エピソード

  • Friday Focus provides listeners with a focused, half-hour masterclass on the big issues, events and trends driving the news and current events. The show features Janice Gross Stein, the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and bestselling author, in conversation with Rudyard Griffiths, Chair and moderator of the Munk Debates.

    Rudyard and Janice start today's show unpacking the intelligence information about the effectiveness of America's attack on Iran's nuclear sites. While centrifuges at Fordo have been rendered inoperable, a significant amount of enriched uranium has been moved from the site to an unknown location. A diplomatic solution should be explored to prevent Iran from rebuilding their nuclear program, but will Iran trust the US and move towards non-enrichment, or go the way of North Korea and secretly sprint towards a bomb? In the second half of the show Rudyard and Janice turn to the surprising Democratic mayoral primary in New York City where Democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani upset former NY governor Andrew Cuomo. Mamdani's affordability message resonated with voters and showed that Trump and MAGA do not have a monopoly on the public's growing frustration with economic inequality. This crushing defeat of an established politician reflects a powerful desire for change that party elites - on both sides of the aisle - ignore at their peril.

     

     

    Thank you to this week’s Munk Curators and Supporters. Your contribution supports our efforts to bring back civil and substantive dialogue to the public square.

    Curators:

    Dixi L
    Vincent C
    Frederic G
    Bill M

     

     

    Supporters:

    Mary G
    James H
    Cynthia S
    Maria Jose M
    Ashvini D
    Theodora P
    Tim C
    Jacob K
    Joslyn B
    Eugene T
    Alexander P
    Hannah W
    Victor N
    stefan S
    Kevin B
    Kristin E
    Sarah C
    Ulrike H
    Kurt J
    Seth B
    Dan W
    Christine B
    Jesse B
    Ben R
    Tilanthi J
    Chris B
    Trevor W
    Ana R
    Michael C
    Neil M
    Jim B
    Jordan G
    Frances A
    Eric P
    Karen B
    JOSE A A
    Lawrence C
    Luke A
    Natasha M
    Robert C
    Gintare M
    Erin F
    JOSIE W
    Joe W
    Rick C
    Suzanne H
    Jay N
    florence M
    Simon J
    Paola L
    Sylvia A
    Jonathan W
    Charles L
    Katrina L
    Dan B
    Jake S
    Sebastian T
    Julia N
    Mark A
    Nouri C
    Madeleine S
    Nathaniel J
    Thomas G
    Michelle G
    John L
    Richard C
    Ryan L
    Braxley L
    Patrice T
    Aviva R
    Alexis K
    Cathy G
    Matt M
    Kevin J
    Jocelyn N
    Ben P
    Mike L
    David L
    Arin K
    Jordan H
    Elena T
    Stephanie H
    Darren K
    William K
    Ron B
    Andy D
    Arvind S
    Julie P
    Patrick H
    Juliane S
    Omri G
    John M
    Colin H
    Julie C
    Linda A
    Michael H

    To support the Friday Focus podcast consider becoming a donor to the Munk Debates for as little as $25 annually, or $.50 per episode. Canadian donors receive a charitable tax receipt.

    This podcast is a project of the Munk Debates, a Canadian charitable organization dedicated to fostering civil and substantive public dialogue.

    More information at www.munkdebates.com.

  • The full version of today's Friday Focus is available to all members. 

    Rudyard and Janice begin today's special Friday Focus episode with the Trump initiated ceasefire that allows both Israel and Iran to claim some measure of victory. But does Trump have the power to make the truce hold? Bibi is learning that American help comes with a price, and the Israeli PM is no longer in the driver's seat. Pulling back to look at the bigger picture, Rudyard and Janice explain how America's involvement in this war is a game changer that has reinforced American power in the Middle East and beyond. Has this past week's events - including the notable absence of China and Russia in this conflict - challenged the idea that we are moving into a multipolar world? Have we underestimated American power in the 21st century? And finally, how will a weakened Iranian regime respond domestically to the penetration of its military and collapse of its nuclear program? 

