Spencer Ackerman
American journalist and writerWikipedia
21
MENTIONS
14
EPISODES
13
PODCASTS
Search complete. 21 mentions across 14 episodes found for "Spencer Ackerman".
Oct 10, 2026
George HahnNARRATOR
Meanwhile, closer to the front, the asymmetrical drone war has depleted the high-tech U.S. interceptor arsenal, catalyzed a $95 billion multi-year munitions replenishment request from the Trump administration, and rendered an American victory a mathematical impossibility.
George HahnNARRATOR
The interceptor math doesn't even touch the strategic heart of the Iran war, Iran's control over the global economic artery that is the Strait of Hormuz, wrote national security journalist Spencer Ackerman.
George HahnNARRATOR
The math merely shows how overwhelmingly far the U.S. is from being able to force the Strait of Hormuz open and keep it that way.
George HahnNARRATOR
Math is a modern warrior's most important skill, but I'm getting ahead of myself.
George HahnNARRATOR
Meanwhile, closer to the front, the asymmetrical drone war has depleted the high-tech U.S. interceptor arsenal, catalyzed a $95 billion multi-year munitions replenishment request from the Trump administration, and rendered an American victory a mathematical impossibility.
George HahnNARRATOR
The interceptor math doesn't even touch the strategic heart of the Iran war, Iran's control over the global economic artery that is the Strait of Hormuz, wrote national security journalist Spencer Ackerman.
George HahnNARRATOR
The math merely shows how overwhelmingly far the U.S. is from being able to force the Strait of Hormuz open and keep it that way.
George HahnNARRATOR
Math is a modern warrior's most important skill, but I'm getting ahead of myself.
Matt DussGUEST
And I think, you know, there's been a lot there's been good reporting on this.
Matt DussGUEST
I would recommend our friend Spencer Ackerman's book, Reign of Terror, for one of the best, you know, you know, one of the best works that really connects, you know, the global, you know, the war on terror to our domestic politics and how these things feed off of each other.
Matt DussGUEST
I mean, the United States, you know, police in the United States operate under, you know, what's referred to as qualified immunity laws.
Matt DussGUEST
And the United States abroad, we have granted ourselves essentially qualified immunity in carrying out, you know, what are just acts of mass murder.
Dave WeigelGUEST
And so you kind of search for what was what was what was the most annoying stuff on there? And it was mine.
Dave WeigelGUEST
I think to an extent, Spencer Ackerman had some stuff that got that got hit.
Dave WeigelGUEST
But the point for this discussion is, yes, I learned that lesson that I should be quite careful.
Dave WeigelGUEST
I've relearned it just from people accidentally adding me to things that I shouldn't see, which happens every once in a while.
PhilPANELIST
yeah yeah yes even even plausible deniability uh doesn't doesn't go away
TadHOST
um On the reverse end of this, and I'll plug some forever wars from Spencer Ackerman again, must read reporting.
TadHOST
The New York Post, go figure, citing sources from inside companies who provide such things to the Navy or would like to when and if they ever figure out how.
TadHOST
um reported that that the navy had like ship-based lasers that they could use to to shoot down missiles and and drones and stuff and uh spencer as it turns out has has done some serious reporting on this through the years and he's like uh no No, they're not particularly close to the type of lasers that would be required to actually make this work.
PhilPANELIST
Responsible military laser expert, Spencer Ackerman.
PhilPANELIST
That's the heck of the title.
PhilPANELIST
Right, right.
Michael ZeldinHOST
After spending a decade as a bicycle messenger, among other things, Colin received a Bachelor's of Science degree from Northeastern University and a Master's of Arts from Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
Michael ZeldinHOST
As he says about himself, despite the fact that I wrote a book about musicians, I have no musical talent, but that didn't stop me from spending one of the best years of my life playing in a band with Spencer Ackerman.
Michael ZeldinHOST
Colin Asher, welcome to That Said.
Michael ZeldinHOST
Thank you for having me.
Erin RyanGUEST
Uh, Taylor Lorenz was there.
Erin RyanGUEST
Uh, we just had this am- uh, Spencer Ackerman was there.
Erin RyanGUEST
Just incredible reporters all working in the same place, and it was like we were building the plane as we were flying it.
Erin RyanGUEST
Um, we're still, a lot of us are still in touch too.
Lisa HajjarGUEST
but like right around that period, Twitter was still very big.
Lisa HajjarGUEST
And I learned something from Spencer Ackerman and then sort of, and a number of journalists do that, is sit in the media center and you can actually tweet.
Lisa HajjarGUEST
And so we would live tweet the military commission hearing.
Alka PradhanMODERATOR
that a lot of this the information that we that we have to contribute to the case is classified at different levels and um and sometimes figuring out the classification is a little bit difficult um and you john said something about what happened to them before right and so i just want for those who may not be familiar right i just want to explain in the Sherry case were held at the CIA black sites before they were brought to the top.
Chris CondonGUEST
I also have an interview, serialized interview, sort of like how I did in the third volume of that Texas Blood in the single issues with Paul Tremblay.
Chris CondonGUEST
But this one is with Spencer Ackerman.
Chris CondonGUEST
So we have two serialized interviews, one with Spencer Ackerman, one with Jim and E.L. And then we also have a bunch of other great stuff, including a Matt Boers political cartoon, which is actually his first political cartoon from 2003, which also makes him... maybe the first actual real living person who is also a character in through that Texas blood universe.
Nick FriarHOST
Wow.
Chris CondonGUEST
Because this local cartoon exists in that universe.
TadHOST
So so when the situation of the world was so dire that that even his handpicked stooge couldn't lower interest rates.
TadHOST
um but then uh i i have encouraged everybody to read um forever wars forever anyway spencer ackerman's newsletter um i will i will toss out again final order cut off in no one escapes the dialectic is this coming monday his new book from boom um But I'm going to plug Forever Wars again.
TadHOST
This Friday, he posted a column called Fanute the Houthi Coup, One Decade, Three Adversaries, Total Domination, It's Time to Respect Ansar Allah.
TadHOST
And essentially what he says is like, When we hear about the Houthis, we generally only hear about them as Iranian-backed terrorists, blah, blah, blah.
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