The Glenn Show

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John McWhorter — The Past and Future of Black Political Leadership Sep 27, 2021

Show notes

For this week’s episode of The Glenn Show, we’ve upped our production game a little. In late August, John McWhorter and I met up for an all-too-rare in-person conversation in Manhattan, and the filmmaker Rob Montz and his crew were on hand to record it. It was wonderful to be able sit face-to-face with John, and Rob did a wonderful job capturing the energy in the room.

It wouldn’t have been possible to pull all of this together without the support of the subscribers here: Thank you! We’re hoping to create more special content like this in the future, so your contributions are greatly appreciated.

John and I begin by discussing his gig writing for the New York Times, in particular a recent piece about Harold Arlen and Johnny Mercer’s Blues Opera. It’s never been produced, and John is assisting in trying to usher it to the stage. We move from the blues to matters that are just plain blue: The word “motherfucker,” which began as black vernacular and has since been absorbed into the English language at large. This naturally leads us to talk about the treatment of sex and money in the TV show Billions. From there we move to more serious matters: The New York City mayor’s race. John is not a fan of the probable winner, Eric Adams, and I press him as to why. Weget into it over the squandered opportunities of the Obama years, and we really get into it over Al Sharpton. John is ready to forgive him for the deplorable behavior that defined the first half of his career, and I’m not. And finally, we look at the Jacob Blake shooting a year after the fact. What do we know now that we didn’t know then?

We had a lot of fun doing this one, and I hope you have just as much watching it. Let me know what you think here or on Discord.

Next week I’ll be posting a conversation with historian David E. Kaiser about the role of “racial justice” in the politicization of historical studies. If you’d like a preview, you can find a previous conversation of ours here.

A New Home for TGS

The video for this episode is hosted on my own new YouTube channel, which is now the home of The Glenn Show. I invite you to subscribe to this channel (and click the bell button!) now so that you don't miss future offerings. This newsletter will continue to publish as usual with the same benefits for subscribers.

This post is free and available to the public. To receive early access to TGS episodes, Q&As, and other exclusive content and benefits, click below.

0:00 Some posh new (temporary) digs for The Glenn Show

1:08 The challenges and liberties of John's New York Times gig

5:24 John's efforts to help mount an unproduced black opera

14:45 The deracialization of “motherfucker”

16:58 The erotics and economics of Billions

20:58 Why John didn't support Eric Adams for NYC mayor

31:04 What undermined the potential of the Obama years?

43:22 Can Glenn ever forgive Al Sharpton?

55:16 Will Eric Adams be able to operate effectively as mayor?

59:58 The Jacob Blake shooting, a year later

Links and Readings

John's NY Times piece, "How 'Woke' Became an Insult"

John's NY Times piece, "Can White Men Write a Black Opera?"

John's book, Nine Nasty Words: English in the Gutter: Then, Now, and Forever

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

Robert Wright — Non-Zero-Sum Thinking on the World Stage Sep 20, 2021

Show notes

For this edition of The Glenn Show, I’m joined by someone who may be familiar to long-time viewers: Bob Wright. Bob is a distinguished journalist and the author of many books, including The Moral Animal, Nonzero, and Why Buddhism is True. He also happens to be the co-founder of Bloggingheads, the platform on which The Glenn Show was born and has flourished.

In our conversation, Bob walks us through the early days of Bloggingheads and the flash of inspiration that led him to create the site. We then move on to discuss Bob’s ideas about evolution and international relations, and how they’re influenced by game theory (something I know a bit about). Bob’s ideas about the nature of conflict and cooperation have a number of implications for combating the sort of nasty political tribalism that we see so much today, both domestically and internationally. Of course, more non-zero sum thinking could possibly help us turn down the temperature in conflicts over race in the US, which would be a welcome change. And finally, we turn our attention to new developments in the relationship between The Glenn Show and Bloggingheads. Both Bob and I are excited about what’s to come!

A New Home for TGS

The video for this episode is hosted on my own new YouTube channel, which will soon become the home of The Glenn Show. I invite you to subscribe to this channel (and click the bell button!) now so that you don't miss future offerings. This newsletter will continue to publish as usual with the same benefits for subscribers.

This post is free and available to the public. To receive early access to TGS episodes, Q&As, and other exclusive content and benefits, click below.

0:00 Subscribe to The Glenn Show on YouTube

0:26 The origins of Bloggingheads

11:30 Non-zero-sum thinking on the global stage

20:30 Bob: We’re not focusing on the most pressing foreign policy dilemmas

29:13 Bridging the globalist vs. nationalist divide

34:13 Could more cognitive empathy ease racial tensions?

45:00 Changes afoot for The Glenn Show and Bloggingheads

Links and Readings

Bloggingheads.tv

The Wright Show

Bob’s Substack newsletter, The Nonzero Newsletter

The Nonzero Newsletter, “The Last Word on GWOT”

Bob’s book, The Moral Animal: Why We Are the Way We Are: The New Science of Evolutionary Psychology

Bob’s book, Nonzero: The Logic of Human Destiny

Bob’s book, Why Buddhism Is True: The Science and Philosophy of Meditation and Enlightenment

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

Daniel Bessner — American Empire before and after 9/11 Sep 13, 2021

Show notes

In this week’s TGS, I’m joined once again by intellectual historian Daniel Bessner. Given Daniel’s area of scholarly expertise—US foreign relations—it should be no surprise that the recent withdrawal from Afghanistan colors our discussion. But we range much further than that. We debate Daniel’s conception of “American empire” and its origins in the Cold War. He is quite critical of American foreign policy during that period (and beyond), and I do push back on some of his more pointed critiques. We go on to discuss the course of America’s engagement with the world after the Cold War’s end, and Daniel offers a theory as to why the 1990s saw so much popular interest in World War II. We move on to discuss climate change as a particular kind of foreign policy problem. I out myself not exactly as a “climate skeptic,” but as someone who thinks we may be panicking prematurely. And yet, I think that changes in the climate may force us to radically rethink where and how we find meaning in our lives. Finally, since we’re both professors, we talk about Covid and the state of the modern university.

As you’ll see, Daniel and I have some very stark disagreements. But he’s a sharp, erudite, and good-natured debating partner, and it’s always a pleasure having him on the show. And if you’re intrigued by his arguments, subscribe to his podcast, American Prestige. I’m sure you’ll have some comments on this one, and I’m looking forward to reading them.

This post is free and available to the public. To receive early access to TGS episodes, Q&As, and other exclusive content and benefits, click below.

0:00 Daniel’s new podcast, American Prestige

10:22 Did the US needlessly prolong the Cold War?

14:59 Daniel: The Cold War actually limited political liberty within the US

21:27 The cultural logic of American empire

32:59 Global inequities and existential threats

40:52 The spiritual challenges of climate change

50:34 Glenn: Capitalism is “the natural order of things”

55:23 What Covid reveals about the modern American university

Links and Readings

Daniel’s new podcast, American Prestige

Paul Thomas Chamberlin’s book, The Cold War’s Killing Fields: Rethinking the Long Peace

Daniel Rodgers’ book, Atlantic Crossings: Social Politics in a Progressive Age

Peter Novick’s book, The Holocaust in American Life

Peter Novick’s book, That Noble Dream: The “Objectivity” Question and the American Historical Profession

Roosevelt Montás, Rescuing Socrates: How the Great Books Changed My Life and Why They Matter for a New Generation

Glenn Loury’s Intellectual Origins (with Daniel Bessner)

