The Reason Interview With Nick Gillespie

Damon Root discusses the path to emancipation, the struggle to secure freedom after the Civil War, and the constitutional changes that remade America.

Transcribed - Published: 3 June 2026

Nobel Prize-winning economist Alvin E. Roth discusses the moral limits of markets, how bans create black markets, and why harm reduction often works better than prohibition.

Transcribed - Published: 27 May 2026

Johan Norberg discusses what makes societies prosperous, why protectionism and nostalgia keep returning, and how populism feeds cultural decline.

Transcribed - Published: 20 May 2026

Jacob Mchangama and Jeff Kosseff discuss the global decline of free speech, why democracies are embracing censorship, and what can be done to protect open debate.

Transcribed - Published: 15 May 2026

Sen. John Fetterman discusses the state of the Democratic Party, immigration, foreign policy, and the dangers of political extremism.

Transcribed - Published: 13 May 2026

The Supreme Court justice discusses the Declaration of Independence, how unchecked power threatens liberty, and what the Founders can teach future generations.

Transcribed - Published: 4 May 2026

Andy Serkis discusses the corrupting nature of power, what Animal Farm says about modern authoritarianism, and whether technology expands or diminishes human creativity.

Transcribed - Published: 29 April 2026

Economist Jennifer Doleac discusses why long sentences don’t reduce crime, how first-time defendants benefit from leniency, and why clearance rates are key to crime reduction.

Transcribed - Published: 22 April 2026

Afroman discusses his free speech court victory, why he thinks he could unite America, and whether he feels pressure to always be high.

Transcribed - Published: 20 April 2026

Emma Ashford discusses Trump’s incoherent Iran strategy, the failures of post–Cold War foreign policy, and why a multipolar world limits American power.

Transcribed - Published: 15 April 2026

Jacob Siegel discusses how the internet reshaped political power, the rise of technocratic rule, and why information control keeps failing.

Transcribed - Published: 8 April 2026

The California congressman discusses the Iran war, unchecked executive power, California’s wealth tax debate, and the search for a shared American identity.

Transcribed - Published: 6 April 2026

Brink Lindsey discusses the gap between mass prosperity and mass flourishing, capitalism’s crisis of inclusion, and the implications of falling fertility.

Published: 1 April 2026

Tech journalist Taylor Lorenz discusses the Meta trial, the moral panic around social media, and the risks of regulating online speech.

Transcribed - Published: 27 March 2026

Comedian Adam Carolla discusses how soft journalism destroys media credibility, why California is losing residents, and the importance of meritocracy.

Transcribed - Published: 25 March 2026

Whole Earth Catalog creator Stewart Brand discusses maintaining complex systems, the importance of stewardship, and how technological optimism shapes the future.

Transcribed - Published: 18 March 2026

Mark Chenoweth discusses the SEC’s gag rule, the power of the administrative state, and the legal battle over whether regulators can silence their critics.

Transcribed - Published: 11 March 2026

Jonah Goldberg discusses the Iran war, Trump’s governing style, the rise of the populist right, and why he believes the GOP is drifting away from conservatism.

Transcribed - Published: 4 March 2026

Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg discusses immigration enforcement, the role of government, and why federal agencies are losing public trust.

Transcribed - Published: 25 February 2026

Michael Shermer examines the psychology behind pattern seeking, the limits of suspicion, and how the Epstein files fuel conspiracy thinking.

Transcribed - Published: 20 February 2026

Exiled journalist Fardad Farahzad discusses how Iranians get uncensored news, the state of the protest movement, and whether the Islamic Republic is losing its grip on power.

Transcribed - Published: 18 February 2026

Rep. Thomas Massie explains why he is risking his political career over the Epstein files, details what he saw in the unredacted documents, and argues that the scandal reveals a bipartisan failure of accountability stretching across multiple administrations.

Transcribed - Published: 11 February 2026

Crime analyst Jeff Asher explains the historic decline in murders, why Americans distrust crime statistics, and what the data actually show about public safety.

Transcribed - Published: 4 February 2026

Economist J.C. Bradbury breaks down why taxpayer-funded stadiums are a bad idea, how team owners market them to politicians, and why another stadium building boom may be coming.

Transcribed - Published: 28 January 2026

Venezuelan opposition leader Freddy Guevara explains support for U.S. intervention, how socialism destroyed Venezuela, and what a democratic transition would require.

Transcribed - Published: 21 January 2026

Former U.S. Archivist Colleen Shogan discusses the importance of preserving presidential records and the challenge of maintaining public trust in an era of partisan conflict.

Transcribed - Published: 14 January 2026

Scott Jennings discusses life as a conservative at CNN, Trump’s record a year into his second term, and how figures like Candace Owens damage the right.

