Woke Iron Man
On this episode of American Prestige, Spencer Ackerman on leftist politics and comic books.

Here's where to find podcasts from The Nation. Political talk without the boring parts, featuring the writers, activists and artists who shape the news, from a progressive perspective.
On this episode of American Prestige, Danny and Derek welcome back AP mega-guest Spencer Ackerman, author of the Forever Wars newsletter and soon-to-be-published issues of Marvel Comics’ Iron Man. The group explores Spencer’s inspiration to pursue more work in the world of comic books, writing for a character who is a defense contractor, bringing left-wing messaging into the medium, the sand box of Marvel Comics vs. the behemoth of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, plus Spencer’s impressions on some major current events.
NOTE: This interview was recorded on 8/30/24, prior to reports that the Israeli military had recovered the bodies of six hostages inside Gaza.
Click hear to learn how to pre-order Iron Man & get free merch!
More of Spencer’s work:
Further Reading:
- Annie Nocenti, journalist, writer, editor and filmmaker
- Six Stops on the National Security Tour by Miriam Pemberton
Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands
Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

On this episode of American Prestige, Danny and Derek welcome back AP mega-guest Spencer Ackerman, author of the Forever Wars newsletter and soon-to-be-published issues of Marvel Comics’ Iron Man. We explore Spencer’s inspiration to pursue more work in the world of comic books, writing for a character who is a defense contractor, bringing left-wing messaging into the medium, the sand box of Marvel Comics vs. the behemoth of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, plus Spencer’s impressions on some major current events.
Note: This interview was recorded on 8/30/24, prior to reports that the Israeli military had recovered the bodies of six hostages inside Gaza.
Click hear to learn how to preorder Iron Man & get free merch!
More of Spencer’s work:
Further Reading:
- Annie Nocenti, journalist, writer, editor and filmmaker
- Six Stops on the National Security Tour by Miriam Pemberton

Here's where to find podcasts from The Nation. Political talk without the boring parts, featuring the writers, activists and artists who shape the news, from a progressive perspective.
Danny and Derek are back with a two-part episode on the war with Iran. First, they speak with Trita Parsi of the Quincy Institute about the Trump administration’s decision to go to war, the belief that assassinating Ayatollah Khamenei would cause the regime to implode, the structure and failure of pre-war negotiations, the influence of Israeli officials and hawks, the potential for sending in ground troops, and the impact on Iranian society. They then speak with Akbar Shahid Ahmed, Senior Diplomatic Correspondent at HuffPost, about the erosion of rules of engagement, the alignment of U.S. and Israeli military strategy, congressional inaction, compliant allies, and whether any realistic off-ramps remain.
Read Akbar’s piece “Trump Says He Brought 'Justice' To Iran. His War Boosts Fears The U.S. Has Gone Rogue.”
Keep up with Quincy’s work at Responsible Statecraft and Always at War.
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Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy
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