John Batchelor
@johnbatchelor.bsky.social
Happy Host of CBS Eye on the World. Novelist as John Calvin Batchelor. https://a.co/d/3dY1BuK
The most compelling part of my job is interviewing authors every Wednesday. https://johnbatchelor.substack.com/
The most compelling part of my job is interviewing authors every Wednesday. https://johnbatchelor.substack.com/
"It struck me . . . how profoundly this gleaming white Renaissance tomb was unrelated to the book I had just been writing, to the nation of the Africa and to Augustine, who lived his life and thought his thoughts and loved his family and his friends and fought against his foes in North Africa."
St. Augustine the African (with Catherine Conybeare)
Academic, philologist, and professor Catherine Conybeare's new book is an account of how St. Augustine’s origins in North Africa shaped his life and thought.
substack.com
November 8, 2025 at 2:06 PM
"It struck me . . . how profoundly this gleaming white Renaissance tomb was unrelated to the book I had just been writing, to the nation of the Africa and to Augustine, who lived his life and thought his thoughts and loved his family and his friends and fought against his foes in North Africa."
A great pleasure to have Professor Josiah Osgood of Georgetown University on the program to speak about his new book on Cicero. Link to full conversation below.
The Rise of Cicero and the Decline of Rome with Josiah Osgood
Author and historian Josiah Osgood tells the story of Cicero's rise and fall in the last years of the Roman Republic.
open.substack.com
October 22, 2025 at 9:18 PM
A great pleasure to have Professor Josiah Osgood of Georgetown University on the program to speak about his new book on Cicero. Link to full conversation below.
A great pleasure to speak to author and journalist @ntabrizy.bsky.social about her new book For the Sun After Long Nights about the women-led uprising in Iran.
Woman, Life, Freedom: Iran's Gen Z Uprising Against the Morality Police
A conversation with co-author Nilo Tabrizy on her new book For the Sun After Long Nights.
substack.com
October 17, 2025 at 9:40 PM
A great pleasure to speak to author and journalist @ntabrizy.bsky.social about her new book For the Sun After Long Nights about the women-led uprising in Iran.
My conversation with author Geoffrey Wawro on his new book The Vietnam War: A Military History. Now on Substack.
America in Vietnam: 1964 to 1975
An in-depth interview with Geoffrey Warwo, the author of The Vietnam War: A Military History.
open.substack.com
August 20, 2025 at 10:50 PM
My conversation with author Geoffrey Wawro on his new book The Vietnam War: A Military History. Now on Substack.
I welcome @keachhagey.bsky.social to discuss her new book, The Optimist: Sam Altman, OpenAI, and the Race to Invent the Future.
The AI Optimist (with Keach Hagey)
WSJ reporter Keith Hagey discusses her new book about Sam Altman's journey from a charismatic teenager in St. Louis to the controversial CEO of OpenAI.
substack.com
July 17, 2025 at 12:56 AM
I welcome @keachhagey.bsky.social to discuss her new book, The Optimist: Sam Altman, OpenAI, and the Race to Invent the Future.
My interview with James Romm, author of Plato & the Tyrant. Now on Substack.
Plato and the Tyrant (with James Romm)
How a brutal dynasty shaped Plato's Republic and the birth of political philosophy.
johnbatchelor.substack.com
July 2, 2025 at 11:32 PM
My interview with James Romm, author of Plato & the Tyrant. Now on Substack.
Very pleased to have @josephtorigian.bsky.social on the program to discuss his new book The Party's Interests Come First, a biography of Xi Jinping's father.
Xi Jinping's Father
Author Joseph Torigian on how family tragedy, persecution, and loyalty shaped China's future leader through his father's Communist Party journey.
open.substack.com
June 12, 2025 at 1:11 PM
Very pleased to have @josephtorigian.bsky.social on the program to discuss his new book The Party's Interests Come First, a biography of Xi Jinping's father.
