The John Stossel Interviews

Ep. 45 Hayek’s Warning We Ignored: Government Planning Doesn’t Fix Economies 01.06.2026 20min

Politicians say they can “fix” the economy.But economists Friedrich Hayek and Ludwig von Mises pointed out how government “fixes" lead to bigger problems.Hayek and Mises predicted the fall of the Soviet Union. They warned that centrally planned economies fail.But today, socialism is popular again. New York and Seattle have elected socialist mayors.Many politicians still believe that government can manage the economy—an idea popularized by economist John Maynard Keynes.Keynes was revered. Politicians love his arguments.But Hayek and Mises warned that government intervention leads to inflation, instability, and boom-bust cycles.They were right.In this podcast, Ryan McMaken of the Mises Institute explains why we should read Hayek and Mises today.

Ep. 44 Uncomfortable Topics with Heather Mac Donald: Race, Skills Gap, Disparate Impact & the Role of Women 04.05.2026 1h 42min

“I'm going to speak the truth here, and this is not pleasant for people to hear.” In my podcast with author Heather Mac Donald, she says uncomfortable things about race, crime, feminism and more.For example, she says, “The reality of our world today is not white privilege. It's black privilege.” She says many jobs and colleges today unfairly favor black candidates with fewer skills. “Harvard until recently had about 16% blacks in its freshman class,” says Mac Donald, “If it admitted based on academic merit, there would be less than 1%.” She’s been repeatedly called “‘racist’ for saying things like that. “Am I a racist for bringing this up? I am not!” responds Mac Donald, “The facts are the facts … They have been completely kept out of the public eye to keep this systemic lie of racism going on.” In this podcast, more facts you won’t hear covered by mainstream media.

Ep. 43 Jo Jorgensen: What if We Had a Libertarian President? 06.04.2026 32min

During the last 5 years our government has imposed lockdowns, caused inflation, increased the deficit, started trade wars, and now a real war.It makes me wonder; how would things have been different if we had a libertarian President?Well, here’s my discussion with 2020’s libertarian Presidential candidate, Jo Jorgensen.We originally spoke 5 years ago, but our conversation covers issues that are still important today.

Ep 42. Andrew Yang: On UBI, Defunding Police, Cancel Culture, Entrepreneurship 02.03.2026 51min

I don’t bother interviewing most politicians. But former presidential candidate Andrew Yang is interesting.Unlike most politicians, he has experience as an entrepreneur, he criticizes politicians for their "magical thinking," and he even left his party (the Democrats) to start the "Forward Party."I spoke to him in 2021, soon after its launch. We discuss if a third party could ever succeed, where politicians' magical thinking has failed, entrepreneurship, and I push back on his vision for universal basic income (basically free money).

Ep. 41 Johan Norberg: Lessons From Ancient Athens, Rome, the Renaissance & Other Golden Ages 02.02.2026 56min

Are we witnessing the fall of the American empire? Are we doomed to fall, like Ancient Athens, Ancient Rome and others?No. But if we don’t learn the lessons of history, we could be. To avoid collapse, historian Johan Norberg argues we especially need to learn from the rise and fall of past golden ages—like Ancient Athens, Ancient Rome, China’s Song Dynasty, the Italian Renaissance, and more.“What sets these golden ages apart," he explains, "is that they managed to ... give more people more freedoms.” Like freedom to trade. That helped many golden ages prosper.In this podcast, we also discuss what led to their decline. I was surprised to learn that many problems we face today (like inflation and unsustainable entitlement spending) also destroyed societies more than a thousand years ago. “But that doesn't mean that we're doomed,” says Norberg. “There are so many instances where societies faced terrible situations … but bounced back … So there is still time. We can still save this golden age.”

Ep 40. Wikipedia Bias 05.01.2026 18min

I once reported how great Wikipedia is. But now, it’s manipulated by leftists.That’s a big problem because its bad information corrupts AI and search results.In this podcast, Ashley Rindsberg of NPOV Media explains how, “Wikipedia's information spreads into everything online.”That means when your ask ChatGPT, Google, or your phone a question, it’ll likely to take leftist spin straight from Wikipedia.I also share an excerpt of my conversation with Veteran Wikipedian Jonathan Weiss.Three years ago, he told me how the site, like academia, has been captured by leftists. We cover many examples.

