Diabolical Lies

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.diabolicalliespod.comCharlie Kirk “practiced politics the right way.” He was “a controversial and polarizing figure, but that doesn’t matter.” His “sort of dialogue is what universities are supposed to foster.” In the wake of Kirk’s murder, these are the sentiments that have been echoed repeatedly in op-eds written for our nation’s most esteemed publications. For any writers, comedians, or civilians who have dared to suggest otherwise, the retribution has been swift. We’re unpacking it all today in this two-part conversation: what actually happened in the last week, and what it means moving forward. Oh, and if you’re reading this and would like to get Katie fired, please let me know. I, Caro, am Katie’s boss, and have been looking for a reason to fire her anyways. Please relay your complaints about her behavior to our designated reporting hotline, 1-800-PSY BTCH. (Please press 666 followed by the pound sign to reach my office extension line located in the inner hallways of the darkest area of the ninth circle of Hell).Let’s get into it.

The Democratic Party’s approval rating is at a 30-year-low, and Americans rated them no better than the GOP at their ability to “manage the federal government effectively” or “bring about the changes this country needs.” A pretty damning indictment, considering the GOP is currently disassembling the government with a rusty hacksaw while wearing furry BDSM blindfolds.In the wake of running (and losing) a centrist presidential campaign side-by-side with the Cheneys, followed by a wave of interest in democratic socialists at the local level, liberal centrists are scrambling to prove that their ideology is still relevant and popular with voters. They suggest that candidates like Zohran Mamdani are “dangerous.” But…dangerous for whom?Do Democrats have a messaging problem, or a message problem? Do Americans need more convincing, or might Democrats need better principles? If only there were an overwhelmingly popular Democratic candidate whose positions we could study!Rather than step-ball-changing with the times, establishment Democrats are digging in their heels. Calls to rally behind Gavin Newsom are already rampant because, the thinking goes, “We need to unify the Left.” Instead of pushing for change, it’s time to fall in line and support yet another candidate who’s functionally indistinguishable from the last three unpopular candidates so we can “save democracy” and “beat Trump” and “no, seriously, stop asking why we keep sending billions to Israel, your ~purity politics~ of drawing the line at genocide are annoying.”Today, we investigate the end of the so-called “liberal order.” This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.diabolicalliespod.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.diabolicalliespod.comTaylor Swift recently confirmed the imminent arrival of her 12th studio album, Life of a Showgirl. Over the course of a single fateful podcast interview, a new musical era wasn’t ushered through our cultural door so much as it kicked down the door entirely, machine guns blazing, screaming at us to drop to our knees and choke glitter. The marketing rollout for the Latest Taylor Swift Album to Save the Music Industry is now in full force, and likely will continue at pace through the album’s release date in October. For example, If you type Swift’s name into the Google search engine, your screen will rain orange confetti. Or if you enjoy following CPG brands on social media1, then you might have noticed the corporate leach effect of what amounts to one long algorithmic skid mark of unofficial brand collabs: United, Post It, Mentos, Oli Pop, Hallmark, Victoria’s Secret, Sharpie, and the Virginia Department of Transportation, to name a few. Who says social media innovation is dead!

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.diabolicalliespod.comIn this (bonus) conversation…Ever wondered why Bari Weiss is constantly creeping around the perimeters of the conversations we have on this podcast? Well, folks, today’s the day to understand.

In this conversation…Who could’ve foreseen when we started this podcast nearly one year ago to discuss the Times of London Ballerina Farm profile that today we’d be publishing a two-hour episode about the most stereotypically “controversial” geopolitical “dispute” in modern history?There’s one thing you’ll hear repeatedly in conversations about what’s happening in Gaza: It’s complicated.Or, you might hear that “Israel is the only democracy in the Middle East,” or that it’s the only country in the region that “shares our values.” (No objection there; Israel certainly shares American values, though probably not the values you think.)Unfortunately, the story of Israel and Palestine is a deeply American story—and it’s only through confronting it that we’ll be able to understand not just the past of American right-wing extremism, but its present and future.Even though we want this episode to be free for all to access, we want to extend a heartfelt “thank you” to the paid subscribers who make conversations like this one possible. $35,000 of the $66,000 in subscription payments we’ve donated so far this year have gone to food aid in Gaza. As Caro said, this episode is for—and exists because of—you, Dirty Little Liars: Thank you, and let’s fucking go.To become a paid supporter or access a full list of references and citations for this episode, head to diabolicalliespod.com. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.diabolicalliespod.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.diabolicalliespod.com

