Moral calculus under Putin: Joshua Yaffa talks about his new book, ‘Between Two Fires’

This week's guest is Joshua Yaffa, The New Yorker's Moscow correspondent and the author of the new book “Between Two Fires: Truth, Ambition, and Compromise in Putin’s Russia,” which offers a look at Putin’s Russia without focusing on Putin, studying a handful of individual case studies and the moral choices of various individuals who have played unique or interesting roles in contemporary Russia.

Where does this book fit in the wider literature on Russia and ethics? Are questions of conscience a problem only for intellectuals? How broad is the power of the book's explanatory prism? And how have time and now the coronavirus pandemic affected the trends laid out in the book? Joshua answered these questions and more.

“The Naked Pravda” comes out on Fridays. Catch every new episode by subscribing at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, or other platforms. If you have a question or comment about the show, please write to Kevin Rothrock at [email protected] with the subject line: “The Naked Pravda.”