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

John McWhorter — Reckoning with the Relics of Racism Sep 06, 2021

Show notes

John McWhorter is back for this week’s episode of The Glenn Show. In it, we discuss John’s new gig writing a newsletter for the New York Times. Anyone wondering whether he’s being stifled by the paper’s editorial sensibilities will be glad to hear the answer is a definite “no.” We spend a while discussing John’s recent piece about the removal of a “racist” rock from the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s campus after administration gave in to student activists. From there we move on to a broader discussion of the historical relationship between the slave trade and American universities. We ask whether modern universities are morally culpable for the sins of the distant past. The scope broadens even further as we ask whether we can ever truly extricate the benefits of the modern world from histories of brutality and genocide. And finally, we move on to a discussion about black conservatives and accusations of “selling out.” This has particular relevance for the case of Larry Elder, a black conservative who is currently nipping at the heels of Gavin Newsom in the California governor’s recall.

This is a deep and provocative discussion, and I hope you’ll join in by commenting below. Let me know what you think!

This post is free and available to the public. To receive early access to TGS episodes, Q&As, and other exclusive content and benefits, click below.

0:00 John's new gig writing for the New York Times

5:01 Wisconsin students get a "racist" rock removed from campus

16:39 Are present-day universities morally accountable for their involvement in the slave trade?

26:38 Debating the legacy of Christopher Columbus

40:18 Can we extricate modernity's benefits from its history of brutality and genocide?

50:52 Is California gubernatorial candidate Larry Elder a sellout?

Links

John's new New York Times newsletter

John’s piece, “The Performative Antiracism of Black Students at the U. of Wisconsin”

John’s piece, “Let’s talk about ‘Sellouts’”

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

Nikita Petrov — Psychedelic Economics Aug 30, 2021

Show notes

Here’s something different for you. In this episode of The Glenn Show, I sit down with artist, writer, and TGS Creative Director Nikita Petrov to discuss two fundamental questions: “What the hell is going on?” and “What is to be done?” If those questions sound both deep and broad, there might be a reason. They occurred to Nikita in the wake of a recent psychedelic experience. Not your typical TGS fare, to be sure!

The conversation begins with Nikita explaining what he’s learned from working with me and observing my relationships with others. I confirm his suspicions: I am in a very exciting and satisfying stage in my life and career. Nikita then goes on to describe the meditations on human interconnectedness he experienced during his trip. He wants to know: How can we tell a healthy connection from an unhealthy one? Can we formulate a theory as to how to make such a distinction? And how can we apply such a theory to my own present area of concern, the rise of CRT? I try to explain why I think CRT promotes “unhealthy” human connections, and why it risks shutting us off from the richness of human art, culture, thought, and knowledge. We then discuss the relationship between ideology and identity, and we find some parallels between Russian and African American history and politics. And finally, we try to get to the heart of what makes a “Glenn rant” a Glenn rant.

I’d love to know what you think. Let me know in the comments. And don’t forget to check out Nikita’s YouTube channel and his newsletter, Psychopolitica!

This post is free and available to the public. To receive early access to TGS episodes, Q&As, and other exclusive content and benefits, click below.

0:00 Glenn's book leave

1:45 A psychedelic experience inspires Nikita to talk to Glenn

16:23 Healthy vs. unhealthy human connection

23:12 Glenn: Critical race theory is “self-absorbed and small”

38:03 Rising above “sectarian obsession”

49:14 A brief history of Russian political infantilization

57:28 Is Glenn the Jimi Hendrix of ranting?

Links

Glenn’s conversation with Cornel West and Teodros Kiros

Cixin Liu, The Three-Body Problem

Irving Howe, A Margin of Hope: An Intellectual Autobiography

Nikita’s newsletter, Psychopolitica

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

John McWhorter — A Walk Down Memory Lane Aug 23, 2021

Show notes

Today, I’ve got a special treat for TGS fans: my first ever recorded conversation with John McWhorter, which occurred on (brace yourselves) November 7, 2007. People who started following John and me in recent years may not be aware of how long we’ve been at this, but it’s been almost 14 years.

