James Traub

Author and Journalist; Former Ethics Matter Host

James Traub is a journalist, author, and scholar specializing in international affairs. He is the former host of Carnegie Council's Ethics Matter interview series, a contributing editor at Foreign Policy, and a fellow at the Center on International Cooperation.

Traub has worked as a staff writer for The New Yorker and a contributing writer to The New York Times Magazine, reporting widely from Africa and the Middle East.

Featured Work

Katarina Church and Stockholm Mosque, Stockholm, Sweden. CREDIT: <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Katarina_kyrka_%26_Stockholms_mosk%C3%A9.JPG">Poxnar/Wikimedia</a>

JUN 8, 2017 Podcast

James Traub on Immigrants and Refugees

What happens when Sweden, one of the most welcoming countries on Earth for migrants, simply runs out of beds? What are the unpleasant (and politically ...

APR 29, 2015 Podcast

Defending our Borders vs. Defending our Liberties: ACLU's Anthony D. Romero

From the NSA and the kill list, to the failure to close Guantanamo and prosecute those who committed torture, Obama's national security policies are not ...

FEB 9, 2015 Podcast

A Conversation with Leon Botstein, President of Bard College and Champion of Liberal Arts Education

In this wide-ranging and entertaining conversation, Leon Botstein discusses Bard's innovative programs to serve the underserved, which include Bard high schools, prison education programs, and ...

DEC 22, 2014 Podcast

Money and American Politics: A Conversation with Lawrence Lessig

On a crusade against the corrupting influence of money in politics, Lawrence Lessig founded a "super PAC" which raised $10 million to support candidates committed to ...

NOV 11, 2014 Podcast

A Conversation with Will Kymlicka on the Challenges of Multiculturalism

From Canada to Europe, how do different societies deal with immigrant groups? How have their policies evolved and where are they headed? What rights should ...

OCT 2, 2014 Podcast

A Conversation with Lieutenant-General Roméo A. Dallaire

In this inspiring conversation, Dallaire talks about his faith in the principle of R2P--"one of the great innovations of our time"--and how ...

Rosa Brooks

JUN 12, 2014 Podcast

A Conversation with Law Professor and Columnist Rosa Brooks on Obama's Foreign Policy

With an insider's perspective, Rosa Brooks candidly discusses U.S. foreign policy, from Kosovo to Afghanistan, Syria, and Ukraine, along with her views on Barack ...

MAY 30, 2014 Podcast

A Conversation with Ezekiel Emanuel on Health Care Reform

A doctor, a former advisor to the Obama administration, and a professor at the University of Pennsylvania, Emanuel has spent a generation advocating on health ...

APR 30, 2014 Podcast

A Conversation with Douglas Rushkoff, Digital Media Expert, Graphic Novelist and Documentarian

With the advent of new means of interaction from the TV remote to Twitter, the media became a two-way conversation, says Douglas Rushkoff. But who ...

APR 7, 2014 Podcast

Conviction, Conflict, Community: A Conversation with George Rupp

The United States' problem is the presumption of individualism, which is deeply resented and resisted in most of the world, except in some parts of ...