Josh Holmes remembers the warnings were as clear as day.
The political strategist had just started “Ruthless,” a raucous show covering the latest news, when his Beltway colleagues cried foul.
&#8220;&#8216;Are you out of your minds?'&#8221; Holmes recalls of the steady drumbeat during the show’s 2020 launch. The critiques made sense. Holmes and his co-hosts — Michael Duncan, John Ashbrook, and the pundit known as Comfortably Smug didn’t talk like political consultants.
They called themselves “the Fellas,” and, true to the name, they talked like regular guys cracking wise at the bar. Smart fellas, to be sure. But fellas nonetheless.
And funny. Always funny.
Their colleagues may have been right, but the public disagreed. The variety &#8220;progrum,&#8221; as they call it, caught fire despite their unorthodox style and humble roots.
Now, they’ve sealed a deal with Fox News, bringing the progrum to the next level.
“The conventional wisdom that has governed the industry of politics is bulls***,” Holmes tells The Daily Wire.
Longtime fans, also known as “minions,” may fear the corporate partnership, but Smug says the best is yet to come.
“For listeners, the only thing this means for them is you get more. More episodes. More content. More capabilities,” Smug said.
“Nothing’s changing,” Holmes adds.
The show’s comedy veers from ribald banter to signature games like “Dem or Journo” and “King of the Hill.” The latter pits former Republican pundits squaring off for the most unhinged social media hot takes. The competition is fierce, all the better for show prep.
“Too many people in politics want to prove how smart they are all the time,” Duncan says. “If you’re not laughing, you’re going to be crying. Politics can be frustrating.”
The satire practically writes itself, assuming you’re paying attention, Holmes says.
“Watch the House of Representatives for 10 minutes and not have enough for a full, 30-minute comedy sketch,” Holmes says.
The show’s rise coincides with the country’s shift to the Right, Ashbrook suggests. Comedy mainstays like late-night TV don’t grasp that transition, he adds, consistently avoiding liberal targets in their monologues. “Ruthless” fans crave the comedic parts of the show, a rarity with right-leaning talkers. That’s especially true when digesting some of the heavier news cycles.
The show’s shocking ascent became clear earlier this year. The show joined the White House briefing room as part of President Donald Trump’s efforts to expand the pool beyond legacy outlets. Ashbrook represented the progrum with a <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/video/6368074243112">question for spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt.</a>
There’s a practical side to their high jinks. Pre-election, GOP voters got to know Vance as not just a youthful candidate but a wisecracking dad who could hang with the boys.
Other Beltway guests get to let down their guard, too, swapping jokes with the foursome and showing a fresh side of their personas. You won’t see that on C-SPAN. 
“You can see these folks in an environment that isn’t staid Washington, D.C.,” Holmes says. The Pelosis, Harrises and Buttigieges often visit Jimmy Kimmel or Seth Meyers to show their softer side.
Republicans get “Ruthless.”
The accidental podcasters all have day jobs. Holmes, Ashbrook, and Duncan work at <a href="https://cavalryllc.com/">Cavalry</a>, a Washington, D.C.-based public affairs and communications firm. Smug is a political consultant and hedge fund guru. Together, they’ve joined the podcast revolution at a critical moment.
Both sides of the political aisle acknowledge how vital podcasts were in the 2024 presidential election. President Donald Trump dropped by “The Joe Rogan Experience” and “Flagrant” with Andrew Schulz, while future Vice President JD Vance visited “The Tim Dillon Show” and “This Past Weekend” with Theo Von.
Vice President Kamala Harris infamously balked at a Rogan sitdown, much to her campaign’s eventual dismay.
“Listeners see podcasts as a more realistic source of information,” Smug says, blaming traditional media outlets for that shift. People can’t trust media outlets that told them President Joe Biden was the “sharpest guy around,” he adds.
“People were getting flat-out lied to, adds Holmes.
The 2024 election cycle “opened people’s eyes to the way the electorate consumes information,” Duncan says. The Fellas were ahead of the curve.
“The Legacy Media is entirely captured by the Left, and it is a disease. They’re fundamentally incapable of getting over that disease,” Ashbrook says. Journalists &#8220;care more about what rich people in New York think about them than they do about how the rest of the country views them … will they course correct? I always thought they would, but it’s only gotten worse.”
“They’re living in a society that does not exist in America beyond their X feed,” Holmes adds.
The Left has been begging to find their own Rogan since November 5, forgetting that the ex-“Fear Factor” host leaned to the Left before Democrats forgot their core principles, like free speech.
“There are very funny Democrats in this country. ‘Saturday Night Live’ was the funniest thing on the planet, staffed and written by Democrats,” Ashbrook says. But now, &#8220;they’re not allowed to be funny. They’re handcuffed by the Left.”
Christian Toto is an award-winning journalist, movie critic and editor of <a href="https://www.hollywoodintoto.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">HollywoodInToto.com</a>. He previously served as associate editor with Breitbart News’ Big Hollywood. Follow him at <a href="https://www.hollywoodintoto.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">HollywoodInToto.com</a>.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire

Hosts Of “Ruthless” Podcast Visit “Jesse Watters Primetime”

