Time Magazine columnist for 20 years, Joel Stein is known for his humorous, irreverent and often deadpan inquiries into American life and social politics. His latest book is In Defense of Elitism: Why I'm Better Than You and You're Better Than Someone Who Didn't Buy This Book, which despite the subtitle, is a serious minded, though also quite funny, journey ... Show More
Aug 19
Is The Racial Reckoning Over? John McWhorter on language, art, and defunding the grammar police
This is the full version of the Aug 4 episode, now available to all subscribers. Author, New York Times columnist, and superstar linguist John McWhorter returns to the pod to catch us up on what’s been on his mind now that the Woke Emergency is over . . . or is it over? We talk a ... Show More
1h 11m
Aug 18
Is Everything Terrible? Tablet editor Alana Newhouse on the problem with burning it all down.
This week I’m joined by Alana Newhouse, journalist, cultural critic, and founder/editor-in-chief of Tablet Magazine. Since launching Tablet in 2009, Alana has carved out a space for nuanced and surprising reporting on Jewish identity and the larger cultural questions shaping thos ... Show More
23m 26s
Aug 12
How Are Those Luxury Beliefs Working Out? Rob Henderson and the coinage that keeps on giving.
This week, I welcome back Rob Henderson, the social psychologist, author, and commentator who coined the concept of luxury beliefs: ideas that confer status on the upper class while inflicting real costs on lower-income communities. Rob was last here in early 2024 discussing his ... Show More
29m 47s
Oct 2022
Introducing Story of the Week
Every week host Joel Stein picks a long magazine article that fascinates him – and then actually reads the whole thing, all by himself. Then he calls his fellow, but greatly superior journalist friend who wrote it, and gets them to tell him all about it. He does the work and you ... Show More
2m 24s
Dec 2021
Timeless Wisdom for Leading a Life of Love, Friendship and Learning
“Today, we are supercompetent when it comes to efficiency, utility, speed, convenience, and getting ahead in the world; but we are at a loss concerning what it’s all for,” Leon Kass writes in his 2017 book “Leading a Worthy Life.” “This lack of cultural and moral confidence about ... Show More
1h 5m
May 2022
Joel McHale: Work the Jokes
It's a meandering world of comedy when Joel McHale joins Rob Lowe. On today's episode you'll find out about the evolution of Talk Soup, the obstacles Joel has faced with his Dyslexia, how The White House correspondents dinner rewired his nerves, and the joke that hurt Robert De N ... Show More
45m 41s
Apr 2021
Your Success Probably Didn’t Come From Merit Alone
Prepping for a conversation with Tressie McMillan Cottom is intimidating. McMillan Cottom is a sociologist at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, a 2020 MacArthur fellow, co-host of the podcast “Hear to Slay,” and the author of the essay collection “Thick,” which was a ... Show More
1h 22m
Sep 2020
Patrons Only: Jesse Interviews Philosopher Justin Tosi On Moral Grandstanding, The Social-Justice Culture Wars In Philosophy, And More
In today's patrons-only episode, Jesse interviews Justin Tosi, a philosopher at Texas Tech University and the author, with Brandon Warmke, of the new book Grandstanding: The Use and Abuse of Moral Talk. After discussing the book, Jesse and Justin move on to a broader conversation ... Show More
1h 9m