The Institute of Politics & CNN Podcasts
500 episodes listed below
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David Axelrod, the founder and director of the University of Chicago Institute of Politics, and CNN brought you The Axe Files, a series of revealing interviews with key figures in the political world. Go beyond the soundbites and get to know some of the most interesting players in politics.
Based on 6 episodes we listened to · September 2026
David Axelrod connects political judgment to personal history, revealing how prominent guests came to understand power, institutions, and their own public roles.
David Axelrod starts with the person behind a public role, then works outward toward the choices and pressures that shape politics. The Axe Files moves easily between Kasie Hunt's path from print to television, Scott Jennings's early ambitions in radio news, and Chris LaCivita's…
David Axelrod calls Scott Jennings a friend, then asks how he got there.
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Short reviews from the PlayNext desk, based on the episodes we processed.
A patient conversation that favors biography over caricature.
Axelrod uses the hour to pull Scott Jennings out of the political label that usually follows him. He starts with the odd fact of their friendship, then lets the conversation drift back to Jennings's path from a country music station in Louisville and a University of Louisville…
A clear-eyed conversation about October 7, the hostages, and the questions that remain unresolved.
David Axelrod uses the anniversary of the October 7th massacre by Hamas in southern Israel to keep the conversation on grief, evidence, and the questions that still do not have clean answers.
A measured look at the 2024 campaign that treats the compressed timeline as the story shaping what comes next.
Ezra Klein and David Axelrod spend the episode circling back to the 2024 campaign, with Biden and Harris at the center. The focus stays on the compressed timeline, the Democratic convention, and the stretch still ahead, including the 9-10 debate and the chance of one more debate…
A solid political interview that keeps the focus on campaign mechanics and backstory.
David Axelrod treats Chris LaCivita less like a talking point than a working political operator, tracing him from Marine service through the 2004 Swift Boat fight and into Trump's re-election effort.
A measured political interview that keeps craft and consequence in focus.
David Axelrod uses this conversation with Kasie Hunt to show two sides of her work at once: the habits that made her a sharp political observer, and the medical crisis that forced her to rethink what mattered most.
A thoughtful Lincoln conversation about biography, power, and the struggle over truth.
David Axelrod uses a holiday archive episode to open up a conversation with John Meacham that reaches well past presidential biography. It moves from Lincoln's place in American memory to slavery, secession, and the fight over who gets to define reality.
A reflective farewell that keeps politics rooted in biography and lived experience.
David Axelrod uses a final hour to close nine years of conversation, and the show stays where it has always been strongest: on people and how they think, not politics as a scoreboard.
A reflective milestone episode that uses biography to frame political conversation.
The 600th episode of The Axe Files feels more like a look back at the work than a celebration of the number. David Axelrod and Anderson Cooper talk through conversations, Axelrod's own path, and the people and events that have shaped public life, so the hour stays with the way…
Fast takes, sharp turns, loud sports arguments.
Daily Pelicans scrutiny with a sharp edge.
This episode discusses how political campaigns use music at events to shape candidate brands and explores the impact of social media and technology on election soundtracks in 2024.
David Axelrod introduces and begins a conversation with journalist Audie Cornish about her personal story as the child of Jamaican immigrants and her perspective on Kamala Harris in the current political climate.
David Axelrod introduces Don Rose, a 95-year-old political figure with decades of involvement in social movements and discusses his upcoming conversation about the 1968 Chicago Democratic Convention.
David Axelrod introduces Charlamagne tha God, a prominent media personality, and begins a conversation about his background and rise to fame.
David Axelrod introduces a conversation with pollster John Anzalone to discuss the recent election's outcomes and implications for the Democratic Party.
David Axelrod introduces and begins an interview with CNN political reporter John King about his year-long travels to battleground states to talk with voters ahead of the upcoming election.
David Axelrod introduces Janet Yellen, highlighting her historic roles as the first woman Treasury Secretary and Federal Reserve Chair, her personal immigrant background, and her perspectives on American progress and public service.
David Axelrod introduces a conversation with Nancy Pelosi about her new book 'The Art of Power' and her role in reshaping the Democratic convention, focusing on the purpose of power in her political career.
This episode segment introduces Ambassador Roger Carstens, discussing his role as special presidential envoy for hostage affairs and his work in negotiating the release of Americans like Brittany Griner, Evan Gerskovich, and Paul Whelan.
David Axelrod introduces a past interview with Kamala Harris, discussing her name's meaning and background as she transitions from Senator to presidential nominee.
Hunt comes through as a reporter shaped by pressure and habit.
In the final episode of The Axe Files, David Axelrod interviews Ambassador Rahm Emanuel, reflecting on his diplomatic role in Japan, U.S.-China tensions, Middle East conflicts, and the state of the Democratic Party.
David Axelrod interviews CNN commentator Scott Jennings, exploring his journey from a poor, tornado-ravaged Kentucky town to the White House and media fame.
Chris LaCivita comes off as a campaign veteran who knows where the bodies are buried.
Six hundred episodes ask for a look back.
David Axelrod interviews Ezra Klein about the 2024 presidential election, focusing on Kamala Harris's sudden rise as the Democratic nominee and how it has reshaped the race against Donald Trump.
David Axelrod interviews historian Jon Meacham about his biography of Abraham Lincoln, exploring Lincoln's moral development, political pragmatism, and personal struggles.
David Axelrod interviews Congresswoman Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, exploring her unconventional background as a homeschooled, conservative-raised auto shop owner now critiquing Democratic Party approaches.
This segment introduces NBA star DeMar DeRozan, discussing his basketball career, his memoir about overcoming depression and childhood trauma in Compton, and the start of a conversation about his personal story.
A year after October 7, Axelrod returns to Dayan and finds her still working through what can be said after the massacre.