‘Ruthless’ Hosts Reflect On Five Years Of Success, Look To The Future

Fox News

Podcast

Politics

Isabel Brown, Gen Z firebrand and popular content creator, is bringing her unique blend of humor and cultural commentary to The Daily Wire.
Starting this fall, <a href="https://www.theconservateur.com/features/isabel-brown-launches-new-show-with-the-daily-wire">Brown will host an original series</a> on DailyWire+. Broadcasting from Washington, D.C., Brown joins a growing Daily Wire team in our nation’s capital. A new mom and Colorado native, Brown rose to fame posting her unfiltered thoughts on Instagram, where she now has over a million followers.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
I am SO excited to finally announce that my podcast, The Isabel Brown Show, has a new home with <a href="https://twitter.com/realDailyWire?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@realDailyWire</a>!!
I have never been more passionate about fighting as hard as we can on offense to save the West. It’s time for us to not just *react* to the insanity of the upside… <a href="https://t.co/mUKxMHe8FJ">pic.twitter.com/mUKxMHe8FJ</a>
— Isabel Brown (@theisabelb) <a href="https://twitter.com/theisabelb/status/1942222116817862859?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 7, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
On her show, Brown will tackle the same subjects she addresses on her social media pages — everything from pop culture to the pro-life movement — and bring viewers with her as she takes D.C. by storm with her family.
“Earlier this year, I transitioned into the most important role of my entire life: mom,” Brown said. “Seeing the world through my daughter&#8217;s eyes and a fresh perspective has only given me more passion for our generation to fight on offense as hard as we can for what is good and true and beautiful.”
<div class="image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-large wp-image-943341" src="https://www.dailywire.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Isabel_Final-10-384x576.jpg" alt="" width="384" height="576" srcset="https://www.dailywire.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Isabel_Final-10-384x576.jpg 384w, https://www.dailywire.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Isabel_Final-10-200x300.jpg 200w, https://www.dailywire.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Isabel_Final-10-768x1151.jpg 768w, https://www.dailywire.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Isabel_Final-10-1025x1536.jpg 1025w" sizes="(max-width: 384px) 100vw, 384px" /></div>
“Isabel Brown is sure to win over the hearts and minds of the Daily Wire audience with her common-sense takes, elegant humor, and intellectual prowess,” says Mike Richards, Chief Content Officer and President of Daily Wire Entertainment. “She brings brainpower, pop culture fluency, and the kind of fearless fun that causes liberal tears to flow like NPR tote bags at a Bernie rally.”
Daily Wire viewers will have plenty of time to get to know Isabel as they join her devoted community of “truth seekers” this fall.
But for now, here’s everything you need to know about The Daily Wire’s newest host.
<h3>She’s Fearless</h3>
Whether it’s <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/DEpsnWPO5Br/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">free speech </a>in the digital era, women’s <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/DDaLn3yyqta/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">biological identity</a>, or humanity’s most basic <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/DCR_Iv8yDZu/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">right to life</a>, Isabel proudly stands up for her views — even when they’re unpopular. She was among the first to stand up for <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/DDXhxcxS6YO/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">TikTok’s</a> importance as a free speech platform, <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/DFOdldUug_4/?img_index=1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">defends life </a>from the moment of conception, and even appeared <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/C9Z5DDKuUEn/?img_index=1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">on the cover</a> of Newsweek to champion conservative principles for Gen Z.
<div class="image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-large wp-image-943343" src="https://www.dailywire.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Isabel_Final-4-384x576.jpg" alt="" width="384" height="576" srcset="https://www.dailywire.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Isabel_Final-4-384x576.jpg 384w, https://www.dailywire.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Isabel_Final-4-200x300.jpg 200w, https://www.dailywire.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Isabel_Final-4-768x1151.jpg 768w, https://www.dailywire.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Isabel_Final-4-1025x1536.jpg 1025w" sizes="(max-width: 384px) 100vw, 384px" /></div>
<h3>She’s All About Faith and Family</h3>
Isabel grew up in a chaotic, loud, and very pink home, the oldest of <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/C_qJa2fuBKC/?img_index=1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">three girls</a> who loved to steal each other’s clothes and fight over who got to play with which American Girl doll. As a wife and new mom, Isabel is cherishing every second of her home life with her <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/C-VeLjEuI6J/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">husband</a>, Brock, their beautiful baby girl, <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/DKLDIgYNh8M/?img_index=1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Isla</a>, and, of course, her trusty sidekick, Liberty the Corgi. Guiding Brock as he converted to Catholicism inspired Isabel to take an even deeper interest in her faith, and she’s currently pursuing her master’s degree in theology at the University of Notre Dame. Go Irish!
<iframe loading="lazy" title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/L1FcOQSDErM?si=rq8Av7z7cVa6J3IB" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
<h3>She’s Always On The Move</h3>
Despite all the time she spends online, Isabel’s favorite thing to do is spend time in the great outdoors. Isabel scaled her first 14,000+ foot peak in her home <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CTcjRRaAYQy/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">mountains of Colorado </a>at 10 years old. She’s on a <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CfejxLUJdXl/?img_index=1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">quest</a> to visit all 63<a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CxRmJ3EtHeY/?img_index=1" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> National Parks</a> and has traveled to 24 countries, scaling peaks in <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/C0o__FFSnGA/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">New Zealand</a>, road-tripping the <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/C-7tJxgu5-6/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Scottish Highlands</a>, and retracing the steps of Jesus in the <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CiatG7FvjL8/?img_index=1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Holy Land</a>.
She’s also a trained ram handler, thanks to her time caring for Colorado State University’s live mascot, CAM the Ram. Every weekend, she’d run with CAM on the football field in her boots to celebrate every touchdown, and spent many hours shearing sheep.
<div class="image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-large wp-image-943345" src="https://www.dailywire.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Isabel-5049-384x576.jpg" alt="" width="384" height="576" srcset="https://www.dailywire.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Isabel-5049-384x576.jpg 384w, https://www.dailywire.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Isabel-5049-200x300.jpg 200w, https://www.dailywire.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Isabel-5049-768x1151.jpg 768w, https://www.dailywire.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Isabel-5049-1024x1536.jpg 1024w" sizes="(max-width: 384px) 100vw, 384px" /></div>
<h3>She’s…Kind Of A Nerd</h3>
A self-described “certified theater kid,” Isabel has starred in “Hairspray” and “Les Misérables” and has seen nearly every Broadway production on stage. While she’s less likely to get dressed up for the theatre with a new baby at home, she loves singing &#8220;Wicked” and “The Sound of Music” at home with Isla.
She also loves sci-fi and fantasy, both books and movies — especially “Harry Potter,” “The Lord of the Rings,” and <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/C710k6SOXcK/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Star Wars</a>. She maintains to this day that “The Empire Strikes Back” is the greatest standalone film ever made, and actually cried driving through Glencoe, Scotland while listening to the “Harry Potter” film score. Don’t judge.

Isabel-4439

Meet Isabel Brown, The Daily Wire’s Newest Host

Daily Wire

Gen Z

Isabel Brown

WASHINGTON—Isabel Brown, a popular Gen Z cultural commentator and author, is joining The Daily Wire with a brand-new original series on DailyWire+, premiering this fall.
This move comes as The Daily Wire cements its position as a leading force in conservative new media, expanding its presence in Washington, D.C.
Brown <a href="https://www.theconservateur.com/features/isabel-brown-launches-new-show-with-the-daily-wire">announced</a> the news to her audience on social media and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L1FcOQSDErM">YouTube</a> on Monday, saying that her daily show, based in Washington, D.C., will premiere on Daily Wire+ in the coming months.
&#8220;I have never been more passionate about fighting as hard as we can on offense to save the West,&#8221; Brown said. &#8220;It’s time for us to not just react to the insanity of the upside down we’ve been living in, but to build culture and a new American Dream together.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
I am SO excited to finally announce that my podcast, The Isabel Brown Show, has a new home with <a href="https://twitter.com/realDailyWire?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@realDailyWire</a>!!
I have never been more passionate about fighting as hard as we can on offense to save the West. It’s time for us to not just *react* to the insanity of the upside… <a href="https://t.co/mUKxMHe8FJ">pic.twitter.com/mUKxMHe8FJ</a>
— Isabel Brown (@theisabelb) <a href="https://twitter.com/theisabelb/status/1942222116817862859?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 7, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
“I have spent my career working with the world&#8217;s top media personalities, so I know talent when I see it,&#8221; Mike Richards, Chief Content Officer and President of Daily Wire Entertainment, said. &#8220;Isabel Brown is sure to win over the hearts and minds of the Daily Wire audience with her common-sense takes, elegant humor, and intellectual prowess.&#8221;
&#8220;She brings brainpower, pop culture fluency, and the kind of fearless fun that causes liberal tears to flow like NPR tote bags at a Bernie rally,&#8221; Richards added. &#8220;That’s the exact kind of chaos — we mean energy —we’re building at Daily Wire. She’s precisely the kind of voice we want turning up the volume at The Daily Wire.”
<iframe loading="lazy" title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/L1FcOQSDErM?si=kXrU7dL4s88CHwsq" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe> 
Born and raised in the mountains of Colorado, Brown joined the fight for free speech and conservative values as a pre-med student at Colorado State University. There, she began livestreaming and building a vibrant digital community she has dubbed the “truth seekers.” Today, she boasts over a million followers on Instagram and a fiercely loyal audience that’s followed her from classroom debates to cultural showdowns.
Brown is best known for her fearless pro-life advocacy, viral reaction videos, and sharp takes on pop culture, politics, and policy. The D.C.-based Isabel Brown Show, coming to DailyWire+ this fall, will be a daily destination for anyone craving substance with style, blending Americana optimism with unapologetic truth.
This announcement rides in on a wave of momentum for The Daily Wire: fresh from dominating the <a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/politics-news/how-ben-shapiro-conquered-maga-verse-trump-1236104674/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">post-election</a> podcast <a href="https://www.axios.com/2024/12/10/the-daily-wire-eyes-growth-investment-in-2025" target="_blank" rel="noopener">charts</a>, playing a <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2024/12/04/us/transgender-care-ban-tennessee.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">key role</a> in the Supreme Court’s affirmation of Tennessee’s child mutilation ban, producing <a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/how-am-i-racist-matt-walsh-1236008035/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">box office</a> hits like &#8220;Am I Racist?&#8221;,  <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/leftist-censorship-cartel-garm-disbands-following-musk-lawsuit-ben-shapiro-testimony" target="_blank" rel="noopener">leading</a> the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/exclusive-trump-ftc-secures-landmark-agreement-to-end-political-collusion-in-advertising-industry" target="_blank" rel="noopener">industry-disrupting</a> fall of global censorship cartels, and the platform’s <a href="https://www.semafor.com/article/04/27/2025/daily-wire-to-open-dc-branch" target="_blank" rel="noopener">strategic expansion</a> into D.C., The Daily Wire isn’t just keeping pace — it’s setting the standard for conservative new media in America.
Before her time in media, Brown obtained degrees in Biomedical Sciences from both Colorado State University and Georgetown University. She&#8217;s currently pursuing a second master&#8217;s degree in Theology from the University of Notre Dame. In 2021, she published her first book,<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Frontlines-Finding-American-College-Campus/dp/1544519303" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> Frontlines: Finding My Voice on an American College Campus</a>, sharing her encounter with radical leftism from the heart of America’s university experience. Her latest book, <a href="https://www.amazon.com/End-Alphabet-How-Save-America/dp/1546006257" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The End of the Alphabet: How Gen Z Can Save America,</a> makes a compelling case for why Gen Z is the last hope to save Western civilization from the upside down Left, and why we shouldn’t write them off just yet.

