June 9, 2025· 55 min

Vladislav Zubok on What the Cold War Actually Was

Vladislav Zubok

Orality

Model

68%

Oral-dominant (speeches, podcasts, storytelling)

Speaker Breakdown

HostTracy Alloway(1,927 words)

M:28%

HostJoe Weisenthal(1,025 words)

M:94%

GuestVladislav Zubok(5,916 words)

M:94%

Oral Indicators

Agonistic37%

literally, completely, obviously

Engagement60%

you, our, your

Memory Aids100%

listen, now, right

Repetition100%

know (121x), about (64x), cold (57x)

Parallelism95%

And I'm Tracy Alloway...., But, of course, that raises th..., And so, you know, and, general...

Sound Patterns36%

35 question(s), alliteration: "markets move", alliteration: "barclays brief"

Formulaic Phrases6%

let me tell you, you know what, i mean

Literate Indicators

Hedging9%

could, maybe, might

Passive Voice7%

was surprised, is divided, is divided

Abstract Nouns30%

investment, recommendation, question

Subordination7%

because, until, whereas

Sentence Length43%

Avg: 15.8 words/sentence

Word Complexity50%

investment, analyze, anticipate

Academic Markers0%

Impersonal Style40%

587 personal pronouns found

Descriptive Style87%

literally, completely, recently

Description

These days, it's common to talk about the emergence of a New Cold War that exists between the US and China. It's debatable whether or not this is a useful framing. But in order to answer the question, it requires that you have some conception of what the original Cold War actually was. Vladislav Zubok, a professor at the London School of Economics, has a new book out on exactly this question. In The World of the Cold War: 1945-1991, Zubok attempts to explain how we should understand this period, which he sees as both an ideological battle, as well as a geo-strategic one — and also a battle that the two main actors (the US and the USSR) saw very differently at the time. In addition to understanding the contours of that tension, we discuss its applicability today, as the new administration attempts to re-arrange our relationship with China and the Middle East, as well as other rivals, allies, and partners. Only Bloomberg.com subscribers can get the Odd Lots newsletter in their inbox — now delivered every weekday — plus unlimited access to the site and app. Subscribe at bloomberg.com/subscriptions/oddlots See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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