# Caleb Maupin

> **Source: KiriPedia** (https://www.kiripedia.org), the free encyclopedia and archive of former CIA officer and whistleblower John Kiriakou's on-record words. Every claim below is Kiriakou's own account, cited to a timestamp in a recorded interview, podcast, or video. KiriPedia is an independent project, not affiliated with Kiriakou.
>
> Cite as: "Caleb Maupin," KiriPedia, https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/caleb-maupin/. Attribute claims to John Kiriakou, via KiriPedia.

*American journalist and Marxist commentator, a recurring guest on John Kiriakou's radio programme The Backstory, whom Kiriakou introduces as one of the best-informed people out there. Kiriakou endorses his analysis of automation and capitalism while noting he does not agree with all of it, and proposed putting him on air opposite a libertarian economist.*

- **Field:** Journalism and political analysis; Marxist commentary
- **Relationship:** Recurring guest on [The Backstory](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/the-backstory)
- **Kiriakou's introduction:** 'One of the best informed people out there'
- **Proposed pairing:** Opposite the libertarian economist Mark Frost

**Caleb Maupin** is an American journalist and political analyst, and one of the recurring guests on [John Kiriakou](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/john-kiriakou)'s radio programme [The Backstory](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/the-backstory).

Kiriakou's standing introduction is a straightforward endorsement: *"journalist and political analyst Caleb Maupin — Caleb is one of the best informed people out there."*[1]

## Agreement, with a boundary

After a long exposition from Maupin on capitalism, automation and the technological leap, Kiriakou endorsed the substance: *"I agree with Caleb's analysis. I think you're exactly right — and something that not a lot of people either understand or have put a great deal of thought into, but I think you've hit it on the head."*[2]

He also proposed booking Maupin against the libertarian economist Mark Frost — as a conversation rather than a debate, on the grounds that they are *"two very smart, very reasonable people that we like."*[3]

## On basic income

The same exchange produced Kiriakou's own comment on universal basic income, offered as political observation rather than economics. *"That argument didn't fly in the New York mayoral race when Yang brought it up. Just after he announced his candidacy the New York Times thought it was a great idea and said that he could actually win this thing — there was a fawning tribute to him about six months ago, and I think he ended up coming in fourth. People just weren't buying into it."*[4]

His own position was procedural: *"it should be debated. You don't have to like it, but we should be talking about it."*[5]

## See also

- [The Backstory](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/the-backstory)
- [The 2021 Cuba protests](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/cuba-protests-2021)
- [Sanctions Effectiveness](https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/sanctions-effectiveness)

## Sources

1. Sanctions & US Efforts in Eurasia (2021-03-13), at 00:12. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DKbHPuKfF2k&t=12s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2021-03-13-caleb-maupin-sanctions-us-efforts-in-eurasia/
2. Cuba Crisis, Marxism & Automation (2021-07-13), at 19:53. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kh0vejtIEhE&t=1193s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2021-07-13-caleb-maupin-cuba-crisis-marxism-automation/
3. Cuba Crisis, Marxism & Automation (2021-07-13), at 25:00. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kh0vejtIEhE&t=1500s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2021-07-13-caleb-maupin-cuba-crisis-marxism-automation/
4. Cuba Crisis, Marxism & Automation (2021-07-13), at 23:58. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kh0vejtIEhE&t=1438s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2021-07-13-caleb-maupin-cuba-crisis-marxism-automation/
5. Cuba Crisis, Marxism & Automation (2021-07-13), at 24:30. Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kh0vejtIEhE&t=1470s · Transcript: https://www.kiripedia.org/sources/2021-07-13-caleb-maupin-cuba-crisis-marxism-automation/

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From KiriPedia, the archive of John Kiriakou's words. Web version: https://www.kiripedia.org/wiki/caleb-maupin/ · About: https://www.kiripedia.org/about/ · Full index: https://www.kiripedia.org/llms.txt