Isabel_Final-1

Gen-Z Podcaster Isabel Brown Joins The Daily Wire

Pro-Life Movement

The Daily Wire

Former first lady Michelle Obama said that a woman’s unique ability to grow a human life inside her body is “the least of” what the reproductive system is for.
Obama, a prominent Democrat and supporter of abortion, discussed her thoughts during an <a href="https://open.spotify.com/episode/0SvVgcSCgmhJysFFOPU5hR">episode</a> of her “IMO with Michelle Obama &amp; Craig Robinson” podcast on Wednesday.
The “Becoming” author said that the &#8220;frustrating thing&#8221; is that the issue &#8220;has been reduced to a question of choice, as if that&#8217;s all of what women&#8217;s health is.&#8221;
&#8220;I attempted to make the argument on the campaign trail this past election that there&#8217;s just so much more at stake because so many men have no idea what women go through,&#8221; Obama said. &#8220;We haven&#8217;t been researched, we haven&#8217;t been considered, and it still affects the way a lot of men lawmakers, a lot of male politicians, a lot of male religious leaders think about the issue of choice, as if it&#8217;s just about the fetus, the baby.&#8221;
<a href="https://get.dailywire.com/subscribe/plus/?utm_medium=website&amp;utm_source=editorial&amp;utm_campaign=memorial&amp;utm_content=editorialmemorialday&amp;_gl=1*1qdq03s*_gcl_au*MTYyNDg0MTE0OS4xNzQxODk4NTMz*_ga*MTEzOTk1NjkxNi4xNzI2MzI1MDQz*_ga_CZKR9ZYKJP*czE3NDgzNzg2NDgkbzEwMDMkZzEkdDE3NDgzODEwMTckajU4JGwwJGgw" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Get 40% Off New DailyWire+ Annual Memberships</a>
&#8220;Women&#8217;s reproductive health is about our life,” Obama added. “It&#8217;s about this whole complicated reproductive system that the least of what it does is produce life.”
She continued, “It&#8217;s a very important thing that it does, but you only produce life if the machine that&#8217;s producing it—if you want to whittle us down to a machine—if the machine is functioning in a healthy, streamlined kind of way. But there is no discussion or apparent connection between the two.&#8221;
The former first lady’s friend, OB/GYN Dr. Sharon Malone, was a guest on the episode. She agreed with Obama’s thoughts, saying, &#8220;one of the things that is disturbing&#8221; is that the &#8220;government has gotten involved in decisions that are personal and healthcare decisions.”
“It&#8217;s not just about whether someone chooses to have a pregnancy or not, but this is a situation where a woman should have control over her body—when and if to have a baby, and to decide how that pregnancy should continue,&#8221; she said.
At another point in the episode, Dr. Malone also mentioned a link between “older sperm” and “more autism.”
“They&#8217;ll never let that secret out. That may be the key behind all the defunding everything,&#8221; Michelle Obama replied. &#8220;Then old men can keep marrying 20-year-olds. It&#8217;s like, &#8216;I&#8217;ll give you the baby you want.'&#8221;

Michelle Obama

Michelle Obama Says Creating Life Is ‘The Least’ Of What A Woman’s Reproductive System Does

Michelle Obama Says Creating Life Is 'The Least' Of What A Woman's Reproductive System Does

Abortion

Social Issues

U.S.

Women

Women's Rights

Buckley vs. Vidal. Frost Vs. Nixon.
Smith vs. Murray?
Everyone is still talking about the extended debate between Libertarian comic Dave Smith and author Douglas Murray on “The Joe Rogan Experience.”
The Spotify superstar set the chat in motion, knowing the two had extremely different views that would make for a compelling exchange. It’s a sad sign of the times when a debate between two well-meaning adults is increasingly rare in pop culture.
The chat did more than let both pundits share their views. It reminded Rogan of an old saw that Uncle Ben taught a budding web-slinger long ago.
With great power comes great responsibility.
<div id="attachment_909815" style="width: 1034px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ah6kirkSwTg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-909815" class="size-large wp-image-909815" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/MixCollage-18-Apr-2025-04-23-PM-2662-1024x576.jpg" alt="Screenshot: Joe Rogan Experience #2303. Dave Smith and Douglas Murray. PowerfulJRE. YouTube.com" width="1024" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/MixCollage-18-Apr-2025-04-23-PM-2662-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/MixCollage-18-Apr-2025-04-23-PM-2662-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/MixCollage-18-Apr-2025-04-23-PM-2662-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/MixCollage-18-Apr-2025-04-23-PM-2662-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/MixCollage-18-Apr-2025-04-23-PM-2662-2048x1152.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></a>Screenshot: Joe Rogan Experience #2303. Dave Smith and Douglas Murray. PowerfulJRE. YouTube.com</div>
The underlying message in the chat? Rogan’s <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ah6kirkSwTg" target="_blank" rel="noopener">hugely popular show</a> has been letting some cranks share his podcast microphone. That might not have mattered a few years ago, but now “The Joe Rogan Experience” has the power to shape the political landscape.
Many pundits suggest Donald Trump’s appearance on the show, along with Kamala Harris’ unwillingness to do the same, played a role in the real estate mogul’s victory.
Letting “historians” in Rogan’s studio who resist that label, spread erroneous facts, and refuse to take on their critics, may not be the best way to flex his podcast muscle.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/joe-rogan" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Rogan</a> has played podcast footsie with conspiracy monger Alex Jones for some time. Now, he’s expanding that practice to the format’s detriment. Think Ian Carroll and Darryl Cooper as two recent examples.
The latter called Winston Churchill, <a href="https://winstonchurchill.hillsdale.edu/cooper-koureas/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">“The chief villain of World War II.”</a>
“I feel you’ve opened the door to quite a lot of people who now got a big platform, who have been throwing out counter-historical stuff of a very dangerous kind,” Murray said early in the conversation. “These guys are not historians. They’re not knowledgeable about anything.”
“I just think, ‘I’d like to talk to that person.&#8217;” Rogan said of his guest choice.
The far-Left Hollywood Reporter, sensing a weakness in Rogan’s podcasting armor, called the podcaster’s recent tilt, “Dangerous.” That’s overstating it, but <a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/politics-news/joe-rogan-douglas-murray-podcast-1236192416/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">it’s neither healthy nor helpful.</a>
A week later, Darryl Cooper arrived to perform his act, which can be described as offering outrageous provocations he then half walks back so he can repeat them all again tomorrow. In September, Cooper had appeared on Tucker Carlson’s podcast to say that Churchill was the real villain in World War II and that Nazis didn’t want to kill Jews in concentration camps; Jews only “ended up dead” because Germany didn’t have the resources to take care of them.
Murray and Smith didn’t name call or insult one another during the often-tense exchange. Rogan proved an avuncular host, trying to keep the parties on an even keel. The two sparred over foreign policy, the Ukraine war, and, most passionately, the Israel-Hamas conflict.
Murray’s silky-smooth delivery and impeccable grasp of the facts mattered. Smith brought an Everyman’s perspective to the party, often appearing overmatched in the dustup.
<div id="attachment_909817" style="width: 1034px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-909817" class="size-large wp-image-909817" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/MixCollage-18-Apr-2025-04-13-PM-5832-1024x576.jpg" alt="Screenshot: Joe Rogan Experience #2303. Dave Smith and Douglas Murray. PowerfulJRE. YouTube.com" width="1024" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/MixCollage-18-Apr-2025-04-13-PM-5832-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/MixCollage-18-Apr-2025-04-13-PM-5832-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/MixCollage-18-Apr-2025-04-13-PM-5832-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/MixCollage-18-Apr-2025-04-13-PM-5832-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/MixCollage-18-Apr-2025-04-13-PM-5832-2048x1152.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />Screenshot: Joe Rogan Experience #2303. Dave Smith and Douglas Murray. PowerfulJRE. YouTube.com</div>
Who “won” depends partly on who you were rooting for prior to the exchange. Both landed some blows, from Murray detailing the horrors of October 7 to Smith sharing the devastation in Gaza from the extended conflict.
It’s increasingly rare to watch these kinds of debates play out on the pop culture landscape. Hollywood’s near total domination by the Left means there’s little appetite for these healthy exchanges. 
Consider today’s late-night hosts. They all sing from the same progressive hymnal and invite progressive guests on to nod along with the audience. The host of ABC’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” just raged against President Donald Trump in a Rolling Stone interview. Here’s part of his <a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/tv-movies/tv-movie-features/jimmy-kimmel-trump-late-night-future-interview-1235315906/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">jeremiad against all things GOP</a>.
&#8220;There’s no decency. It’s just a bunch of animals [emphasis added], and it’s disgusting… I mean, on the Fourth of July, I still put up a flag, and I’m never going to stop doing that, because I’m never going to let them have that symbol.&#8221;
Does that sound like someone willing to host a free and fair debate on his platform? Why can’t Kimmel invite someone like Dr. Jordan Peterson or Greg Gutfeld on his show for a civil conversation? It would make for compelling TV and might boost the show’s ratings.
Plus, audiences might take away something valuable from it beyond demonizing those with whom they disagree. It’s increasingly clear folks on the Left aren’t interested in that kind of exchange.
There is an exception, though. Classical liberal Bill Maher, both on his HBO talk show and “Club Random” podcast, routinely invites Right-leaning guests to talk out their differences. Think Dave Rubin, Kid Rock, and actor Zachary Levi, to name just three.
<div id="attachment_909819" style="width: 1034px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-909819" class="size-large wp-image-909819" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/MixCollage-18-Apr-2025-04-36-PM-7260-1024x576.jpg" alt="Screenshot: YouTube/Club Random Podcast. " width="1024" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/MixCollage-18-Apr-2025-04-36-PM-7260-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/MixCollage-18-Apr-2025-04-36-PM-7260-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/MixCollage-18-Apr-2025-04-36-PM-7260-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/MixCollage-18-Apr-2025-04-36-PM-7260-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/MixCollage-18-Apr-2025-04-36-PM-7260-2048x1152.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />Screenshot: YouTube/Club Random Podcast.</div>
Rogan probably didn’t like to hear someone like Murray, well-regarded in many circles, dressing him down on his own show. He needed to hear it all the same. It’s reminiscent of another pivotal moment from the show’s past.
Rogan invited then-Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey on his show for what appeared to be a tepid chat that let Dorsey slink away from his platform’s censorious ways. Rogan got an earful from his fans who felt he had let the CEO off too easily. So he invited Dorsey back on the show, but brought backup.
He added journalist gadfly <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DZCBRHOg3PQ" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tim Pool to the conversation</a>. Pool brought some unflattering receipts, and the exchange proved far more illuminating than the first interview.
Perhaps Rogan needed a reminder of why his show matters and the consequences of having one of the biggest podcasts in the country.
Uncle Ben would be proud if he took that lesson seriously.
* * *
Christian Toto is an award-winning journalist, movie critic and editor of <a href="https://www.hollywoodintoto.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">HollywoodInToto.com</a>. He previously served as associate editor with Breitbart News’ Big Hollywood. Follow him at <a href="https://www.hollywoodintoto.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">HollywoodInToto.com</a>.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