In this conversation…It’s the grassroots sensation sweeping the internet and, by extension, the culture—proof that conservative values are mainstream, conservative women are hot, and their rapidly proliferating attendant movement is finally overpowering the excesses of liberalism. “We aren’t running from culture anymore,” as Alex Clark put it, “We’re running it.” They’re courageous enough to stand up for countercultural ideas like, “Women should be wives and mothers,” or, “White people are superior,” and there’s one thing they want to make absolutely sure you know: They’re taking over.…or are they?What do “conservative values” mean in this context? What does it mean to be a conservative, when the tent has metastasized beyond the point of recognizable cohesion? And most importantly, is there any proof that this “movement” is growing more popular with young women? Diabolical Lies investigates. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.diabolicalliespod.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.diabolicalliespod.comWhen Sabrina Carpenter shared the album cover for her highly anticipated seventh studio album, Man’s Best Friend, the internet suffered an algorithmic nosebleed. An extremely high-stakes cultural debate unfolded: Was the photo (and correspondingly, her entire vibe) supposed to be funny? A form of edgy political satire? Or was Carpenter cashing in on our cultural history of fetishizing domestic violence/pedophilia/women’s suffrage/[insert infuriating clickbait term here]?In response to the foaming masses, Carpenter released a second alternative album cover — this one “approved by God.” But the question remains: did she do something wrong to begin with? What do pop stars owe the public, anyways — and what does our seemingly eternal frustration with them say about us?It’s not technically true that Sabrina Carpenter “became a pop star” in 2024. She’s been rising and grinding for over a decade now, moving through the Disney Industrial Complex with seemingly tireless pluck: First she starred in Girl Meets World, then she released five studio albums (casual), then she featured as “that blonde girl” in the Olivia Rodrigo diss track heard round the world, and then, finally, she got her big break. Well, technically two big breaks: she opened at the Eras Tour, and then she rebranded herself as a sixties, Bardot-esque character alongside the release of her sixth studio album, Short n’ Sweet. Boom. A star is born, etc. …but of course, the rules of stardom are clear: you cannot become a deeply famous, deeply marketable, deeply accessible Female Pop Entity without also becoming vaguely despised by feminists and evangelicals alike. Neat! Carpenter’s first major foray into controversy happened thanks to this W Magazine photoshoot, which featured Carpenter emulating the visuals of…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.diabolicalliespod.comIn this (bonus) conversation…Reporting live from the basement where Annie Lowrey is chained to a radiator while a six-foot-tall sentient copy of Abundance holds a gun to her head, Caro & Katie review four pieces in major newspapers and magazines that were published in the days leading up to the New York City mayoral race when it became clear that the progressive Democrat who somehow managed to lead the polls without throwing trans people or immigrants under the bus might actually win.

In this conversation…SkinnyTok is full of contradictions: You’ll hear you need to work hard to lose weight so you can be effortlessly chic; you’ll discover a world of corporeal obsession in which attaining a “hot body” is the ultimate form of pleasure. So why does it all feel so sterile? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.diabolicalliespod.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.diabolicalliespod.comIn this conversation…In 2015, Caro took a politics course at the University of Virginia called “Sex Differences.” This is her story. *law and order theme music*

In this conversation…Six years and five Trump press secretaries ago, The Guardian reported that, thanks to Trump’s ceaseless tweeting, the press secretary position had become “redundant,” an anachronism from a quainter era of politics when presidents didn’t preside like mad kings over their own social media platforms. So what should we make of Karoline Leavitt and the role she’s performing in this political theater?What is Diabolical Lies?Diabolical Lies is 100% listener-supported culture and politics podcast designed to make you smarter, saner, and infinitely more unbearable at your next family gathering. 33% of our revenue is redistributed to organizations actively working to build a better world for everyone—one in which people like Karoline Leavitt are relegated to their rightful position in society making conspiracy theory YouTube videos about the Denver airport. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.diabolicalliespod.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.diabolicalliespod.comIn this conversation…Over the last several months, the policy agenda of the pro-natalist right has become startlingly clear. What’s much less clear, though, is how the left plans to counter such red-pilled pro-baby and pro-family rhetoric—or if the left even wants to counter this rhetoric.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.diabolicalliespod.comIn this conversation…Katie & Caro answer questions from our paid subscriber chat of Dirty Little Liars, like:* Who would be your dream guest on Diabolical Lies (if you ever get over your narcissistic obsession with being the only two people yapping)?* Are you actually joining DSA (Democratic Socialists of America)?* What are the logistical challenges around setting up the charitable aspect of the business?* What’s an issue you’ve recently changed your opinion on?…plus, some Careless People and Space Girlboss reflection.