     

    To support the Friday Focus podcast consider becoming a donor to the Munk Debates for as little as $25 annually, or $.50 per episode. Canadian donors receive a charitable tax receipt.

    This podcast is a project of the Munk Debates, a Canadian charitable organization dedicated to fostering civil and substantive public dialogue.

    More information at www.munkdebates.com.

  • エピソードを見逃しましたか?

    フィードを更新するにはここをクリックしてください。

  • The full version of today's Friday Focus is available to all members. 

    In this emergency Friday Focus episode, Rudyard and Janice assess what the US strike on Iran's nuclear facilities mean for the future of the Middle East. What are the big takeaways from this game changing moment in the region? Has Iran's capacity to enrich uranium been permanently disabled? And finally, and perhaps most importantly, how will Iran respond? Iranians are a proud people with a culture of resistance. Its leaders believe that Trump deceived them twice. If the US President is serious about peace he needs to open backchannels to Iran immediately, reign in Israel's regime change ambitions, and show he is committed to a deal.

     

    To support the Friday Focus podcast consider becoming a donor to the Munk Debates for as little as $25 annually, or $.50 per episode. Canadian donors receive a charitable tax receipt.

    This podcast is a project of the Munk Debates, a Canadian charitable organization dedicated to fostering civil and substantive public dialogue.

    More information at www.munkdebates.com.

  • The full version of today's Friday Focus is available to all members. 

    Rudyard and Janice start today's show talking about the long term prospects of this war: while Israel has had amazing military successes in the first week, their ability to intercept Iran's ballistic missiles will diminish as this war drags on. Is there a diplomatic opportunity to bring this conflict to an end? And if this is a matter of survival for Iran's top brass, will they finally concede to US demands and dismantle their nuclear program? Rudyard and Janice then turn to Trump and the most consequential test of his presidency so far. Janice argues that his indecision and uncertainty around striking Iran - stoked by the infighting between the hawks and isolationists in his coalition - is fueling a dangerous escalation between Iran and Israel. And even if America decides to strike Fordow, the underground nuclear facility in Iran, there is no way of knowing what the outcome of such an attack will be. Both Rudyard and Janice agree that we are in a crisis over nuclear weapons with the most incompetent set of leaders.

    To support the Friday Focus podcast consider becoming a donor to the Munk Debates for as little as $25 annually, or $.50 per episode. Canadian donors receive a charitable tax receipt.

    This podcast is a project of the Munk Debates, a Canadian charitable organization dedicated to fostering civil and substantive public dialogue.

    More information at www.munkdebates.com.

  • Rudyard is joined by celebrated American-Israeli author and journalist Yossi Klein Halevi to talk about the ongoing war between Iran and Israel. Yossi explains why this attack has almost unanimous support within Israel and how everything changed after October 7th: a collapse in the illusion that they could live next to a genocidal regime whose stated goal is to eradicate them. Israelis, he says, will not make the same mistake twice. Furthermore, Jews have learned from the past that when your enemy threatens to destroy you, take them at their word. Yossi goes on to explain how Israel hopes to trigger an uprising in Iran against a widely detested regime. How do you activate the disaffected silent majority? Will the people of Iran feel emboldened to take to the streets in this rare opportunity? And finally, Yossi has a message to the West: there should be no moral confusion or ambiguity. This should be a moment when the West rallies behind Israel. And if the US, Canada, and Europe aren't prepared to actively support Israel, at the very least they should not undermine its efforts. 

  • Friday Focus provides listeners with a focused, half-hour masterclass on the big issues, events and trends driving the news and current events. The show features Janice Gross Stein, the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and bestselling author, in conversation with Rudyard Griffiths, Chair and moderator of the Munk Debates.

