The Glenn Show

Support The Glenn Show by becoming a full subscriber at https://glennloury.substack.comVideo Links1:33 Demonization on the right and the left 6:23 Is Trump’s election the nail in the coffin for DEI? 13:50 John: It’s no use pretending that racism in America is as bad as it was 50 years ago 16:33 Ground News ad 18:36 Has Elon Musk “encouraged” or “permitted” more racism on X? 19:30 John: It’s a tragedy that Jordan Neely died, but he needed to be restrained 30:12 If Daniel Penny had been a cop 34:05 ACTA ad 36:18 The glorification of Luigi Mangione 47:06 Cheering for the villain 55:43 Will New York remain a sanctuary city?Recorded December 13, 2024Links and ReadingsJohn’s NYT column, “How to Dangerously Misread a Very Important Verdict”Briahna Joy Gray and Nathan Robinson on Luigi Mangione This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit glennloury.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit glennloury.substack.comRight after I taped this week’s episode with John McWhorter, I got on a call with my creative director Nikita Petrov, expecting some follow ups. We talked about Syria, the world’s reaction to Trump’s victory, P. Diddy’s parties, the reasons the labor movement never got the same kind of momentum in the US as it did in Western Europe, and more. But we started by connecting two topics from my conversation with John: the surprisingly cheerful reactions to a killing of an insurance firm CEO in New York, and the seeming demise of DEI as a movement.

Normally, free subscribers to the newsletter and podcast have to wait until Friday receive the new episode. And normally Q&A sessions with John McWhorter, in which we answer questions posed by the audience, are only available to full subscribers. But today is no normal day—I’m releasing our Q&A from last month to everyone.Become a subscriber at https://glennloury.substack.comMike Spooner wants to know how I came around to supporting TrumpSubstack Reader wants to know if Trump’s reelection signals that we’re entering an era where “reason and common sense once again prevail.”Michoel Stern senses that I’m becoming more isolationist, and that I don’t want America to be the world’s policeman. So what is the alternative?Robert Odear asks if there is “an accepted metric for linguistic complexity,” and if there is one, whether linguistically complex societies also tend to be advanced societies.Nancy wants to know if the triumph over “wokeness” represented by Trump’s election is being felt on campus.Jonathan E. Burack wants to know why I haven’t responded to this review of Ta-Nehisi Coates’s The Message.Pete Bradshaw asks what we think of the use of political slurs like “fascist,” “Hitler,” and “commie.”Cara C. suggests that, while it was wrong for Democrats to use lawfare against Trump, it is acceptable for Republicans to use it against Democrats, if only to teach them a lesson.Recorded December 1, 2024 This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit glennloury.substack.com/subscribe

Support The Glenn Show by becoming a full subscriber at https://glennloury.substack.com0:00 Thanksgiving with Glenn and John0:45 Thanksgiving with Glenn and John 6:50 Glenn the patriarch 10:35 John Lewis’s legacy 15:48 Ground News ad 17:49 From John Lewis to Stokely Carmichael to Jesse Jackson to BLM 25:21 To isolate or to integrate? 27:41 What black activism could have been 32:02 John: The Black Panthers accomplished nothing 40:04 ACTA ad 42:18 James Baldwin’s “nutty” late work 44:45 James Q. Wilson’s prescient attitude toward Glenn’s leftward shift 52:43 The “conservative” absence at the National Museum of African American History 55:11 John’s investigation of contemporary Yiddish speakersRecorded December 1, 2024Links and ReadingsDavid Greenberg’s book, John Lewis: A LifeBarbara Fields and Karen Fields’s book, Racecraft: The Soul of Inequality in American LifeKwame Ture (Stokely Carmichael) and Charles Hamilton’s book, Black Power: The Politics of LiberationTrailer for Raoul Peck’s film, I Am Not Your NegroJames Baldwin’s book, The Evidence of Things Not SeenGlenn’s book, Race, Incarceration, and American ValuesJohn DiIulio Jr.’s review of Late Admissions in the Claremont Review of BooksJohn’s NYT column, “Yiddish is a Supposedly Dying Language That’s Thrillingly Alive” This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit glennloury.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit glennloury.substack.comIn this post-show recording with Mark and Nikita, I talk about the holiday blues, the contradictions of racial heterodoxy and racial self-identification, and learning from Yiddish-speakers.This episode is available only to full subscribers to my Substack. If you're listening to the full episode, thank you for all your support. And if you want more of The Glenn Show, in addition a host of other benefits, go to https://glennloury.substack.com and become a full subscriber.

