Call Me Back - with Dan Senor

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What will Israelis really be voting on in the first election since October 7?
Today we are launching Israel Votes, a new Call me Back and Ark Media series that will be your hub for unpacking the Israeli election. Ark Media contributors Amit Segal and Nadav Eyal join Dan to set the stage, exploring how October 7, the war, coalition politics, deep social divides, and the Netanyahu brand will all play a role in the upcoming vote, which many Israelis feel may determine the character and future of the Jewish state.
In this episode:
06:45 - Why this election feels different from every Israeli election before it
08:55 - Netanyahu’s coalition problem and the ultra-Orthodox question
11:55 - How October 7 changed the political map and voter psychology
16:40 - Is this election a referendum on the past or a vote about the future?
21:00 - What Israel’s demographic and political trends mean for the outcome
26:45 - The opposition’s strategy and the Bennett factor
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Dan Senor & Saul Singer’s book, The Genius of Israel
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Credits: Ilan Benatar, Adaam James Levin-Areddy, Brittany Cohen, Ava Weiner, Martin Huergo, Mariangeles Burgos, and Patricio Spadavecchia, Yuval Semo

This is a sneak peek from the latest Inside Call Me Back, the members-only edition of the podcast. 
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Bret Stephens argues that while organizations like the ADL do valuable work tracking and responding to antisemitic incidents, the Jewish community has overinvested in fighting antisemitism as a primary strategy.
To hear the full conversation, become a member by following the link in the description or visiting arkmedia.org.
In the full episode: 
New York Times columnist Bret Stephens joins Dan on the members-only edition of Call me Back to take questions about his speech at 92nd Street Y and the public conversation it started. Should we really stop trying to fight Antisemitism? Should the ADL be “dismantled”? Can we define the psychology of Antisemitism? And what are the stories that define Judaism?
Watch Bret's full speech: https://youtu.be/1QMTjVuo9dE
More Ark Media:
Listen to For Heaven's Sake
Listen to What’s Your Number?
Watch Call me Back on YouTube
Newsletters | Ark Media | Amit Segal | Nadav Eyal
Instagram | Ark Media | Dan
X | Dan
Dan Senor & Saul Singer’s book, The Genius of Israel
Get in touch
Credits: Ilan Benatar, Adaam James Levin-Areddy, Brittany Cohen, Martin Huergo, Mariangeles Burgos, and Patricio Spadavecchia, Yuval Semo

Is the right way to fight Antisemitism maybe to… stop fighting it?
In this special episode, we share The State of World Jewry address delivered by New York Times columnist Bret Stephens at the 92nd Street Y. Stephens, who is also the editor-in-chief of SAPIR Journal, offers a bracing diagnosis of modern antisemitism and argues that it cannot be educated away, apologized for, or solved through allyship. Instead, he calls for Jewish confidence, cultural seriousness, and moral clarity in the face of rising hostility.
In this episode:
- Why antisemitism is about resentment, not misunderstanding
- The false promise of fighting antisemitism head-on
- The danger of approval-seeking and respectability politics
- October 8th Jews and the identity reckoning
- Jewish values as inherently countercultural
- Building strength instead of chasing acceptance
This episode was sponsored by SAPIR: Sign up for the SAPIR journal at sapirjournal.org/CallMeBack
More Ark Media:
Want to join Ark Media? Check out our careers page for new openings.
Subscribe to Inside Call me Back
Listen to For Heaven's Sake
Listen to What’s Your Number?
Watch Call me Back on YouTube
Newsletters | Ark Media | Amit Segal | Nadav Eyal
Instagram | Ark Media | Dan
X | Dan
Dan Senor & Saul Singer’s book, The Genius of Israel
Get in touch
Credits: Ilan Benatar, Adaam James Levin-Areddy, Brittany Cohen, Martin Huergo, Mariangeles Burgos, and Patricio Spadavecchia, Yuval Semo

Is there a deeper strategy underlying President Trump’s actions?
Dan is joined by historian, Free Press columnist, CBS contributor, and Senior Fellow at Hoover Institution Sir Niall Ferguson to connect the dots on how President Trump is using leverage, unpredictability, and selective force across Iran, Venezuela, Europe, and beyond. They discuss why a counter revolution in Iran has little chance without foreign intervention, what “regime alteration” means, whether we're still living through Cold War II, and why Europe keeps taking the bait.
In this episode…
- Iran strike timing, targets, and endgame
- “Regime alteration” vs. regime change
- Why Iran’s protests failed and fear works
- Turkey’s mediation and Erdoğan’s ambitions
- Saudi pressure and regional deterrence logic
- Cold War II and the authoritarian axis
- Davos, Europe’s weakness, and the Greenland distraction
- MAGA tensions, Israel, deterrence, and Taiwan
This episode was sponsored by United Hatzalah. Donate today at IsraelRescue.org/CallMeBack. Add this number to your phone right now if you live in Israel – 1221, and for those visiting it’s 972-2-5-383838.
From the episode:
- Niall Ferguson’s essay in the Free Press, “The Myth of Revolution in Iran”
More Ark Media:
Want to join Ark Media? Check out our careers page for new openings.
Subscribe to Inside Call me Back
Listen to For Heaven's Sake
Listen to What’s Your Number?
Watch Call me Back on YouTube
Newsletters | Ark Media | Amit Segal | Nadav Eyal
Instagram | Ark Media | Dan
X | Dan
Dan Senor & Saul Singer’s book, The Genius of Israel
Get in touch
Credits: Ilan Benatar, Adaam James Levin-Areddy, Brittany Cohen, Martin Huergo, Mariangeles Burgos, and Patricio Spadavecchia, Yuval Semo

This is a sneak peek from a recent conversation on Inside Call Me Back, the members-only edition of the podcast. Dan and Nadav try to understand the strategic thinking of Iran’s top command and the role of surprise in deterrence.
To hear the full conversation, become a member by following the link in the description or visiting arkmedia.org.
In the full episode: 
Nadav joins Dan in the hot seat to take listener questions on Trump’s proposed “Board of Peace,” the limits of economic prosperity to deradicalize Palestinian society, and whether outside actors can actually create change in Gaza. They also discuss Qatar’s influence inside the U.S., and explore the politics of Israeli Arabs. Dan also provides his perspective on whether elite universities still matter.
More Ark Media:
Subscribe to Inside Call me Back
Listen to For Heaven's Sake
Listen to What’s Your Number?
Watch Call me Back on YouTube
Newsletters | Ark Media | Amit Segal | Nadav Eyal
Instagram | Ark Media | Dan
X | Dan
Dan Senor & Saul Singer’s book, The Genius of Israel
Get in touch
Credits: Ilan Benatar, Adaam James Levin-Areddy, Brittany Cohen, Martin Huergo, Mariangeles Burgos, and Patricio Spadavecchia, Yuval Semo