On with Kara Swisher

Jane Fonda has been fighting for social justice for over five decades, but in the past year, she’s kicked things up a notch. This past fall, she relaunched the Committee for the First Amendment, and her environmentally focused political action committee, Jane Fonda Climate PAC, is gearing up for the midterm elections. 

The iconic actor and activist talks to Kara about how to fight for democracy and the environment when both are under attack. She breaks down her PACs electoral strategy, explains why artists’ voices matter, and how to use action to beat back depression and despair. And she shares a couple secrets for living well at any age.

Questions? Comments? Email us at [email protected] or find us on YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Threads, and Bluesky @onwithkaraswisher.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

President Trump makes no secret about having a long list of perceived enemies. And for the people he targets, there’s one lawyer many of them call: Abbe Lowell. The longtime Washington defense attorney built a career representing both Republicans and Democrats. But last year, Lowell left a partner position at a big firm to start his own office dedicated to helping those "unlawfully and inappropriately targeted" by the Trump administration.

Kara and Lowell talk about his work representing clients like New York Attorney General Letita James, Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook and independent journalist Don Lemon; the strategy behind Trump’s lawfare; and the ways Abbe is positioning his new practice to anticipate the Trump administration’s next moves.

Questions? Comments? Email us at [email protected] or find us on YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Threads, and Bluesky @onwithkaraswisher.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Kara talks to Lawrence Lessig about his fight to end Super PACs — without passing a constitutional amendment or overturning Citizens United. 

The Harvard law professor and Equal Citizens founder was once the internet’s open-access evangelist. 19 years ago, he shifted his focus from intellectual property to institutional corruption, and since then, he’s become one of the country’s sharpest critics of money-driven politics. 

Kara and Lessig examine how the tech industry shifted from being led by largely apolitical or "libertarian-light" figures to becoming a sector that actively enables Trump; whether Democrats can capitalize on the Epstein controversy to persuade Trump's voters that he’s not the outsider he claims to be; how engagement-driven AI is tearing democracy apart; and why citizen assemblies are the way to repair it.

Questions? Comments? Email us at [email protected] or find us on YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Threads, and Bluesky @onwithkaraswisher.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Since becoming CEO of the Onion two years ago, former disinformation reporter Ben Collins has helped revitalize the satirical newspaper by relaunching its print edition, bringing back the Onion News Network on YouTube, and launching a bid to take over Alex Jones’s Infowars. The Onion even recently released its own mockumentary about Jeffrey Epstein and his connections to President Trump, called "Jeffrey Epstein: Bad Pedophile." 

Kara and Ben talk about the role of humor when reality seems more absurd than satire, and the threats the Trump administration poses to free speech. They also discuss why they’re both bullish on the power of independent media — especially satirical media — to hold powerful people accountable.

Questions? Comments? Email us at [email protected] or find us on YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Threads, and Bluesky @onwithkaraswisher.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Kara talks with Rivian founder and CEO RJ Scaringe at a tense time for electric vehicles: domestic sales have cooled, federal EV tax credits are gone, and tariffs are raising costs across supply chains. Rivian’s premium R1S SUV and R1T pickup helped establish the brand — the R1S is now the best-selling premium electric SUV in the country — but the company is still losing money. The R2, Rivian’s midsize SUV will hit showrooms this year, and Scaringe says it will be “an inflection point for us as a business.”

Kara presses him on how to win buyers cross-shopping hybrids and gas vehicles, and what it takes to compete with both Tesla and low-cost, highly capable Chinese EV makers. They also dig into Rivian’s joint venture with Volkswagen Group, the economics of scaling an EV startup, and why Scaringe believes autonomy will eventually become as critical as having “tires on a vehicle.” Plus: Aurora CEO Chris Urmson asks why Rivian doesn't have CarPlay.

Questions? Comments? Email us at [email protected] or find us on YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Threads, and Bluesky @onwithkaraswisher.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices