The sun sets behind American flags on July 27, 2026, in Jersey City, New Jersey.
(Gary Hershorn / Getty Images)
Derek welcomes back to the show his very own co-host, Danny Bessner, to talk about his new book, Imperialist Realism: Politics and Culture at the End of the American Century, and how we see imperialist realism in American foreign policy and popular culture. They talk about the concept’s inspiration from the video game Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War, the end of mass politics, the decline of grand ideology in US foreign policy, the core features of imperialist realism, the Protestant missionary roots of American foreign policy, imperialist realism in pop culture, and a democratic socialist alternative to current US foreign policy.
Order your copy of the book now.
Read the new piece from Danny’s Imperialist Realism Substack, Empire of Grunge.
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Derek Davison
Derek Davison is a writer and analyst specializing in international affairs and US foreign policy. He is the publisher of the Foreign Exchanges newsletter, cohost of the American Prestige podcast, and former editor of LobeLog.
Daniel Bessner
Daniel Bessner is a historian of US foreign relations and is the author of, among other books, Imperialist Realism.
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