Rephonic
Artwork for New Books in African Studies

New Books in African Studies

Marshall Poe
Colonialism
Decolonization
Africa
Rwanda
Ghana
Pan-Africanism
South Africa
France
Atlantic Slave Trade
Slavery
British Empire
African Diaspora
Literature
Namibia
Uganda
Egypt
Hakeem Olajuwon
Brazil
West Africa
Amarna Letters

This podcast is a channel on the New Books Network. The New Books Network is an academic audio library dedicated to public education. In each episode you will hear scholars discuss their recently published research with another expert in their field. Discover our 150+ channels and browse our 28,000+ episodes on our website: newbooksnetwork.com Subscribe to our free weekly Substack newsletter to ge... more

99 ratings
PublishesTwice weeklyEpisodes904Founded16 years ago
Number of ListenersCategories
Places & TravelSociety & Culture

Listen to this Podcast

Listen on Apple PodcastsListen on SpotifyListen on CastboxListen on Podcast AddictListen on Pocket CastsListen on OvercastListen on YouTube MusicListen on RSS
Artwork for New Books in African Studies
 Guests Host Reviews Charts Talking Points

Latest Episodes

Uganda During and After Museveni: Can The System Survive Its Creator?

How has Yoweri Museveni remained in power for four decades – and what happens when he is gone? In this episode of the People, Power, Politics podcast, Nic Cheeseman talks to Mesrob Vartavarian about three important books on Uganda and his argument th... more

Today • 34 min

American Amazigh: Remaking North African Indigeneity and Belonging in the Diaspora with Heide Castañeda (NYU Press, 2026)

American Amazigh: Remaking North African Indigeneity and Belonging in the Diaspora (NYU Press, 2026) by Dr. Heide Castañeda examines the complex identity negotiations of Amazigh people—also known as Berbers—as they build community and claim visibilit... more

Yesterday • 43 min

Governing Islam in Austria and Germany, with Farid Hafez

In this episode, hosts Claudia Radiven and Amina Easat-Daas were joined by Farid Hafez to discuss his most recently published book Governing Islam in Austria and Germany: From Colonial Times to the Present (Oxford UP, 2026). Hafez’s recent work centr... more

16 Oct 2026 • 47 min • Most popular

Britain and the Ottoman Maghreb, 1662–1712 with Nat Cutter (Oxford UP, 2026)

From the mid-seventeenth to early eighteenth century, a wide network of English-speaking men, women, and children took up residence in the Ottoman Maghrebi regencies of Algiers, Tunis, and Tripoli. There they formed expatriate communities, engaged wi... more

16 Oct 2026 • 49 min

Key Facts

Accepts Guests
Accepts Sponsors
Contact Information
Podcast Host
Number of Listeners
Find out how many people listen to this podcast per episode and each month.

Similar Podcasts

People also subscribe to these shows.

New Books in Critical Theory
New Books in Critical TheoryMarshall Poe
The LRB Podcast
The LRB PodcastThe London Review of Books
The New Yorker Radio Hour
The New Yorker Radio HourWNYC Studios and The New Yorker
The Ezra Klein Show
The Ezra Klein ShowNew York Times Opinion
The Horn
The HornInternational Crisis Group

Recent Guests

Nat Cutter
Author of Britain and the Ottoman Maghreb, 1662–1712
University of Melbourne; University of Edinburgh
Episode: Britain and the Ottoman Maghreb, 1662–1712 with Nat Cutter (Oxford UP, 2026)
Farid Hafez
Author of Governing Islam in Austria and Germany, political scientist
University/Independent Scholar (as discussed)
Episode: Governing Islam in Austria and Germany, with Farid Hafez
Samuel Anderson
Author of The French Medersa: Islamic Education and Empire in Northwest Africa
Cornell University Press
Episode: The French Médersa: Islamic Education and Empire in Northwest Africa with Samuel D. Anderson (Cornell UP, 2026)
Elisa Prosperetti
Historian of modern African and global history specializing in diaspora, education, race, development, and decolonization
National Institute of Education
Episode: An Anticolonial Development: Race, Schooling, and Emancipation in Twentieth-Century West Africa with Elisa Prosperetti (Cambridge UP, 2026)
Samar Abdel-Rahman
Lecturer in World Cinema whose research focuses on stardom and performance in Middle Eastern and North African cinemas
University of Liverpool
Episode: Egyptian Male Film Stars in the Nasser Era: Envisioning a National Identity with Samar Abdel-Rahman (American U of Cairo Press, 2026)
Adam Rovner
Associate Professor of English and Jewish Literature at the University of Denver
University of Denver
Episode: The Jew Who Would Be King: A True Story of Shipwreck, Survival, and Scandal in Victorian Africa with Adam Rovner (U California Press, 2025)
Emeka Umejei
Senior Research Associate in the Department of Communication and Media at University of Johannesburg, South Africa; author of China in African Media, Between Influence Operation and Decolonization
University of Johannesburg
Episode: Emeka Umejei, "China in African Media: Between Influence Operations and Decolonization" (Bloomsbury, 2026)
Debarati Sanyal
Professor of French at the University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
Episode: Debarati Sanyal, "Arts of the Border: Fugitive Bodies at Europe’s Edges" (Fordham, 2025)
Meghan Garrity
Assistant Professor of International Security and Law at George Mason University
George Mason University
Episode: Meghan Garrity, "Mass Expulsion: The Politics of Forced Population Removal" (Oxford UP, 2026)

