DAVID BRIN's podcast interviews and discussions

speaking & consulting pages

activities & interviews

for publicists & backgrounders

coronavirus & humanity

On April 2, 2020 acclaimed science fiction authors David Brin, Kevin J. Anderson, and Ramez Naam appeared on the "Breaking Banks" show to talk about how the Covid-19 crisis might affect humanity on a long term basis, looking out short-term and then 50 years from now.

rebuilding after coronavirus

Hosted by Dr. David Bray of the Atlantic Council: A conversation with internationally recognized author and scientist Dr. David Brin and noted public policy professor and expert Dr. Kathryn Newcomer on the technologies, investments, and policy actions that could help us rebuild from COVID-19 on a global scale.

the future of privacy policy

As technology advances, there will be no hiding from surveillance. What we should instead fight for is transparency: the watchers must feel just as exposed as the watched. AE Ideas, a public policy blog issued by the American Enterprise Institute, asks: What will privacy policy mean when applied to the government versus the increasingly powerful tech titans?

outrage fatigue?

In this episode of Intellectual Explorers David discusses our culture’s addiction to self-righteous indignation, how we engage in 'ritual combat' over ideas, and possible ways out, such as setting up disputation arenas to debate issues — and more.

let's surveil the surveilers

One response to stepped-up surveillance is a stepped-up effort to hide from it — more laws regulating what people and governments are allowed to record, and more funds devoted to encryption and other privacy-protecting resources. But while this approach reflects the right instincts, it is insufficient. Especially as technology advances, there will be no hiding from surveillance. What we should instead fight for is transparency: the watchers must feel just as exposed as the watched.

space, astronomy, alien life and AI, oh my!

MacObserver runs an interesting interview podcast series. This one with David Brin covers a wide range, from his education at Caltech and UCSD and how he started writing fiction to where he imagines "things" heading.

science fiction in the genes!

Check out daughter Ari Brin's iTunes podcast Novum: A Science Fiction Exploration, broadcasting live out of JAM Radio in Dundee, Scotland. Her episodes "explore" sci fi tropes and themes — where it's been, where it could go — including an episode reading David's short story, "The Logs."

it’s exhausting — and addictive

Are we, as a nation, addicted to anger? That's the question posed by the To the Best of Our Knowledge podcast interview of David's essay, "Addicted to Self-Righteousness?"

podcasting @ Mars

Planetary Radio podcasts Science Fiction Greats at the Mars Society — Gregory Benford, David Brin, Geoffrey Landis and Larry Niven — about terraforming Mars, the origin of life, the drive to explore and more.

where is my privacy?

Co-editors David Brin and Stephen Potts were interviewed on KPBS radio about Chasing Shadows. Among the questions posed: what happens in a society without privacy?

can sf writers prevent nuclear war?

BBC reports: "Catherine Asaro and David Brin are both science fiction writers. They’ve also both advised the US government on challenges society could someday face. Reporter Daniel Gross recently spoke to them about their jobs."

predicting — inventing! — the future

In this Bloomberg RealClear Radio Hour interview with Bill Frezza, David Brin explores how science fiction can improve the future, by helping us chart technological dangers to avoid and promising goals to pursue.

the note show

Brin talks about the power of sci fi to create self-preventing prophecies on The Note Show. The host seemed pleased, despite hardly getting a word in! Also available on itunes and stitcher.

partially examined living

David Brin participated in a podcast radio panel discussion about Philosophy(!) on the Partially Examined Life show with some very smart co-panelists. All sorts of implications of SETI, the Fermi Paradox, transparency, humanity, life, the universe... and almost everything.

next-gen futurism

For a garrulous ramble that will take you from Pericles to Popper to Pluto — though mostly focusing on transparency and accountability and re-learning the art of pragmatism — here's a podcast interview Brin gave about the future of freedom.

author stories

David Brin joins writer Hank Garner for Episode 172 of The Author Stories Podcast, where they talk about: Why authors should first write a murder mystery, moving the plot along in science fiction stories, writing believable stories with believable characters... and more.

finding quicksand

In this Tech Emergenceinterview, Dan Faggella talks with David about fiction's unique role in helping humanity find a beneficial future — a job done in large part by pointing out what we want to avoid most.

overlordzing robotz

The Robot Overlordz guys had David on their show for an audio interview about topics ranging from SETI to tech freedom to why Hollywood sci fi plots are so dumb.

3 writers talk ... writing

This podcast poses an hour's worth of questions about writing to the great Sci Fi author Allen Steele, rising star Dan Haight, and David Brin.

our newest civil war

Here's an informal recording at a Portland restaurant... in which Brin explores the roots of today’s phase of the American Civil War.

what's the point of thinking?

The brainiac philosophers at "A Partially Examined Life" have posted both the two hour podcast of our interview and their followup notes.

space for enlightenment

Here's an interview David Brin gave Veritas Radio about SETI and space and maintaining a scientific civilization.

is sci fi a good predictor?

Does science fiction still influence or predict technological advances? Brin is one of several sages interviewed on this terrific-yet-too-brief NPR show about the ideas and influence of science fiction in creating the modern world.

what about EXISTENCE?

