{"podcast":{"title":"The Exchange | Long-form interviews from the New Statesman","slug":"the-exchange-long-form-interviews-from-the-new-statesman-7519113","podcast_index_feed_id":7519113,"rss_url":"https://feeds.acast.com/public/shows/68de580c52ddd4d4572281cb","website_url":"https://shows.acast.com/the-exchange","image_url":"https://assets.pippa.io/shows/68de580c52ddd4d4572281cb/1771001878105-a9895cef-a462-4e44-a999-57cabb3c764a.jpeg","author":"New Statesman","episode_count":18,"summary":"Oli Dugmore and New Statesman journalists confront the most influential voices of our time in extended one-on-one interviews. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.","last_synced_at":"2026-06-10T18:17:46.353458+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-exchange-long-form-interviews-from-the-new-statesman-7519113"},"episode":{"title":"George Saunders has no faith in Christian nationalism","slug":"george-saunders-has-no-faith-in-christian-nationalism","published_at":"2026-04-08T08:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-exchange-long-form-interviews-from-the-new-statesman-7519113/george-saunders-has-no-faith-in-christian-nationalism","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-exchange-long-form-interviews-from-the-new-statesman-7519113","url":"https://shows.acast.com/the-new-statesman-interview/episodes/george-saunders-has-no-faith-in-christian-nationalism","audio_url":"https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/68de580c52ddd4d4572281cb/e/69d563942a193257ad84922c/media.mp3","summary":"For decades, George Saunders was known for his short stories. In 2013, in a Time Magazine 100 most influential people listing, he was described as “the best short-story writer in English\". In 2017, he released his first novel, Lincoln in the Bardo, a reimagining of President Abraham Lincoln’s grief in the aftermath of his son Willie’s death. It’s a genre-defying piece of literature, narrated by no less than 166 ghosts.  The bardo is a concept borrowed from Saunders ’ adopted faith, Buddhism—an \"intermediate state\" between death and reincarnation. In his latest novel, Vigil, Saunders returns to the in-between - this time through a dying oil barron, grappling with his morality at the 11th hour in a burning world. Tanjil Rashid sat down with George Saunders to discuss faith: in his writing, as a means of optimism, and as a political weapon in today’s world. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.","meta_description":"For decades, George Saunders was known for his short stories. In 2013, in a Time Magazine 100 most influential people listing, he was described as “the be…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":2367,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-exchange-long-form-interviews-from-the-new-statesman-7519113/episodes/george-saunders-has-no-faith-in-christian-nationalism/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-exchange-long-form-interviews-from-the-new-statesman-7519113/george-saunders-has-no-faith-in-christian-nationalism.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}