1979: How the U.S. and Iran Went From Allies to Enemies

About this episode

<p>At the heart of the current U.S. war against Iran is an inconvenient truth: that the United States is, in many ways, responsible for creating the very regime it now seeks to topple.</p> <p>Today, Scott Anderson, a New York Times Magazine contributor, tells the story of America’s outsize role in the Islamic Revolution, and why all these years later we’re still no closer to understanding Iran.</p> <p>Guest: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/by/scott-anderson" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><strong>Scott Anderson</strong></a>, a contributing writer for The New York Times Magazine.</p> <p>Background reading: It has been a trying time <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/02/04/opinion/iran-protests-death-toll.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">for the Islamic republic of Iran</a>.</p> <p>Photo: George Tames/The New York Times</p> <p>For more information on today’s episode, visit <a href="http://nytimes.com/thedaily?smid=pc-thedaily" rel="noopener noreferrer">nytimes.com/thedaily</a>. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. </p> <p><p>Subscribe today at <a href="http://nytimes.com/podcasts">nytimes.com/podcasts</a> or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher">https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher</a>. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.</p></p><br/> <p>Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See <a href="https://pcm.adswizz.com">pcm.adswizz.com</a> for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.</p>