As you might expect, while the topics we discuss are familiar, our positions relative to each other have changed. In 2007, I was clearly to John’s left! One thing that hasn’t changed is John’s superhuman productivity. He notes at the beginning that he is just finishing up writing two books.

We begin by talking about John’s gig as a columnist for the New York Sun. I put the screws to John and ask him in a purposefully un-nuanced way if he is a conservative, and he answers with a typically nuanced response. We discuss John’s then-recent resignation from UC-Berkeley (a very gutsy move) before moving on to broader concerns like globalization’s impact on the black working class, the prospects for cross-racial class solidarity, and how to address racial disparities in education in a more targeted fashion than simply crying “more funding.”

At the conversation’s end, we both remark on how much fun it was to talk with each other (even on ancient technology like John’s cordless phone). I’m happy to report that it’s still fun. And I am extremely curious to know what you all think about the differences and similarities between where we started and where we are today. Let me know in the comments!

This post is free and available to the public. To receive early access to TGS episodes, Q&As, and other exclusive content and benefits, click below.

0:00 A walk down memory lane

1:02 John's gig as a columnist

4:38 The black intellectual's challenge

17:17 John: There is life outside the academy

34:00 Disappearing factories and black poverty

40:53 Glenn calls for cross-racial working-class solidarity

51:39 Is unequal school funding a red herring?

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

Briahna Joy Gray — Are Disparities Caused by "Culture"? Aug 16, 2021

Show notes

Recently I had a rich, deep conversation with lawyer, Current Affairs contributing editor, and former Bernie Sanders National Press Secretary Briahna Joy Gray on her podcast Bad Faith. Briahna and I occupy very different ideological spaces, so I thought TGS viewers would be interested in watching the discussion. She has generously given me permission to share it here.

We begin by debating the possible causes of racial disparities and my own ideas about what we should do about it. More funding for social services is often floated as a possible remedy, but I have questions. This segues into a discussion of my essay “The Case for Black Patriotism.” Briahna asks whether my vision of patriotism necessarily entails a belief in American exceptionalism, and this leads into an exploration of capitalism and socialism more broadly. Finally, Briahna asks me a question that many people wonder about: Given my political views (and the fact that I’m not shy about proclaiming them into a microphone), how do my Bernie-supporting wife LaJuan and I keep the peace at home?

Briahna and I had a real debate here, but I was surprised by how many concerns we actually share. I hope you enjoy listening to the conversation as much as I enjoyed participating in it!

This post is free and available to the public. To receive early access to TGS episodes, Q&As, and other exclusive content and benefits, click below.

0:00 Intro

1:40 The bias narrative vs. the development narrative

7:02 What are the causes of “behavioral maladies” in black communities?

11:36 Will more funding for social services reduce violent crime?

20:37 Glenn: The clock is ticking for the least advantaged African Americans

31:44 Debating black patriotism

43:40 American exceptionalism and the dominance of capitalism

54:47 The necessary checks on capitalism

1:01:41 The call (from Bernie Sanders) is coming from inside the house

Links

Glenn’s essay, “The Bias Narrative vs. the Development Narrative”

Glenn’s essay, “The Case for Black Patriotism”

Nikole Hannah-Jones’ introduction to the 1619 Project

Nathan J. Robinson’s Current Affairs essay, “Why Critical Race Theory Should Be Taught in 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

John McWhorter — What’s “Systemic” about “Systemic Racism”? Aug 09, 2021

Show notes

On this edition of TGS, John McWhorter is back for one of our twice-monthly conversations. We take a long, critical look at the concept of "systemic racism"—what it is, what it isn't, and why it's become so popular in progressive discourses about race in the US.

We focus attention on institutions of higher education, drawing on our own experience to question whether this concept really applies at the elite institutions (Brown/Berkeley/Columbia) with which we have been associated. We open on a laconic note: neither of us were in the best of moods when we had this conversation. We close by inviting you to suggest topics for our future discussions that are, a) not about race, and, b) areas where John and I are likely to disagree. We hope you'll take us up on this!