My full discussion with Lincoln's Peace author Michael Vorenberg @mikevorenberg.bsky.social on Substack: open.substack.com/pub/johnbatc...
The Struggle to End the American Civil War (with Michael Vorenberg)
Author and professor Michael Vorenberg of Brown University on his new book Lincoln's Peace
open.substack.com
May 29, 2025 at 2:08 AM
My full discussion with Lincoln's Peace author Michael Vorenberg @mikevorenberg.bsky.social on Substack: open.substack.com/pub/johnbatc...
A pleasure to speak to my friend and colleague Craig Unger @craigunger.bsky.social. The subject? Donald Trump, the Russian mob, and 1980s New York City real estate.
open.substack.com/pub/johnbatc...
open.substack.com/pub/johnbatc...
Donald Trump, the Russian Mob, and 1980s New York
Author Craig Unger explores Trump's ties to the KGB.
open.substack.com
April 25, 2025 at 3:27 PM
A pleasure to speak to my friend and colleague Craig Unger @craigunger.bsky.social. The subject? Donald Trump, the Russian mob, and 1980s New York City real estate.
open.substack.com/pub/johnbatc...
open.substack.com/pub/johnbatc...
Russell Shorto on the program to discuss his new book, Taking Manhattan: The Extraordinary Events That Created New York and Shaped America.
The Birth of New York City
A conversation with author and historian Russell Shorto on his new book Taking Manhattan.
johnbatchelor.substack.com
April 9, 2025 at 11:30 PM
Russell Shorto on the program to discuss his new book, Taking Manhattan: The Extraordinary Events That Created New York and Shaped America.
Historian and author Richard Carwardine on the program to discuss his new book, Righteous Strife: How Warring Religious Nationalists Forged Lincoln's Union.
How Warring Religious Nationalists Forged Lincoln's Union
Author and historian Richard Carwardine illustrates the complex dance between church and state during the American Civil War in his new book, Righteous Strife.
johnbatchelor.substack.com
April 3, 2025 at 1:52 PM
Historian and author Richard Carwardine on the program to discuss his new book, Righteous Strife: How Warring Religious Nationalists Forged Lincoln's Union.
I speak to Richard Reinsch of the Civitas Institute on the late philosopher and author of The Gulag Archipelago Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn. Full conversation and interview free on Substack.
Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
A discussion with Richard Reinsch on a question posed by the late philosopher and author of The Gulag Archipelago: does the West want to defend itself?
johnbatchelor.substack.com
April 2, 2025 at 4:03 PM
I speak to Richard Reinsch of the Civitas Institute on the late philosopher and author of The Gulag Archipelago Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn. Full conversation and interview free on Substack.
"We have a space program. The dinosaurs didn't have a space program."
Professor Richard P. Binzel of @mitofficial.bsky.social and colleagues search the sky for asteroids in an effort to prevent their impact with Earth.
Professor Richard P. Binzel of @mitofficial.bsky.social and colleagues search the sky for asteroids in an effort to prevent their impact with Earth.
Defending Earth from Asteroids with Julien de Wit, Artem Y. Burdanov, and Richard P. Binzel
Interview by John Batchelor
johnbatchelor.substack.com
March 5, 2025 at 9:40 PM
"We have a space program. The dinosaurs didn't have a space program."
Professor Richard P. Binzel of @mitofficial.bsky.social and colleagues search the sky for asteroids in an effort to prevent their impact with Earth.
Professor Richard P. Binzel of @mitofficial.bsky.social and colleagues search the sky for asteroids in an effort to prevent their impact with Earth.
It is approximately the year 1200 AD.
A man is in a tavern having a very good time, drinking heavily, and suddenly he gets a message written in runes on a piece of wood. The message he writes in return, I'm told by the author Eleanor Barraclough, doesn't make any sense.
A man is in a tavern having a very good time, drinking heavily, and suddenly he gets a message written in runes on a piece of wood. The message he writes in return, I'm told by the author Eleanor Barraclough, doesn't make any sense.