MixCollage-18-Apr-2025-04-07-PM-2073

Joe Rogan’s Smith-Murray Debate Shows The Power And Risk Of Platforming

comedian

Conservatives

Debate

Douglas Murray

Entertainment

Joe Rogan

Libertarian Party

Pro-Israel

Pro-Palestinian

Spotify

Ukraine-Russia War

Winston Churchill

World War II

YouTube

The first episode of Meghan Markle’s new podcast just dropped, and it’s already getting obliterated by critics.
“Confessions of a Female Founder” is meant to highlight successful businesswomen and “inspire anyone who’s interested in turning their own entrepreneurial dreams into a reality.” But multiple reviews say the first episode, which focuses on Bumble dating app founder Whitney Wolfe Herd, is plagued by multiple issues.
Herd is a longtime friend of the Duchess of Sussex. Several critics note that the conversation is surface-level and too focused on Markle. The Times of London reviewer <a href="https://www.thetimes.com/culture/tv-radio/article/meghan-podcast-review-confessions-female-founder-075z0m0sp">said</a> the episode contained nothing but “vapid lessons in self-love.”
“Predictably, she has nothing to say about real business problems such as logistics, management techniques or supply chain issues. Equally predictably, there is lots of guff about how to love yourself and spread positive energy through the world,” the reviewer added.  
“I suspect that this is not the sort of thing most small business people spend much time fretting over. But then Meghan’s business isn’t really a business. It’s a bit like the corporate equivalent of Marie Antoinette’s dairy farm — a pleasant game of make-believe for an idle rich woman.”
The Times reviewer also mocked Wolfe Herd for claiming to be on a “journey of self-love and self-discovery.”
“I’m going to foundationally re-architect the way people date and the way people love,” Wolfe Herd said during the episode.
“By this point I was seized by an urge to beat my head against the wall and foundationally re-architect my skull,” the reviewer wrote of that moment.
The Telegraph reviewer had similar <a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/tv/2025/04/08/confessions-of-a-female-founder-podcast-meghan-review/">feedback</a>, saying the “Confessions” included an “inane stream of mindless aphorisms” and “no confessions or secrets.”
“The frustrating thing is that Wolfe Herd, who is just 35, presumably does have wisdom to impart, having been part of the team that created Tinder before she created Bumble,” the reviewer noted. “Imagine the drive, the talent, the decisions and sheer bloody ruthlessness it must take to achieve what she has. We get none of it.”
The reviewer from <a href="https://www.express.co.uk/news/royal/2038917/meghan-markle-podcast-review">Express</a> said Markle steamrolled the whole thing. “Meghan takes control of the narrative early on in the episode. She bluntly directs the podcast by informing her friend of how she wants the conversation to be ‘relaxed and easy’ — which is normally a chat you would have with a guest behind-the-scenes instead of on-air for broadcast,” the reviewer noted. 
Despite the criticism, “Confessions” debuted in the top 10 chart in all categories on Apple Podcasts on its first day of release Tuesday. It sits at <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/charts">number four</a> on the Apple Podcast Top Charts list.
Markle’s previous Spotify podcast, “Archetypes,” was canceled after one season. The former working royal also got mixed reviews for her new lifestyle series on Netflix, “With Love, Meghan,” and her product line called As Ever.

Meghan Markle

Meghan Markle’s New Podcast Trashed By Critics: ‘Vapid Lessons In Self-Love’

Meghan Markle's New Podcast Trashed By Critics: 'Vapid Lessons In Self-Love'

Celebrities

Royal Family

A trailer for Meghan Markle’s new podcast dropped on Tuesday, and with it comes more details about the Duchess of Sussex’s latest business venture.
The wife of Prince Harry, who quit her job as a full-time working royal in 2020, shared some information about her new podcast, &#8220;Confessions of a Female Founder,&#8221; which is being produced by Lemonada Media. 
&#8220;I&#8217;m Meghan, and this is ‘Confessions of a Female Founder,’ a show where I chat with female entrepreneurs and friends about the sleepless nights, the lessons learned, and the laser focus that got them to where they are today,&#8221; Markle says in the <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/confessions-of-a-female-founder-with-meghan/id1803670198">trailer</a>. 
&#8220;We&#8217;re diving into the highs – and the lows – and the kind of advice that turns small ideas into billion-dollar businesses,&#8221; she continued. &#8220;And of course, we&#8217;re going to get some girl talk!&#8221; 
One guest chimed in, &#8220;It just started climbing and climbing, and there was 5,000, 10,000 people on our website.&#8221;
&#8220;I&#8217;m broke, and no one is calling me,&#8221; another person said. Another unidentified participant said, &#8220;I knew in that moment that I&#8217;d rather stand for something than sell a whole ton of product and stand for nothing.&#8221;
&#8220;Are you saying you&#8217;re not single now? Have I missed something in the past couple weeks? What&#8217;s happening?&#8221; Meghan asked one of the guests as the two giggled.
&#8220;And through it all, I&#8217;m building a business of my own, and getting all sorts of practical advice along the way that I&#8217;m very excited to share with you. So join me for ‘Confessions of a Female Founder’ from Lemonada Media, which by the way, is also female-founded. Launching April 8, wherever you get your podcasts,&#8221; Markle added. &#8220;Let&#8217;s do this, ladies.&#8221;
&#8220;This is not ‘Shark Tank,’ think of this as &#8216;dolphin tank.&#8217; These are very friendly waters, it&#8217;s all going to be good,&#8221; she concluded. 
The Duchess of Sussex announced the podcast was coming earlier this month. 
&#8220;I’m so excited to share with you something else I’ve been working on: ‘Confessions of a Female Founder,’ my new podcast with @lemonadamedia!&#8221; Markle <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/meghan-markle-announces-another-podcast-after-losing-spotify-show">shared</a> on Instagram.
&#8220;I’ve been having candid conversations with amazing women who have turned dreams into realities, and scaled small ideas into massively successful businesses,&#8221; she went on. &#8220;They’re opening up, sharing their tips, tricks (and tumbles), and letting me pick their brains as I build out my own business, As ever. It has been absolutely eye-opening, inspiring… and fun! (Because what’s the point if we can’t have some fun on this wild adventure?)&#8221;
Her announcement inspired a lot of mockery online, especially considering how her last podcast, “Archetypes,” failed to be renewed for a second season. Most of Markle’s business ventures have been underwhelming, including a recently launched cooking and lifestyle show on Netflix that’s been absolutely skewered and parodied online for weeks. 
Many users also pointed out that her new podcast sounds very similar to the existing podcast “Confessions of a CEO.” 
&#8220;Tell me you don’t have a single original thought without telling me you don’t have a single original thought,&#8221; one person <a href="https://x.com/BiroNower/status/1900216832969052383">wrote</a> on X alongside a screenshot depicting that podcast.

