Friday Focus provides listeners with a focused, half-hour masterclass on the big issues, events and trends driving the news and current events. The show features Janice Gross Stein, the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and bestselling author, in conversation with Rudyard Griffiths, Chair and moderator of the Munk Debates.

Rudyard and Janice start today's show unpacking the intelligence information that has been released regarding the effectiveness of the US attack on Iran's nuclear sites. While centrifuges at Fordo have been rendered inoperable, a significant amount of enriched uranium has been moved from the site to an unknown location. Both hosts agree that a diplomatic solution is needed to prevent Iran from rebuilding their nuclear program. But will Iran trust the US and move towards non-enrichment, or go the way of North Korea and secretly sprint towards a bomb? In the second half of the show Rudyard and Janice turn to the surprising Democratic mayoral primary in New York where Democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani upset former NY governor Andrew Cuomo. Mamdani's affordability message resonated with voters and showed that Trump and the Right do not have a monopoly on the public's growing frustration with economic inequality. This crushing defeat of an established politician reflects a powerful desire for change that party elites - on both sides of the aisle - ignore at their peril. Thank you to this week's Munk Curators and Supporters. Your contribution supports our efforts to bring back civil and substantive dialogue to the public square.

Curators

Dixi L
Vincent C
Frederic G
Bill M

Supporters
Mary G
James H
Cynthia S
Maria Jose M
Ashvini D
Theodora P
Tim C
Jacob K
Joslyn B
Eugene T
Alexander P
Hannah W
Victor N
stefan S
Kevin B
Kristin E
Sarah C
Ulrike H
Kurt J
Seth B
Dan W
Christine B
Jesse B
Ben R
Tilanthi J
Chris B
Trevor W
Ana R
Michael C
Neil M
Jim B
Jordan G
Frances A
Eric P
Karen B
JOSE A A
Lawrence C
Luke A
Natasha M
Robert C
Gintare M
Erin F
JOSIE W
Joe W
Rick C
Suzanne H
Jay N
florence M
Simon J
Paola L
Sylvia A
Jonathan W
Charles L
Katrina L
Dan B
Jake S
Sebastian T
Julia N
Mark A
Nouri C
Madeleine S
Nathaniel J
Thomas G
Michelle G
John L
Richard C
Ryan L
Braxley L
Patrice T
Aviva R
Alexis K
Cathy G
Matt M
Kevin J
Jocelyn N
Ben P
Mike L
David L
Arin K
Jordan H
Elena T
Stephanie H
Darren K
William K
Ron B
Andy D
Arvind S
Julie P
Patrick H
Juliane S
Omri G
John M
Colin H
Julie C
Linda A
Michael H

To support the Friday Focus podcast consider becoming a donor to the Munk Debates for as little as $25 annually, or $.50 per episode. Canadian donors receive a charitable tax receipt.

This podcast is a project of the Munk Debates, a Canadian charitable organization dedicated to fostering civil and substantive public dialogue.

More information at www.munkdebates.com.

The full version of today's Friday Focus is available to all members.

Rudyard and Janice begin today's special Friday Focus episode with the Trump initiated ceasefire that allows both Israel and Iran to claim some measure of victory. But does Trump have the power to make the truce hold? Bibi is learning that American help comes with a price, and the Israeli PM is no longer in the driver's seat. Pulling back to look at the bigger picture, Rudyard and Janice explain how America's involvement in this war is a game changer that has reinforced American power in the Middle East and beyond. Has this past week's events - including the notable absence of China and Russia in this conflict - challenged the idea that we are moving into a multipolar world? Have we underestimated American power in the 21st century? And finally, how will a weakened Iranian regime respond domestically to the penetration of its military and collapse of its nuclear program?

To support the Friday Focus podcast consider becoming a donor to the Munk Debates for as little as $25 annually, or $.50 per episode. Canadian donors receive a charitable tax receipt.

This podcast is a project of the Munk Debates, a Canadian charitable organization dedicated to fostering civil and substantive public dialogue.

More information at www.munkdebates.com.

The full version of today's Friday Focus is available to all members.

In this emergency Friday Focus episode, Rudyard and Janice assess what the US strike on Iran's nuclear facilities mean for the future of the Middle East. What are the big takeaways from this game changing moment in the region? Has Iran's capacity to enrich uranium been permanently disabled? And finally, and perhaps most importantly, how will Iran respond? Iranians are a proud people with a culture of resistance. Its leaders believe that Trump deceived them twice. If the US President is serious about peace he needs to open backchannels to Iran immediately, reign in Israel's regime change ambitions, and show he is committed to a deal.

To support the Friday Focus podcast consider becoming a donor to the Munk Debates for as little as $25 annually, or $.50 per episode. Canadian donors receive a charitable tax receipt.

This podcast is a project of the Munk Debates, a Canadian charitable organization dedicated to fostering civil and substantive public dialogue.

More information at www.munkdebates.com.

The full version of today's Friday Focus is available to all members.

