According to Richard Posner, a public intellectual uses general ideas drawn from history, philosophy and the sciences to analyze public problems and issues of general concern. George Orwell is an example of a great public intellectual, says Judge Posner – who goes on to argue that they don’t make them as they used to. In this vigorous conversation from 2002, Posner and Ron Grossman run through a large list of “intellectuals” who presume to explain – through their writing and broadcasting – what’s right, wrong and worth conserving or rejecting in contemporary society.