Meghan Markle Promises ‘Billion Dollar’ Business Advice On New Podcast After Spotify Show Bombed

Meghan Markle Promises 'Girl Talk' And 'Billion Dollar' Business Advice On New Podcast

There are a lot of things I&#8217;m willing to do for my podcast — a lot of sacrifices I&#8217;ve made over the years, both big and small. And usually I don&#8217;t like to draw attention to these sacrifices because no one tunes in to listen to my personal problems. But today I have to make an exception to my normal practice. And once you see the footage I&#8217;m about to share with you, you&#8217;ll see why.
I just endured what could be the single greatest trial of my podcasting career, if not my entire life on this planet. Without the assistance of any mind-altering substances or the YouTube fast-forward button or anything like that, I just listened to multiple minutes of Michelle Obama&#8217;s new podcast called &#8220;IMO.&#8221; Each episode is a full hour, and it features Michelle Obama, her brother Craig, and sometimes, if you&#8217;re lucky, a special guest.
The special guest, however, isn&#8217;t an important part of the formula. Whether the guest is there or not, you can expect to listen to approximately one hour of Michelle and her brother talking about themselves. It&#8217;s actually impressive, the degree to which the entire show is about inane, completely uninteresting details of these two people&#8217;s lives.
Here&#8217;s just a sampling of the first episode. And frankly, it&#8217;s an impressive achievement if you can even manage to get through this short montage of the most banal and uninteresting footage ever recorded. Here it is:
<iframe loading="lazy" title="007 FIRST EPISODE MONTAGE" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8bcFAL93VHE?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
&nbsp;
When she says &#8220;blah blah blah&#8221; at the end of that clip — that was the one moment, in this entire hour-long episode, that really resonated with me on a deep level. That was when I thought she recognized that actually, people didn&#8217;t want to hear about her inferiority complex at Princeton, or her mom giving her an alarm clock as a kid, or the precise educational credentials of her husband. Maybe this would mark a pivot point in the podcast, where she starts talking about something remotely interesting. But it never happened. It never even came close to happening.
By far the best part of the first episode was the comments section, which included lines like: &#8220;This should be called “Drop the Mike” with Michelle Obama&#8221;; &#8220;Remember when this guy drowned his chef in a lovers quarrel?&#8221;; and &#8220;Joan Rivers was Right.&#8221; And then Mark Dice chimes in with, &#8220;Which one is Michelle?” — which is, credit where it’s due, one of the funnier YouTube comments I’ve read in quit some time. Then there&#8217;s a bunch of people wondering why she&#8217;s unwilling to be seen in public with her husband anymore. And then there&#8217;s this observation: &#8220;Someone here has got some serious balls, by that I mean whoever hasn&#8217;t disabled the comments yet.&#8221;
And that last person makes a particularly good point. You will not find a single positive comment anywhere on the page. As of Wednesday afternoon, a full 24 hours after this episode launched, it managed to rack up just 65,000 views. And more than half of that figure is from trolls. In the first 15 hours, it had under 20,000 views. Now everyone&#8217;s flooding in to mock it — but in the first two days it did not come close to 100 thousand views, which is the bare minimum you&#8217;d expect a podcast like this to achieve. Overnight it seems to have made it up to 160 thousand views, which means they’re almost certainly paying for views now. But all in all, this show has not resonated, to put it mildly.
<h3><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/ep-1555-michelle-obama-and-dylan-mulvaney-both-flop-in-the-same-week-member-exclusive" target="_blank" rel="noopener">WATCH: The Matt Walsh Show</a></h3>
It&#8217;s actually incredible, if you think about it. Someone as famous as Michelle Obama launches a podcast that&#8217;s been so widely promoted and publicized, and yet no one&#8217;s watching it. The media tells us that Michelle is highly popular and would be a shoo-in if she ran for president. But the numbers suggest that the public isn&#8217;t all that interested in her.
Just to be sure I wasn&#8217;t missing anything, I subjected myself to the second episode of the podcast, which was also released on Wednesday. This one features an actress as a guest, but it doesn&#8217;t remotely change what they talk about, which is themselves. Watch:
<iframe loading="lazy" title="008 SECOND EPISODE MONTAGE" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/zSzl5i6oYbs?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
&nbsp;
The lack of self-awareness is genuinely breathtaking, and at least a little hilarious. That last clip came at the very end of the episode, by the way. She spends the whole time talking about herself. And then she nosedives into astrology, and she claims she&#8217;s really interested in trying to understand other people. Having discussed herself for two hours across two episodes, Michelle Obama wants you to know that she&#8217;s really interested in understanding other people. That&#8217;s what this is all about. And once again, the comments are full of people asking what Big Mike did to the chef. This episode has about 75 thousand views in two days. Just for comparison sake, Joe Rogan released an episode on the same day. It has a million views.
Unfortunately for anyone hoping the misery would end here, there was one more video — a &#8220;digital exclusive&#8221; — that they uploaded along with these episodes. Picture the most cliched, trite content imaginable. And somehow this will probably exceed your expectations. Even if you managed to get through the other two clips, there&#8217;s a very good chance this will take you out. Watch:
<iframe loading="lazy" title="009 DIGITAL SHORT HOTDOG" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/qJ8pAk4ROqk?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Whatever focus group they paid to come up with segments like this, they need to get a refund immediately. It&#8217;s like if you asked AI to generate a relatable podcast. It would come up with exactly this segment, and have everyone say exactly what these people are saying, and then it would give the podcast the name &#8220;IMO.&#8221; This is what Michelle Obama — who again, some people still pretend is major star and a potential presidential contender — is capable of producing. By the way, that video about hotdogs has 25 thousand views.
This is not just a problem that Michelle is facing. This is a broader crisis on the Left. The trans activist Dylan Mulvaney, for example, has just launched yet another effort to get himself some publicity, after falling off the face of the Earth. Specifically he released a new book that promises a &#8220;modern lens to womanhood,&#8221; even though it&#8217;s written by a man who decided he was a woman a couple of years ago. And predictably, his book launch has been a complete disaster, like everything else he&#8217;s ever been associated with. The word &#8220;flop&#8221; does not begin to describe this particular publication. It sits at number 1,081 on Amazon at the moment, just a few days after its release. A day after it’s release it had not cracked the top 500. This probably translates to maybe a few hundred books sold, at most. To go along with a rating of 2.9 stars on Amazon. So it&#8217;s an unmitigated failure.
Initially, I wasn&#8217;t even aware that Mulvaney&#8217;s book had come out. But then I saw that, like Michelle Obama&#8217;s podcast, pretty much every major media publication in the country has been covering it. CBS News, for example, had a friendly sit-down with Mulvaney. They asked him a bunch of softball questions which he somehow couldn&#8217;t answer. Getting a sit-down interview on CBS to talk about your book is the kind of promotion most authors can only dream about. Conservative authors especially. But this is the sort of assistance Mulvaney, as the great trans mascot, gets. And it has not moved the needle for him even one inch.
But maybe Mulvaney&#8217;s most embarrassing media appearance came on &#8220;The View,&#8221; when he didn&#8217;t seem capable of articulating a coherent thought. Watch:
<iframe loading="lazy" title="010 MULVANEY RANS SPORTS" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/FxwVHZBl9vA?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
&nbsp;
So &#8220;Whoopi Goldberg&#8221; begins by distancing herself from Gavin Newsom, because he dared to suggest — dishonestly — that he doesn&#8217;t think men should compete against women in sports. And then she asks Mulvaney about his thoughts on the topic, and it turns out that he has no thoughts. He can&#8217;t defend the idea of men competing against women, because it makes no sense. So instead, he defers to someone named &#8220;Schuyler&#8221; who he says is a &#8220;trans athlete.&#8221;
From what I can tell, Schuyler was a top-performing female swimmer at Harvard. Then she decided during a &#8220;gap year&#8221; that she&#8217;s really a man, so she swam with the men. And in that capacity, she went from a record-breaking swimmer to one of the worst athletes on the team. Somehow this is supposed to be proof of something, I guess. If you ask Schuyler, it&#8217;s proof that men don&#8217;t have any advantages over women in sports, even though Schuyler herself is living proof that the opposite is true.
But as the interview continued, Whoopi offered her own assessment of the situation, in an attempt to pick up the slack for Mulvaney. 
Here&#8217;s how that went:
<iframe loading="lazy" title="011 WHOOPI TAKES OVER THE DISCUSSION" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Glx6e1B8M6g?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
&nbsp;
What Whoopi pretends not to understand is that no one&#8217;s &#8220;assuming&#8221; that women are weaker. We know that it&#8217;s true. It&#8217;s true in every relevant respect. This is why high school boys can defeat the best women&#8217;s soccer team on the planet. It&#8217;s why women don&#8217;t play in the NFL. And it&#8217;s why no one is watching &#8220;The View&#8221; anymore, or buying Dylan Mulvaney&#8217;s book, or listening to Michelle Obama&#8217;s podcast. People are tired of being lied to, in the name of a political ideology that becomes more discredited by the day.
We could add to this list the total failure of Meghan Markel’s Netflix show, and her Spotify podcast that was just canceled. These are all people — all leftists — who have been heavily promoted by the media and Hollywood. They get the kind of mainstream exposure that nobody on the Right has ever gotten or will ever get. And yet the audience doesn’t care. They can’t sell books or a podcast. The public is totally disinterested.
In fact, just about the only success the Left has had lately is with Gavin Newsom&#8217;s new podcast. That&#8217;s actually doing fairly well. But it&#8217;s only doing well because his guests are all Republicans. If Gavin Newsom were doing a solo show, or talking to other Leftists, it would do about as well as &#8220;IMO.&#8221; In other words, the Left has the same problem culturally that they have politically. 
They have no stars. No leaders in the culture or on the political scene. There&#8217;s a reason nearly all of the most popular political podcasts are right-wing. No matter how aggressively the Left tries to force demented actors and disingenuous politicians and incoherent ideologies on the public, it’s just not working. They can shove all of these people in our face, but what they’re discovering is that they can’t make us care.