In this conversation…It’s the best system we’ve tried so far! It’s just human nature! It’s the force that drives innovation! …or is it? What if capitalism isn’t pushing us forward anymore, but holding us back from the future that we could have? Diabolical Lies investigates. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.diabolicalliespod.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.diabolicalliespod.comIn this conversation…You asked, we answered. Today we’re talking about the latest, greatest moral panic of our time: Are trans athletes ruining women’…

In this conversation…The “MAHA Moms” insist their healthy living movement is all about “the children,” who you’ll quickly learn are being “poisoned” by all the “toxic” ingredients in our food supply or corrupted by the crooked doctors in our medical system. But which kids is this really for?This episode is a Tour de Grift that explores some of the most notable figureheads, their claims, and how this information metastasizes—so that even @CrunchyMom6969 ends up sharing vaccine misinformation between enema cleanse updates. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.diabolicalliespod.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.diabolicalliespod.comIn this conversation…What does it mean to “run the government like a business” in America today? In today’s episode, we scrutinize the fetishization of “efficiency” and the American businessman, the role this valorization played in the ascendancy of our current “leaders,” and what everyone’s getting wrong about how business is done in America today—through the lens of a recent bombshell report that “breastaurant” Hooters is filing for bankruptcy.Got questions? ask@diabolicalliespod.com.References in the Episode“Is Hooters Really Rebranding Because Millennials ‘Aren’t That Into Boobs’ Anymore? Here’s What We Know So Far,” the important, hard-hitting journalism you’ve come to expect from Peter Thiel’s favorite beach read, Evie Magazine“The decline and fall of Hooters,” by Kara Kennedy in The New Statesman“Hooters in Talks for Potential Bankruptcy in Coming Months,” by Eliza Ronalds-Hannon and Reshmi Basu for Bloomberg UK“Chanticleer Holdings and Hooters Ring NASDAQ Closing Bell,” a 2012 Hooters press release“Prison food is the latest target in a campaign to divest holdings,” by Fola Akinnibi for The Los Angeles Times, because nothing says American dream quite like the ROI on mass incarceration“PE Firms Rebrand Prison Healthcare Companies, But Care Issues Continue,” by Syed Hamza Sohail for HIT ConsultantThe Private Equity Stakeholder Project’s report on HIG Capital and Wellpath, and the 1,395 times the “Correct Care Solutions” subsidiary was sued in federal court“PE-Backed Prison Health-Care Firm Wellpath Declares Bankruptcy” by Dorothy Ma for Bloomberg“H.I.G. Capital’s Companies Mired in Regulatory and Headline Risk,” by Eileen O’Grady for the Private Equity Stakeholder Project“H.I.G. Capital puts Hooters up for sale,” by Luisa Beltran for PE Hub in 2015“H.I.G. calls off ‘Hooters of America’ auction,” by Luisa Beltran for PE Hub approximately 10 minutes later lol“H.I.G.-backed Hooters of America seeks a buyer: sources,” by Luisa Beltran for PE Hub in 2018“New Owners of Hooters Plan to Expand Less Offensive Spinoff, Hoots” by Greg Morabito for Eater“Hooters of America sold to 2 private equity firms,” by Julie Littman for Restaurant Dive“Hooters of America Announces Closing of $70 Million Term Loan Facility,” from Stephen Brown on Business Wire“How the Financialization of America Hurt Workers and the Economy,” by Michael Collins for IndustryWeek“The Apprentice, Intro Season 1, Donald Trump,” which is nothing short of an absolute fucking trip to the reality television universe where this man truly shined and should’ve stayedMarjorie Taylor Greene being generally confused about how the government is supposed to work pt. 359235“Trump seeks to run government like a business, for better or worse,” by Brett Samuels for The Hill, which contains some of the bleakest quotes known to science“DOGE is causing the very problem it claims to be solving,” by Shannon Arvizu for The Hill“Trump Quietly Plans to Liquidate Public Lands to Finance His Sovereign Wealth Fund,” by Mark Haggerty and Jenny Rowland-Shea for the Center for American ProgressRonald Reagan contradicting himself for 41 seconds“How Ronald Reagan Tried to Shrink Government Spending” by Christopher Klein for Historyusaspending.gov, a literal line by line accounting of where we spend money“Americans voted for Trump, but don’t support his agenda,” by G. Elliott Morris for ABC News“What DOGE is Doing Across the Federal Government,” by Nik Popli for Timefiscaldata.treasury.gov, where you can learn about the national debt“How Much Is the National Debt? What Are the Different Measures Used?” from the Peter G. Peterson Foundation