This episode was released to full subscribers on Monday. If you want early access to weekly episodes, Q&As, and more exclusive content, go to https://glennloury.substack.com to become a full subscriber.0:47 The Jabbari Lincoln Files, Yaya’s audio spy thriller 5:40 Is Jabbari Lincoln a fictional surrogate for Yaya? 10:05 How Yaya joined the CIA 16:18 What does a CIA analyst do, anyway? 20:42 The lessons of the WMDs debacle 23:08 A Muslim convert at the Agency 28:40 How the 2005 London Underground bombings got Yaya interested in counterterrorism 30:28 Terrorist recruitment and the search for self 35:57 Why Yaya doesn’t use the term “Islamophobia” 38:52 Yaya: Not even freedom fighters have license to kill with impunity 45:06 What would Malcolm X think about African American support of Palestinians? 52:22 Working for the CIA in the post-COINTELPRO eraRecorded November 9, 2024Links and Readings1776 UnitesThe Jabarri Lincoln FilesSam Greenlee’s novel, The Spook Who Sat by the DoorIvan Dixon’s 1973 film adaptation of The Spook Who Say by the DoorYaya’s essay for the Journal of Free Black Thought, “Hamas Are Not Muslim Freedom Fighters”December 2, 1963 NYT article on Malcolm X’s “Chickens coming home to roost” commentYaya’s other podcast, Designated This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit glennloury.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit glennloury.substack.comIn this post-show recording with Mark and Nikita, I talk about my conversation with Yaya Fanusie, the sub rosa activities of the CIA, the US's authorization of ATACMS strikes in Russian territory, and more.This episode is available only to full subscribers to my Substack. If you're listening to the full episode, thank you for all your support. And if you want more of The Glenn Show, in addition a host of other benefits, go to https://glennloury.substack.com and become a full subscriber.

This episode was released to full subscribers on Monday. If you want early access to weekly episodes, Q&As, and more exclusive content, go to https://glennloury.substack.com to become a full subscriber.0:43 John reconciles himself to Trump’s win 4:06 Glenn: Wake up! It’s time to take Trump seriously! 12:16 Why Glenn feels a sense of excitement about the present moment 14:54 Ground News Ad 16:40 Is Glenn’s attitude all about contrarianism? 21:00 Does John hope that Trump’s administration fails? 26:08 ACTA ad 28:22 John’s trip to Dublin with Richard Dawkins 36:44 John’s questions for Dawkins 41:51 What Dawkins might think about race, culture, and IQRecorded November 18, 2024Links and ReadingsJohn’s NYT piece, “What if I’m the ‘Friend’ Donald Trump Referred To?”John’s Atlantic piece, “Trump’s Unmonitored Speech”Max Boot’s book, Reagan: His Life and LegendRichard Dawkins’s latest book, The Genetic Book of the Dead: A Darwinian ReverieDawkins’s book, The Selfish GeneDawkins’s book, The Extended Phenotype: The Long Reach of the GeneDawkins’s book, The God DelusionDawkins’s book, The Ancestors’ Tale: A Pilgrimage to the Dawn of Life This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit glennloury.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit glennloury.substack.comIn this post-show recording with Mark and Nikita, I talk about my conversation with John McWhorter, my elation over Trump's victory, and why I wasn't forthcoming about my preference for him over Harris. This episode is available only to full subscribers to my Substack. If you're listening to the full episode, thank you for all your support. And if you want more of The Glenn Show, in addition a host of other benefits, go to https://glennloury.substack.com and become a full subscriber.

