Best of the Left - Leftist Perspectives on Progressive Politics, News, Culture, Economics and Democracy

Best of the Left: Perspectives on Politics, Culture, and Economics

Trump Administration

Donald Trump

Capitalism

United States

Democratic Party

Neoliberalism

Democracy

ICE

Fascism

Trump

Authoritarianism

Artificial Intelligence

Venezuela

Climate Change

Israel

White Supremacy

Wealth Inequality

Education

Civil Rights

Public Health

Expertly-curated progressive politics, news, and culture produced by leftist humans, not algorithms or AI. This is an award-winning podcast that dives deeply into a wide range of national and international issues facing society and governments. We draw from hundreds of sources of progressive news and commentary. Est. 2006. Save time by listening to a range of perspectives on a focused topic in eac... more

3.9k ratings

Publishes	Twice weekly	Episodes	1622	Founded	21 years ago
Number of Listeners		Categories	PoliticsNewsNews Commentary

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Guests Host Reviews Charts Talking Points

Latest Episodes

#1831 Midterm Madness: Defending the Vote, the Count, the Results, and the Certification

Air Date: 10/30/2026

Today we look at the midterm machinery. The administration's attempts to mess with the election continually lose in court, but the tampering attempts will keep coming: whose ballots get thrown out, which winners get certified, ... more

31 Oct 2026 • 3 hrs 10 min

Monthly-ish Mix #13 Off the Hook: How the Powerful Duck the Blame and Where They Still Have to Answer

Air Date: 10/27/2026

The Monthly-ish Mix™ is here to get you caught up on the news from September and October without being overwhelming! Organized around a single idea: when something goes wrong, follow where the blame lands. Republicans staged a ... more

28 Oct 2026 • 3 hrs 20 min

#1830 Power Play: The Women's Sports Boom Is About Power, Not Ratings

Air Date: 10/23/2026

Today we look at the women's sports boom as a power story and explain how women's sports were held back on purpose, from England banning women's soccer for fifty years to colleges spending next to nothing on their women's teams... more

25 Oct 2026 • 3 hrs 19 min

#1176 The Gun Debate Is Less of a Debate Than We Think (Throwback)

Publish Date: 10/22/2026 Original Air Date: 4/6/2018

Today we look back to the spring of 2018, when a conservative listener called in looking for common ground on guns and we answered her point by point: the research on defensive gun use, who gets ... more

20 Oct 2026 • 1 hr 5 min

Key Facts

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Number of Listeners

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Similar Podcasts

People also subscribe to these shows.

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Recent Guests

Annie Lowrey

Staff writer at The Atlantic and author of The Time Tax

The Atlantic

Episode: Monthly-ish Mix #13 Off the Hook: How the Powerful Duck the Blame and Where They Still Have to Answer

Terri Gerstein

Labor and employment lawyer and worker-rights advocate

AI Now

Episode: #1829 Poverty Is Hard on Purpose in America and We All Pay the Time Tax

Bill Blum

Judge, lawyer, novelist and Truthdig contributor who represented clients charged with capital crimes

Truthdig

Episode: #861 More Reasons Than You Should Need to Oppose the Death Penalty (Throwback)

Christie Offenbacher

Co-author discussing Occupy origin myths and critique of the narrative

New Catalyst article

Episode: #1825 We Are Still the 99%: Occupy Wall Street's Unfinished Business, 15 Years Later

Viet Trinh

Professor at Ohio State University specializing in crime, surveillance, and policing

Ohio State University

Episode: Monthly-ish Mix #12 The Great American Heist

Alexander Aviña

Associate professor of Latin American history at Arizona State University

Arizona State University

Episode: Monthly-ish Mix #12 The Great American Heist

Paul Hesberg

Senior Research Ecologist Emeritus at the US Forest Service; Professor of Fire and Landscape Ecology

US Forest Service, University of Washington

Episode: Monthly-ish Mix #12 The Great American Heist

Robin Hahnel

Economist, Portland State University, proponent of participatory economics

Portland State University

Episode: #1823 Deep Cuts: Occupy Wall Street in Real Time, 15 Years Later

Ruth Milkman

Sociologist, co-author of research on Occupy's planning and impact

CUNY, The New Labor History

Episode: #1823 Deep Cuts: Occupy Wall Street in Real Time, 15 Years Later

Host

Jay

Host of Best of the Left podcast; leads discussion and synthesis of diverse sources.

Reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars from 3.9k ratings

Gives extraordinary depth and context to essential topics. They pull the best andultiple perspectives from an amazing breadth of sources. 6 stars.
Podcast Addict
5
skeptic
3 months ago
7.11.26
Still loving this podcast! Great info and not in a 2 minute slurp. the pod is long enough to go in-depth and I want that and I need that. Thank you!
Apple Podcasts
5
midwestBlue
United States4 months ago
Support this podcast!!
So much interesting information in one podcast!! Great job informing the masses, keep it up.
Apple Podcasts
5
It's_all_me
United States4 months ago
Love you guys.
Please keep doing what you do for as long as you can. You guys are a national treasure.
Apple Podcasts
5
jas_8998
United States4 months ago
Episodes 1787-1790 only play advert before episode but do not play actual episode. Using Podcast Addict to play.
Podcast Addict
2
Deltapogee
6 months ago

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Listeners Say

Key themes from listener reviews, highlighting what works and what could be improved about the show.

Praise for strong curation and variety of perspectives on issues.

Listeners praise deep-dive, in-depth analysis and broad sourcing.

Positive feedback on impact and importance of coverage for understanding current events.

Chart Rankings

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Apple Podcasts	#181	South Africa/News/Politics
Apple Podcasts	#220	Argentina/News/Politics

Talking Points

Recent interactions between the hosts and their guests.

Monthly-ish Mix #13 Off the Hook: How the Powerful Duck the Blame and Where They Still Have to Answer

Q: What is it about the United States version of democracy that seems to make it so vulnerable to demands for extreme inequality, and seems to promote people who have those kinds of ideas?

The guest argues that egalitarian claims are central to U.S. political ideology, while the country's capitalist economy produces concentrated wealth and inequality. The tension between those ideals and material conditions fuels recurring political conflict.

Monthly-ish Mix #13 Off the Hook: How the Powerful Duck the Blame and Where They Still Have to Answer

Q: Why did you focus on this for a book?

Annie Lowrey says she first noticed the problem while reporting on homeless veterans who could not access available support, then saw similar burdens across government programs and private businesses. The burden falls harder on people with fewer resources.

#1831 Midterm Madness: Defending the Vote, the Count, the Results, and the Certification

Q: What is the solution to protect the integrity of your vote?

Check the electronic machine's selection and carefully review the printed paper ballot before turning it in. The speaker also urges voters to verify alarming claims and vote in large numbers.

#1831 Midterm Madness: Defending the Vote, the Count, the Results, and the Certification

Q: How do prediction markets differ from sports betting and gambling, and how are they similar?

Prediction markets are presented as peer-to-peer financial exchanges, unlike sportsbooks that take bets against customers. In practice, the experience and potential payout can feel much the same to ordinary users, while courts and regulators continue to dispute whether these platforms are gambling.

#1830 Power Play: The Women's Sports Boom Is About Power, Not Ratings

Q: What does the Collective Bargaining Agreement mean?

A player explains that it sets the terms of league work, including salaries, housing, health benefits and transportation. The players opted out of the prior agreement to seek compensation that grows with league revenue.

Audience Metrics

Listeners, social reach, demographics and more for this podcast.

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Frequently Asked Questions About Best of the Left

What is Best of the Left about and what kind of topics does it cover?

Curated discussions dive into progressive politics, economics, and democracy, often weaving in immigration, civil rights, and media perspectives. Episodes frequently center on policy reform, democratic accountability, wealth inequality, and the role of power structures in society, while integrating voices from activists, academics, and journalists. A standout is the meticulous sourcing from diverse outlets and the willingness to challenge dominant narratives, making it a go-to for listeners seeking broad, left-leaning context with in-depth analysis. Potential guests and sponsors may find value in the show's strong focus on systemic change, civic engagement, and cross-disciplinary debates that appeal to policy wonks and activists alike.

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Which podcasts are similar to Best of the Left?

These podcasts share a similar audience with Best of the Left:

1. Unf*cking The Republic
2. The Hartmann Report
3. Democracy Now! Audio
4. The Intercept Briefing
5. Ralph Nader Radio Hour

How many episodes of Best of the Left are there?

Best of the Left launched 21 years ago and published 1622 episodes to date. You can find more information about this podcast including rankings, audience demographics and engagement in our podcast database.

How do I contact Best of the Left?

Our systems regularly scour the web to find email addresses and social media links for this podcast. We scanned the web and collated all of the contact information that we could find in our podcast database. But in the unlikely event that you can't find what you're looking for, our concierge service lets you request our research team to source better contacts for you.

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What guests have appeared on Best of the Left?

Recent guests on Best of the Left include:

1. Annie Lowrey
2. Terri Gerstein
3. Bill Blum
4. Christie Offenbacher
5. Viet Trinh
6. Alexander Aviña
7. Paul Hesberg
8. Robin Hahnel

To view more recent guests and their details, simply upgrade your Rephonic account. You'll also get access to a typical guest profile to help you decide if the show is worth pitching.

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