historian Max Boot discusses current events in Syria, Iran, and his recent book Invisible Armies: An Epic History of Guerrilla Warfare from Ancient Times to Present. Boot …

In this special episode of Uncommon Knowledge, host Peter Robinson remembers Christopher Hitchens, a British American author, journalist, and personal friend, through a series of excerpts from past interviews on …

Author George Gilder discusses his conception of knowledge, power, and the economy, as described in his latest book, Knowledge and Power: The …

This week on Uncommon Knowledge, playwright David Mamet discusses his book The Secret Knowledge: On the Dismantling of American Culture and his …

This week on Uncommon Knowledge, Archbishop Gomez of Los Angeles discusses Catholicism, Mexico-US relations, and immigration, which, as a prominent …

This week on Uncommon Knowledge, Joel Klein, Amplify CEO and former chancellor of the New York City department of education, discusses technology, …

This week on Uncommon Knowledge, host Peter Robinson mediates a discussion between PayPal founder and Stanford Professor Peter Thiel and Velocity Capital Management founder and journalist Andy Kessler on the state of …

Amity Shlaes sheds light on the life of Calvin Coolidge, the thirtieth president of the United States. The harsh conditions of Coolidge’s childhood …

Victor Davis Hanson discusses his book The Savior Generals: How Five Great Commanders Saved Wars That Were Lost—From Ancient Greece to Iraq. Hanson notes that savior generals are eccentrics, iconoclasts, and visionaries …

Tom Wolfe discusses the ideas and inspirations for Back to Blood, a story of decadence and the new America. In the book, Wolfe paints a story of a …

This week Uncommon Knowledge, brings us interview excerpts from two former secretaries of state and Hoover fellows Henry Kissinger and Condoleezza …

Senator Rand Paul discusses his political ideas, ideals, and philosophies, noting that "we're all born with an instinct towards individualism." He …

Joseph Epstein and Andrew Ferguson discuss where liberal arts came from and what has happened to them. Liberal arts, they say, emerged from an ancient stream of thought, learning, and belief about what is important in …

Thomas Sowell discusses is newest book, Intellectuals and Race, which argues that the impact of intellectuals' ideas and crusades on the larger …

Former Florida governor Jeb Bush offers his outlook on immigration into the United States and discusses the policies he believes would improve the …

John O'Sullivan discusses the unique and memorable career of the late Margaret Thatcher, former prime minister of the United Kingdom. (Playing time: …

World-renowned economist and Hoover senior fellow John B. Taylor discusses the US economy: how we got here and what policies we should adopt going …

Wisconsin governor Scott Walker discusses a wide range of issues facing his state, the nation, and the future of the GOP. (Playing time: 32:53)

US senator Ted Cruz (R-Tex.) discusses his first two months in office and his vision for the Republican Party. (Playing time: 36:13)

Rupert Murdoch discusses a wide range of topics including the future of journalism and the "new" News Corporation. (Playing time: 39:07)

Senator James Buckley discusses the transformation of the federal government and the challenges we face after the 2012 election. (Playing time: 28:30)

Islam historian Bernard Lewis and Commentary editor Norman Podhoretz discuss the history and future of the Middle East. (Playing time: 56:54)

Legal scholar John Yoo and Hollywood writer Rob Long strongly disagree about the future of the Republican Party. (Playing time: 41:33)

Authors Midge Decter and Mona Charen discuss Romney’s gender gap, the impact of feminism on America, and what women really care about. (Playing time: 42:08)

AEI scholar and National Review Online founding editor Jonah Goldberg and National Review’s Editor At Large John O’Sullivan on the election and the …

Hollywood Odd Couple Rob Long and Harry Shearer discuss their unusual friendship, politics, and show business. (Playing time: 54:50)

Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia visits Uncommon Knowledge for a wide ranging interview including the living constitution, Roe v. Wade, Congress’ relationship to the court, and to discuss his new book Reading Law: …

Hoover fellow Shelby Steele and the Weekly Standard’s Bill Kristol discuss the economy, politics, and the presidential race. (Playing time: 51:39)

George Gilder, author of Wealth and Poverty, the book that became a best seller during the first year of the Reagan years and a guide to the Reagan administration itself, is now--just in time perhaps for the Romney …

Wheel of Fortune host Pat Sajak discusses his modest upbringing in Chicago, joining Armed Forces Radio in Vietnam, and working in small markets …

