National Security.
Foreign Policy.
Redefined.

Launched in the summer of 2020, Burn Bag Media aims to break down some of today’s most pressing national security and foreign policy challenges with the people who have worked and lived them. Tune in for conversations with policy practitioners and thinkers, from seasoned experts to voices of the next generation. Our podcasts run the gamut from cursory glance to deep dive with the goal of making topics in geopolitics accessible to everyone.

Our Vision

Burn Bag Media embodies a new generation of national security and foreign policy thinking. We’re here to redefine how scholars and policymakers approach “security.” National security is not just about hard power, nor does it exclusively concern weapons, spies, and war. National security is about advancing the public good and defending democratic values from an ever-changing threat landscape. Over the past decade, we’ve witnessed the emergence of great rivals, rogue states, pandemics, climate disasters, violent extremism, civic unrest, economic warfare, new technologies, and a battle for geopolitical influence that stands to shape the future of the world we live in for decades, if not centuries. We hope you join us in trying to make sense of it all.

Who We Are

  • A'ndre Gonawela, Co-Founder and Co-Host

  • Andrea Ochoa, Co-Host

  • Andrew Wilson, Co-Host

  • Christina Oh, Co-Host

  • Ryan Rosenthal, Co-Founder and Former Co-Host

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Origins in Ann Arbor

In July 2020, A’ndre Gonawela and Ryan Rosenthal, former classmates at the University of Michigan, launched The Burn Bag Podcast with the keen mentorship of former NSC Senior Director Javed Ali. What was initially intended to be a hobbyist platform through which A’ndre and Ryan could muse about global news events that weren’t necessarily at the forefront of mainstream public discourse soon became something more.

Many people aren’t aware of the pressing issues in foreign policy and national security. They simply don’t understand why certain events are important, or how they matter to the United States — especially if they aren’t academically or professionally involved in the policy domain. This is due to no fault of their own — rather, it is imperative that foreign policymakers and security officials communicate their work in an attainable manner. Understanding foreign policy should not be exclusive to those who are professionally invested in the field — it should be accessible to all. A’ndre, Ryan, and Javed realized that The Burn Bag Podcast was an opportunity to make these issues accessible to a broader population. Since then, the team has expanded to include other hosts with Midwest roots: David and Anna—more UMich alumni—and Andrea, a graduate of UChicago.