This post is free and available to the public. To receive early access to TGS episodes, Q&As, and other exclusive content and benefits, click below.

0:00 Intro

2:19 Does systemic racism still exist in the US?

12:26 Addressing “racial inequities” rather than “systemic racism”

18:30 John: “The idea that modern colleges and universities are racist spaces is false”

29:18 Race and the academic job market

34:40 Why does anger persist even after progress toward racial redress?

44:57 The (possible) origins of the recent wokeness wave

52:55 Glenn and John agree to disagree

Links

Khalil Gibran Muhammad, The Condemnation of Blackness: Race, Crime, and the Making of Modern Urban America

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

Lara Bazelon — Parents, Children, and Systemic Racism Aug 02, 2021

Show notes

Above you’ll find my conversation with University of San Francisco law professor Lara Bazelon. She specializes in criminal law and has won exoneration for wrongfully convicted incarcerated people. We discuss systemic racism in the criminal justice system and debate the pros and cons of various reform efforts. We go into the details of Yutico Briley’s wrongful conviction case in which Lara and her sister Emily were involved (you can read Emily’s piece about it here). Then we shift gears and discuss the challenges of writing fiction. We talk about Lara’s absorbing new novel A Good Mother and my memoir-in-progress. These are pretty deep waters, as we reflect on how our writing has forced us to confront some hard questions about our roles as professionals and parents.

As always, I’m interested in your thoughts! Let me know in the comments!

This post is free and available to the public. To receive early access to TGS episodes, Q&As, and other exclusive content and benefits, click below.

0:00 How Glenn and Lara each approach systemic racism

6:46 Lara: The Yutico Briley case exposes the roots of systemic racism

17:32 Trying to understand the equities and inequities of crime and punishment

28:20 The differing perspectives on justice involved in the Briley case

34:44 Are progressive criminal justice policies having an impact?

46:16 Lara's new novel, A Good Mother

54:37 Glenn and Lara's experiences of parenthood

1:01:08 Why Glenn really left Harvard's economics department

1:05:16 Glenn's rocky road as a father

Links

Bari Weiss’ forum on systemic racism

Glenn’s book, Race, Incarceration, and American Values

Glenn’s “intellectual obituary” of James Q. Wilson

Lara’s novel, A Good Mother

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

Jason Riley and John McWhorter — The Life and Work of Thomas Sowell Jul 26, 2021

Show notes

This week John and I have something a little different for you: An interview with Wall Street Journal columnist and Manhattan Institute Senior Fellow Jason Riley about his recent book, Maverick: A Biography of Thomas Sowell. We discuss Sowell's ideas, their influence, and his place within the pantheon of American (and black America), intellectuals. Among his innumerable contributions, Sowell's books—especially A Conflict of Visions, Knowledge and Decisions, and Basic Economics—are a particular focus of this wide-ranging conversation. We also get into a broader discussion about black intellectuals, conservatism, and the academy.

And don’t worry, Substack subscribers, John and I will be posting our monthly Q&A later this week. Stay tuned!

As always, I’m curious to know what you think. Let me know here and on Discord.

0:00 Intro

1:10 Comparing the legacies of Thomas Sowell and George Schuyler

5:27 Making the case for Sowell’s significance

16:55 The task of the popularizer

23:55 Why Sowell’s book A Conflict of Visions is important

31:15 The norm of inter-group disparity

40:47 What happened to Glenn’s generation of heterodox Black intellectuals?

50:12 Why it’s hard to be a conservative in academia

59:54 Where is the left-wing critique of progressive racial politics?

Links

Jason’s book, Maverick: A Biography of Thomas Sowell

Sowell’s book, A Conflict of Visions: Ideological Origins of Political Struggle

Matt Taibbi and Katie Halper's talk with Adolph Reed

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

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