IMO Live: Michelle Obama, Craig Robinson & Dr. Laurie Santos – 2025 SXSW Conference And Festival

Michelle Obama And Dylan Mulvaney Both Flop In The Same Week

Dylan Mulvaney

Leftists

Legacy Media

Matt Walsh

Opinion

The View

President Donald Trump turned a 47-year-old song into a dance craze. Even NFL stars couldn’t resist doing Trump’s “YMCA” dance in their end-zone celebrations.
What a difference one White House term makes.
Trump’s first four years in office found all of Hollywood turned against him, from late-night TV to shows and movies.
Now, pop culture is veering in MAGA’s direction, a moment the Right never expected. And it’s possible thanks to the democratization of the media, from YouTube to podcasting.
It helps that the public’s trust in legacy media outlets, Trump’s entrenched enemy, has never been lower. More people are willing to give the unusual politician a look through a pop culture filter.
Right-leaning artists like Tom MacDonald can crush the iTunes charts without a major label behind him. The rapper’s “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5kGpohEpuTE">Facts</a>,” featuring Daily Wire co-founder Ben Shapiro, crashed the music charts without the press’ help (number one on the Billboard Rap chart). The same happened when MacDonald gave canceled comic Roseanne Barr <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/roseanne-barr-drops-daddys-home-rap-video-with-tom-macdonald" target="_blank" rel="noopener">her rap closeup with “Daddy’s Home”</a> a tribute to President 45/47.
<div id="attachment_891745" style="width: 1034px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-891745" class="size-large wp-image-891745" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/MixCollage-14-Mar-2025-10-16-AM-4499-1024x576.jpg" alt="Screenshot: YouTube/Tom MacDonald &quot;Facts&quot; feat. Ben Shapiro" width="1024" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/MixCollage-14-Mar-2025-10-16-AM-4499-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/MixCollage-14-Mar-2025-10-16-AM-4499-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/MixCollage-14-Mar-2025-10-16-AM-4499-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/MixCollage-14-Mar-2025-10-16-AM-4499-1536x865.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/MixCollage-14-Mar-2025-10-16-AM-4499-2048x1153.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />Screenshot: YouTube/Tom MacDonald &#8220;Facts&#8221; feat. Ben Shapiro</div>
Those aren’t aberrations.
“Justice for All,” credited to Trump himself, <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/hughmcintyre/2023/03/21/donald-trump-lands-his-first-no-1-hit-on-a-billboard-chart/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">debuted at no. 1</a> on Billboard’s Digital Song Sales chart in 2023.
Trump has been very good to Fox News’ “Gutfeld!” The late-night showcase routinely outdraws its broadcast competitors, although it airs an hour-plus earlier in the evening. The show’s ratings hit their zenith when Trump appeared on the show’s avuncular panel.
The president’s episode gave host Greg Gutfeld <a href="https://www.adweek.com/tvnewser/donald-trump-gutfeld-ratings-5-million-viewers/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">his highest numbers to date</a> – 4.9 million viewers. Most nights, the show’s willingness to praise Trump’s policies while mocking the Democrats’ responses have kept the show’s ratings strong.
Trump’s own reality series “The Apprentice” made a sudden return to streaming this month. Prime Video is releasing the first seven episodes of the Mark Burnett-produced show, and season one instantly hit the platform’s Top 10 chart.
<div id="attachment_891725" style="width: 894px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-891725" class="size-large wp-image-891725" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/GettyImages-138441695-884x576.jpg" alt="SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE -- Episode 16 -- Air Date 04/03/2004 -- Pictured: (l-r) George Ross, Donald Trump, Carolyn Kepcher during &quot;The Apprentice&quot; skit on April 3, 2004 (Photo by Mary Ellen Matthews/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images via Getty Images)" width="884" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/GettyImages-138441695-884x576.jpg 884w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/GettyImages-138441695-300x195.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/GettyImages-138441695-768x500.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/GettyImages-138441695.jpg 1024w" sizes="(max-width: 884px) 100vw, 884px" />Mary Ellen Matthews/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images via Getty Images</div>
The show played a critical part in Trump’s branding principles while introducing the country to his now-grown children Ivanka, Eric and Donald Trump, Jr. Now, millions want to rewatch that evolution from the beginning. 
The legacy press told Americans that Tony Hinchcliffe’s raw routine at October’s Madison Square Garden Trump rally marked the end of his presidential hopes. We were told that Hinchcliffe’s “racist” joke about Puerto Rico’s garbage problem would ensure GOP Latino voters stayed home.
Journalists covered the story at great length, making it a key media narrative in the days before Nov. 5.
Except Latino voters, by and large, didn’t care.
And what happened to Hinchcliffe? He just snagged a major Netflix deal to bring his signature “Kill Tony” podcast <a href="https://x.com/NetflixIsAJoke/status/1899113010997661879" target="_blank" rel="noopener">to the streaming giant</a>.
<div id="attachment_891771" style="width: 820px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-891771" class="size-large wp-image-891771" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/GettyImages-2180711933-810x576.jpg" alt="US comedian Tony Hinchcliffe speaks during a campaign rally for former US president and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump at Madison Square Garden in New York on October 27, 2024. (Photo by ANGELA WEISS / AFP) (Photo by ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images)" width="810" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/GettyImages-2180711933-810x576.jpg 810w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/GettyImages-2180711933-300x213.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/GettyImages-2180711933-768x546.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/GettyImages-2180711933.jpg 1024w" sizes="(max-width: 810px) 100vw, 810px" />ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images</div>
The pro-Trump label isn’t foolproof. Dinesh D’Souza’s “Vindicating Trump” earned $1.3 million at the US box office late last year, below most of his previous films. It’s still a solid amount for a documentary – most nonfiction films fail to crack the $1 million mark in theaters.
So what changed? How did pro-Trump content gain so much ground?
Independent media kept maturing after Trump’s first term, outpacing mainstream platforms in many regards. New media artists can create content and do it at a much smaller price point.
And, more importantly, a Right-leaning ecosystem of podcasts, YouTubers, and social media types can now spread the word more effectively. Credit Elon Musk’s X takeover for keeping more conservative voices on the platform.
Meanwhile, legacy outlets continue to shrink both in size and cultural clout. And the downsizing continues as <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/amy-robach-cries-tj-holmes-podcast-abc-layoffs-2042630" target="_blank" rel="noopener">more media layoffs</a> rock the industry.
Anti-Trump art is having a similarly tough time.
While far-Left late-night shows have mostly maintained their audience shares, the same isn’t true at the local movie house.
Last year’s anti-Trump drama “The Apprentice,” released at the peak of election season, seemed primed to draw the anti-MAGA faithful in record numbers. The film’s cartoonish look at an ‘80s era Trump (Sebastian Stan), under the alleged tutelage of fixer Roy Cohn (Jeremy Strong), was catnip to the president’s detractors.
If only they lined up to watch it.
<div id="attachment_891733" style="width: 838px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-891733" class="size-large wp-image-891733" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/GettyImages-2177860859-828x576.jpg" alt="LONDON, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 15: Sebastian Stan attends the Headline Gala screening of &quot;The Apprentice&quot; during the 68th BFI London Film Festival at The Royal Festival Hall on October 15, 2024 in London, England. (Photo by Dave Benett/WireImage)" width="828" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/GettyImages-2177860859-828x576.jpg 828w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/GettyImages-2177860859-300x209.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/GettyImages-2177860859-768x534.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/GettyImages-2177860859.jpg 1024w" sizes="(max-width: 828px) 100vw, 828px" />Dave Benett/WireImage</div>
The critically hailed film flopped with a $4 million haul stateside. That’s despite endless, fawning media coverage. Few films generated more free press, however, than “The Apprentice.”
More recently, another anti-Trump film is struggling to cover its exorbitant budget. Director Bong Joon-ho says his sci-fi thriller “Mickey 17” <a href="https://ew.com/bong-joon-ho-donald-trump-inspired-mark-ruffalo-mickey-17-villain-11688849" target="_blank" rel="noopener">isn’t a direct attack on Trump</a>. Many disagree, noting co-star Mark Ruffalo’s politician character has Trumpian traits and his followers wear red hats.
Subtle.
The film made $19 million domestically during its opening frame. That’s a solid number for some projects, but not one carrying a $118 million budget. Some suggest the film could cost Warner Bros. <a href="https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/wb-mickey-17-cut-tested-151954129.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">$100 million</a> by the end of its theatrical run.
The most surprising moment of Trump 2.0 from a pop culture perspective? The recent Oscars telecast didn’t feature his name, and host Conan O’Brien indirectly referenced the 47th president once, and via a late-in-the-show quip.
All of the above opens up new opportunities for Right-leaning artists. Their voices are harder to ignore, and the tools at their disposal have never been greater.
Two potential red flags to consider.
If President Trump fails to fulfill his pre-election promises the country may have less appetite for MAGA-aligned content. Hollywood progressives may rise up anew, smelling blood in the political waters.
And if creators think a pro-Trump veneer will make audiences swallow sub-par content, think again.
* * *
Christian Toto is an award-winning journalist, movie critic and editor of <a href="https://www.hollywoodintoto.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">HollywoodInToto.com</a>. He previously served as associate editor with Breitbart News’ Big Hollywood. Follow him at <a href="https://www.hollywoodintoto.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">HollywoodInToto.com</a>.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