The Chairman of Chief Oil and Gas Trevor Rees-Jones discusses fracking -- what it is and why it is crucial to the country’s future, the challenge of discovering and distributing cheap energy, and why our gas prices will …

Hoover fellows Charles Hill and Fouad Ajami discuss the strength and, yes, the democratic tradition of Middle Eastern states. (Playing time: 1:08:41)

President George W. Bush discusses postpresidential life and his work at the Bush Institute. (Playing time: 1:03:21)

Texas governor Rick Perry discusses the Texas success story, the perils and pitfalls of running for president, and what the rest of the country can learn from Texas. (Playing time: 45:28)

Radio host, columnist, conductor, and best-selling author Dennis Prager discusses his new book, Still the Best Hope: Why the World Needs American …

Science and technology expert Jim Manzi argues that controlled experimentation should be conducted and credible data collected before the government …

Nancy Gibbs and Michael Duffy discuss their new book The Presidents' Club: Inside the World's Most Exclusive Fraternity. (Playing time: 57:04)

Author and television host John Stossel discusses his new book No, They Can’t: Why Government Fails - But Individuals Succeed. (Playing time: 45:18)

On the occasion of the publication of a new edition of his book Intellectuals and Society, Thomas Sowell returns to Uncommon Knowledge for a wide-ranging interview. (Playing time: 52:37)

Author and commentator Pat Buchanan discusses the disintegration of the United States as a superpower and a united nation. (Playing time: 1:00:41)

Longtime American Enterprise Institute fellow Charles Murray discusses his controversial new book, Coming Apart, about what American was, is, and will become. He also reveals his personal score on his now famous “bubble …

Rick Santorum on why he's still in the race, the rights of the unborn, the Santorum tax plan, how Santorum plans to expand his appeal, the core differences between himself and Mitt Romney, and a up-to-the-minute state …

This week on Uncommon Knowledge with Peter Robinson, Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell discusses why the glacial pace of deliberations and decisions in the Senate is a feature, not a bug. "Once it was clear the …

This week, on Uncommon Knowledge, Michael Barone, American Enterprise Institute fellow, author, and senior political correspondent for the Washington …

Condoleezza Rice, senior fellow on public policy at the Hoover Institution and a professor of political science at Stanford University, discusses the …

The 58th Speaker of the House and 2012 GOP presidential candidate Newt Gingrich makes the case for his candidacy, explains why he's not a Washington insider, and describes his vision for his first term: gaining energy …

This week on Uncommon Knowledge columnist, scholar, and social media maven Jonah Goldberg discusses, with Hoover research fellow Peter Robinson, the …

Richard Epstein, the Peter and Kirsten Bedford Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution and the Laurence A. Tisch Professor of Law, New York …

This week on Uncommon Knowledge historian Andrew Roberts discusses, with Hoover research fellow Peter Robinson, his book The Storm of War: A New History of the Second World War. In the book, Roberts investigates what …

In this Uncommon Knowledge interview from November 24, 2008, Thiel argues that a book published in France in 1968, Le Defi Americain (The American Challenge), has a lot to say to us in 2008, including why the United …

This week on Uncommon Knowledge columnist James Delingpole discusses, with Hoover research fellow Peter Robinson, the European Union, the Green …

Gerard Baker is deputy editor-in-chief of The Wall Street Journal and Dow Jones. From 2002 to 2004 he was the Chief U.S. Commentator and an Associate Editor for the Financial Times. A speechwriter for Pres. George H. W. …

Paul Rahe holds the Charles O. Lee and Louise K. Lee Chair in Western Heritage at Hillsdale College. He is the author most recently of Soft …

Thomas Sowell has studied and taught economics, intellectual history, and social policy at institutions that include Cornell, UCLA, and Amherst. Now …

Larry Arnn earned his graduate and doctorate in Government from the Claremont Graduate School. Dr. Arnn is the founder and former president of the …

Paul Ryan, a native of Janesville, Wisconsin, is the chairman of the House Budget Committee and representative of the 1st congressional district of …

Dr. David Berlinski is the author of 1,2,3: Absolutely Elementary Mathematics and The Devil's Delusion: Atheism and Its Scientific Pretensions. …

Summary not specified (Playing time: Duration not specified)

Charles Moore is a former editor at The Daily Telegraph, Sunday Telegraph, and Spectator Magazine. He is the authorized biographer of Margaret Thatcher. (Playing time: Duration not specified)