The Glenn Show is almost entirely listener supported. To receive early access to TGS episodes, an ad-free podcast feed, Q&As, and other exclusive content and benefits, become a full subscriber at https://glennloury.substack.comOrder Glenn's memoir, LATE ADMISSIONS: CONFESSIONS OF A BLACK CONSERVATIVE. Available here or wherever you get your books: https://wwnorton.com/books/97803938813491:21 Have Glenn’s intellectual shifts been misread? 5:45 Danny: Francis Fukuyama was right 10:30 Capitalism won. Is that a good thing? 14:18 The climate under capitalism 20:24 Danny: “People said 'f**k you' to the Democratic Party” 23:51 Why the “Trump is a fascist” argument makes no sense 27:53 Whither the working class coalition? 33:10 How the US foreign policy establishment won the argument and lost Ukraine 36:28 Danny: There is no way the US can maintain influence in East Asia 38:26 Does Jewish survival require a Jewish state? 43:50 The limits of social science 49:36 The media’s obsession with polling 53:55 Is the US reaping what it’s sown on immigration?52:34 Is the US reaping what it’s sown on immigration?Recorded November 9, 2024Links and ReadingsDann’s podcast, American PrestigeDanny’s conversations with Glenn about his intellectual history, parts 1, 2, 3, and 4Francis Fukuyama’s Financial Times piece, “What Trump Unleashed Means for America”Danny’s Nation essay, “The Liberal Discontents of Francis Fukuyama”Adam Tooze’s podcast, Ones & ToozeDanny’s Harper’s essay, “The Life and Death of Hollywood”Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels’s manifesto, The Communist ManifestoDanny’s Harper’s essay, “Empire Burlesque”Danny’s Boston Review piece, “Mass Destruction”Glenn’s recent conversation with Rajiv SethiJD Vance’s book, Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in CrisisJohn Murray Cuddihy’s book, The Ordeal of Civilization: Freud, Marx, Lévi-Strauss, and the Jewish Struggle with ModernityYuri Slezkine’s book, The Jewish Century This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit glennloury.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit glennloury.substack.comIn this post-show conversation with my creative director Nikita Petrov, I review this week's episode with historian Daniel Bessner. We also talk about Trump's policy proposals, capitalism, Russia and Ukraine, NATO, and why I sometimes pull back from speaking my mind.This episode is available only to full subscribers to my Substack. If you're listening to the full episode, thank you for all your support. And if you want more of The Glenn Show, in addition to a host of other benefits, go to https://glennloury.substack.com and become a full subscriber.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit glennloury.substack.comIn this month's Substack subscriber-only Q&A session, we talk about Donald Trump's "Nazi rally" at Madison Square Garden, Martha Raddatz's comments about Venezuelan gangs in Colorado, Glenn's retirement, John's comments about Trump and Vance, my comments about Israel and Palestine, and, of course, Trump's victory.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit glennloury.substack.comThis is the Post-Show episode following this week's conversation with John McWhorter. In it, Glenn sits down with his editor Mark Sussman and his creative director Nikita Petrov to talk about the election, why he understands where Trump's supporters are coming from, the meaning of voting, and the possibility that Trump might release sealed documents relating to the JFK assassination.If you're a paying subscribing, you're receiving the full episode. If you're not, you're receiving a preview clip. Consider becoming a subscriber at https://glennloury.substack.com, and receive early access to weekly episodes, exclusive content like post-show episodes, monthly Q&As with John McWhorter, and a host of other benefits.

If you subscribe only to the free version of this podcast, you’ll notice this episode has arrived a few days early. I figured that by Friday, when the episode normally drops for the general public, it will be out of date already, so we’re releasing it to everyone today. If you find you enjoy starting your week with The Glenn Show, consider becoming a paying subscriber, which will get you early access to episodes, along with a host of other benefits.Subscribe to The Glenn Show on Substack at https://glennloury.substack.com[Note: In the episode, John mistakenly referred to the author of a biography of Ronald Reagan as George Will. He meant to reference Max Boot’s Reagan: His Life and Legacy.]1:39 Pre-election jitters3:23 Will Democrats contest the election if it goes Trump’s way?4:44 A crisis for democracy, maybe, but not the end of democracy10:02 John’s case against Trump’s proposed second administration15:36 Ground News ad17:28 The Obamas’ attempted intervention and post-presidential performance26:58 The mind of the informed Trump voter34:20 A revisionist history of the Trump presidency (or presidencies)41:15 Is Trump losing it or just tired of campaigning?44:25 The Washington Post and the LA Times decline to endorse47:48 Glenn and John’s election night plans50:48 The nightmare scenarioRecorded November 3, 2024Links and ReadingsShelby Steele’s book, A Bound Man: Why We Are Excited about Obama and Why He Can’t WinJimmy Carter’s book, Palestine: Peace Not ApartheidJohn’s NYT column, “Donald Trump Is Bored”Max Boot’s book, Reagan: His Life and LegacyEverybody Loves Raymond: The Complete Series DVD box setDouglas Murray’s Free Press piece, “Things Worth Remembering: Whoever Loses, They Should Lose Like Nixon” This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit glennloury.substack.com/subscribe