Ep. 39 Putting a Price on Life: From 9/11 to the BP Oil Spill and Boston Marathon 01.12.2025 32min

“You can’t put a price on life!” say politicians, pretending to be compassionate, spending other people’s money.But Kenneth Feinberg, Special Master of the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund, says you CAN put a price on life. He's distributed funds to the victims of 9/11, the Pulse nightclub shooting, the Boston Marathon, the Deepwater Horizon spill, the Virginia Tech shooting, the Aurora movie theater shooting, and now the LA wildfires.In this podcast he explains how he does it, why it's important, but also why (despite the success of the 9/11 fund) paying out money to victims should not be something that government does.

Ep 38 Jonathan Haidt: on The Anxious Generation: Childhood in Social Media Age & Fragile College Students 03.11.2025 54min

"If your kids went through puberty on a smartphone with social media, they came out different than human beings before” says Jonathan Haidt, author of the bestseller “The Anxious Generation.”He argues that childhood is now phone-based instead of play-based, resulting in anxious and depressed kids. "They know that life would be better if they didn't spend five or six hours a day on social media. They know that, but they can't help it” says Haidt. But not all researcher agree. I challenge Haidt with the criticism. In our podcast, Haidt responds, and lays out his best advice to protect kids from smartphones.

Ep. 37 Socialism and Capitalism Myths 06.10.2025 24min

Young people today hate capitalism. They often say socialism would be better.It's absurd. Why would they argue that?Because much of what they're told about socialism and capitalism is just nonsense.So in this podcast, we'll debunk 5 of the biggest myths about socialism, and even more myths about capitalism.

Ep. 36 James Lindsay: Academic Hoaxes, Woke Mind Virus, and the Right’s Flirtation with Karl Marx 01.09.2025 1h 7min

James Lindsay once exposed the woke left’s insanity with a hoax. Now he’s exposed part of the right for bashing liberty and even embracing Marxist ideas.To prove it, he sent a conservative magazine a revised version of "The Communist Manifesto." They published it! He calls them the “woke right" because they "behave like the tyrants of the woke left." In this podcast, Lindsay explains why they’re a problem. We also discuss why capitalism is hated, and how normal people fall for dangerous ideas.

Ep. 35 Robby Starbuck: The Fight Against DEI, Woke Corporate America, the HRC and Trans Ideology 04.08.2025 1h 13min

Activist Robby Starbuck got companies like Target, Walmart, and Toyota to drop their woke DEI policies. It sounds hard to believe one man could do that, but he did. From DEI trainings to mandatory "ally" pledges, Starbuck posts videos about absurd woke things that big companies do behind closed doors to please activists. In this podcast, he explains how this fight against corporate America worked, how DEI hurts America, and what made him finally speak up. I also push back on his movie, "The War on Children."

Ep 34. Inside North Korea: A Survivor’s Story of Socialism, Starvation, Torture, and Escape 07.07.2025 38min

Charles Ryu escaped from North Korea not once, but twice!He experienced starvation, torture, and years of propaganda. North Koreans, even those who escape, fear talking about socialist tyranny because the regime might kill their families. “Not just you, but your entire three generations will be wiped out,” explains Ryu. He is only willing to talk because he has no immediate family left in the country. Now he educates Americans about the horrors of the country on his YouTube channel.In this podcast, he tells me more about the North Korean regime, his incredible escape, and the importance of freedom.

Ep 33. Yaron Brook: On Selfishness, Immigration, War, Love, Liberty and of Course Ayn Rand 02.06.2025 1h 9min

People who run businesses are often smeared. But they shouldn't be.“Making our lives better is what entrepreneurs do. We take it all for granted,” says Yaron Brook, Chair of the Ayn Rand Institute.In this hour-long conversation, Brook defends the marketplace and the self-interest that drives it.He also carves out the path of self-interest through mountains of big issues: war, poverty, immigration, drugs and children--even how self-interest is important for your love life.