Transcribed - Published: 7 January 2026

Lauren Hall looks at the roots of political tribalism, why voters feel trapped between false choices, and how radical moderation offers a way out of constant polarization.

Transcribed - Published: 30 December 2025

Tony Gilroy examines how Andor portrays authoritarian power as a bureaucratic system, the moral compromises of life under surveillance, and the role ordinary people play in enforcing oppressive systems.

Transcribed - Published: 23 December 2025

Keonne Rodriguez explains why he built a bitcoin privacy tool, discusses the federal charges that sent him to prison this week, and warns that his case could redefine the legal boundaries of financial privacy.

Transcribed - Published: 19 December 2025

Katherine Dee examines how living online reshapes attention and behavior and makes the case for a more grounded, realistic way of using digital tools.

Transcribed - Published: 17 December 2025

Sarah McLaughlin reveals how foreign governments pressure American universities through speech codes and satellite campuses, and examines the broader threat international authoritarianism poses to free expression.

Transcribed - Published: 10 December 2025

Author Matt Ridley examines how science became centralized and dogmatic, why public trust collapsed during COVID, and how open dissent is essential to restoring credibility.

Transcribed - Published: 3 December 2025

Filmmaker Ken Burns breaks down the myths surrounding America’s founding, explains how the Declaration’s own contradictions ultimately expanded American freedom, and argues for the continued funding of public broadcasting.

Transcribed - Published: 26 November 2025

Sen. Rand Paul explains why he wants the Epstein files released, lays out his case against Trump’s tariffs and military strikes in Venezuela, and argues that he and Rep. Thomas Massie are the last voices in Congress still committed to libertarian ideals.

Transcribed - Published: 20 November 2025

The Washington Post opinion editor Adam O’Neal outlines his vision for a more classically liberal editorial voice, examines how both parties turned against free speech and free markets, and explains why the paper is ending political endorsements.

Transcribed - Published: 19 November 2025

Author Katie Herzog examines new approaches to treating addiction, the cultural obsession with moralizing sobriety, and why she believes freedom means choosing how to heal.

Transcribed - Published: 12 November 2025

Dr. Wolf von Laer and Sean Themea join Nick Gillespie to discuss how Kirk’s murder is reshaping student activism and where libertarian ideas fit in today’s campus climate.

Transcribed - Published: 6 November 2025

Filmmaker Jon Shenk and former Navy SEAL Marcus Capone discuss how psychedelics are helping veterans recover from war trauma.

Transcribed - Published: 5 November 2025

Jake Tapper examines the growing pressure on the news media to serve political interests, Donald Trump’s attacks on the press and peaceful protesters, as well as the lasting damage Joe Biden may have done to the Democratic Party.

Transcribed - Published: 29 October 2025

Former Sen. Jeff Flake discusses how Trump reshaped the GOP, why populism betrayed conservative values, and why he believes the system can still be reformed.

Transcribed - Published: 22 October 2025

ACLU legal director Ben Wizner warns that Donald Trump’s war on dissent endangers the First Amendment, urges Americans to protect speech they dislike, and reflects on Edward Snowden’s enduring legacy.

Transcribed - Published: 15 October 2025

Novelist Lionel Shriver explains why Americans overinterpret tragedies, compares today’s partisan divisions to the conflicts she witnessed in Northern Ireland, and argues that political manias are driving the country toward destructive extremes.

Transcribed - Published: 8 October 2025

Civil liberties attorney Jenin Younes recounts her role in Murthy v. Missouri, her opposition to pandemic mandates, and why she believes Trump poses an even greater threat to free speech than Biden.

Transcribed - Published: 1 October 2025

Filmmaker Dan Krauss explains how U.S. leaders misled the public about Afghanistan, why the media failed to push back, and how money and power kept America’s longest war alive long after it was lost.

Transcribed - Published: 24 September 2025

Author Joe Dolce explains how psychedelics are moving from counterculture to mainstream, with new science, shifting laws, and surprising therapies that promise to change how we treat addiction, anxiety, and self-discovery.

Transcribed - Published: 17 September 2025

Reason’s Jacob Sullum traces the shared failures of drug prohibition and gun laws, showing how both undermine civil liberties, racial justice, and commonsense safety.

Transcribed - Published: 16 September 2025

Nick Gillespie and Matt Welch discuss the murder of Charlie Kirk and how political violence is reshaping the national climate.

Transcribed - Published: 11 September 2025

Journalist and activist Lenore Skenazy explains how fear and over-parenting left kids more anxious and less independent, and and how a movement to restore that independence is gaining ground.

Transcribed - Published: 10 September 2025

The Guardian Angels founder and New York mayoral candidate talks about crime, drugs, zoning, and what the government could learn from squatters.

Transcribed - Published: 5 September 2025