Shane Smith Has Questions is a dynamic, apolitical podcast hosted by Shane Smith dedicated to getting to the bottom of prominent instances of misinformation and disinformation while revealing the fascinating fundamental truths (if there are any?) of the most interesting and convoluted social and political issues of our time.
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San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan joins Shane Smith for a raw conversation about why California feels broken and what it would actually take to fix it. They discuss the reality behind homelessness, why housing is so expensive, and how bureaucracy and bad incentives have made it nearly impossible to build. Mahan explains how corporate power, regulation, and political complacency have created a system that continually becomes more expensive without delivering better results. Mahan lays out why he believes...
Scott Galloway sits down with Shane Smith to talk through why the system feels off right now and why more people are starting to notice. They get into how wealth keeps concentrating at the top, why the middle class isn’t growing the way it used to, and how big tech and corporate power quietly shape the rules. Galloway lays out why capitalism only works when the middle class is strong and what happens when it isn’t. The conversation moves through monopolies, tax policy, and the incentives driving...
Ian Bremmer, one of the most connected geopolitical minds on the planet, sits down to explain the Iran crisis in brutally honest terms: why regime change was a fantasy, how Iran is somehow making more money since the war started, and why the real pain at the pump, at the grocery store, in your portfolio hasn't even hit yet. This isn't cable news spin. This is the unfiltered truth from someone who actually talks to world leaders. From Venezuela to Greenland to Lebanon to Cuba. Bremmer maps out a ...
The Strait of Hormuz is effectively closed, and energy expert Amos Hochstein is calling this the single greatest energy crisis in global history bigger than the 1973 OPEC embargo. With roughly 10 million barrels of oil per day missing from global markets, prices have surged from $60 to nearly $100 a barrel, gas is climbing toward $4 a gallon, and major producers like Kuwait, Iraq, and Qatar have already slashed production. According to Hochstein, if the Strait remains closed for just 10 more day...
Shane Smith sits down with Senator Bernie Sanders for a conversation that cuts straight to the heart of America's biggest crisis artificial intelligence. Bernie warns that a handful of the world's wealthiest men are quietly engineering the most consequential revolution in human history, one that could wipe out millions of jobs overnight and leave ordinary Americans with nothing but unanswered questions. Driverless trucks, automated warehouses, AI lawyers and accountants the future is arriving fa...
Shane Smith travels to Venezuela for a special episode of Shane Smith Has Questions, on the ground for the first meeting between U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright and acting Venezuelan President Delcy Rodríguez — the Trump administration’s first official visit since the regime change.Reporting from Caracas, Shane gets rare access as U.S. officials engage Venezuela’s new leadership and begin shaping what comes next for the country — and its vast oil reserves.He also sits down with Venezuelan jou...
Shane sits down with Andrew Yang, entrepreneur, Forward Party founder, and former presidential and mayoral candidate for a wide-open conversation about what happens to America when AI collides with a political system stuck in the 1800s. They start with why anyone even runs for office in the age of opposition-research-as-bloodsport, then rewind to Yang’s 2020 run, when he was dismissed as the “magical Asian man from the future” warning truckers in Iowa that automation and AI would wipe out their ...
Harvard Law’s Lawrence Lessig, founder of Creative Commons and Equal Citizens, joins Shane for look at how money captured American politics and what it will take to break its grip. Lessig explains why the real super PAC problem wasn’t created by Citizens United but by a lower-court ruling, and why a new Maine initiative could become the test case that finally reins in unlimited outside spending, potentially nationwide by 2028. They dig into the Supreme Court’s expanding power, how crypto and AI ...
Shane sits down with Maverick Carter, CEO of SpringHill Company, business partner to LeBron James, and one of the most influential figures in modern sports and entertainment, for an unfiltered, masterclass conversation about capitalism, culture, and coming up from nothing. Maverick opens up about his roots in Akron, Ohio, where his grandmother ran an underground after-hours club that doubled as a community hub and a crash course in entrepreneurship. He explains how sweeping floors and watching d...
Shane Smith sits down with Aaron Parnas, the 26-year-old lawyer, journalist, and viral political commentator who’s redefining how Americans get their news. Together, they unpack the collapse of public trust in mainstream media, the rise of social platforms as new journalism hubs, and how Gen Z’s relationship to truth and power differs from every generation before. Parnas opens up about growing up amid political scandal, as the son of Lev Parnas, an associate of Rudy Giuliani, and how personal tr...
Shane Smith sits down with Hollywood titan Barry Diller, the media mogul behind Paramount Pictures, 20th Century Fox, QVC, Expedia, and IAC, for a sweeping journey through one of the most remarkable careers in modern entertainment. From his mailroom days at William Morris to creating the “Movie of the Week” at ABC, Diller recounts how failure, luck, and relentless curiosity shaped his path to becoming one of the most powerful figures in media. He opens up about his nervous breakdown at 19, the c...
Shane Smith sits down with Sam Harris, philosopher, neuroscientist, and bestselling author for a deep conversation about artificial intelligence, consciousness, and the fragile future of humanity. They begin with Sam’s early life and unlikely path, from studying English at Stanford to dropping out after a transformative MDMA experience that led him to India and Nepal, where he meditated and even served briefly on the Dalai Lama’s security detail. What follows is a wide-ranging exploration of how...
Shane Smith sits down with veteran journalist Chuck Todd, former Meet the Press moderator and current host of Sunday Night with Chuck Todd, in a deep dive on the state of American politics and media today. Chuck opens up about his decision to leave legacy media behind and reinvent political journalism for the long-form podcast era, why Meet the Press became “an aircraft carrier that couldn’t turn,” and how he rediscovered his voice in independent media. Together, he and Shane dissect how the Dem...
Scott Galloway and Shane Smith dive into the growing tension in today’s society, exploring how economic instability, digital culture, and political unrest are shaping people’s frustrations and anger. They analyze the rise of digital platforms, the deepening wealth divide, and the decline of traditional work structures, which have fueled a wave of anxiety and frustration. Galloway breaks down how capitalism’s evolution and the collapse of old economic systems are leaving many feeling powerless an...
Psychedelics are reshaping medicine and culture. Ayahuasca ceremonies, ibogaine treatments, and ketamine clinics promise breakthroughs but raise hard questions about safety, tradition, and control. Hamilton Morris joins Shane Smith to unpack the science, myths, and politics behind today’s psychedelic movement. He breaks down the promises of ibogaine clinics, the rise of ketamine in psychiatry, and the battles over MDMA research, showing how curiosity and controversy continue to shape the future ...
Drone warfare is changing the battlefield fast. Cheap swarms can overwhelm defenses, strike deep, and create new security threats—from war zones to stadiums. Add cyber attacks and grid probes, and the gray zone keeps expanding with no clear rules or deterrents. Global power dynamics are shifting. Trump’s tough talk on Xi, Putin, and Kim clashes with stalled diplomacy and a rising China filling global gaps. With India tensions growing and Europe carrying more of Ukraine, globalization looks more ...
Johnny Knoxville sits down with Shane Smith to discuss the physical and emotional costs of his career. He reflects on the chaotic start of Jackass, the pressures of sudden fame, and serious injuries like concussions and an eye fracture that nearly ended his life. The conversation covers his collaborations with Spike Jonze and Jeff Tremaine, the shift from MTV to feature films, and the political backlash that ultimately forced the show off the air. Knoxville speaks openly about his mental health ...
Shane sits down with investigative filmmaker and UFO researcher Jeremy Corbell to explore the most controversial and captivating subject of our time: Are we alone in the universe? Corbell—known for his viral military UFO releases and his documentaries like Bob Lazar: Area 51 & Flying Saucers—walks Shane through some of the most compelling cases of unexplained aerial phenomena ever captured. From the infamous “Mosul Orb” to Navy encounters with pyramid-shaped craft, Corbell shares vetted mili...
Dr. Phil Stutz, renowned psychiatrist and author, challenges traditional therapy by revealing its ineffectiveness and introducing "The Tools," which prioritize action over analysis. He explains concepts like "Part X," the internal resistance, and "Golden Flow," a gratitude practice to combat it. The episode further explores the significance of finding meaning in suffering, the power of human connection through "The Field," and a unique perspective on death as a catalyst for life and growth, ultimately offering practical advice for anxiety and depression.
Shane sits down with Liquid Death Founder/CEO Mike Cessario to talk branding, politics, and the power of provocation. They dive into how Liquid Death turned Internet hate into a billion-dollar water brand, why execution matters more than ideas, and how cultural tension fuels marketing breakthroughs. Cessario draws parallels between brand-building and political strategy, analyzing figures like Gavin Newsom, AOC, Trump, and Bernie Sanders through a marketer’s lens. They explore the dangers of bran...
Shane and nuclear-physics prodigy Taylor Wilson on the past, present, and future of atomic science, how Cold-War close calls, and today’s aging launch warning systems, make accidental nuclear war scarier than a deliberate attack, why Russia’s hypersonic torpedoes and cheap Ukrainian drones both reveal the same uneasy truth: deterrence math is being rewritten in real time. They dive into Wilson’s quest for radiation-proof bacteria, his optimism about compact fusion reactors and geothermal grids t...
Shane Smith sits down with Julian Kelly, Senior Director of Hardware at Google Quantum AI and architect of the groundbreaking Willow chip, to map out the next frontier of computing. Kelly explains how Google’s 100 plus qubit processors now complete benchmark tasks in minutes that would outlive the universe on today’s fastest supercomputers, why error corrected “logical” qubits are the last hurdle to practical machines, and which real world problems will fall first once quantum power comes online...
Shane Smith sits down with Channel 5 and All Gas No Brakes founder Andrew Callaghan. They discuss Andrew’s hitchhiking origins, his first full-length interview with Hunter Biden and they unpack the rise and fall of All Gas No Brakes, the birth of Channel 5’s “global newsroom,” and why a single bad real-estate deal turned a Louisiana lawyer into the Q-pilled protagonist of Callaghan’s documentary This Place Rules. Smith and Callaghan swap war stories about embedding with warlords, avoiding stomac...
When wildfires, homelessness, and immigration collide, Los Angeles becomes a focal point for America’s biggest debates. In this candid, hourlong sitdown, Shane Smith presses L.A. Mayor Karen Bass on everything from her controversial trip to Ghana during the Palisades inferno to the missing billions earmarked for homelessness relief. Bass pulls back the curtain on firedepartment missteps, why she fired the city’s fire chief, and how a thousand unused veteran housing vouchers were finally unlocked...
Rick Caruso breaks down the harsh realities behind LA’s wildfire devastation, exposing how political failures, broken systems, and poor leadership turned a preventable disaster into a full-blown crisis. From the incompetence that left reservoirs empty to the private firefighting efforts that saved his village while others burned, Rick explains why preparation and accountability matter more than empty ideology. He also unpacks the deeper systemic issues: insurance collapse, homelessness, rebuildi...
Rick Rubin dives deep into the essence of creativity, exploring its spiritual roots and the role of sensitivity in artistic expression. From his reflections on nature as the perfect balance to his thoughts on art as a universal language, Rick discusses how every piece of art — whether it’s music, painting, or writing — connects us to something greater. He also touches on how the power of creativity transcends barriers, overcoming propaganda and biases, and opens the door to greater understanding...
In this wide-ranging conversation, Shane Smith presses Dr. Jordan B. Peterson on everything from academia’s groupthink and campus protests to benzo withdrawal, love in the face of terminal illness, and the geopolitical shadow of China. Peterson fires back—sometimes reflective, sometimes raw—laying out why he believes voluntary self-sacrifice, not power or pleasure, is the only antidote to cultural decay. Along the way you’ll hear: Inside the Coma: Peterson relives the three-year ordeal that near...
John Sandweg, former acting director of ICE under President Obama, explains why both Republican and Democratic leaders have struggled to manage the border, why immigration reform keeps hitting roadblocks, and what real, workable solutions could actually look like. This conversation goes beyond politics — it reveals the human stories and the complex systems behind immigration. Download the DraftKings app and get 350 casino spins with code SHANE or head to https://casino.draftkings.com/ Subscribe ...
John Perkins was once an economic hitman — a chief economist helping powerful corporations and governments entrap resource-rich countries in massive debt. Loans disguised as development aid ended up enriching the elite, while ordinary people paid the price. He shares the moment that made him question everything, the “death economy” fueled by short-term greed, and how China is now leading this global game with a new twist. This isn’t just history — it’s the story of how economic power shapes toda...
Shane Smith sits down with three of the brightest minds pushing humanity’s final frontier, space. Astrophysicist Jonathan McDowell, author and space reporter and documentarian Ashlee Vance, and in-orbit manufacturing pioneer Delian Asparouhov pull back the curtain on the new era of private spaceflight, from cutting-edge rocket tech to factories floating above Earth. It’s a riveting look at how commercial actors, visionary entrepreneurs, and global superpowers are reshaping everything we know—and...
