FO Podcasts

The Big Paradox: Why Immigration Divides America Like Nothing Else | Fair Observer

Why do Americans support strict border control—but oppose mass deportations?
In this podcast, Fair Observer’s Founder, CEO and Editor-in-Chief Atul Singh speaks to Kent Jenkins on the “immigration paradox” shaping US politics today. While Donald Trump’s policies successfully reduced illegal border crossings, they also triggered widespread backlash when enforcement moved into American cities.
This conversation examines the psychological and political divide at the heart of the issue: people fear immigration as an abstract problem, yet empathize deeply with individual immigrants in their communities. Through real-life cases, historical research, and political analysis, this discussion reveals why public opinion shifted so dramatically.
From border security to deportation policies, and from public outrage to political strategy, this episode unpacks one of the most complex debates in modern America.
 
00:00 Immigration Paradox
05:30 Trump’s ICE Deployment
11:00 Open Borders
19:00 Racism and Anti-Migrant Sentiments
28:00 Democrats vs Republicans

The Muslim Brotherhood Explained: Origins, Ideology and Global Influence | Fair Observer

What is the Muslim Brotherhood and how did it shape modern Islamist movements?
In this episode of the Fair Observer podcast, Egyptian author and political activist Cynthia Farahat joins us to explore the origins, ideology and evolution of the Muslim Brotherhood. Founded in 1928 by Hassan al-Banna in Egypt, the organization grew into one of the most influential Islamist movements in the world.
We discuss the historical context of its creation, the influence of thinkers like Sayyid Qutb and Syed Abul A'la Maududi, and how the movement expanded across the Middle East and beyond. The conversation also examines the Brotherhood’s political strategies, its role during the Arab uprisings and the presidency of Mohamed Morsi, and the broader debate about political Islam.
This discussion provides historical context and analysis of a movement that has influenced politics, security debates and ideological conflicts across the Middle East for nearly a century.
Watch the full conversation and join the discussion.
 
00:00 What is the Muslim Brotherhood?
07:00 The Concept of Jihad
12:30 Dawah vs Dawla
19:00 Evolution of the Muslim Brotherhood
31:30 London vs Istanbul
40:30 Today’s Muslim Brotherhood
44:00 A Peaceful Muslim Brotherhood?

Maduro, the War on Drugs and Trump’s Revival of the Monroe Doctrine | Fair Observer

For years, Washington framed its confrontation with Venezuela as part of the war on drugs — a narrative questioned by critics who argued that narcotics enforcement masked a deeper geopolitical objective. That debate has now reached its dramatic conclusion. The Trump administration has carried out a special operation in Caracas, capturing Nicolás Maduro and his wife and flying them to the United States to face drug-related charges.
Fair Observer’s Founder, CEO and Editor-in-Chief Atul Singh sat down with Benjamin Delile, Foreign Correspondent for the French Newspaper Liberation on December 15. Together, they examined Washington’s Venezuela policy through the lenses of geopolitics, military strategy and great-power competition. 
Benjamin Delille explains why claims about fentanyl and drug trafficking do not align with available data, and why Venezuela’s strategic importance goes far beyond narcotics. From oil reserves and critical minerals to China’s growing influence in Latin America, the discussion reveals the deeper forces shaping US actions.
They also discuss Venezuela’s political crisis, the disputed 2024 election and the rise of opposition leader Maria Corina Machado Finally, the conversation situates Venezuela within the broader Trump-era revival of the Monroe Doctrine, raising uncomfortable questions about regime change, intervention and the future of US power in the Western Hemisphere.
 
00:00 America’s War on Drugs
09:30 America’s Arc of Influence
13:10 Maria Corina Machado’s Popularity
21:00 Hugo Chavez & Maduro
26:20 Trump’s Maximum Pressure Campaign
33:00 Trump’s Endgame in Venezuela

Myanmar Votes During a Civil War: Why This Election Could Tear the Country Apart | Fair Observer

Myanmar is heading into elections on December 28 while the country remains trapped in a brutal civil war. More than 6,000 people have been killed, over 3.5 million displaced, and nearly half the population pushed into poverty since the 2021 military coup.
In this episode of FO Talks, Rohan Khattar Singh speaks with Asanga Abeyagoonasekera, Executive Director of the South Asia Project at the Millennium Project, to unpack why Myanmar’s military junta is holding elections at its weakest moment. The discussion examines the collapse of state control, the rise of resistance forces, ethnic armed groups, and why the opposition has been entirely excluded from the vote.
The conversation also explores China, India, ASEAN, regional spillover risks, illicit trade networks, and why this election is widely viewed as an attempt to manufacture legitimacy rather than restore democracy.
Is this election a step toward stability or a move that deepens Myanmar’s fractures? This episode explains what is really at stake.
 
