Are We Doomed?

About Are We Doomed?

Is the world ending, or does it just feel like it? "Are We Doomed?" investigates the greatest risks facing society, the planet, and our species. What’s real? What’s hype? And how do we actually make it out alive? Nukes. Asteroids. Autocracy. Rogue AI. Climate-driven pandemics. Angry hippopotamuses. Teeth clenched, curiosity engaged, quips ready, this “slightly narrative” podcast explores everything from the existential and the unexpected to the overblown. Award-winning public radio journalist Ben Bradford brings you wild true stories, high-production sound design, and world-class experts answering the questions they never prepared for (“Why is the Earth doing this to us?”). From NuanceTales and distributed by the NPR Network, this show delves into history, science, technology, and the natural world, to help you separate legitimate world-changing risks from doomsday fantasies. Come for the supervolcano under Yellowstone National Park (real), stay to learn why the post-apocalyptic wasteland won’t look like the movies (sorry, you won’t be wandering with a shotgun and a dog), and leave with a better understanding of how our brilliant, bumbling species can chart a path through our current, terrifying adolescence.

Publisher

NPR Network

Category

science · society & culture

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

21 Apr 2026

Latest episode

22 Sept 2026

Latest episodes

19 of 24 episodes have a transcript.

1. 

   22 Sept 2026TRANSCRIPT

   Bug Fight Club

   Host Ben Bradford interviews entomologists Andrew Liebhold and Chris Looney about escalating invasive insect threats and innovative control strategies.

2. 

   15 Sept 2026TRANSCRIPT

   Who Keeps Winding the Doomsday Clock?

   Alexandra Bell, president and CEO of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, explains the Doomsday Clock's origin and its current alarming proximity to midnight in this interview.

3. 

   8 Sept 2026TRANSCRIPT

   Can "Scams" Be a Doom?

   Investigative reporter Joseph Cox of 404 Media discusses with host Ben Bradford how new technology amplifies ancient scams, offering insights into spotting and resisting them.

Inside a recent episode

Bug Fight Club

Published 22 Sept 2026 · Transcript excerpt

[…] Things like The food we eat from agriculture or the water we drink, and that can be strongly affected by the disruptions that invasive organisms cause. Close your eyes, unless you're driving, for a quick word association game. Fruit and Florida. What do you see? The answer should be nothing. Because the once iconic Florida orange, all but synonymous with the state, is deeply imperiled due to one tiny invasive insect. In the late 1990s, the citrus psyllid started siphoning the state's orange trees. Bacteria it can carry poisoned the fruit, turned sprawling lush orchards into sagging green lopsided compost. […]

Who has been a guest on Are We Doomed?

Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.

• Andrew Liebhold
• Chris Looney
• Alex Bell
• Alexandra Bell
• Joseph Cox

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

Apple Podcasts (US)

4.6 / 5

422 ratings

Questions about Are We Doomed?