Here's a podcast interview David Brin did with Scott Sigler about Existence.

talking about ET

Brin is the go-to guy on the topic of Extraterrestrial life. Here's a podcast and interview he gave to Tom Fudge of KPBS radio.

getting our geeks on

The fun fellows at "GeeksOn" interviewed Brin about everything from the future to politics to SETI to all the myriad ways that science fiction has either gone astray or else propelled our thoughts into new frontiers.

Brin is dweebcasted

Dweebcast is one of these joyfully-geeky mini-shows that celebrate tech optimism. In this episode they ask Brin: "Hey, where are the hoverboards we were promised in Back to the Future?"

the pirate hour

David Brin spends an hour with the California Pirate Party, discussing inventors, inventiveness, intellectual property, transparency — and Existence. "Brin's philosophy is refreshing because it projects meaning and understanding from thousands of years of human evolution and activity. Our conversation with him was insightful, funny and uplifting."

getting wired

WIRED Magazine interviewed Brin for their popular "Geek's Guide to the Galaxy" podcast.

the hero's role

Kevin Tumlinson's interviews Brin for his 100th Wordslinger podcast episode, about writing and the role of the hero.

the point of inquiry

David Brin talks with Chris Moony on the Point of Inquiry podcast, discussing the value of scientific inquiry and rational minds in creating a better world (or even a better novel!).

can we rely on the kindness of crowds?

Here's a podcast interview of David Brin one on the subject of "Kickstarter and other open-source methods for dream-funding." Interesting sub-topics around the notion that creativity will open all sorts of new opportunities for all of us.

ain't mythbehavin'

Mythbehaving is a way-fun site filled with interesting podcast interviews and other goodies. David Brin gave them an hour recently — about science fiction, dystopias, augmented humans, science, movies, propaganda and so much more! Good for your daily commute.

our reality tv president

Here & Now's Jeremy Hobson interviews Brin and Boise State University professor Justin Vaughn about how our cameras-everywhere culture is affecting the candidates, presidential campaigns and us.

is there an ideal sci-fi protagonist?

Catch this episode of Roundtable Podcast, in which a number of top sci-fi authors were offered this particular challenge at a recent World Science Fiction Convention: "Describe your ideal protagonist." Providing short, pithy and fascinating answers were Elizabeth Bear, Alan Dean Foster, Howard Tayler, David Brin — along with many more.

building future societies with transparency and freedom

In this FutureThinkers podcast, Brin notes that sub-saharan tribeswomen today have better access to information via the Internet than world leaders did just a few decades ago. That’s huge — although it doesn’t make as entertaining news as terrorism or twerking, so few news agencies are talking about it.

can we snapchat and forget it?

On KCRW's "To The Point" Brin joined a panel of experts to discuss SnapChat and the Future of an Erasable Internet."

40 years from now

NPR interviews Brin about "The Nature of Existence."

third millennium problem solving

Can our civilization maintain its 200-year commitment to openness, transparency, accountability, and confident belief in progress, or will a growing "relinquishment movement" fight back against the onrush of change?

virtually speaking

This Virtually Speaking podcast interview discusses transparency, security, privacy, surveillance and sousveillance.

getting to the future

SF Signal Podcast chats with David Brin about science fiction's exploration of the future, by presenting gedankenexperiments, or thought experiments, as well as the notion of self-preventing prohecies.

getting to existence

David Brin talks with Planetary Radio about his monumental new novel, Existence.

getting science into science fiction

NPR's Talk of the Nation interviews David and William Gibson, author of Neuromancer, Mona Lisa Overdrive and Virtual Light.

science fiction is evolving

Another Talk of the Nation episode interviews David and James Gunn and Michael Capobianco, where they discuss the art and evolution of Science Fiction.

a singular interview

David Brin talks with Singularity about science fiction, the singularity, Star Wars and Existence.

our inevitable future

Science and technology are converging to change the global game. Join David and Paul Rosenbloom to talk about our cyber future. Will humanity survive and even thrive when the Singularity arrives?

crowdfunding dreams

David Brin is interviewed on Funding the Dream about the idea that crowds can make smart decisions for society.

getting into space

In David Livingston's syndicated radio SPACE SHOW, Brin talks starships, asteroid mining, and bringing boldness back to our civilization.

the world transformed

David Brin joins P. J. Manney and Thomas McCabe to discuss our thinking transformed. Our thinking is always subject to scrutiny and inspection, but perhaps never more urgently than now. If profound change truly is upon us, what assumptions must we avoid? What new ideas must we be ready to embrace? And what cherished "truths" must we be prepared to put away once and for all?

40 years from now

On NPR David Brin, a "San Diego Futurist," explores the nature of Existence.

listening to culture

Hearsay Culture interviews author David Brin on transparency, reciprocal accountability, cyber-utopianism and the preservation of excitement in an age of cynicism.

limits of understanding

This "Endless Universe" podcast, featuring David and Paul Steinhardt (Endless Universe), touches up against the outer limits of cosmology, and through that brings up questions of limits on the imagination, the role of theology, and the end (and endings) of the universe.

fanboys — gotta love 'em!

Is it better to "go where no one has gone before" or "fly around a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away"? In this Fanboy Planet, podcast, David answer these burning questions and more.

cheaters, transparency, and how ICOs avoid jail

In this episode of Milk, Brin tackles the crypto space and issues of state surveillance in an entirely different manner.

getting creative

Now live, Ed Willett's podcast at The Worldshapers, where David Brin gives some of his best advice on writing science fiction to would-be best-selling authors!