Host

Miranda Melcher
Host of The New Books Network

Reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars from 99 ratings
  • Colonial, White Perspective

    Just listened to the podcast episode called “The Future of Africa: a Discussion with James A Robinson” and it was the most colonial, white-supremist perspective I’ve ever heard of. James A Robinson needs to read “How Europe Underdeveloped Africa” by Walter Rodney and stop acting like it’s Africa’s fault for not having technological and societal advancements in the same way Europe & Asia did. Any “advancement”Europe had was not just happenstance, but entirely because of the domination and extract... more

    Apple Podcasts
    1
    Keahileo
    United States3 years ago
  • Great listening

    👍🏻

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    BurtonR
    Australia4 years ago
  • Max Siollun’s book interview!

    Max Siollun carried the interview, he was both enthusiastic and current. I can’t wait to read his latest book “What Britain did to Nigeria.”

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    T Drinker
    United States5 years ago
  • Reviewer’s tone

    I especially enjoy the reviews given pre-2019. The hosts were better public speakers in the beginning of this series. Any interview conducted by Host Nicholas Walton was a great!

    Apple Podcasts
    4
    T Drinker
    United States6 years ago
  • Excellent podcast

    This is an excellent podcast. Always interesting book topics and insightful q

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    JasonByrne film
    United States6 years ago
Embed These Reviews on a Website

Listeners Say

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

Listeners appreciate the rigorous yet approachable treatment of complex topics.
Guests are consistently authoritative and well-published in their fields.
Colossal depth of scholarship and accessible delivery make this a strong pick for researchers.

Chart Rankings

How this podcast ranks in the Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube charts.

Apple Podcasts
#204
Canada/Society & Culture/Places & Travel
Apple Podcasts
#76
Germany/Society & Culture/Places & Travel
Apple Podcasts
#145
France/Society & Culture/Places & Travel
Apple Podcasts
#6
South Africa/Society & Culture/Places & Travel
Apple Podcasts
#38
Saudi Arabia/Society & Culture/Places & Travel
Apple Podcasts
#73
Ukraine/Society & Culture/Places & Travel

Talking Points

Recent interactions between the hosts and their guests.

The Jew Who Would Be King: A True Story of Shipwreck, Survival, and Scandal in Victorian Africa with Adam Rovner (U California Press, 2025)
Q: Why does his Jewishness matter to the story, and why does his story matter to modern Jewish history?
Rovner argues that Isaacs's Jewish identity shaped his experience of exclusion in England, his access to trade and social networks, and his ability to identify with people he encountered. Isaacs maintained ties to Jewish life, including synagogue membership and burial in a Jewish cemetery.
The Jew Who Would Be King: A True Story of Shipwreck, Survival, and Scandal in Victorian Africa with Adam Rovner (U California Press, 2025)
Q: How do you make sense of Isaacs opposing slavery while also appearing to own slaves and be involved in the slave trade?
Rovner says Isaacs was a businessman who went where the money was. Archival records indicate that he held people in captivity and made them work without pay, even as he publicly opposed the slave trade and negotiated treaties against it.
Egyptian Male Film Stars in the Nasser Era: Envisioning a National Identity with Samar Abdel-Rahman (American U of Cairo Press, 2026)
Q: Why did the Nasser government go on to nationalize the movie industry in the 1960s?
She explains that government influence developed in stages, from revised censorship and subsidies to nationalization of major studios. Economic and political goals, as well as bureaucratic controls, contributed to the change; filmmakers had also sought protective policies to help local cinema compete with imported films.
Egyptian Male Film Stars in the Nasser Era: Envisioning a National Identity with Samar Abdel-Rahman (American U of Cairo Press, 2026)
Q: Who was Nasser's ideal man? And if you could highlight the role of the revolutionaries or of the revolution's achievements, challenges and larger aims, Egypt's recent sociopolitical history and the role of the pre-revolutionary cinema in promoting this muscular national identity via our three stars, Omar Sharif, Ismail Yassin and Farid Shawqi.
Abdel-Rahman says there was no single ideal man. Nasser became a symbolic figure onto whom people projected an exemplary national masculinity, while cinema and its stars negotiated new forms of identity amid nationalism, modernization, and changing politics.
An Anticolonial Development: Race, Schooling, and Emancipation in Twentieth-Century West Africa with Elisa Prosperetti (Cambridge UP, 2026)
Q: Can you tell us why you chose that framework and what it does methodologically for you here?
Prosperetti says the Black Atlantic framework emerged from the sources rather than being imposed on them. It connects colonial ideas about race and education to histories of emancipation, when formerly enslaved people across the Atlantic world sought literacy and schooling as ways to claim and enact freedom.