Order Glenn's memoir, LATE ADMISSIONS: CONFESSIONS OF A BLACK CONSERVATIVE. Available here or wherever you get your books: https://wwnorton.com/books/97803938813490:00 Rajiv’s report from the FIRE conference3:11 Roland Fryer’s keynote address13:26 Ta-Nehisi Coates’s humanist universalism17:25 “Tolstoy is the Tolstoy of the Zulus”18:50 Rajiv’s reading of Coates’s stand on “apartheid”31:55 The gap between election forecasting models and prediction markets36:52 The limits of models and markets39:59 Rajiv: The markets show us a balance between narratives about the election44:17 Is one crypto trader manipulating the prediction markets in favor of Trump?53:12 Rajiv: Prediction markets may have sent early signals about January 655:19 Rajiv’s family history with Kamala Harris57:45 The new prominence of Indian Americans in politics1:03:07 The axiom of antiessentialismRecorded October 27, 2024Links and ReadingsRajiv’s Substack, Imperfect InformationFoundation for Individual Rights and ExpressionLara Bazelon’s 2022 Atlantic essay, “The ACLU Has Lost Its Way”Glenn’s 2021 conversation with BazelonGlenn’s 2023 conversation with Erec SmithEugene Volokh on the Hamline University-Prophet Muhammad painting controversyTa-Nehisi Coates’s book, The MessageCoates’s 2010 Atlantic essay, “The Ghost of Bobby Lee”Ralph Wiley’s book, Dark Witness: When Black People Should Be Sacrificed (Again)Last week’s TGS debate about The MesssageOrlando Patterson’s book, Slavery and Social Death: A Comparative StudyGlenn’s book, The Anatomy of Racial InequalityGlenn’s memoir, Late Admissions: Confessions of a Black ConservativePolymarketRecorded October 27, 2024Links and ReadingsRajiv’s Substack, Imperfect InformationFoundation for Individual Rights and ExpressionLara Bazelon’s 2022 Atlantic essay, “The ACLU Has Lost Its Way”Glenn’s 2021 conversation with BazelonGlenn’s 2023 conversation with Erec SmithEugene Volokh on the Hamline University-Prophet Muhammad painting controversyTa-Nehisi Coates’s book, The MessageCoates’s 2010 Atlantic essay, “The Ghost of Bobby Lee”Ralph Wiley’s book, Dark Witness: When Black People Should Be Sacrificed (Again)Last week’s TGS debate about The MesssageOrlando Patterson’s book, Slavery and Social Death: A Comparative StudyGlenn’s book, The Anatomy of Racial InequalityGlenn’s memoir, Late Admissions: Confessions of a Black ConservativePolymarket This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit glennloury.substack.com/subscribe

Incogni is your personal data defender, safeguarding you from these digital predators. Use code GLENN at the link below and get 60% off an annual plan: http://incogni.com/glenn1:22 The Coates debate continues 3:18 John: Coates is a beautiful writer, but … 5:44 John: … The Message is suffused with incuriosity and simplistic thinking 13:45 Glenn: Coates is talking about humanism and power, not race 18:11 Ground News ad 20:25 Is it “all about whitey”? 22:11 Glenn: Ta-Nehisi Coates wrote this book. What am I doing? 27:40 What kind of historical imagination is at work in The Message? 34:11 Moral clarity or abdication of responsibility? 36:30 Pro-Palestinian writers John considers acceptable 41:54 The next entries in Glenn and John’s book club 42:04 Coates’s now notorious interview on CBS Mornings 48:45 What is the black intellectual’s role today? 52:16 The counterexample of South AfricaRecorded October 19, 2024Links and ReadingsTa-Nehisi Coates’s book, The MessageGlenn and John’s previous conversationJohn’s NYT column, “Ta-Nehisi Coates and the Myth of Black Fragility”Michael Chabon’s novel, The Yiddish Policemen’s UnionJeffrey Sachs on YouTubeJudge Andrew Napolitano on YouTubeTrevor Noah’s conversation with CoatesEzra Klein’s conversation with CoatesPeter Beinart’s conversation with CoatesDavid Greenberg’s new book, John Lewis: A LifeKaren and Barbara Fields’s book, Racecraft: The Soul of Inequality in American LifeGlenn’s memoir, Late Admissions: Confessions of a Black ConservativeJames Baldwin’s essay, “Letter from a Region in My Mind” This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit glennloury.substack.com/subscribe