US-POLITICS-CPAC-TRUMP

Riding On Trump’s Pop Culture Coattails

Riding On Trump's Pop Culture Coattails

Amazon Prime

Donald Trump

Hollywood

President Trump

Social Media

The Apprentice

Tom MacDonald

Meghan Markle announced she’s launching another podcast in April after losing her “Archetypes” show on Spotify when the streaming site announced that it would not be renewing it for a second season.
“I’m so excited to share with you something else I’ve been working on: “Confessions of a Female Founder,” my new podcast with<a href="https://www.instagram.com/lemonadamedia/"> @lemonadamedia</a>!” the Duchess of Sussex wrote in a post on Thursday on <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/DHJN9BrJtwG/">Instagram</a>.
“I’ve been having candid conversations with amazing women who have turned dreams into realities, and scaled small ideas into massively successful businesses,” she added. “They’re opening up, sharing their tips, tricks (and tumbles), and letting me pick their brains as I build out my own business, As ever.”
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“It has been absolutely eye-opening, inspiring…and fun! (Because what’s the point if we can’t have some fun on this wild adventure?)” Markle continued. “First episode is April 8th!”
The “Suits” actress signed a deal with Lemonada Media in 2024 after Spotify opted out of a second season of the podcast with the royal couple. In 2020, Prince Harry and Markle signed an agreement with the streaming site for $20 million, the <a href="https://nypost.com/2025/03/13/entertainment/meghan-markle-lands-podcast-confessions-of-a-female-founder-after-spotify-disaster/?utm_source=twitter&amp;utm_medium=social&amp;utm_campaign=nypost">New York Post</a> noted.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex&#8217;s company, Archewell Audio, produced 12 episodes of the Spotify podcast, which aired from August to November 2022.
The streaming site and the royal couple’s company released a joint statement in 2023 that they “mutually agreed to part ways and are proud of the series [they] made together.”
An insider, at the time, told the <a href="https://nypost.com/2023/06/15/prince-harry-meghan-markle-split-from-spotify/?_gl=1*1rdu6jn*_ga*MTY5ODgwMzA2MS4xNjgwNzE5MzY0*_ga_0DZ7LHF5PZ*MTY4NzgwMzY1Mi42MC4wLjE2ODc4MDM2NTIuMC4wLjA.&amp;_ga=2.141075378.188947288.1687794380-1698803061.1680719364">Post</a>, that the royal couple had not produced enough content to justify the deal the royals made with the streaming site.
In addition to launching a new podcast, Markle recently dropped a new lifestyle series “With Love, Meghan” on Netflix. It has already been renewed for a second season, despite criticism and reviews that have panned the royal’s show as a disaster and pointless.
The duchess previously shared news that the eight-episode series, which debuted on Netflix March 4, was coming back. In the first week, the series placed in the top 10 on the streaming site, <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/conormurray/2025/03/07/markles-with-love-meghan-renewed-for-another-season-despite-low-review-ranking/?utm_medium=social&amp;utm_campaign=socialflowForbesMainTwitter&amp;utm_source=ForbesMainTwitter">Forbes</a> noted.
The series has scored dismal reviews from both critics and audiences on Rotten Tomatoes, and, unsurprisingly, did particularly poorly in the United Kingdom.
One reviewer from The Guardian <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2025/mar/04/with-love-meghan-netfix-deal-harry-royals">called it</a> “pointless” and predicted it would be the Sussexes’ last television show after several Netflix flops. The outlet also said the series was bound to fail “unless the broader public suddenly develops a hankering for long-form television programmes about a woman filling children’s party bags with seeds and manuka honey.”
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/meghan-markle-says-her-netflix-lifestyle-series-renewed-for-second-season-after-brutal-reviews" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Meghan Markle Says Her Netflix Lifestyle Series Renewed For Second Season After Brutal Reviews</a>

