Radio Live - Podcasts - Keen On America - George Packer's Emergency: When Facts Fail, Turn to Fiction

George Packer's Emergency: When Facts Fail, Turn to Fiction

Author: Andrew Keen December 12, 2025 Duration: 50:45

Podcast episode

Keen On America

Keen On America is a sharp, fast-moving podcast hosted by author and commentator Andrew Keen. Known for asking impertinent questions, Keen cross-examines some of the world’s most thoughtful voices on politics, economics, history, culture, the environment, and technology. Each episode digs beneath headlines and hype to uncover what is really shaping America today and how those forces connect to global change. Listeners can expect challenging conversations rather than easy talking points, as Keen presses guests to explain not just what is happening, but why it matters and what might come next. Whether you are trying to make sense of polarized politics, rapid technological disruption, or shifting social norms, this show offers a bracing, critical lens. Tune in and listen episodes of Keen On America to hear Andrew Keen interrogate the ideas and assumptions that define contemporary American life.

George Packer is one of the most celebrated non-fiction writers on contemporary America. So why, in his new book The Emergency, has he turned to fiction? You’d think, after all, that MAGA America’s surrealism would be an ideal nonfictional canvas for a writer with Packer’s observational gifts. But, as Packer explains, when facts fail a society, then - like Orwell or Atwood - a writer might be obliged to turn to fiction. This emergency, then, begot The Emergency.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit keenon.substack.com/subscribe

More episodes

The Warnings of a Holocaust Scholar about Today's World of the Big Lie

01.07.2023 Duration: 41:51

EPISODE 1577: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to John K. Roth, co-author of WARNINGS, about the Holocaust, the Ukraine and an endangered American democracyJOHN K. ROTH was named the 1988 U. S. National Professor of th…

Episode page

How to Tell the American Story

01.07.2023 Duration: 31:50

EPISODE 1576: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Sonali Kolhatkar, author of RISING UP, about the power of narrative in pursuing racial justice in AmericaSonali Kolhatkar is the host and creator of Rising Up with Sona…

Episode page

Phew! When AI ate the internet

01.07.2023 Duration: 29:22

EPISODE 1575: In this regular weekly show with THAT WAS THE WEEK newsletter author Keith Teare, Andrew and Keith discuss an astonishing week in tech when Apple reached a three trillion dollar valuation and AI ate the int…

Episode page

A Chilling Plot to Grab the World's Food and Water Resources

30.06.2023 Duration: 35:12

EPISODE 1574: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Nate Halverson, the producer and lead reporter on the new documentary movie THE GRAB, about the money, influence and rationale behind covert efforts to control the plan…

Episode page

How to Get Beyond the Shame of Sexual Violence

30.06.2023 Duration: 30:42

EPISODE 1573: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Peace Adzo Medie, author of NIGHTBLOOM, about how to get beyond the shame of sexual violence in AfricaPeace Adzo Medie is a scholar and writer. She is Senior Lecturer i…

Episode page

America's First Great Naturalist

30.06.2023 Duration: 29:26

EPISODE 1572: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Patrick Dean, the author of NATURE'S MESSENGER, about Mark Catesby, America's First Great NaturalistPatrick Dean writes on the outdoors and the environment. He has work…

Episode page

The Uncomfortable Truths Our Dogs Would Tell Us If They Could Talk

29.06.2023 Duration: 31:17

EPISODE 1571: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Bill Boggs, the author of SPIKE UNLEASHED, about an America addiction to celebrity, drugs, sex and foodBill Boggs, author of SPIKE UNLEASHED, is an Emmy Award–winning T…

Episode page

Why Novels Must Be More Believable than Non-Fiction Books

29.06.2023 Duration: 31:10

EPISODE 1570: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to the author of THE QUIET TENANT, about American serial killers and why fiction writing, in contrast with non-fiction, needs to be realistic and "make sense"CLÉMENCE MICH…

Episode page

Remembering Judy Garland, Michael Jackson, the Spice Girls and Stevie Wonder

28.06.2023 Duration: 32:48

Episode 1569: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Aisha Harris, author of WANNABE, about the pop culture that shaped both her and her generationFrom 2012 to 2018, Harris covered culture for Slate Magazine as a staff wr…

Episode page

From Pizza and Meze to Ramen and Borscht: Unscrambling the Politics of National Dishes

28.06.2023 Duration: 30:09

EPISODE 1568: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Anya von Bremzen, author of NATIONAL DISH, about popular foods ,like pizza and borscht, as forms of oppression and symbols of resistance Anya von Bremzen is a three-tim…

Episode page

Is most of rural America really plotting to destroy democracy?

28.06.2023 Duration: 39:20

EPISODE 1567: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to David Neiwert, the author of THE AGE OF INSURRECTION, about the radical right's assault on American democracyDavid Neiwert is a journalist and author and an acknowledge…

Episode page

On the Importance of Being Batshit Crazy

27.06.2023 Duration: 29:41

EPISODE 1566: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Dan Schreiber, the author of THE THEORY OF EVERYTHING ELSE, about alien abductions, the importance of having celebrity hairdresser parents and the exorcism of Ringo Sta…

Episode page

American Whitelash: Wesley Lowery on the cost of progress in an increasingly multiracial America

27.06.2023 Duration: 31:26

EPISODE 1565: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Wesley Lowery, the Pulitzer prize winning journalist and author of AMERICAN WHITELASH, about the cost of progress in an increasingly multiracial AmericaWESLEY LOWERY is…

Episode page

The American Dream of a "Tossed Salad": Luma Mufleh on reconciling her identity as a gay Muslim woman with an Arab-turned-American refugee

27.06.2023 Duration: 22:26

EPISODE 1564: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Luma Mufleh, author of FROM HERE, about reconciling her identity as a gay Muslim woman with an Arab-turned-American refugeeLUMA MUFLEH is the founder of Fugees Family,…

Episode page

The 20th Century Corporation: Richard Langlois on the cultural and economic history of the modern American business enterprise

27.06.2023 Duration: 35:50

EPISODE 1563: In this KEEN ON show, Andrew talks to Richard Langlois, author of THE CORPORATION AND THE TWENTIETH CENTURY, about the cultural and economic history of the modern American business enterpriseRichard N. Lang…

Episode page