Hidden Histories of the Viking Age with Eleanor Barraclough
Interview by John Batchelor
johnbatchelor.substack.com
February 26, 2025 at 11:44 PM
It is approximately the year 1200 AD.
A man is in a tavern having a very good time, drinking heavily, and suddenly he gets a message written in runes on a piece of wood. The message he writes in return, I'm told by the author Eleanor Barraclough, doesn't make any sense.
A man is in a tavern having a very good time, drinking heavily, and suddenly he gets a message written in runes on a piece of wood. The message he writes in return, I'm told by the author Eleanor Barraclough, doesn't make any sense.
On Boulevard des Capucines, a studio is opening an exhibit of paintings by men who don't have an organizing principle yet. They call themselves Société anonyme. They are Degas, Monet, Pissarro, Renoir, Sisily, Cezanne—and especially Manet.
The Birth of Impressionism with Sebastian Smee
Interview by John Batchelor
open.substack.com
February 20, 2025 at 2:53 PM
On Boulevard des Capucines, a studio is opening an exhibit of paintings by men who don't have an organizing principle yet. They call themselves Société anonyme. They are Degas, Monet, Pissarro, Renoir, Sisily, Cezanne—and especially Manet.
"It is 1888, Kiev. A new statue is raised. The statue is to a man named Khmelnytsky, a hero to the Ukrainians, to the Crimea and Cossacks, to the Russians—even to the Soviets in the future."
Interview with Eugene Finkel @efinkel.bsky.social on his new book: Intent to Destroy.
Interview with Eugene Finkel @efinkel.bsky.social on his new book: Intent to Destroy.
The Roots of the Russo-Ukrainian War with Eugene Finkel
Interview by John Batchelor
open.substack.com
February 12, 2025 at 10:24 PM
"It is 1888, Kiev. A new statue is raised. The statue is to a man named Khmelnytsky, a hero to the Ukrainians, to the Crimea and Cossacks, to the Russians—even to the Soviets in the future."
Interview with Eugene Finkel @efinkel.bsky.social on his new book: Intent to Destroy.
Interview with Eugene Finkel @efinkel.bsky.social on his new book: Intent to Destroy.
"Goddess, sing of the cataclysmic wrath / of great Achilles..."
It was a great pleasure to speak to Professor @emilyrcwilson.bsky.social Emily Wilson last year about her new translation of Homer's Iliad, antiquity's greatest literary landmark.
It was a great pleasure to speak to Professor @emilyrcwilson.bsky.social Emily Wilson last year about her new translation of Homer's Iliad, antiquity's greatest literary landmark.
Homer's Iliad with Emily Wilson
Interview by John Batchelor
open.substack.com
February 5, 2025 at 11:29 PM
"Goddess, sing of the cataclysmic wrath / of great Achilles..."
It was a great pleasure to speak to Professor @emilyrcwilson.bsky.social Emily Wilson last year about her new translation of Homer's Iliad, antiquity's greatest literary landmark.
It was a great pleasure to speak to Professor @emilyrcwilson.bsky.social Emily Wilson last year about her new translation of Homer's Iliad, antiquity's greatest literary landmark.
A story that needs retelling. My interview with James Holland, historian and author of Cassino '44: The Brutal Battle for Rome.
1944: Battle for Rome with James Holland
Interview by John Batchelor
johnbatchelor.substack.com
February 1, 2025 at 4:28 PM
A story that needs retelling. My interview with James Holland, historian and author of Cassino '44: The Brutal Battle for Rome.
"The only conceivable reason to go to Mars, actually, is to set up a second civilization and start to learn how to become a multi-planetary species."
