{"podcast":{"title":"American Thought Leaders","slug":"american-thought-leaders-1056274","podcast_index_feed_id":1056274,"rss_url":"https://feeds.captivate.fm/american-thought-leaders/","website_url":"https://www.theepochtimes.com/podcasts","image_url":"https://artwork.captivate.fm/ab93518e-950a-4751-832e-480566fa5ad9/49nazhCbYD-76srv2uuWdJ8Z.jpg","author":"The Epoch Times","episode_count":200,"summary":"At a time when our nation is portrayed as increasingly polarized, media often ignore viewpoints and stories that are worthy of attention. American Thought Leaders, hosted by The Epoch Times Senior Editor Jan Jekielek, features in-depth discussions with some of America’s most influential thought leaders on pertinent issues facing our nation today.","last_synced_at":"2026-09-20T20:18:37.336731+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/american-thought-leaders-1056274"},"episode":{"title":"The Hidden Costs of a World Without Anything Worth Fighting For | Rusty Reno","slug":"the-hidden-costs-of-a-world-without-anything-worth-fighting-for-rusty-reno","published_at":"2026-09-11T01:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/american-thought-leaders-1056274/the-hidden-costs-of-a-world-without-anything-worth-fighting-for-rusty-reno","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/american-thought-leaders-1056274","url":"https://www.theepochtimes.com/podcasts","audio_url":"https://episodes.captivate.fm/episode/621392cd-75e3-4133-92eb-da0f4ea29beb.mp3","summary":"Rusty Reno is the editor-in-chief of First Things Magazine and author of “Return of the Strong Gods: Nationalism, Populism, and the Future of the West.” In his book, Reno argues that after the World Wars, Western intellectual elites concluded that the “strong gods”—nationalism and intense ideological loyalty, to name a few—were the root causes of violence. In response, figures like Karl Popper promoted an “open society” framework, aimed at diluting strong loyalties. Decades later, Reno argues, we live in an age when the frameworks that gave human beings stability, purpose, and a sense of belonging have been stripped away. In this episode, Reno unpacks questions such as: What about the 1980s is so desirable to people today? Why are young people dissatisfied with endless choices? And why ought questions of meaning, national identity, and truth return to the center of politics? Views expressed in this video are opinions of the host and the guest, and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.","meta_description":"Rusty Reno is the editor-in-chief of First Things Magazine and author of “Return of the Strong Gods: Nationalism, Populism, and the Future of the West.” I…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":4261,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/american-thought-leaders-1056274/episodes/the-hidden-costs-of-a-world-without-anything-worth-fighting-for-rusty-reno/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/american-thought-leaders-1056274/the-hidden-costs-of-a-world-without-anything-worth-fighting-for-rusty-reno.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}