00:00 Myanmar’s First Election Since 2021 Coup
05:30 Myanmar’s Junta Buying Time?
09:00 Opposition Silenced in 2025 Election
13:15 What Does the Junta Want?
16:00 What Do the Ethnic Groups Want?
20:00 Is the Election Fair?
24:00 Global Silence on Myanmar
27:30 Peace in Myanmar

The Forbidden C-word, Class in America | FO Podcasts

Why is the word class almost never spoken in American politics, despite shaping elections, identity, and power? In this episode of FO Podcasts, Fair Observer’s Founder, CEO and Editor-in-Chief Atul Singh, examines the hidden class system in the United States with former Washington Post journalist Kent Jenkins.
Drawing from his journey from a blue-collar upbringing to elite Washington institutions, Jenkins explains how class operates through education, accents, culture, and unspoken social rules. The conversation explores why American politics avoids class language, how elite institutions dominate political discourse, and why working-class voters across racial lines have drifted away from the Democratic Party.
The episode also unpacks Donald Trump’s appeal, elite condescension, identity politics, and the widening divide between metropolitan professionals and rural or industrial America. With comparisons to Europe and the United Kingdom, this discussion shows why class, not race alone, has become a defining fault line in US democracy.
00:00 Class in America
04:30 Atul’s Family in India
06:30 Kent’s Family in America
10:00 Class Politics in the US
15:00 What Trump Did Right
21:00 Class in Europe vs America
35:00 The Impact of Class on Community
40:00 Democrats and Zohran Mamdani
45:00 Race and Class in America
55:00 Republicans vs Democrats
 
 

The Right to Play: How Women Fought and Won the Battle for Equality in Sports | FO° Podcasts

In this episode of FO° Podcasts, Fair Observer’s Editor-in-Chief Atul Singh speaks with Lauren Greenberg, Deputy General Counsel at White & Case LLP, about the transformative impact of Title IX on women’s sports in the United States. From founding Dartmouth’s first women’s softball team to filing a landmark Title IX complaint, Greenberg shares how law became her tool for creating equal opportunity. The conversation explores the evolution of women’s athletics, the life skills sports cultivate, gaps in media representation, and why true gender parity still requires cultural change. They also discuss the next frontier — pay equity, leadership roles and expanding support for underrepresented sports. A powerful discussion on rights, opportunity and the future of women in sport.

Enemy of the Sun — How Palestinian Poetry Became a Weapon of Resistance | FO° Podcasts

In this episode, Founder, CEO & Editor-in-Chief Atul Singh sits down with Dr. Edmund Ghareeb, renowned scholar, historian and author of Enemy of the Sun: Palestinian Poetry of Resistance. Together, they explore the remarkable story behind the book’s publication, its connection to the Palestinian struggle, and how poetry became a powerful voice of identity, resistance and survival.
Ghareeb recounts how the book, Enemy of the Sun, featured works by iconic poets such as Mahmoud Darwish, Samih al-Qasim and Rashid Hussein — figures who turned Palestinian poetry into political testimony. The conversation traces the book’s unlikely publishing journey, its ties to calls for resistance like the Black Panther movement and its rediscovery decades later.
The discussion delves into the intersection of politics, literature, and history, exploring how Palestinian poetry connects with broader human struggles, from apartheid and exile to freedom and dignity.
This powerful conversation captures not just the Palestinian cause, but the universal resilience of those who fight to be heard.

Why is the US Deporting Illegal Migrants to a Tiny African Nation Called Eswatini? FO° Podcast

In this episode of FO° Podcast, Producer Rohan Khattar Singh speaks with Zweli Martin Dlamini, investigative journalist from Eswatini, about a shocking new policy under the Trump Administration — the deportation of third-country migrants to Eswatini, a tiny landlocked kingdom in southern Africa.
The conversation uncovers the controversial “Dollars for Deportees” deal, exploring whether Eswatini’s monarchy, led by King Mswati III — is financially benefitting from US deportations. Dlamini explains how this arrangement, which sends non-Eswatini nationals to the country, has raised serious human rights and legal concerns.
Why would one of Africa’s smallest nations sign such a deal? Is the US outsourcing its migrant crisis to weaker states, and at what cost?
This episode investigates power, money, and exploitation behind an agreement many call modern-day dumping by the West. Join Rohan Khattar Singh and Zweli Martin Dlamini as they unpack the ethics, economics, and silence surrounding one of America’s most disturbing foreign policy moves.

Why Has Trump Deployed Thousands of National Guard Troops in Washington, D.C. | FO° Podcasts

In this episode of FO° Podcasts, Fair Observer’s Founder and Editor-in-Chief Atul Singh speaks to American voting rights attorney and Washington D.C’s Shadow Senator, Ankit Jain, on US President Donald Trump’s policy of deploying thousands of National Guard troops and federal agents in the nation’s capital. Jain and Singh discuss crime in Washington, D.C. and why it has been a top concern among D.C’s voters. Jai speaks about why Washington, D.C. should be a state and how the national capital suffers for being a federal district. Listen to the full podcast to learn more about what the Trump Administration is doing in the national capital.

The Story of 6 Million Syrian Refugees and Why They Can Never Return Home

In this episode of FO° Podcasts, Fair Observer’s Founder and Editor-in-Chief Atul Singh speaks to foreign affairs analyst William McChesney about the Syrian refugee crisis. They talk about the fall of former Syrian leader Hafez al-Assad, his son Bashar al-Assad, and the current interim government under former Al Qaeda member Ahmed al-Sharaa. They also discuss the role of Turkey in Syria’s politics and why Ankara has backed Ahmed al-Sharaa. Singh and McChesney then dive into the sectarian violence and tensions in Syria which have forced millions to leave the country. Watch the full episode to know more.