Podcast
Lost Debate
Hosted by The Branch · EN
Lost Debate is a weekly podcast from The Branch that brings you news, ideas, and arguments from around the political spectrum. We engage in the good-faith discussions that too much of our society and media miss. It's hosted by Ravi Gupta, a former Obama staffer turned school principal.
38episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
Pretti Killing, ICE Impunity, NVIDIA Dominance
Jan 2801:19:37Tap to summarizeRavi begins by explaining why this conversation matters to him: although he’s often skeptical of tech leaders, he sees Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang as a rare and genuinely consequential figure. He briefly reflects on the Pretti shooting in Minnesota and the broader questions it raises about accountability and transparency before turning to the interview. Ravi then speaks with author Stephen Witt about the forces that shaped Jensen’s leadership—from a punishing childhood and Nvidia’s early brush with failure to the high-risk CUDA bet that helped make modern AI possible. It’s an absorbing portrait of leadership, obsession, and the building of one of the most important tech companies of our time. Stephen Witt’s Jensen Huang, Nvidia, and the World's Most Coveted Microchip Ravi's Garbage Town ––––– Leave us a voicemail with your thoughts on the show! 201-305-0084 Follow Ravi at @RaviMGupta Notes from this episode are also available on Substack: https://thelostdebate.substack.com/ Read more from Ravi on Substack: https://realravigupta.substack.com Follow The Branch at @thebranchmedia Listen to more episodes of Lost Debate on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-lost-debate/id1591300785 Listen to more episodes of Lost Debate on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7xR9pch9DrQDiZfGB5oF0F Listen to Where the Schools Went: https://thebranchmedia.org/show/where-the-schools-went/
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The Moral Cost of Phones
Jan 2100:46:06Tap to summarizeRavi sits down with journalist Nick Niarchos, author of The Elements of Power, to expose the hidden human and geopolitical costs behind the batteries powering our phones and cars. They connect Congo’s brutal mining realities and China’s dominance of the battery supply chain to the myths we tell ourselves about “green” tech. It’s a gripping, unsettling look at whether EVs and other battery-powered solutions are nearly as clean—or as moral—as we think. Nicolas Niarchos’ The Elements of Power ––––––– Leave us a voicemail with your thoughts on the show! 201-305-0084 Follow Ravi at @RaviMGupta Notes from this episode are also available on Substack: https://thelostdebate.substack.com/ Read more from Ravi on Substack: https://realravigupta.substack.com Follow The Branch at @thebranchmedia Listen to more episodes of Lost Debate on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-lost-debate/id1591300785 Listen to more episodes of Lost Debate on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7xR9pch9DrQDiZfGB5oF0F Listen to Where the Schools Went: https://thebranchmedia.org/show/where-the-schools-went/
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Minnesota, Powell, MAGA Intellectuals
Jan 1401:12:43Tap to summarizeRavi opens by running through a turbulent week: the Minnesota ICE shooting, concerns about escalating federal power, and the DOJ’s reported probe into Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s independence, alongside global flash points like Iran and a U.S. electorate that’s increasingly independent. With institutions under strain and norms being tested in real time, he then turns to the ideas shaping this moment. That sets the stage for his conversation with political philosopher Laura K. Field, author of Furious Minds, on the thinkers and factions behind the MAGA New Right—and why understanding them now matters more than ever. –– Leave us a voicemail with your thoughts on the show! 201-305-0084 Follow Ravi at @RaviMGupta Notes from this episode are also available on Substack: https://thelostdebate.substack.com/ Read more from Ravi on Substack: https://realravigupta.substack.com Follow The Branch at @thebranchmedia Listen to more episodes of Lost Debate on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-lost-debate/id1591300785 Listen to more episodes of Lost Debate on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7xR9pch9DrQDiZfGB5oF0F Listen to Where the Schools Went: https://thebranchmedia.org/show/where-the-schools-went/
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Venezuela, Bari Weiss, State Censorship
Jan 700:50:26Tap to summarizeThe U.S. just carried out a stunning strike in Venezuela—capturing Nicolás Maduro—and Ravi argues the hard part isn’t the raid, but the chaos, precedent, and “what happens next,” with oil looming over everything. He’s then joined by The Atlantic’s Adam Serwer to unpack the CBS/60 Minutes controversy, where a vetted segment on deportations to an overseas prison was spiked, allegedly to appease the Trump administration. Serwer argues this exposes a growing double standard on the right: “free speech” as the freedom to speak, but not to criticize—backed by real pressure on newsrooms, universities, and public debate. A sharp episode about power—who gets to invade, who gets to speak, and who decides what the public is allowed to see. Adam Serwer’s writing at The Atlantic –––– Leave us a voicemail with your thoughts on the show! 201-305-0084 Follow Ravi at @RaviMGupta Notes from this episode are also available on Substack: https://thelostdebate.substack.com/ Read more from Ravi on Substack: https://realravigupta.substack.com Follow The Branch at @thebranchmedia Listen to more episodes of Lost Debate on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-lost-debate/id1591300785 Listen to more episodes of Lost Debate on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7xR9pch9DrQDiZfGB5oF0F Listen to Where the Schools Went: https://thebranchmedia.org/show/where-the-schools-went/