    Rudyard and Janice start the show with Israel's spectacular strike on Iran that targeted ballistic missiles, nuclear sites, and top military leaders. Janice argues that while this was a successful attack it is far from a devastating blow, and Iran still has the means to retaliate. In the second half of the show Rudyard and Janice discuss what this means for global stability and the future of warfare. The US is no longer willing to play the world's policeman and regional powers are freer to do what they want. The attack also demonstrated the destabilizing effects of cheap technology, as Israel was able to decapitate the regime's senior leadership with drones lying in wait from inside Iran. And finally, will the Iranian people - the majority of which do not support the regime - seize on this rare moment to rise up against a weakened and brutal theocracy and forge a new path forward?

    To support the Friday Focus podcast consider becoming a donor to the Munk Debates for as little as $25 annually, or $.50 per episode. Canadian donors receive a charitable tax receipt.

    This podcast is a project of the Munk Debates, a Canadian charitable organization dedicated to fostering civil and substantive public dialogue.

    More information at www.munkdebates.com.

  • On this special podcast episode we are sharing the opening statements from the Munk Debate on Trump’s America, which took place on May 29th in front of a sold out crowd of 3,000 people at Toronto’s Roy Thomson Hall.

    The debate resolution was: Be it resolved, this is America’s golden age

    Arguing in favour of the motion was the political consultant, pollster and senior counselor to President Trump during his first term in office, Kellyanne Conway. Her debate partner was the President of the right-wing think tank the Heritage Foundation, and the architect of Project 2025, Kevin D. Roberts.

    Opposing the motion was the New York Times columnist, podcaster, bestselling author, and one of America’s most influential commentators, Ezra Klein. His debate partner was Ben Rhodes, who served as President Obama’s senior advisor and is the co-host of the popular podcast Pod Save the World.

    To watch the full Munk Debate on Trump's America go to our website www.munkdebates.com

  • Friday Focus provides listeners with a focused, half-hour masterclass on the big issues, events and trends driving the news and current events. The show features Janice Gross Stein, the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and bestselling author, in conversation with Rudyard Griffiths, Chair and moderator of the Munk Debates.

    Rudyard and Janice start the show talking about the blowup of the bromance between Donald Trump and Elon Musk which took place in spectacular fashion over twitter. Was Elon's performance a genuine show of dismay at a congressional spending bill that flies in the face of all the cost cutting initiatives he was pursuing with DOGE? Or Is this a man having a nervous breakdown in public? And how will this breakup affect support from other tech billionaires and fracture the MAGA coalition? In the second half of the show Rudyard and Janice turn to the surprise Ukrainian drone attack that targeted Russian air bases hosting nuclear-capable strategic bombers thousands of km away from the border of Ukraine. What will Putin's response be to this brazen attack? How will the use of cheap weapons to destroy expensive weapons change the face of warfare? And finally, how will the loss of some of its military capacity affect Russia's war with Ukraine and its relationship with NATO? 

    To support the Friday Focus podcast consider becoming a donor to the Munk Debates for as little as $25 annually, or $.50 per episode. Canadian donors receive a charitable tax receipt.

    This podcast is a project of the Munk Debates, a Canadian charitable organization dedicated to fostering civil and substantive public dialogue.

    More information at www.munkdebates.com.

  • Rudyard welcomes back Globe and Mail columnist Andrew Coyne to talk about Mark Carney's early economic plan for Canada. Andrew suggests that the PM's vision is a mixture of centre right and centre left politics and mimics the language of Stephen Harper. Rudyard and Andrew then try to break down the reasons for Canada's stagnant growth and agree that we need more labour, more investment, and more innovation driven by competition. Talk then turns to this week's meeting between Canada's premiers which will focus on interprovincial trade: how might national unity suffer if trade barriers are dismantled? And why is the Prime Minister dragging his feet on this obvious made-in-Canada solution to Trump's tariff threat?

  • Friday Focus provides listeners with a focused, half-hour masterclass on the big issues, events and trends driving the news and current events. The show features Janice Gross Stein, the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and bestselling author, in conversation with Rudyard Griffiths, Chair and moderator of the Munk Debates.

