Cheap Talk – Details, episodes & analysis

Podcast details

Technical and general information from the podcast's RSS feed.

Cheap Talk

Jeff Kaplow and Marcus Holmes

Government

History

News

Frequency: 1 episode/17d. Total Eps: 125

Cheap Talk is an every-week-or-so international relations podcast with Jeff Kaplow and Marcus Holmes, professors of government at William & Mary.

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Recent rankings

Latest chart positions across Apple Podcasts and Spotify rankings.

Apple Podcasts

🇫🇷 France - government
03/06/2026
#95
🇩🇪 Germany - government
02/05/2026
#79
🇩🇪 Germany - government
01/05/2026
#59
🇩🇪 Germany - government
30/04/2026
#42
🇺🇸 USA - government
11/09/2025
#78
🇺🇸 USA - government
10/09/2025
#79
🇺🇸 USA - government
09/09/2025
#72
🇺🇸 USA - government
08/09/2025
#58
🇺🇸 USA - government
07/09/2025
#53
🇺🇸 USA - government
06/09/2025
#44

Spotify

No recent rankings available

Shared links between episodes and podcasts

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https://www.speakpipe.com/cheaptalk
45 shares
https://jkaplow.net/cheaptalk
40 shares
https://www.jkaplow.net/cheaptalk
38 shares

https://apple.co/3If1FNl
86 shares
https://www.apple.com/apple-vision-pro/
1 share
https://www.apple.com/retail/instore-shopping-session/session-selection/?topic=visionpro
1 share

RSS feed quality and score

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RSS feed quality

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Score global : 63%

Publication history

Monthly episode publishing history over the past years.

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Latest published episodes

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Now it's not a secret, is it?

Season 5 · Episode 1

Monday, September 2, 2024 • Duration 01:09:29

Cheap Talk makes a triumphant return for its 5th season: sauna diplomacy; what Olympic medal counts say about international prestige; our new secret nuclear plan; transparency and nuclear deterrence; Ukraine’s Kursk offensive; political vs. military goals in Ukraine; US restrictions on Ukraine’s military efforts; and Marcus discovers long-standing concepts in international relations

Please subscribe to Cheap Talk on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your podcast player of choice to be notified when new episodes are posted.

Please send us your questions or comments!

Further Reading:
Alyson Krueger. 2024. ‘Whatever Happens in the Sauna Stays in the Sauna’: Diplomacy, Conducted in the Nude.” The New York Times.

Robbie Gramer. 2023. “The Finnish Art of Sauna Diplomacy.” Foreign Policy.

J. Patrick Rhamey, Jr. and Bryan R. Early. 2013. “Going for the gold: Status-seeking behavior and Olympic performance.” International Area Studies Review 16(3): 244-261.

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A Couple of Non-Sports News Stories

Season 4 · Episode 34

Tuesday, July 30, 2024 • Duration 51:29

The foreign policy implications of recent US news; a bad day for Vladimir Putin; Harris’ likely foreign policy; the role of the Vice President in international affairs; assassination attempts as a signal of vulnerability; international norms against assassination; and Marcus is keeping up with the news

We will be recording at a slightly slower pace over the summer. Please subscribe to Cheap Talk on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your podcast player of choice to be notified when new episodes are posted.

Please send us your questions or comments! Send us an email or leave us a voicemail

Further Reading:
Joshua Byun and Austin Carson. 2024. “The Senile Superpower?” Foreign Affairs.

See all Cheap Talk episodes

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Spend Those Escalatory Activities Wisely

Season 4 · Episode 25

Monday, April 1, 2024 • Duration 57:33

What is happening with the Apple Vision Pro; recent Chinese cyber activity; signaling and deterrence in the cyber domain; building and maintaining cyber trust; demonstrating a capability without losing it; the psychological impact of potential cyberattacks; managing the overall US-China relationship in the midst of cyber incidents; extending the US cyber umbrella; cyber-intrusions into the electoral system in democracies; and Marcus likes power

Please subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your podcast player of choice

Please send us your questions! Send us an email or leave us a voicemail

Further reading/listening:
David E. Sanger and Mark Landler. 2024. “U.S. and Britain Accuse China of Cyberespionage Campaign.” New York Times.

Cheap Talk Podcast. 2023. “Giving ChatGPT Our Nuclear Codes.”

Cheap Talk recommends:
True Detective: Night Country on Max

Shogun on FX/Hulu

3 Body Problem on Netflix

World War II: From the Frontlines on Netflix

Mostly Golden Retriever Videos

Season 4 · Episode 24

Friday, March 22, 2024 • Duration 01:07:05

Jaime Settle joins Cheap Talk to discuss her research on social media networks; pending legislation to ban TikTok; how social media influences political knowledge and mobilization; the importance of the algorithm to the social media experience; what it is like to work with Meta to conduct research on Facebook; and Marcus is not afraid to take a stand

Jaime Settle is the Cornelia Brackenridge Talbot Professor of Government and Data Science at William & Mary. Check out her work on Google Scholar.

Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your podcast player of choice

Please send us your questions or comments! Send us an email or leave us a voicemail

Support the podcast by visiting our online store at cheaptalk.shop

Read Jaime Settle’s books:
Frenemies: How Social Media Polarizes America
What Goes Without Saying: Navigating Political Discussion in America (with Taylor Carlson)

Further reading/listening:
2020 Election Research Project. 2023. “First Four Papers from US 2020 Facebook & Instagram Research Election Study Published in Science and Nature.” Medium.

