Ways to Change the World with Krishnan Guru-Murthy

From the White House situation room, to shaping the Obama administration's national security communication - few people have had a closer view of the forces shaping modern America than Ben Rhodes.
As Barack Obama's speechwriter and Deputy National Security Adviser, Rhodes helped craft some of the defining messages of the Obama era and played a central role in major foreign policy decisions, including the Iran nuclear deal. Now, in his new book All We Say, he argues that speeches reveal the enduring battle over American identity, who belongs, who holds power, and what kind of country America wants to be.
In this episode of Ways to Change the World, Krishnan Guru-Murthy talks to Ben about why Donald Trump succeeded where others failed, whether speeches still matter in the age of social media, the backlash to Barack Obama, the rise of populism, and the lessons history offers for today's political turmoil.
They also discuss Gaza, Israel, Iran, the future of the Democratic Party, and whether politics has lost the ability to tell a compelling story about where society is heading next.

At a time when Britain feels increasingly fragmented, playwright and screenwriter James Graham believes the country faces a deeper crisis than politics alone can explain.
From the collapse of community spaces and growing loneliness to the impact of AI, social media and declining trust in institutions, Graham argues that Britain is losing the social bonds that once held it together. But he also believes there's a way back.
In this episode of Ways to Change the World, Krishnan Guru-Murthy speaks to the writer behind Sherwood, Dear England and Brexit: The Uncivil War about national identity, class, culture, storytelling and why Gareth Southgate may offer a model for rebuilding social cohesion. They discuss the future of the arts, the rise of populism, whether politics has lost the ability to tell a compelling story, and what happens when a society stops creating shared experiences.

What does it mean to choose peace after unimaginable loss? In this episode of Ways to Change the World, Krishnan Guru-Murthy speaks to Aziz Abu Sarah and Maoz Inon, peace activists and co-authors of "The Future Is Peace: A Shared Journey Across the Holy Land".Abu Sarah is a Palestinian whose brother died after being tortured in an Israeli prison. Inon is an Israeli whose parents were killed in the 7 October attacks. Instead of turning further towards hatred, they have built an unlikely friendship rooted in empathy, forgiveness and a shared determination to imagine a different future. Together, they reflect on grief, revenge, political failure and why they believe peace is not naïve, but necessary.

In this episode of Ways to Change the World, Krishnan Guru-Murthy speaks to Kimberlé Crenshaw, one of the most influential thinkers on race who coined the term intersectionality. Crenshaw has spent decades challenging how we understand inequality — and why it persists today.Crenshaw’s new memoir, Backtalker, is a blunt origin story of the lived experiences that shaped her work - from childhood moments of exclusion to confronting discrimination at Harvard, and the early instincts that led her to question power.The conversation explores the growing backlash against her ideas, from political attacks on critical race theory to efforts to erase or distort the language of inequality. Crenshaw argues that this is not just a cultural debate, but a fight over history, truth and democracy itself.Her solution is as simple as it is risky: talk back.

Artificial intelligence is often sold as inevitable — a force that will transform our lives for the better. But Karen Hao believes that story is too simple, and too convenient.
An author and journalist, she has spent years investigating the people behind the AI boom. In her book Empire of AI, she argues that the technology is not just being built — it’s being shaped by a small group of companies driven by competition and a desire for dominance.
In this episode, Krishnan delves into whether she is now an activist as she continues to challenge the idea that AI’s future is already written. So, who really decides how AI develops — and is it too late to change course?