Order Glenn's memoir, LATE ADMISSIONS: CONFESSIONS OF A BLACK CONSERVATIVE. Available here or wherever you get your books: https://wwnorton.com/books/9780393881349Incogni is your personal data defender, safeguarding you from these digital predators. Use code GLENN at the link below and get 60% off an annual plan: http://incogni.com/glenn1:41 Penn’s sanctions against Amy 7:47 What’s at stake in the charges against Amy? 14:03 The trouble with “hate speech” 17:48 Should we abolish the nation-state? 21:38 The debates that can’t happen in the university 26:44 Ethnonationalism and group differences 33:11 Amy’s defense of maintaining an “Anglo-Protestant” American majority 42:32 Amy’s concerns about Asian migration 47:52 Are immigrants bringing lax attitudes toward property rights with them? 52:52 Glenn: Immigrants impart dynamism to a culture that’s always been in flux 1:01:13 Glenn and Amy talk about porn 1:07:51 The absence of virtue in political discourse 1:13:05 Amy’s next stepsRecorded October 12, 2024Links and ReadingsAmy’s Philadelphia Inquirer op-ed, “Paying the Price for the Breakdown of the Country’s Bourgeois Culture”Glenn and Amy’s 2017 conversation, “The Downside to Social Uplift”Foundation for Individual Rights and ExpressionTa-Nehisi Coates’s new book, The MessageWilliam Vogelei’s Claremont Review of Books review of Robert Kagan’s Rebellion: How Antiliberalism Is Tearing America Apart—AgainColeman Hughes’s book, The End of Race Politics: Arguments for a Colorblind AmericaDaron Acemoglu and James A. Robinson’s book, Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and PovertyDaniel Di Martino’s recent appearance on The Glenn ShowIrving Kristol’s 1971 essay, “Pornography, Obscenity, and the Case for Censorship”Glenn’s essay, “The Case for Black Patriotism” This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit glennloury.substack.com/subscribe

1:12 The Vance-Walz debate 4:28 Glenn: Ta-Nehisi Coates’s new book is brilliant 13:16 John and Coates’s ancient beef 15:31 Coates’s “blistering” critique of Zionism 18:22 Ground News ad 20:39 Do you have to solve the problem of “apartheid” in order to criticize it? 33:10 Glenn’s reappraisal of Coates (and John’s bemusement) 34:53 ACTA ad 36:39 Will the race card play for Eric Adams? 42:31 What has Eric Adams accomplished? 43:57 Why John defends Amy Wax 49:17 Glenn: Amy Wax gets to have her opinionRecorded October 5, 2024Links and ReadingsThe Vance-Walz VP debateTa-Nehisi Coates’s book, The MessageColeman Hughes’s Free Press review of The MessageCoates’s book, Between the World and MeCoates’s Atlantic essay, “The Case for Reparations”Glenn and John’s in-person TGS episodeAndrew Yang’s Newsweek piece, “I Ran against Eric Adams. I Saw This Coming.”John’s NYT piece, “She Is Outrageous, Demeaning, Dangerous. She Shouldn’t Be Punished.”Amy Wax’s December 2021 TGS appearanceWax’s August 2022 TGS appearanceWax’s March 2024 TGS appearanceRichard Sander’s Stanford Law Review article, “A Systematic Analysis of Affirmative Action in American Law Schools” This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit glennloury.substack.com/subscribe

Order Glenn's memoir, LATE ADMISSIONS: CONFESSIONS OF A BLACK CONSERVATIVE. Available here or wherever you get your books: https://wwnorton.com/books/97803938813491:15 Why Daniel immigrated to the US 5:14 What went wrong in Venezuela? 8:45 Daniel: Both the Biden administration and global trends are to blame for the border crisis 11:19 Trump promises to deport record numbers of illegal immigrants. But can he? 13:00 What’s it take to fix immigration? Money. 18:39 The flawed strategy of making immigration into Mexico’s problem 20:48 The bad information and rumors fueling asylum-seekers 23:18 Should residency visa programs prioritize the richest immigrants? 32:13 The labor market consequences of immigration 37:27 Daniel’s large-scale proposals for national immigration policy 43:00 How many unauthorized immigrants are in US right now? 45:23 The political realities of immigration reform44:08 The political realities of immigration reformRecorded September 23, 2025Links and ReadingsDaniel’s writing for City JournalDaniel’s report for the Manhattan Institute, “The Lifetime Fiscal Impact of Immigrants” This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit glennloury.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit glennloury.substack.comA couple weeks ago, I did my own solo Q&A session. Now John is back, and I decided to put him in the hot seat. Let’s get into it. Yan Shen asks our opinion of the contretemps between Nancy Mace and Michael Eric Dyson. Stan asks if we’ve seen Matt Walsh’s film, Am I Racist?. Eli, noting the rampant grade inflation at many institutions, asks if we have a way of fixing the problem and wants to know if our own grading standards have changed over the years (here’s the Yascha Mounk post she references). RAO wants to know what we think of alternative education, like home schooling, micro-schools, charter schools, and so on. Jerry Zuriff wants to know why John likes hip-hop. Given that, on average, American girls perform better than American boys in high school, Michael asks if colleges should give preferences to males over females. Or would that run afoul of SFFA v. Harvard? And finally, DG wants to know why John never got interested in sports.