Meghan Markle Announces Another Podcast After Losing Spotify Show

Prince Harry

Former first lady Michelle Obama just launched a new podcast with her brother, and despite lots of hype from a number of major media outlets, the venture appears to have fallen mostly flat.
Disclose TV posted on Wednesday that the podcast — which so far has dropped two trailers and two episodes — had only amassed some 12,000 views in the first 14 hours it was live. Reports since indicate that the number of viewers had barely doubled by the 24-hour mark.
&#8220;NEW &#8211; Michelle Obama&#8217;s new podcast &#8216;IMO,&#8217; gets only 12,000 views in 14 hours despite mass-marketing campaigns,&#8221; Disclose.tv posted.
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NEW &#8211; Michelle Obama&#39;s new podcast &quot;IMO,&quot; gets only 12,000 views in 14 hours despite mass-marketing campaigns. <a href="https://t.co/dnGrEqZbvb">pic.twitter.com/dnGrEqZbvb</a>
&mdash; Disclose.tv (@disclosetv) <a href="https://twitter.com/disclosetv/status/1899980484274201001?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 13, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
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In the opening episodes of the podcast, titled &#8220;IMO,&#8221; Obama and her brother Craig Robinson discuss divorce and personal life lessons, among other topics, but largely avoid politics.
Critics were unimpressed with Obama, saying they had expected as much despite the fact that multiple outlets hyped the podcast in the days before its release.
&#8220;Inherently unlikeable. The carefully crafted Obama veneer has finally been shattered,&#8221; Jeff Carlson said.
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Inherently unlikeable.
The carefully crafted Obama veneer has finally been shattered. <a href="https://t.co/QkyWtxy3Z2">https://t.co/QkyWtxy3Z2</a>
&mdash; Jeff Carlson (@themarketswork) <a href="https://twitter.com/themarketswork/status/1900166246819148052?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 13, 2025</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;The Obamas have lost their mojo. Republicans were never going to watch this. Dems (correctly) perceive that Obama was the man behind the curtain pulling the strings that led to the Biden / Kamala candidate switch debacle, so they blame him for Trump. And here we are &#8230;,&#8221; another added.
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The Obama&#39;s have lost their mojo. 
Republicans were never going to watch this.
Dems (correctly) perceive that Obama was the man behind the curtain pulling the strings that led to the Biden / Kamala candidate switch debacle, so they blame him for Trump. 
And here we are&#8230;👇🏽 <a href="https://t.co/ONarrjLMHj">https://t.co/ONarrjLMHj</a>
&mdash; IT Guy (@ITGuy1959) <a href="https://twitter.com/ITGuy1959/status/1900177943466275065?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 13, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Red State&#8217;s Bonchie added, &#8220;&#8216;Girl from the South Side&#8230;&#8217; These people can&#8217;t help but be cringe.&#8221;
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&quot;Girl from the South Side&#8230;&quot;
These people can&#39;t help but be cringe. <a href="https://t.co/3mYdf31Swa">https://t.co/3mYdf31Swa</a>
&mdash; Bonchie (@bonchieredstate) <a href="https://twitter.com/bonchieredstate/status/1900204807371026678?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 13, 2025</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;How long before YouTube hides subscriber count like they did the dislike button?&#8221; another asked.
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How long before YouTube hides subscriber count like they did the dislike button? <a href="https://t.co/Nzp8JzBnu0">https://t.co/Nzp8JzBnu0</a>
&mdash; Tyler Zed (@realTylerZed) <a href="https://twitter.com/realTylerZed/status/1899989464396488984?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 13, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&#8220;To put this into perspective: Our podcast gets downloaded about 200,000 times per day and we’re a regional morning radio show from Texas,&#8221; Radio host Kenny Webster commented.
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To put this into perspective: 
Our podcast gets downloaded about 200,000 times per day and we’re a regional morning radio show from Texas . <a href="https://t.co/EvZDQHqyan">https://t.co/EvZDQHqyan</a>
&mdash; Kenny Webster (@KennethRWebster) <a href="https://twitter.com/KennethRWebster/status/1900225557746397201?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 13, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
CNN Republican commentator Scott Jennings saw the writing on the wall earlier in the week, predicting during a panel discussion that the former first lady — in spite of her popularity — is no longer quite the queen bee that people thought she was.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
NEW: Scott Jennings claims that Michelle Obama is not as popular as everyone thinks she is. <a href="https://t.co/GCEeVoHJqx">pic.twitter.com/GCEeVoHJqx</a>
&mdash; Resist the Mainstream (@ResisttheMS) <a href="https://twitter.com/ResisttheMS/status/1899581361662681300?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 11, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Noting that both Michelle and former President Barack Obama had campaigned for Vice President Kamala Harris — and had lost in spectacular fashion — Jennings argued that the Obama name no longer captivated the attention of Americans as it had in the past.
&#8220;I&#8217;m rethinking the premise of — that she&#8217;s the answer to the future, or that any politician is the answer to the Democratic Party —&#8221; he said.

Day Two Of The 2024 Democratic National Convention

Michelle Obama’s Podcast Got Major Network Hype. Here’s How The Launch Went …

Michelle Obama's Podcast Got Major Network Hype. Here's How The Launch Went ...

Media

Ratings

Michelle Obama is launching a new weekly podcast with her brother.
The podcast, titled IMO with Michelle Obama &amp; Craig Robinson, will premiere on March 12.
“My brother @CraigMalRob  and I are launching a podcast — @IMOpodcasts with Michelle Obama and Craig Robinson! Along with experts and special guests, we’ll be discussing some of your questions. We hope you’ll check it out wherever you get your podcasts,” Obama wrote on X.
<div id="attachment_889281" style="width: 603px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-889281" class="wp-image-889281 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/Screenshot-from-X-593x576.jpg" alt="" width="593" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/Screenshot-from-X-593x576.jpg 593w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/Screenshot-from-X-300x291.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/Screenshot-from-X-768x746.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/Screenshot-from-X.jpg 1192w" sizes="(max-width: 593px) 100vw, 593px" />Screenshot from X</div>
“With everything going on in the world, we’re all looking for answers and people to turn to,” Obama <a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/digital/michelle-obama-podcast-craig-robinson-1236158160/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>. “My brother Craig and I launched the IMOpodcast to create a space for people to come as they are, ask honest questions, give their opinions, and have thoughtful conversations about life. There is no single way to deal with the challenges we may be facing — whether it’s family, faith, or our personal relationships — but taking the time to open up and talk about these issues can provide hope.”
“We grew up talking through life’s big and small questions together,” Robinson, who is the executive director of the National Association of Basketball Coaches, added. “And now, we’re inviting listeners into that conversation, with the hope that it sparks new ideas, new perspectives, and creates the connection we could all use right now.”
Michelle Obama — whose husband, former President Barack Obama, <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2018/07/18/barack-obama-on-wealth-inequality-only-so-much-you-can-eat.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> in a 2018 speech, “There’s only so much you can eat. There’s only so big a house you can have. There’s only so many nice trips you can take. I mean, it’s enough” — got paid more than $700,000 for a one-hour speech in Germany.
Michelle Obama spoke at a start-up event held near the annual Oktoberfest beer festival in September 2023; the event’s webpage said roughly 5,000 people would hear her speak about how to “push past self-doubt while discussing the importance of inclusivity and diversity.” The event organizers said Michelle Obama “topped the list” of prospective speakers for the event.
<div id="attachment_889283" style="width: 558px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-889283" class="wp-image-889283 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/Screenshot-courtesy-of-X-548x576.jpg" alt="" width="548" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/Screenshot-courtesy-of-X-548x576.jpg 548w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/Screenshot-courtesy-of-X-285x300.jpg 285w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/Screenshot-courtesy-of-X-768x808.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/Screenshot-courtesy-of-X.jpg 1198w" sizes="(max-width: 548px) 100vw, 548px" />Screenshot from X</div>
“They really pulled out all the stops to get her,” one source told <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12559675/michelle-obama-pay-munich-conference-speech.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Daily Mail</a>. “It’s one of the highest fees that they have ever paid.”
The Obamas have raked in the cash since Barack Obama left office; they agreed to a $65 million deal with Penguin for their memoirs and signed a multi-year contract with Netflix in 2018. Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos supported Obama, and his wife was Obama’s Ambassador to the Bahamas from 2009 to 2011.
Craig Robinson is the former head basketball coach at Oregon State University and Brown University.

ABC’s “Good Morning America” – 2018

‘Ask Honest Questions’: Michelle Obama Launching Podcast With Her Brother

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