Armageddon, Not Just A Good Movie Anymore (Rebroadcast)

Season 4 · Episode 23

Tuesday, March 12, 2024 • Duration 01:07:26

A rebroadcast of the October 16, 2022 episode of Cheap Talk: The sixtieth anniversary of the Cuban Missile Crisis; lessons from the crisis; the dangers of reasoning from analogy; why Russia would use tactical nuclear weapons in Ukraine; how NATO would respond if they did; gambling for resurrection; the US role in facilitating peace; and Marcus would prefer that countries refrain from using nuclear weapons

We’ll be back with a new episode of Cheap Talk soon!

Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your podcast player of choice

Please send us your questions or comments! Send us an email or leave us a voicemail

Support the podcast by visiting our online store at cheaptalk.shop

Further Reading:
David E. Sanger. 2024. “Biden’s Armageddon Moment: When Nuclear Detonation Seemed Possible in Ukraine.” New York Times.

Richard E. Neustadt and Ernest R. May. 1986. Thinking in Time: The Uses of History for Decision-Makers. Free Press.

Yuen Foong Khong. 1992. Analogies at War: Korea, Munich, Dien Bien Phu, and the Vietnam Decisions of 1965. Princeton University Press.

See all Cheap Talk episodes

The Be-All and End-All of Explaining International Events

Season 4 · Episode 22

Tuesday, March 5, 2024 • Duration 56:46

How leaders matter if you believe countries are people; what would happen if Putin died; the impact of the Russian invasion two years on; what a nuclear weapon in space means for international security; space nukes and the violation of international law; and Marcus thinks every listener would agree

Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your podcast player of choice

Please send us your questions or comments! Send us an email or leave us a voicemail

Support the podcast by visiting our online store at cheaptalk.shop

Further Reading:
Rajan Menon. 2024. “Putin Has Already Lost.” New York Times.

See all Cheap Talk Episodes

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Let a Thousand Flowers Bloom

Season 4 · Episode 21

Tuesday, February 27, 2024 • Duration 48:48

Special guest Nicholas Wheeler returns to Cheap Talk to explain the English School of international relations; why the English School never took off in the US; methodology in IR theory; the fractionalization of IR; nuclear responsibilities; and Marcus doesn’t love sharing the spotlight

Nicholas Wheeler is @WheelerICCS on Twitter/X. You can also find him on LinkedIn and Google Scholar.

Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your podcast player of choice

Please send us your questions or comments! Send us an email or leave us a voicemail

Support the podcast by visiting our online store at cheaptalk.shop

Further Reading:
Too many to list

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Everyone Has a Theory

Season 4 · Episode 20

Saturday, February 17, 2024 • Duration 01:01:17

Nicholas Wheeler joins Cheap Talk to discuss his research program in international diplomacy; personal chemistry among leaders; the security dilemma; explaining Russia’s aggression toward Ukraine; the policy utility of international theory; and Marcus is so excited

Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your podcast player of choice

Please send us your questions or comments! Send us an email or leave us a voicemail

Support the podcast by visiting our online store at cheaptalk.shop

Nick Wheeler’s books include:
Saving Strangers: Humanitarian Intervention in International Society

The Security Dilemma: Fear, Cooperation and Trust in World Politics (with Ken Booth)

Trusting Enemies: Interpersonal Relationships in International Conflict

Further Reading:
Marcus Holmes. 2018. Face-to-Face Diplomacy: Social Neuroscience and International Relations. Cambridge University Press.

Robert Jervis. 1976. Princeton University Press.

A Joe Biden Meat Suit

Season 4 · Episode 19

Friday, February 9, 2024 • Duration 01:21:12

What the Apple Vision Pro means for the future of international diplomacy; the essential elements necessary to realize the benefits of face-to-face diplomacy; micro-expressions and realism in virtual worlds; barriers to outsiders and the risk of eavesdropping; verifying that you’re talking to the person you think you’re talking to; the promise of training in virtual and augmented reality; and Marcus can’t wait to hear about this

Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your podcast player of choice

Please send us your questions or comments! Send us an email or leave us a voicemail

Support the podcast by visiting our online store at cheaptalk.shop

Further Reading:
Marcus Holmes. 2018. Face-to-Face Diplomacy: Social Neuroscience and International Relations. Cambridge University Press.

See all Cheap Talk episodes

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Like the Friends We Were in Bali

Season 4 · Episode 18

Thursday, February 1, 2024 • Duration 58:19

Iran and the risk of a wider war in the Middle East; the likely US response to the recent drone strike; how to cooperate in an age of conflict; barriers to working together; the role of confidence-building mechanisms in international security; the death of the dream of Korean reunification; and Marcus doesn’t want to scare the listener

Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your podcast player of choice

Please send us your questions or comments! Send us an email or leave us a voicemail

Support the podcast by visiting our online store at cheaptalk.shop

See all Cheap Talk podcasts

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Cheap Talk – Details, episodes & analysis

Podcast details

Recent rankings

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Shared links between episodes and podcasts

RSS feed quality and score

Publication history

Latest published episodes

Related Shows Based on Content Similarities

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Related Shows Based on Content Similarities

Cheap Talk – Details, episodes & analysis

Podcast details

Recent rankings

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Shared links between episodes and podcasts

Other99+

Apple3

Spotify2

RSS feed quality and score

Publication history

Latest published episodes

Similar podcasts and content

Related Shows Based on Content Similarities

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Related Shows Based on Content Similarities

Other99+

Apple3

Spotify2