DS 53: Bhaskar Sunkara

My guest is Brace Belden, a co-host of TrueAnon. This episode marks the 2 year anniversary of Doomscroll. We explore the recent socialist wins and to look ahead toward 2028. We discuss AOC, the anti-social tendencies of Woke 1 and the new factional splits tearing apart the right. Later, we discuss Brace’s avant-garde art project. Our conversation covers the strange history of the American left. We ask: what does socialism mean today?You can get access to the full catalog for Doomscroll and more by becoming a paid supporter: www.patreon.com/joshuacitarella

Kathryn Paige Harden is a behavioral geneticist and Professor of Psychology at the University of Texas at Austin. She leads the Developmental Behavior Genetics lab and acts as co-director of the Texas Twin Project. We discuss the blank slate thesis, the crisis of liberalism, morality, evolution, and theology. These taboo topics have taken on new significance in the reactionary environment of online culture.Kathryn Paige Harden is the author of “Original Sin: On the Genetics of Vice, the Problem of Blame and the Future of Forgiveness” (2025) and “The Genetic Lottery” (2021).X: https://x.com/kph3kYou can get access to the full catalog for Doomscroll and more by becoming a paid supporter: www.patreon.com/joshuacitarella

An extra-long bonus episode to explore: class dealignment, the (very) early years of DSA, the rise of Swedish social democracy, and the historical differences between communism and socialism.You can get access to the full catalog for Doomscroll and more by becoming a paid supporter: www.patreon.com/joshuacitarella

My guest is Bhaskar Sunkara, the founder of Jacobin Magazine he president of The Nation and the publisher of Catalyst: Journal. He is a former vice-chair of the Democratic Socialists of America.Bhaskar Sunkara is a co-author of “The Blueprint: How Socialism can Work in the Real World”, published by Verso Books. We discuss the history of the 20th century and the possibilities for a more egalitarian future.This program is part of the 82nd Whitney Biennial, curated by Marcela Guerrero and Drew Sawyer, recorded live at the Whitney Museum in New York City.You can get access to the full catalog for Doomscroll and more by becoming a paid supporter: www.patreon.com/joshuacitarella

We discuss the looming crisis of AI, the rise of China, the little known but very important work of economist Piero Sraffa and (of course) the origins of marmalade.You can get access to the full catalog for Doomscroll and more by becoming a paid supporter: www.patreon.com/joshuacitarella

My guest is David Harvey, a scholar, geographer and social theorist. He is a Distinguished Professor of Anthropology and Geography at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York. He has served on the faculty of Johns Hopkins University and held the Halford Mackinder Chair in Geography at the University of Oxford.David Harvey has received the Vautrin Lud International Prize in Geography, the Anders Retzius Gold Medal of the Swedish Society for Anthropology and Geography, the Patron's Medal of the Royal Geographical Society and many other awards. In 1998, he became a fellow of the British Academy and was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2007.Harvey is perhaps most well known for his university course on Marx’s Capital. For over 50 years, he has taught and studied these foundational texts. He is considered by many to be the most influential Marxist scholar alive today. We discuss his 29th and most recent book The Story of Capital. Our conversation explores the inequality and economic crises of the 21st century. What are the defining features of this new era? What forces might intervene to correct our faltering economic systems?You can get access to the full catalog for Doomscroll and more by becoming a paid supporter: www.patreon.com/joshuacitarella

We discuss Jason’s background in music and his early political experiences. Are we being radicalized by mass media? Or are we being radicalized by real life? We explore the 90s era crack epidemic, de-industrialization and PC culture.

My guest is Jason Myles, a writer, musician, and podcaster. He is the host of This is Revolution. We explore the overlapping spheres of online politics and music subcultures.In the mid-2010s, political factions on social media replaced musical genres as the primary mode of youth subculture. But can a subculture ever scale to a mass politics? We discuss the related themes of identity formation, rebellion and revolution.You can get access to the full catalog for Doomscroll and more by becoming a paid supporter: www.patreon.com/joshuacitarella

We explore Hito Steyerl’s recent work, soviet infrastructure, bitcoin mining, civil war and the (slim) possibilities of data centers or AI for the left. We get into the details about AI energy consumption and discuss the potentials for alternative models of data and training.You can get access to the full catalog for Doomscroll and more by becoming a paid supporter: www.patreon.com/joshuacitarella

My guest is Hito Steyerl, a filmmaker, author and professor of digital media at the Academy of Fine Arts in Munich. We explore the ideology of AI, automation, and the rise of reactionary politics across the advanced world.Neoliberalism might be over. But whatever comes next could be worse. In this conversation, we attempt to forecast what culture and politics may look like beyond the 2020s and after the end of globalization.You can get access to the full catalog for Doomscroll and more by becoming a paid supporter: www.patreon.com/joshuacitarella