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The End of Culture
Dec 3100:56:41Tap to summarizeRavi sits down with cultural critic W. David Marx (author of Blank Space) to ask a simple question: if there’s more music, TV, and art than ever, why does culture feel so… stuck? Marx argues it’s not that people stopped creating—it’s that we’ve stopped treating new, daring work like it matters, so breakthroughs rarely spread and change the mainstream. They unpack how algorithms and money-driven incentives steer us toward what’s already popular and easy, instead of what might challenge or surprise us. If you’ve ever wondered why everything feels like sequels, recycled trends, or endless scrolling, this conversation puts clear language to that feeling—and offers a way out. W. David Marx’s book Blank Space and newsletter Culture: An Owner’s Manual Ravi’s Substack https://realravigupta.substack.com ----- Leave us a voicemail with your thoughts on the show! 201-305-0084 Follow Ravi at @RaviMGupta Notes from this episode are also available on Substack: https://thelostdebate.substack.com/ Read more from Ravi on Substack: https://realravigupta.substack.com Follow The Branch at @thebranchmedia Listen to more episodes of Lost Debate on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-lost-debate/id1591300785 Listen to more episodes of Lost Debate on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7xR9pch9DrQDiZfGB5oF0F Listen to Where the Schools Went: https://thebranchmedia.org/show/where-the-schools-went/
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Are We Getting Stupider?
Dec 1800:43:55Tap to summarizeAre We Getting Stupider? Andrew Rice joins The Lost Debate to ask an uncomfortable question: why are America’s schools getting worse—even in places that claim to care most about equity? Drawing on sobering national data and reporting from affluent liberal districts, Rice argues that declining standards, political complacency, and the abandonment of accountability have quietly erased decades of progress for kids. Ravi and Rice debate how both parties walked away from what worked—and why lowering expectations has become a substitute for real reform. It’s a sharp, urgent conversation about education, power, and who pays the price when adults stop demanding better for children. Andrew Rice’s article The Big Fail (NY Magazine, Nov 2025) ------------ Leave us a voicemail with your thoughts on the show! 201-305-0084 Follow Ravi at @RaviMGupta Notes from this episode are also available on Substack: https://thelostdebate.substack.com/ Read more from Ravi on Substack: https://realravigupta.substack.com Follow The Branch at @thebranchmedia Listen to more episodes of Lost Debate on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lost-debate/id1591300785 Listen to more episodes of Lost Debate on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7xR9pch9DrQDiZfGB5oF0F Listen to Where the Schools Went: https://thebranchmedia.org/show/where-the-schools-went/
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How We Got Here
Nov 6, 2024Tap to summarizeRavi takes a closer look at ten key factors that helped pave the way for Donald Trump's return to the White House and what it means for the future of American politics.Leave us a voicemail with your thoughts on the show: 321-200-0570---Follow Ravi at @ravimguptaFollow The Branch at @thebranchmediaNotes from this episode are available on Substack: https://thelostdebate.substack.com/Lost Debate is available on the following platforms: • Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-lost-debate/id1591300785• Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7xR9pch9DrQDiZfGB5oF0F• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ravimgupta• Google: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vTERJNTc1ODE3Mzk3Nw • iHeart: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-the-lost-debate-88330217/• Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.co.uk/podcasts/752ca262-2801-466d-9654-2024de72bd1f/the-lost-debate
Transcribe →Private Equity
Apr 16, 2024Tap to summarizeOur series on the Unbiased History of Israel/Palestine has been nominated for a Webby in the “Best Limited Series” category! - VOTE HEREVoting is open until Thursday, April 18thIn this episode, Ravi welcomes Matt Shechtman, a Long Angle partner and private equity expert. They dive into how private equity differs from venture capital and public companies, what to make of its growing involvement in sectors like healthcare and childcare, and what trends the industry might influence next.Later, Carrie Sun joins the conversation to share more about the experiences detailed in her memoir 'Private Equity'. She discusses her time at a top hedge fund and her journey from being a double-degree MIT student to working for a billionaire in finance.Timestamps:Intro - 0:01Matt Shechtman - 3:07Carrie Sun - 31:19Leave us a voicemail with your thoughts on the show! 321-200-0570Subscribe to our feed on Spotify: http://bitly.ws/zC9KSubscribe to our Substack: https://thelostdebate.substack.com/Follow The Branch on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thebranchmedia/Follow The Branch on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thebranchmediaFollow The Branch on Twitter: https://twitter.com/thebranchmediaThe Branch website: http://thebranchmedia.org/Lost Debate is also available on the following platforms: Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-lost-debate/id1591300785Google: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vTERJNTc1ODE3Mzk3Nw iHeart: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-the-lost-debate-88330217/Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.co.uk/podcasts/752ca262-2801-466d-9654-2024de72bd1f/the-lost-debate
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