    Rudyard and Janice begin today's show by unpacking last night's sold out Munk Debate where Ezra Klein and Ben Rhodes debated Kevin Roberts and Kellyanne Conway about whether America has entered its golden age. It was a surprising show of civility between the debaters, and both Rudyard and Janice agree that a debate of this kind could not have taken place in the U.S. In the second half of the show they turn to the Middle East where Israel is hinting at a willingness to strike Iran's nuclear facilities against the wishes of the U.S. How will this impact ongoing nuclear negotiations between America and Iran? What role is Saudi Arabia playing in trying to prevent a war between these two rivals? And will Netanyahu go against Trump's explicit wishes, alienating its most important ally?

    To support the Friday Focus podcast consider becoming a donor to the Munk Debates for as little as $25 annually, or $.50 per episode. Canadian donors receive a charitable tax receipt.

    This podcast is a project of the Munk Debates, a Canadian charitable organization dedicated to fostering civil and substantive public dialogue.

    More information at www.munkdebates.com.

  • Rudyard is joined once again by The Globe and Mail columnist Andrew Coyne to reflect on Mark Carney's bumpy first few weeks in office: delaying the spring budget, a chief of staff search coming up empty, and cabinet ministers going off message all point to a challenging start for Canada's newest Prime Minister. Rudyard and Andrew then turn to Canada's relationship with the US. Are we still in the crisis of our lifetime, as claimed by our political leaders during the election? Andrew argues that even if the immediate threat has subsided for now, the crisis helped us see that we are too exposed to a partner we can't depend upon. Leaders must seize on this moment of clarity by beefing up Canada's defense contributions and addressing interprovincial trade barriers. 

  • Friday Focus provides listeners with a focused, half-hour masterclass on the big issues, events and trends driving the news and current events. The show features Janice Gross Stein, the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and bestselling author, in conversation with Rudyard Griffiths, Chair and moderator of the Munk Debates.

    Rudyard and Janice open the show with Donald Trump's Oval Office meeting with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, where the US President accused his guest of genocide against white farmers.  Was this an open display of racism in the White House? And why has the public reaction to this been so muted? Rudyard and Janice agree that Trump - right out of an authoritarian playbook - has created a permissive structure that allows for the breakdown of societal norms and civility. In the second half of the show Rudyard and Janice turn to Canada where Mark Carney released a statement with Keir Starmer and Emanuel Macron criticizing Israel's withholding humanitarian aid to Gaza and threatening consequences should Israel not change course. Most notable here is that the statement did not align with US policy, showing that Canada is moving away from America and building stronger relationships with European allies. And finally, Janice and Rudyard wonder: How are changing demographics within these countries - Canada, France, and the UK - informing policy towards Israel, Gaza, and Palestinian statehood?

    To support the Friday Focus podcast consider becoming a donor to the Munk Debates for as little as $25 annually, or $.50 per episode. Canadian donors receive a charitable tax receipt.

    This podcast is a project of the Munk Debates, a Canadian charitable organization dedicated to fostering civil and substantive public dialogue.

    More information at www.munkdebates.com.

  • Friday Focus provides listeners with a focused, half-hour masterclass on the big issues, events and trends driving the news and current events. The show features Janice Gross Stein, the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and bestselling author, in conversation with Rudyard Griffiths, Chair and moderator of the Munk Debates.

    On this week's Friday Focus episode Janice joins Rudyard from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, where Trump made his first state visit since taking office in January. Trump's next stop was to Qatar which came with news of a gift to the President from the small oil rich country: a $400 million dollar private jet for Air Force One, which comes on the heels of Eric Trump's $5.5 billion dollar development deal with Qatar (this is the same country that has been funding Hamas to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars). Next up on Trump's tour was the United Arab Emirates, which announced it will be using up to $2 billion in Trump's meme coin to fund a crypto exchange. The graft and bribery on display is like nothing we have witnessed before. As Janice points out, this is how Kleptocracies are born. In the second half of the show Rudyard and Janice turn to Israel and the release this week of Israeli-American hostage Edan Alexander. Janice believes Netanyahu is dragging on the war in Gaza to serve his own political interests even though 75% of Israelis want the war to end. It is becoming apparent that Donald Trump and Steve Witkoff are losing patience with Bibi and in the next few weeks we could see them force Netanyahu's hand to agree to a ceasefire. 

    To support the Friday Focus podcast consider becoming a donor to the Munk Debates for as little as $25 annually, or $.50 per episode. Canadian donors receive a charitable tax receipt.

    This podcast is a project of the Munk Debates, a Canadian charitable organization dedicated to fostering civil and substantive public dialogue.

    More information at www.munkdebates.com.

  • We are a long way from a fully functioning democracy, according to Globe and Mail columnist Andrew Coyne. That's the main argument in his new book, The Crisis of Canadian Democracy, in which Andrew points to the many ways our political system is broken: a dysfunctional parliament, MPs whose party loyalty is valued more than their constituents' concerns, and elections that reward regional interests at the expense of national unity. Andrew offers thoughtful and substantive solutions for how Canada can change course and make this country's democracy work for the citizens whom it is supposed to represent.


    Find out how to purchase Andrew's book here.

  • Friday Focus provides listeners with a focused, half-hour masterclass on the big issues, events and trends driving the news and current events. The show features Janice Gross Stein, the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and bestselling author, in conversation with Rudyard Griffiths, Chair and moderator of the Munk Debates.

    Rudyard and Janice open today's show with the fast developing and worrying situation between India and Pakistan. What started in the long disputed territory of Kashmir has expanded into strikes along the border shared by these two nuclear powers. As Janice argues, when the global policeman (the U.S.) retires from the job local leaders take advantage of the vacuum in leadership. In the second half of the show Rudyard and Janice turn to this week's meeting between Mark Carney and Donald Trump. Both had mixed feelings about the meeting: while it was friendly and relaxed in nature, and we are in a better place than we were when Trudeau was negotiating with Trump, there were no concrete outcomes from this meeting that benefit Canadians. Ultimately, many of our most important sectors are facing a massive slowdown because the Trump administration is not interested in the core products like cars and steel that were once central to the Canada-US relationship.

    To support the Friday Focus podcast consider becoming a donor to the Munk Debates for as little as $25 annually, or $.50 per episode. Canadian donors receive a charitable tax receipt.

    This podcast is a project of the Munk Debates, a Canadian charitable organization dedicated to fostering civil and substantive public dialogue.

    More information at www.munkdebates.com.

  • Friday Focus provides listeners with a focused, half-hour masterclass on the big issues, events and trends driving the news and current events. The show features Janice Gross Stein, the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and bestselling author, in conversation with Rudyard Griffiths, Chair and moderator of the Munk Debates.

    Rudyard and Janice open today's show with their key takeaway from the Canadian election: Mark Carney's functional minority was delivered to him by the Boomers who want to protect their assets and wealth accumulation, often at the expense of the younger generation who are faced with poor job prospects and an inflated housing market. Governments need to address these conflicting demographic interests and provide a pathway to financial security for our young people. In the second half of the show Rudyard and Janice turn to the ongoing nuclear negotiations between the US and Iran. The new agreement being discussed is very similar to Obama's JCPOA, a deal that Trump backed out of in his first term in office.  Why does Trump want to pursue a deal with Iran at the expense of the security of their close ally Israel? How are the Saudis influencing Trump's foreign policy in the Middle East? And will Israel be forced to go against Trump and strike Iran's nuclear facilities on their own?

    To support the Friday Focus podcast consider becoming a donor to the Munk Debates for as little as $25 annually, or $.50 per episode. Canadian donors receive a charitable tax receipt.

    This podcast is a project of the Munk Debates, a Canadian charitable organization dedicated to fostering civil and substantive public dialogue.