Discussing Reentry, the new book by Eric Berger -- our conversation, free on Substack @sciguyspace.bsky.social
Discussing Reentry, the new book by Eric Berger -- our conversation, free on Substack @sciguyspace.bsky.social
SpaceX, Elon Musk, and Reusable Rockets with Eric Berger
Interview by John Batchelor
open.substack.com
January 22, 2025 at 11:07 PM
"The only conceivable reason to go to Mars, actually, is to set up a second civilization and start to learn how to become a multi-planetary species."
Discussing Reentry, the new book by Eric Berger -- our conversation, free on Substack @sciguyspace.bsky.social
Discussing Reentry, the new book by Eric Berger -- our conversation, free on Substack @sciguyspace.bsky.social
"It is 1762. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania."
My interview with Richard Munson, author of Ingenious: A Biography of Benjamin Franklin, Scientist
My interview with Richard Munson, author of Ingenious: A Biography of Benjamin Franklin, Scientist
The Ingenious Benjamin Franklin with Richard Munson
Author Interview by John Batchelor
open.substack.com
January 15, 2025 at 10:39 PM
"It is 1762. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania."
My interview with Richard Munson, author of Ingenious: A Biography of Benjamin Franklin, Scientist
My interview with Richard Munson, author of Ingenious: A Biography of Benjamin Franklin, Scientist
"It is September of 1939, and there is war between London and Berlin. Randolph Churchill (son of Winston) goes to dinner with a young woman named Pamela Digby. He asks her to marry, though he has never met her before. The surprise is, she says yes.
She is 19 years old."
@soniapurnell.bsky.social
She is 19 years old."
@soniapurnell.bsky.social
Kingmaker: Pamela Harriman's Life of Power, Seduction, and Intrigue with Sonia Purnell
Interview by John Batchelor
open.substack.com
January 8, 2025 at 10:49 PM
"It is September of 1939, and there is war between London and Berlin. Randolph Churchill (son of Winston) goes to dinner with a young woman named Pamela Digby. He asks her to marry, though he has never met her before. The surprise is, she says yes.
She is 19 years old."
@soniapurnell.bsky.social
She is 19 years old."
@soniapurnell.bsky.social
Keeping the Faith: God, Democracy, and the Trial That Riveted a Nation—a new story and book by about the Scopes Trial of 1925. It is dramatic and sensationally important for the understanding of the culture in the 1920s. One hundred years, it is still debatable.
The Scopes Trial with Brenda Wineapple
Interview by John Batchelor
open.substack.com
January 4, 2025 at 6:18 PM
Keeping the Faith: God, Democracy, and the Trial That Riveted a Nation—a new story and book by about the Scopes Trial of 1925. It is dramatic and sensationally important for the understanding of the culture in the 1920s. One hundred years, it is still debatable.
"It is late 1932. A young man, Ronald Reagan, is visiting Springfield, Illinois where his father Jack is running a shoe store to maintain what he can of an income for the family. It is the very dark days of the United States in what becomes the Great Depression." @maxboot.bsky.social
The Life and Legend of Ronald Reagan with Max Boot
Interview by John Batchelor
open.substack.com
January 4, 2025 at 6:12 PM
"It is late 1932. A young man, Ronald Reagan, is visiting Springfield, Illinois where his father Jack is running a shoe store to maintain what he can of an income for the family. It is the very dark days of the United States in what becomes the Great Depression." @maxboot.bsky.social
I welcome my colleague Craig Unger to discuss his new book Den of Spies: Reagan, Carter, and the Secret History of the Treason That Stole the White House. This is the "October Surprise" legend of the 1980 presidential election reexamined after decades of research.
Full interview on Substack:
Full interview on Substack:
The October Surprise of 1980 with Craig Unger
Interview by John Batchelor
open.substack.com
January 4, 2025 at 6:04 PM
I welcome my colleague Craig Unger to discuss his new book Den of Spies: Reagan, Carter, and the Secret History of the Treason That Stole the White House. This is the "October Surprise" legend of the 1980 presidential election reexamined after decades of research.
Full interview on Substack:
Full interview on Substack: