LSE Podcasts

The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) is a world-leading university, specialising in social sciences, with a global community of people and ideas that transform the world. Our podcasts focus on the social sciences and the world today.

LSE Podcasts is a news podcast hosted by LSE Podcasts, with 500 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80. PitchCentric scores this show on Booking Probability, Listen Score, and live audience signals refreshed every 24 hours.

LSE Podcasts hosts LSE Podcasts, a news show with 500 episodes published.

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  LSE Podcasts

  LSE: The Ballpark | AI and the gig economy with Dr Lindsey Cameron

  Aug 17, 202623 min

  From helping assign tasks and determine prices on delivery and rideshare platforms to recommending certain individuals over others on freelance hiring sites, AI is fast becoming a core part of the modern gig economy. Yet even as companies continue to explore the possibilities unlocked by greater AI integration, many commentators both within and outside the gig economy have expressed concerns with the negative consequences of automation in an industry where people are so important. To discuss the issues surrounding AI in the gig economy, for the second episode of our mini-series on AI and the US, in June 2026 the Phelan US Centre spoke with Lindsey Cameron, Assistant Professor of Management and the Dorinda and Mark Winkelmann Distinguished Faculty Scholar at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. This episode was produced by Chris Gilson and Avan Fata. Further reading and resources • O’Neil, C. 2017. Weapons of math destruction. Penguin Books. • Luca, and Dan Svirsky. 2017. “Racial Discrimination in the Sharing Economy: Evidence from a Field Experiment.” American Economic Journal: Applied Economics 9 (2): 1–22. • Hannák, Anikó, Claudia Wagner, David Garcia, Alan Mislove, Markus Strohmaier, and Christo Wilson. 2017. “Bias in Online Freelance Marketplaces.” Proceedings of the 2017 ACM Conference on Computer Supported Cooperative Work and Social Computing - CSCW ’17. • Fast, Nathanael J, and Arthur S Jago. 2020. “Privacy Matters… or Does It? Algorithms, Rationalization, and the Erosion of Concern for Privacy.” Current Opinion in Psychology 31 (February): 44–48.‌ • ‌Doorn, Niels van, and Darsana Vijay. 2021. “Gig Work as Migrant Work: The Platformization of Migration Infrastructure.” Environment and Planning A: Economy and Space 56 (4): 0308518X2110650. • ‌Dubal, Veena, On Algorithmic Wage Discrimination (January 19, 2023). UC San Francisco Research Paper • Edelman, Benjamin, Michael Weigel, Moira. 2025. “Notes Toward a World Systems Theory of Platforms: Made in China and India on Amazon.Com.” Social Media + Society 11 (2). https://doi.org/10.1177/20563051251340863. • ‌‌Rosenblat, Alex. 2026. “The Form Asked My Permission to Share My Health Data. Then It Wouldn’t Let Me Say No.” CalMatters. May 27, 2026. Take the Ballpark Listener survey and enter the prize draw for £250 in vouchers! The Ballpark will be ten years old in 2026, and we want to hear from you to make the podcast even better, so we’re running a listener survey. • Fill in our listener survey – it only takes a few minutes – here: https://forms.office.com/e/Vcj8V8uGM1 • Voucher prize draw terms and conditions are available here: https://www.lse.ac.uk/united-states/the-ballpark/terms-and-conditions-for-the-ballpark-listener-survey-voucher-prize-draw

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  LSE Podcasts

  LSE: The Ballpark | AI harm, accountability, and cybersecurity with Professor Chinmayi Sharma

  Aug 3, 202640 min

  AI has become easily accessible, easy to use, and for many people, it’s a useful tool. This means that AI is being used by individuals and institutions to help solve a variety of challenges, from everyday decision-making to pressing global issues. At the same time, however, many commentators and policymakers have expressed concerns about the effects of AI on society, politics, and the economy. In 2025, The Ballpark launched a mini-series on AI and the United States, focused on its potential impacts on society both today, and looking into the future. For our first episode on AI this year, in June 2026 the Phelan US Centre spoke to Professor Chinmayi Sharma about how and why AI can cause harm, issues of responsibility and accountability in AI usage and AI’s relationship with cybersecurity. Professor Chinmayi Sharma is an Associate Professor at Fordham Law School and a Research Affiliate at the Institute for Law and AI. This episode was produced by Chris Gilson and Avan Fata. Further reading and resources • Sharma, Chinmayi and Adler, Sam, Immigration Enforcement Intermediaries (March 04, 2026). 52 BYU L. Rev. __ (forthcoming 2027), Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=6345099 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.6345099 • Sharma, Chinmayi, AI's Hippocratic Oath (March 14, 2024). Washington University Law Review, Available at SRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=4759742 • 404 Media - https://www.404media.co/ Take the Ballpark Listener survey and enter the prize draw for £250 in vouchers! The Ballpark is ten years old in 2026, and we want to hear from you to make the podcast even better, so we’re running a listener survey. • Fill in our listener survey – it only takes a few minutes – here: https://forms.office.com/e/Vcj8V8uGM1 • Voucher prize draw terms and conditions are available here: https://www.lse.ac.uk/united-states/the-ballpark/terms-and-conditions-for-the-ballpark-listener-survey-voucher-prize-draw

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  LSE Podcasts

  LSE: The Ballpark | How democratic citizenry can shape America’s role in the world - Master’s students essay competition 2026

  Jul 20, 202640 min

  In 2026 the United States marks the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. During this important year for the US, there are increasingly questions about its role in the world and how its citizens can shape its domestic and foreign policy. In 2026, the Phelan US Centre ran an essay competition for LSE master’s students with the prompt, “What role can democratic citizenry play in shaping America’s role in the world as it enters its 250th year?" In this episode we spoke to the author of the winning essay, Alexander Minford, and the runners-up, Iman Shaikh and Kristýna Šimonová. We discussed their essays, the competition, what it’s like for students to engage with a wider audience, and the opportunity they had to present their essays in the UK parliament to MPs and the British-American Parliamentary Group. This episode was produced by Chris Gilson and Avan Fata. Read the essays from the winner and runners-up on the Phelan US Centre’s USAPP blog • The most important act of American global leadership may be winning a local primary- Alexander Minford - LSE School of Public Policy (winner) • Finding Tocqueville in Times Square: how lessons from America’s vibrant civic past can reinvigorate its citizenry in the present - Iman Shaikh - LSE Department of Government (runner-up) • At 250, the world's oldest democracy is autocratising at a global cost that its citizens have the power to stop - Kristýna Šimonová - LSE Department of International Relations (runner-up) This episode was produced by Chris Gilson and Avan Fata. Take the Ballpark Listener survey and enter the prize draw for £250 in vouchers! The Ballpark will be ten years old in 2026, and we want to hear from you to make the podcast even better, so we’re running a listener survey. • Fill in our listener survey – it only takes a few minutes – here: https://forms.office.com/e/Vcj8V8uGM1 • Voucher prize draw terms and conditions are available here: https://www.lse.ac.uk/united-states/the-ballpark/terms-and-conditions-for-the-ballpark-listener-survey-voucher-prize-draw

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  LSE Podcasts

  LSE: The Ballpark | The Global Economy in a Changing World Order

  Jul 6, 202623 min

  The global economy is undergoing profound transformation. Geopolitical realignments, rising economic nationalism, climate disruption, trade fragmentation, and technological upheaval are reshaping the foundations of international economic relations. Recent trends point to a US retreat from global economic leadership and a turn toward economic nationalism and protectionism. US industrial policy has become more assertive, emphasizing domestic manufacturing and technological self-sufficiency, particularly in strategic sectors like semiconductors and clean energy. At the same time, Washington is actively working to realign global economic networks, encouraging allies and partners to “de-risk” from China and adopt parallel economic strategies while asking them to commit to restraints on export restrictions. These shifts have profound implications for multilateral institutions, global supply chains, and strategic economic alliances. To discuss and consider these issues, in May 2026, the LSE Phelan US Centre held the conference: The Global Economy in a Changing World Order. The conference, also supported by the Christopher H. Browne Center for International Politics at the University of Pennsylvania, brought together leading scholars from the United States and the United Kingdom to explore the implications of US economic nationalism and strategic competition with China for the future of global economic governance. The conference was convened by Phelan US Centre Affiliate Professor Stephanie Rickard of LSE Department of Government and Professor Edward Mansfield (Director of the Christopher H. Browne Center for International Politics at the University of Pennsylvania). In this episode of The Ballpark, we spoke to Professor Stephanie Rickard about the main themes and takeaways from the conference. We also talked to four of the conference participants, Edward Mansfield (University of Pennsylvania), Nita Rudra (Georgetown University), Jon Pevehouse (University of Wisconsin-Madison), and Jeffry Frieden (Columbia University), about their thoughts on trends in the global economy and the future of global economic governance This episode of The Ballpark was produced by Chris Gilson and Avan Fata. Take the Ballpark Listener survey and enter the prize draw for £250 in vouchers! The Ballpark is ten years old in 2026, and we want to hear from you to make the podcast even better, so we’re running a listener survey. • Fill in our listener survey – it only takes a few minutes – here: https://forms.office.com/e/Vcj8V8uGM1 • Voucher prize draw terms and conditions are available here: https://www.lse.ac.uk/united-states/the-ballpark/terms-and-conditions-for-the-ballpark-listener-survey-voucher-prize-draw

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  LSE Podcasts

  LSE: The Ballpark | Rethinking the 1990s with Professors G. John Ikenberry and Peter Trubowitz

  Jun 22, 202642 min

  The 1990s were an important decade. They saw the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War, falling trade barriers, an expanding capitalist democratic order and the rise of what came to be called the liberal international order. But the 1990s also sowed the seeds of the rise of populism and anti-globalism in Western democracies that are now complicating global politics and governance. A new book, Rethinking the 1990s, Liberal World Order-Building in the Aftermath of the Cold War looks back at how important the 1990s were and to the opportunities that were missed at that time by politicians. In April 2026 the Phelan US Centre spoke with the book’s editors, Professor G. John Ikenberry and Professor Peter Trubowitz. The discussion covered what makes the 1990s such an important decade for the world today, how the US’ liberal bet on China failed, and how US and Western attempts to expand liberal internationalism were met with resentment abroad and at home. We also talked about the lessons the US can take from the decisions made in the 1990s that are still affecting global politics. Further reading and resources • Ikenberry, G John, and Peter Trubowitz (eds), Rethinking the 1990s: Liberal World Order-Building in the Aftermath of the Cold War (New York, NY, 2025; online edn, Oxford Academic, 22 Sept. 2025), https://doi.org/10.1093/9780197813133.001.0001 • Text of George F. Kennan’s “Long Telegram” - https://nsarchive2.gwu.edu/coldwar/documents/episode-1/kennan.htm Take the Ballpark Listener survey and enter the prize draw for £250 in vouchers! The Ballpark is ten years old in 2026, and we want to hear from you to make the podcast even better, so we’re running a listener survey. • Fill in our listener survey – it only takes a few minutes – here: https://forms.office.com/e/Vcj8V8uGM1 • Voucher prize draw terms and conditions are available here: https://www.lse.ac.uk/united-states/the-ballpark/terms-and-conditions-for-the-ballpark-listener-survey-voucher-prize-draw

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