Ep 32. John McWhorter: On Anti-racism, Victimhood, Testing, and Woke Language 05.05.2025 34min

Professor John McWhorter, author of "Woke Racism," argues that condescending leftist ideology hurts black people.We spoke a few years ago when few others were pushing back on those ideas. But I learned a lot from my half-hour interview with him, so here's our full discussion.For one, the Columbia linguist points out "Woke Racism" hurts black people in many ways: from treating them as incapable of logic, to calling for abolition of tests, to insisting that violent kids stay in schools.He says that all these ideas are propped by a religion-like ideology that "requires that you sequester your brain for illogical thinking."

Ep 31. Michael Malice: Communism, Anarchy, North Korea, Trump and Hope 07.04.2025 44min

Michael Malice, the popular podcaster and author, reminds us that tyranny can be defeated. It’s been done before.In this podcast, Malice shares stories of life under totalitarian regimes, and explains how the media was often complicit in totalitarianism.Malice’s distrust in government is why he’s calls himself an anarchist.He makes the case that things like food, education, and even security, are better left in private hands.“Maybe we don't need government at all,” he says. “When you have something as important as security or anything, food, education, to have it at the purview of a monopoly, let alone a government monopoly, makes no sense."I’m skeptical that the private sector would do all those things better. So we debate those issues and more.

Ep. 30 The Edward Snowden Interview 03.03.2025 1h 44min

Here's my full interview with NSA Whistleblower Edward Snowden--it’s the longest interview I've ever posted.I once was unsure if Edward Snowden--who leaked documents showing that the NSA spied on Americans--was a hero, or a traitor who made us all less safe.Now I've done my research, and I think he's a hero. What do you think? Our full interview, above, will help you decide.

Ep 29. Maj Toure: Gun Control’s Racist Roots, Importance of 2nd Amendment & Responsible Gun Ownership 03.02.2025 49min

Media and politicians constantly warn about the dangers of firearms. They say too many people have guns. But Black Guns Matters founder Maj Toure says there should be more guns! “Everybody should be walking around and like, oh man, I left my gun in the house. Let me go back and get it,” says Toure. “Everybody?” I ask. “Everybody.” He says that would make America freer and safer, especially in black communities, which he says, have been disproportionately hurt by gun control laws. “All gun control is racist,” says Toure. “It was literally started to stop black people from having the means to defend themselves.” That’s why he started his group, Black Guns Matter. He wants to empower his community through firearms education and training. In our full interview, Toure explains more about his organization, why gun control is racist, and how self-defense is essential for freedom.

Ep. 28 Rand Paul: on The Case Against Socialism 06.01.2025 18min

I usually don't like to interview politicians but Senator Rand Paul is different. He actually has interesting and important things to say. In this podcast, we discuss his book,The Case Against Socialism. We cover socialism's failure in Venezuela, the myth of "Scandinavian socialism," and more.

Ep. 27 Lenore Skenazy: on Free Range Parenting and Raising Independent Kids 16.12.2024 31min

Parents are more scared than ever. The media warn of “Stranger Danger.” Lenore Skenazy says this is foolish. Parents should let their kids be MORE independent. She calls it “Free Range” parenting. She says kids are healthier when given unsupervised freedom. Parents are happier too. But what about the kidnappings? Skenazy points out those are extremely rare. It’s MUCH safer for kids to walk outside than ride in a car, yet parents rarely worry about driving. Today in America, some parents have even be arrested for letting their kids walk outside alone. We asked her about that and much more, in our full interview.

Ep. 26 Tim Pool: on Independent Reporting, Media Bias, Joe Rogan, Covington & Protests 02.12.2024 24min

Tim Pool is a very successful journalist. He has millions of subscribers on multiple channels. But Pool never went to journalism school. In fact, he didn’t even finish high school. Unlike most reporters, Pool became respected just by doing it--going to the news, and covering things the mainstream media often miss. He’s reported from global hotspots, gone into the middle of riots, and exposed media bias. In 2019, I did a short video on citizen journalists like Pool. But the story of his career deserves more time. So here's our full conversation.