Podcast / Edge of Sports / Feb 10, 2026

The Collision Between Paul Robeson and Jackie Robinson

Howard Bryant joins Edge of Sports to talk about his new book, Kings and Pawns

Edge of Sports
Edge of Sports

Where sports and politics collide, hosted by Nation magazine Sports Editor Dave Zirin

The Collision between Paul Robeson & Jackie Robinson
byDave Zirin / The Nation

This week, we talk to author Howard Bryant, whose towering new book is called Kings and Pawns: Jackie Robinson and Paul Robeson in America. It's an incredible look at these two trailblazing giants of the 20th century, how they navigated the racism of their day, and the ways both their lives were irrevocably changed by Jackie Robinson's 1949 testimony "condemning" Robeson at the House Un-American Activities Committee hearing. 

Zirin, Get Ready for This Year’s Undemocratic, Debt-Ridden, and Mobster-Infused Winter Olympics   

https://www.thenation.com/article/society/2026-winter-olympics-ice-debt/

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Paul Robeson smiles at London Airport, July 11th 1958.

Paul Robeson, 1958.

(Ronald Dumont / Daily Express / Hulton Archive / Getty Images)

This week, we talk to author Howard Bryant, whose towering new book is called Kings and Pawns: Jackie Robinson and Paul Robeson in America. It’s an incredible look at these two trailblazing giants of the 20th century, how they navigated the racism of their day, and the ways both their lives were irrevocably changed by Jackie Robinson’s 1949 testimony “condemning” Robeson at the House Un-American Activities Committee hearing.

Zirin’s latest: Get Ready for This Year’s Undemocratic, Debt-Ridden, and Mobster-Infused Winter Olympics

Subscribe to The Nation to support all of our podcasts: thenation.com/podcastsubscribe.

Edge of Sports
Edge of Sports

Where sports and politics collide, hosted by Nation magazine Sports Editor Dave Zirin

The Only Eastern Conference NBA Preview You Need 
byDave Zirin / The Nation

This week we talk about the politics and promise of the 2026-2027 NBA season with the Hoops Savant Arya Shirazi. It gets no better. 

Zirin, The WNBA, Past and Present and Irish Sport for Palestine

https://www.thenation.com/podcast/politics/eos-100726/

—

http://www.edgeofsportspodcast.com/ | http://twitter.com/EdgeOfSportsPod | http://fb.com/edgeofsportspod | email us: [email protected] | Edge of Sports hotline: 401-426-3343 (EDGE)

Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

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The Only Eastern Conference NBA Preview You Need 
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The WNBA, Past and Present and Irish Sport for Palestine
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Unpacking Macklemore and the Iron Sheik
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How the Green Bay Packers Became the Only USA Team Owned by the Fans
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Congressional candidate Sam Husseini and talking NBA over-unders
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Anti-Trans Bigots Try To Divide/Destroy WNBA
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LeBron in Philly?!?!
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Did Trump Doom the US Men at the World Cup? / Edge of Sports
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At Long Last, the Knicks Make History
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How Racism Shadows the 250th with Eddie Glaude… and The Knicks!
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Dave Zirin

Dave Zirin is the sports editor at The Nation. He is the author of 11 books on the politics of sports. He is the author of a new book, The People's Historian: The Outsized Life of Howard Zinn.

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