In this conversation…Let’s get spicy, y’all! Today, we’re talking about the politics of consensual sex work, through the lens of a recent, extremely viral documentary that covered sex worker and OnlyFans influencer Lily Phillips’s 100-men-in-a-day sex stunt. If you haven’t watched the documentary yet, we’ve embedded it in this post for your easy viewing pleasure. And yes, this documentary is safe for work; the curse words are censored and there’s no actual nudity. The same cannot be said for the podcast episode. You’ve been warned!A note: this conversation was recorded prior to the are-they-or-aren’t-they viral drama of Phillips and fellow influencer-sex-worker Bonnie Blue both claiming they are pregnant within hours of one another, but for apparently different reasons (?), so we didn’t cover that. But please sound off in the comments if you’d like to discuss!References in This EpisodeThe video of Ben Shapiro insisting quite seriously that women who fuck around will always eventually find out“Lily Phillips, OnlyFans and the big lie that sex work is good for you,” a rollicking ride of a think piece by Tanya Gold which dares to ask the question on everyone’s mind these days: What if women are not, in fact, sentient?“Shame on the men exploiting Lily Phillips,” a left-wing take by feminist Julie Bindel that will show you just how bipartisan the hatred for sex work truly is <3“Men in the Lily Phillips’ Experiment Are the Real Victims,” an essay by Liz Plank that is honestly the most normal review we covered lol“The Dirty Secrets of Pompeii,” a kind of touristy verbal romp through the fuckfests of Pompeii“Sex Work Through the Ages,” a very accessible deep dive on sex work that features our gurl Valeria Messalina sucking and fucking her way through life“The 7 Most Common Fantasies — and How Many People Have Ever Had Them,” a survey/data study on sexual fantasies by social psychologist Jeff Lehmiller of the Kinsey Institute, which—plot twist—actually took women’s fantasies into consideration“What Kinds of Porn do Men and Women Watch Most Often?,” another survey by Lehmiller on the relative kinkiness across genders “A Heated Debate: Theoretical Perspectives of Sexual Exploitation and Sex Work,” a nice li’l academic paper on this topic that can serve as a puritanical palate cleanser amid all this raunchiness“Sex Worker-Led Provision of Services in New Zealand: Optimising Health and Safety in a Decriminalised Context,” which explains what they are doing right in the LAND DOWN UNDAH“The Real Impact of the Swedish Model on Sex Workers,” a report by Global Network of Sex Work Projects, a nonprofit that advocates for the health and human rights of sex workers, that is just generally helpful“The Audacity of Tolerance: A Critical Analysis of Legalized Prostitution in Amsterdam’s Red Light District,” a report by Humanity in Action, an international nonprofit organization that educates and connects young leaders on issues related to human and minority rights, about why sex workers hate *special rules*“Dominance Feminism: Placing Sexualized Power at the Center,” a kind of dry academic paper about dominance feminism (honestly just read the abstract and you’ll get the gist lol)“The Kingdom in the Closet,” a great overview of the profound contradictions taking place within OuR tReAsUREd eCoNomIC pArTnER, Saudi Arabia!, written by Nadya Labi for The Atlantic And of course, a link to the GREATEST PODCAST (BESIDES THIS ONE) OF ALL TIME. Highly recommend the gang bang episode, the Saudi Arabia episode, the sex workers in New South Wales episode, though honestly, all of them are—wait for it—bangersBonus Reading “4 Sex Workers Answer On How Much They Actually Earn,” an amazing Financial Diet rundown that shows just how much a sex worker’s life/finances/schedule/offerings can vary“[What the Lily Phillips] Doc Gets Right About Sex Work,” by Jessie Sage for Rolling Stone—this is notably the only mainstream take on Lily Phillips that dared to center the perspective of actual sex workers This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.diabolicalliespod.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.diabolicalliespod.comIn this conversation…A woman’s appearance has always been inseparable from her message in politics. So what does this latest, conspicuous shift signal? In this episode, we’re taking a question the New Right is obsessed with—what is a woman?—and answering it by analyzing the aesthetic transformations of the women they tolerate becoming prominent and visible within their coalition.