Audience Metrics

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

Listeners per Episode
Gender Skew
Location
Interests
Professions
Age Range
Household Income
Social Media Reach

Frequently Asked Questions About New Books in African Studies

What is New Books in African Studies about and what kind of topics does it cover?

This show features scholarly conversations with authors and researchers about recently published works focusing on Africa, the African diaspora, and related historical, political, and cultural topics. Episodes frequently explore decolonization, empire, colonial legacies, governance, development, and transnational connections, often through a historical or archival lens. Guests are typically university-affiliated academics or researchers presenting in-depth analyses, sometimes paired with practitioners or other experts to discuss methodological approaches, archival recovery, or the cultural implications of literature, architecture, and policy. A standout aspect is the emphasis on nuanced, interdisciplinary inquiry across history, politics, a... more

Where can I find podcast stats for New Books in African Studies?

Rephonic provides a wide range of podcast stats for New Books in African Studies. We scanned the web and collated all of the information that we could find in our comprehensive podcast database. See how many people listen to New Books in African Studies and access YouTube viewership numbers, download stats, audience demographics, chart rankings, ratings, reviews and more.

How many listeners does New Books in African Studies get?

Rephonic provides a full set of podcast information for four million podcasts, including the number of listeners. View further listenership figures for New Books in African Studies, including podcast download numbers and subscriber numbers, so you can make better decisions about which podcasts to sponsor or be a guest on. You will need to upgrade your account to access this premium data.

What are the audience demographics for New Books in African Studies?

Rephonic provides comprehensive predictive audience data for New Books in African Studies, including gender skew, age, country, political leaning, income, professions, education level, and interests. You can access these listener demographics by upgrading your account.

How many subscribers and views does New Books in African Studies have?

To see how many followers or subscribers New Books in African Studies has on Spotify and other platforms such as Castbox and Podcast Addict, simply upgrade your account. You'll also find viewership figures for their YouTube channel if they have one.

Which podcasts are similar to New Books in African Studies?

These podcasts share a similar audience with New Books in African Studies:

1. New Books in Critical Theory
2. The LRB Podcast
3. The New Yorker Radio Hour
4. The Ezra Klein Show
5. The Horn

How many episodes of New Books in African Studies are there?

New Books in African Studies launched 16 years ago and published 904 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 New Books in African Studies?

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.

Where can I see ratings and reviews for New Books in African Studies?

Rephonic pulls ratings and reviews for New Books in African Studies from multiple sources, including Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Castbox, and Podcast Addict.

View all the reviews in one place instead of visiting each platform individually and use this information to decide if a show is worth pitching or not.

How do I access podcast episode transcripts for New Books in African Studies?

Rephonic provides full transcripts for episodes of New Books in African Studies. Search within each transcript for your keywords, whether they be topics, brands or people, and figure out if it's worth pitching as a guest or sponsor. You can even set-up alerts to get notified when your keywords are mentioned.

What guests have appeared on New Books in African Studies?

Recent guests on New Books in African Studies include:

1. Nat Cutter
2. Farid Hafez
3. Samuel Anderson
4. Elisa Prosperetti
5. Samar Abdel-Rahman
6. Adam Rovner
7. Emeka Umejei
8. Debarati Sanyal

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.

Find and pitch the right podcasts

We help savvy brands, marketers and PR professionals to find the right podcasts for any topic or niche. Get the data and contacts you need to pitch podcasts at scale and turn listeners into customers.
Try it free for 7 days