    More information at www.munkdebates.com.

  • Andrew Coyne is a Globe and Mail Columnist and one of Canada’s most trusted commentators. On this Munk Dialogue Andrew and host Rudyard Griffiths unpack Canada's election results and where the parties and provinces go from here: now that they have sidelined the People's Party, can the Conservatives appeal to the centre? Will there be a surge in separatist sentiment in Alberta and Saskatchewan? And after the resounding defeat of the NDP, will Canada become a two-party system? Rudyard and Andrew also try to make sense of why young people skewed Conservative while Boomers supported the Liberals. How should we understand this demographic reversal of traditional voting habits?

  • Friday Focus provides listeners with a focused, half-hour masterclass on the big issues, events and trends driving the news and current events. The show features Janice Gross Stein, the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and bestselling author, in conversation with Rudyard Griffiths, Chair and moderator of the Munk Debates.

    Rudyard and Janice open the show with the Ukraine-Russia ceasefire deal put forward by the Trump administration that would recognize Crimea as a Russian territory, deny NATO membership to Ukraine, and give Moscow control of 20 percent of Ukrainian territory in the Donbas region. This is a huge capitulation to Russia that doesn't provide any security guarantees to Ukraine. So why is Putin dragging his feet in accepting these generous terms?

    In the second part of the show Rudyard and Janice reflect on the Canadian election campaign which will come to a close on Monday as voters head to the polls. Because so much focus has been paid to the Canada-US relationship, so many other important issues relating to the economy, productivity, immigration and housing have been ignored. Have we overreacted to the Trump threat while failing to address the very real challenges at home?

    To support the Friday Focus podcast consider becoming a donor to the Munk Debates for as little as $25 annually, or $.50 per episode. Canadian donors receive a charitable tax receipt.

    This podcast is a project of the Munk Debates, a Canadian charitable organization dedicated to fostering civil and substantive public dialogue.

    More information at www.munkdebates.com.

  • Andrew Coyne is a Globe and Mail Columnist and one of Canada’s most trusted commentators. He joins host Rudyard Griffiths to discuss how the Conservative Party's anti-Trudeau messaging undermined their ability to provide Canadians with an appealing platform in an election that doesn't include the former PM. Mark Carney, meanwhile, is acting like a grownup in charge when a crisis hits, even though his big spending promises suggest he's not the blue liberal many centre-right Canadians had hoped. Rudyard and Andrew also talk about Trump's threats to fire US Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell, and why the independent authority of central banks is so integral to the functioning of democracies.

  • Friday Focus provides listeners with a focused, half-hour masterclass on the big issues, events and trends driving the news and current events. The show features Janice Gross Stein, the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and bestselling author, in conversation with Rudyard Griffiths, Chair and moderator of the Munk Debates.

    Rudyard and Janice open the show with last night's Canadian English language leaders' debate. Rudyard thinks that Pierre Poilievre looked prime ministerial for the first time in this campaign, while Mark Carney showed a calmness and dexterity for someone with limited political experience. Bottom line: it was a good night for both leaders but it won't move the needle much. Furthermore, it's past time to rethink how the leaders' debate commission conducts election debates which fail to test leaders to the benefit of undecided voters. In the second half of the show Rudyard and Janice talk about Trump's very combative and controversial week: defying the courts and America's commitment to due process for illegal immigrants, a fight with Harvard University which could have broad implications on universities across the US, and his public condemnation of Jerome Powell, the chair of the US federal reserve, because he doesn't like the bank's restrictive rates and the inflationary threat they represent. Trump's willingness to engage in public battles and ignore basic laws signal an unconstrained chaos with no end in sight.

    To support the Friday Focus podcast consider becoming a donor to the Munk Debates for as little as $25 annually, or $.50 per episode. Canadian donors receive a charitable tax receipt.

    This podcast is a project of the Munk Debates, a Canadian charitable organization dedicated to fostering civil and substantive public dialogue.

    More information at www.munkdebates.com.