Rudyard and Janice start today's show talking about the long term prospects of this war: while Israel has had amazing military successes in the first week, their ability to intercept Iran's ballistic missiles will diminish as this war drags on. Is there a diplomatic opportunity to bring this conflict to an end? And if this is a matter of survival for Iran's top brass, will they finally concede to US demands and dismantle their nuclear program? Rudyard and Janice then turn to Trump and the most consequential test of his presidency so far. Janice argues that his indecision and uncertainty around striking Iran - stoked by the infighting between the hawks and isolationists in his coalition - is fueling a dangerous escalation between Iran and Israel. And even if America decides to strike Fordow, the underground nuclear facility in Iran, there is no way of knowing what the outcome of such an attack will be. Both Rudyard and Janice agree that we are in a crisis over nuclear weapons with the most incompetent set of leaders.

To support the Friday Focus podcast consider becoming a donor to the Munk Debates for as little as $25 annually, or $.50 per episode. Canadian donors receive a charitable tax receipt.

This podcast is a project of the Munk Debates, a Canadian charitable organization dedicated to fostering civil and substantive public dialogue.

More information at www.munkdebates.com.

Rudyard is joined by celebrated American-Israeli author and journalist Yossi Klein Halevi to talk about the ongoing war between Iran and Israel. Yossi explains why this attack has almost unanimous support within Israel and how everything changed after October 7th: a collapse in the illusion that they could live next to a genocidal regime whose stated goal is to eradicate them. Israelis, he says, will not make the same mistake twice. Furthermore, Jews have learned from the past that when your enemy threatens to destroy you, take them at their word. Yossi goes on to explain how Israel hopes to trigger an uprising in Iran against a widely detested regime. How do you activate the disaffected silent majority? Will the people of Iran feel emboldened to take to the streets in this rare opportunity? And finally, Yossi has a message to the West: there should be no moral confusion or ambiguity. This should be a moment when the West rallies behind Israel. And if the US, Canada, and Europe aren't prepared to actively support Israel, at the very least they should not undermine its efforts.

Friday Focus provides listeners with a focused, half-hour masterclass on the big issues, events and trends driving the news and current events. The show features Janice Gross Stein, the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and bestselling author, in conversation with Rudyard Griffiths, Chair and moderator of the Munk Debates.

Rudyard and Janice start the show with Israel's spectacular strike on Iran that targeted ballistic missiles, nuclear sites, and top military leaders. Janice argues that while this was a successful attack it is far from a devastating blow, and Iran still has the means to retaliate. In the second half of the show Rudyard and Janice discuss what this means for global stability and the future of warfare. The US is no longer willing to play the world's policeman and regional powers are freer to do what they want. The attack also demonstrated the destabilizing effects of cheap technology, as Israel was able to decapitate the regime's senior leadership with drones lying in wait from inside Iran. And finally, will the Iranian people - the majority of which do not support the regime - seize on this rare moment to rise up against a weakened and brutal theocracy and forge a new path forward?

To support the Friday Focus podcast consider becoming a donor to the Munk Debates for as little as $25 annually, or $.50 per episode. Canadian donors receive a charitable tax receipt.

This podcast is a project of the Munk Debates, a Canadian charitable organization dedicated to fostering civil and substantive public dialogue.

More information at www.munkdebates.com.

On this special podcast episode we are sharing the opening statements from the Munk Debate on Trump’s America, which took place on May 29th in front of a sold out crowd of 3,000 people at Toronto’s Roy Thomson Hall.

The debate resolution was: Be it resolved, this is America’s golden age

Arguing in favour of the motion was the political consultant, pollster and senior counselor to President Trump during his first term in office, Kellyanne Conway. Her debate partner was the President of the right-wing think tank the Heritage Foundation, and the architect of Project 2025, Kevin D. Roberts.

Opposing the motion was the New York Times columnist, podcaster, bestselling author, and one of America’s most influential commentators, Ezra Klein. His debate partner was Ben Rhodes, who served as President Obama’s senior advisor and is the co-host of the popular podcast Pod Save the World.

To watch the full Munk Debate on Trump's America go to our website www.munkdebates.com

Friday Focus provides listeners with a focused, half-hour masterclass on the big issues, events and trends driving the news and current events. The show features Janice Gross Stein, the founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs and bestselling author, in conversation with Rudyard Griffiths, Chair and moderator of the Munk Debates.

Rudyard and Janice start the show talking about the blowup of the bromance between Donald Trump and Elon Musk which took place in spectacular fashion over twitter. Was Elon's performance a genuine show of dismay at a congressional spending bill that flies in the face of all the cost cutting initiatives he was pursuing with DOGE? Or Is this a man having a nervous breakdown in public? And how will this breakup affect support from other tech billionaires and fracture the MAGA coalition? In the second half of the show Rudyard and Janice turn to the surprise Ukrainian drone attack that targeted Russian air bases hosting nuclear-capable strategic bombers thousands of km away from the border of Ukraine. What will Putin's response be to this brazen attack? How will the use of cheap weapons to destroy expensive weapons change the face of warfare? And finally, how will the loss of some of its military capacity affect Russia's war with Ukraine and its relationship with NATO?

To support the Friday Focus podcast consider becoming a donor to the Munk Debates for as little as $25 annually, or $.50 per episode. Canadian donors receive a charitable tax receipt.

This podcast is a project of the Munk Debates, a Canadian charitable organization dedicated to fostering civil and substantive public dialogue.

More information at www.munkdebates.com.