War in Gaza, Ukraine & Space, plus Biden vs. Trump with David Ignatius

Broad City co-creator Ilana Glazer’s new friendship flick Babes is a no-holds-barred comedy about pregnancy, parenthood and the losses that come with adulthood. Kara talks with Ilana about why women’s bodies are considered “raunchy,” whether YouTube is still a good launch pad for breakout comedians, and how she is rallying Gen Z and Millennial voters to “microdose democracy” through her political non-profit Generator Collective. Plus: why, as a Jewish American, she’s calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. Questions? Comments? Email us at [email protected] or find Kara on Instagram/Threads as @karaswisher Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

When it comes to political comedy, Bill Maher is practically an institution — he’s been hosting a late-night political talk show since 1993 (with a brief hiatus in 2002-03, after Politically Incorrect was  canceled following a 9/11 comment). And now the host of Real Time with Bill Maher has a new book out: What This Comedian Said Will Shock You. Kara sat with Bill in his “den of iniquity” to discuss his childhood, politics, the war in Gaza, and, of course, cancel culture.   Questions? Comments? Email us at [email protected] or find Kara on Instagram/Threads as @karaswisher Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today, we’re sharing Kara’s recent appearance on Possible, a podcast hosted by Aria Finger and Reid Hoffman from Wonder Media Network. We’ll be back with a new episode of On with Kara Swisher on Thursday, May 30th. You can follow the Possible podcast here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/possible/id1677184070 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Tesla is bleeding execs, and it appears to be reaching a crisis point; over at Twitter/X, new reporting shows that Elon uses the platform to cozy up to right-wing leaders around the world and then presses them to enact policies that benefit to his companies; and while SpaceX continues to dominate in space, serious questions remain about the Pentagon’s reliance on the mercurial industrialist with a seeming soft spot for Putin and Xi. So it’s time to gather three of the best reporters covering Musk and get their take on all things Elon. Kirsten Grind recently joined The New York Times as a tech investigations reporter. Previously, she was at The Wall Street Journal, where she reported on Elon’s drug use and the shockingly acquiescent Tesla board. Tim Higgins is the author of Power Play, Tesla, Elon Musk, and the Bet of the Century, and he writes a weekly column at The Wall Street Journal that is mostly about Elon Musk. And Becky Peterson covers Tesla, SpaceX, and all things Elon at The Information, where she consistently publishes scoops on the inner workings of Elon’s companies. Questions? Comments? Email us at [email protected] or find Kara on Instagram/Threads as @karaswisher Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof has been reporting on protests, wars and conflicts for more than 40 years, and he’s used his platform to highlight human rights issues at home and abroad. But despite being a proponent of "ethical journalism", he flinches at being called an “activist”. Kara talks to Nick about the swashbuckling adventures detailed in his new memoir, Chasing Hope: A Reporter’s Life, his take on the situation in Gaza and the student protests against the war, and why he’s more hopeful than cynical about the state of the world – even with Trump back on the ballot. This interview was taped on May 14, 2024. Questions? Comments? Email us at [email protected] or find Kara on Threads/Instagram @karaswisher Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

David Ignatius, a foreign affairs columnist for The Washington Post and the author of twelve novels, is also a noted expert on Middle East politics, one of the preeminent national security writers in the country, and perhaps, most importantly — the person who first assigned Kara Swisher to cover tech news.  Kara talks to her old boss about his new spy thriller, The Phantom Orbit, the upcoming presidential election, the war in Gaza, and the war in Ukraine.  Questions? Comments? Email us at [email protected] or find Kara on Threads/Instagram @karaswisher Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

To savvy tech consumers, Walt Mossberg and Marques Brownlee, aka MKBHD, need no introduction. Before he retired in 2017, Walt was the undisputed dean of tech reviewers. As Senator Maria Cantwell, a recent guest and former tech executive put it, “all our product reviews lived or died by Walt Mossberg.” MKBHD began reviewing tech products on YouTube, as a high schooler, and he now has more than 18 million subscribers to his channel. He has become this generation’s Walt Mossberg, and as Jimmy Donaldson/MrBeast, the king of YouTube, put it, “you’re the video producer that decides what tech everyone in America buys.”  Yet, somehow, the titans of tech reviews had never met before. Kara rights this wrong, and she, Mossberg, and Brownlee discuss the art, philosophy and ethics of reviewing tech, as well as the Tesla Cybertruck, Apple Vision Pro, AI-in-a-box and Taylor Swift.  Click here to listen to Waveform: The MKBHD Podcast. Questions? Comments? Email us at [email protected] or find Kara on Instagram/Threads as @karaswisher Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Author Anne Lamott has penned novels, but is most famous for her confessional memoirs about sobriety, raising her son as a single mother (Operating Instructions), being a liberal Christian and writing (Bird By Bird). Kara and Anne talk about her 20th book, Somehow: Thoughts on Love, why she thinks love is like Wi-Fi, how she dealt with nearly being canceled over a tweet, how to practice radical self-acceptance, and finding forgiveness — even for Donald Trump. Questions? Comments? Email us at [email protected] or find Kara on Threads/Instagram @karaswisher Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Thirty-one years after founding Chipotle, Steve Ells is back with what he hopes will be another fast-casual dining revolution: the highly-automated, plant-based food chain, Kernel. Ells says that streamlining and automation will allow him to pay workers well above minimum wage and give them more benefits – all while reducing labor costs. But don’t call it a robot restaurant! Kara and Ells discuss the mechanics and philosophy underpinning Kernel’s concept and the downstream effects of integrating tech into our food. Questions? Comments? Email us at [email protected] or find Kara on Threads/Instagram @karaswisher Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In her latest play, Sally & Tom, Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Suzan-Lori Parks tackles what is, arguably, one of the most complicated and personal chapters in American history: the relationship between Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings, the enslaved woman who gave birth to at least six of his children. Kara and Parks discuss the play in the context of her past work, as well as our nation's trend of revising history to sand down its rough edges, and why wrestling with our nation’s past is a sign of love. Sally & Tom is now playing at the Public Theater. You can buy tickets at: https://publictheater.org/productions/season/2324/sally--tom/  Correction: Suzan-Lori Parks' Plays for the Plague Year begins in March 2020. In a previous version of this episode, we said it began in March 2022. Questions? Comments? Email us at [email protected] or find Kara on Threads/Instagram as @karaswisher  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices