In our debut Saturday Edition, we pull out a compelling segment you may have missed during the week. Produced by Joel Patterson Email us at thegist@mikepesca.com To advertise on the show, visit: https://advertisecast.com/TheGist Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Suzanne Nossel, author of Dare To Speak: Defending Free Speech For All , and President of PEN, on her organization's never-wavering, but not-always-easy, commitment to defend expression. In a conversation recorded almost a year ago, and aired here for the first time, Nossel discusses with Mike the current atmosphere around censoriousness and the conceptions of what free speech means, who it harms and how it should be managed. Mike also talks about Kyle Rittenhouse's play to acquire the rifle tha...
Neil Young wants Joe Rogan to either burn out or fade away over Covid mis-info. Mike spiels about Neil Young's Criticisms of Joe Rogan’s Covid pronouncements. And in the interview, the NYTimes Magazine’s Emily Bazelon talks about how the nationwide rise in murders will affect the agendas of progressive prosecutors. Produced by Joel Patterson Email us at thegist@mikepesca.com To advertise on the show, visit: https://advertisecast.com/TheGist Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices....
Today on the Gist, The former President of Estonia on Russia's aggression and German obstruction. And news that SCOTUS's Breyer will retire inspires a Spiel about domestic obstructionism. Produced by Joel Patterson Email us at thegist@mikepesca.com To advertise on the show, visit: https://advertisecast.com/TheGist Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Dartmouth professor Brendan J. Nyhan looks at polls showing Americans endorse violence and says those findings are off. But there’s still a lot to worry about. And in the Spiel, a troubling but little-remarked-upon argument made in the Derek Chauvin defense resurfaces in the Federal trial of former Minneapolis Police Officers. Podcast production by Joel Patterson Email us at thegist@mikepesca.com To advertise on the show, visit: https://advertisecast.com/TheGist Learn more about your ad choices....
On the Gist, America may be poised for revolution. Or not. We're certainly obsessed with talking about it. In the interview, Mike speaks with Stephen Marche, author of The Next Civil War: Dispatches from the American Future. Marche sets the chances of a civil war at 67%. Mike challenges him by asking why this moment is so different from dozens of inflection points since the actual Civil War. In the Spiel, a commitment to keeping the Gist a place free of catastrophizing, while not minimizing the ...
The Gist Returns on Monday, January 24 for Season 2. Today, Mike recounts the guiding principles of Season 1 ( i.e. the first 1400 episodes), and delivers a promise of rigor and independence for Season 2. To advertise on the show, visit: https://advertisecast.com/TheGist Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
On the Gist, #TedFled. In the Interview, his new documentary has been called “jaw-dropping,” “incendiary,” “riveting,” and “engrossing.” Sam Pollard’s new film MLK/FBI is about the bureau’s surveillance and harassment of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The film delves into new and declassified documents as well as restored footage to reveal the government’s long past of targeting Black activists. Pollard tells Mike, “I was just trying to tell a good story. About two men on the same trajectory one wi...
On the Gist, we rush to Limbaugh’s judgment. In the Interview, political and media historian, Brian Rosenwald, joins Mike to talk about Rush Limbaugh’s rise to popularity in conservative media, his power as a voice and entertainer in talk radio, the influence he had on the Republican party, and who is primed to carry his torch over the AM dial or in podcasting. As a national broadcaster, Limbaugh developed a political perspective over his career that to the left perpetuated harmful ideas, and to...
On the Gist, Southern cold snap! In the Interview, Sonari Glinton is back! Which means we’re talking cars. Glinton and Pesca discuss GM's recent proclamation to go electric by 2025. Glinton says that it's not that car makers aren't making profits off of going electric, it's that General Motors' commitment is a sign that the state of things are grave. He projects that automotive companies will be entering into partnerships in an effort to solve environmental problems, and that the new Biden admin...
On the Gist, Mike lives for the arguments Trump’s lawyers are making because, well, they’re really bad. In the Interview, “She loves America. For her, she was there showing support for the American political process.” SUNY Geneseo political science professor and author Karleen West talks to Mike about her mother’s participation in the January 6th insurrection. West has spent years studying insurrections in Latin America, but on January 6th, her personal and professional collided. Mike and West t...
On the Gist, exploring the complexities of the personal stakes of the Senators in the Trump Impeachment trial. In the Interview, it’s the second half of our conversation with Jonah Blank, an anthropologist, writer, author, and former policy director for South and Southeast Asia on the staff of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Blank joins Mike to talk about the Myanmar coup, the default of cheering on populism, conflicts and communal violence, and the threat to democracy. Blank is author o...
On the Gist, the prosecution in Trump’s Impeachment is firing on all cylinders. In the Interview, we take a look inside the FBI’s fight against white supremacy and domestic terrorism. Frank Figliuzzi is a 25-year veteran of the FBI. He joins Mike to talk about why the country needs a domestic terrorism law, the January 6th insurrection at the Capitol, and how the FBI is battling the threat from within the United States. Figliuzzi is the author of The FBI Way: Inside the Bureau’s Code of Ethics. ...
On the Gist, the Belknap case is clear precedent. In the Interview, it’s round two of vaccine talk. Mike and Dr. Abdul El-Sayed, a former Detroit health director and epidemiologist, talk about equity and the rollout of the COVID-19 vaccine. They also discuss why we shouldn’t heroicize the pharmaceutical industry, using the issue of the sixth dose as a compelling example. El-Sayed’s new book Medicare for All: A Citizen’s Guide is out now. He’s also the host of America Dissected from Crooked Media...
On the Gist, ads for “The Big Game” are given the Pesca treatment. In the Interview, it’s vaccine talk. Mike sits down remotely with Dr. Abdul El-Sayed, a former Detroit health director and epidemiologist about the COVID-19 vaccine. They talk about how social media has spread both information and misinformation, how the response to the coronavirus is eerily similar to climate change, and how Canadians have managed to get things right. Plus, when politics and health collide: El-Sayed’s new book M...
On the Gist, cost of living and minimum wage around the U.S. In the Interview, journalist David Gilbert from Vice News joins Mike to talk about QAnon, the cult of disinformation, it's propulsion into 2021, and how people from all walks of life are susceptible to believing. Plus, Gilbert translates Marjorie Taylor Greene's floor speech, and explains why it wasn't a disavowing of Q or the conspiracy theories she still believes in. In the spiel, it’s the first lobstar of the antentwig of 2021! Emai...
On the Gist, stripping Majorie Taylor Greene of her committee membership, but Republicans still want to keep her around. In the Interview, it’s coup talk. It’s part one of an interview with Jonah Blank, an anthropologist, writer, author, and former policy director for South and Southeast Asia on the staff of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Blank joins Mike to talk about the Myanmar coup, the default of cheering on populism, conflicts and communal violence, and the threat to democracy. Bl...
On the Gist, importing walkie-talkies into Myanmar. In the Interview, we’re coming into a new constitutional cycle, and it means Democrats could take quite a bit of power. Well, if they don’t blow it. We’ve been in the same Republican-dominated cycle for decades, according to Jack Balkin, author of The Constitutional Cycles of Time. Balkin and Mike talk about the extreme political polarization not seen since the Civil War, constitutional rot, and, just for fun, delve into conservative complaints...
On the Gist, Alexei Navalny’s sentence. In the Interview, it’s part two of a conversation with historian Jill Lepore about her latest book: If Then: How the Simulmatics Corporation Invented the Future. Jill discusses that with data mining and analysis there is greater potential for the demeaning of democratic processes, and why in 2021, accepting social media and twitter as a proxy for public opinion and polling could be risky. Lepore is an author, a New Yorker writer, and historian. She is also...
On the Gist, once a Nobel Peace Prize winner, now a war criminal. In the Interview, writer Jill Lepore joins Mike for part one of their conversation on her latest book: If Then: How the Simulmatics Corporation Invented the Future, a precursor to data and polling companies. If Then is an account on the mid-century boom in the advertising industry and its overlap with political marketing. Lepore articulates the deep prejudice in polling at the time, the rise of awareness of computers, and how Simu...
On the Gist, an Arizona Representative has a plan to win - throw out votes. In the interview, it’s all about the voice; John Colapinto’s new book, This is the Voice, that is. From sexy baby voice to deep baritones, Colapinto talks about his linguistic journey in writing his new book about the importance of the sounds and the musicality of voice that come out of our mouths, and how a good bedside manner can save you from lawsuits. Colapinto is a staff writer at the New Yorker. In the spiel, crack...
On the Gist, what happens when a conservative pundit and a famous quarterback make a podcast: Bolling with Favre. In the interview, it’s been a lonely year, and an especially difficult 10 months to try and find love. But Logan Ury’s new book, How to Not Die Alone just may hold the key. Putting psychology first, Ury seeks to give readers a guide to finding and keeping relationships. Spoiler alert: Stop focusing on the spark! Ury explains an approach to dating that is more psychology than yenta, t...
On the Gist, you can’t trouble us with your labels. In the interview, what is In & Of Itself? The new Hulu special by Frank Oz and Derek DelGaudio is so much more than just a made-for-TV version of DelGaudio’s live show. As creators, Oz and DelGaudio discuss the stigma of illusion, an art form which relies on sleight of hand and audience participation, and talk about how they were able to bring to life their special for people sitting at home. Both Oz and DelGaudio elucidate the assumptions arou...
On the Gist, Impeachment logic games. In the interview, it’s part two of a conversation with Oscar award winning documentarian and director Bryan Fogel about his latest film The Dissident. The film centers around Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi’s brutal murder, and its broader human rights implications. The Dissident is available in theaters, and now via premium video-on-demand. Today, Fogel and Mike focus on Fogel’s experiences putting the documentary together, and how he got unlikel...
On the Gist, Larry King, ‘Hello!’ In the interview, it’s part one of a conversation with Oscar award winning documentarian and director Bryan Fogel about his latest film The Dissident. The film centers around Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi’s brutal murder, and its broader human rights implications. Fogel discusses how he seeks to right wrongs through his investigative filmmaking, and details how he put his own life on the line to tell Khashoggi’s story. The Dissident is available in ...
On the Gist, Trump is deserving of a trial, and a lot more. In the interview, what are the consequences of putting Trump through a Senate trial? Mike does some game theory with Joe Lockhart about the possible implications for Republicans and Democrats when it comes to voting for, and possibly convicting the former president. Lockhart is former press secretary for President Clinton, partner at strategic comms group Rational360, and a CNN political analyst. In the spiel, mask on, mask off. But ser...
On the Gist, before he jetted off to the sunshine state, Trump had a last bit of business to attend to. In the interview, Mike talks to Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, senior associate dean of leadership programs, and the Lester Crown Professor in the Practice of Management for the Yale School of Management. He is also founder and president of the Chief Executive Leadership Institute. Mike and Sonnenfeld discuss C.E.L.I., a nonprofit educational and research institute focused on CEO leadership and corporate...
On the Gist, a decent man gives a speech. In the interview, Mike talks to Sarada Peri about now President Joe Biden’s inaugural speech. The former President Barack Obama speechwriter says Biden, “knocked it out of the park.” They talk about the most effective moments and the importance of speaking directly about racism and white supremacy. Peri also discusses why Biden addressing the American people as “folks” is not only a favorite colloquialism of his, but a necessary way to relate. In the spi...
On the Gist, Trump is getting traded. In the interview, we bring in Chris Molanphy to discuss the music hits of 2020. They talk about how All I Want For Christmas is You keeps coming back to the top of the charts and the unexpected timeliness of Rockstar by DaBaby featuring Roddy Ricch. Molanphy is a pop-chart analyst, the writer of Slate’s “Why Is This Song No. 1?” series, and host of the podcast Hit Parade. Come for the deep dive on an unusual year in music, stay for Mike explaining what W.A.P...
On the Gist, the QAnon Shaman’s lawyer. In the interview, John Fetterman, also known as Lieutenant Governor Stone Cold, talks to Mike about his potential Senate run. The Pennsylvania native talks about his origin story from son of teenagers to Harvard graduate, his thoughts on gun control and incarceration, and the woes of being six-foot-nine. (Not enough suits.) In Remembrances of Things Trump: so many Seans, so little time. In the spiel, supposed contradictions of pro-free speech. Email us at ...
