"We experimented with a limited-run (and sadly discontinued!) sidebar historical series;" Well, drat! That series was the one that finally got me to get off my cheap ass and start paying.
I was confused why I didn’t hear about the next episode. I hope it didn’t have to do with listeners tuning in… you don’t focus on that detail when there is only ONE semiquincentennial… please get her going… they are glorious.
Your historian interviews, and Moynihan's older ones, are some of my favorite episodes in the history of the pod. I've loved the increase in interviews but would like more of that kind of deep dive material
I apologize for everything I’ve said, done, and will say in the future. Congrats on the new heights and thank you for the updates and the experiments, and for caring.
I’ve only ever suggested video in one email about distribution and growth well after you had it in the works I think.
I’m an audio man.
My father was an audio man and his father before him.
Oddly his father’s father was shot before radio was available for lodging too many complaints against the village accordion player…
I appreciate you guys having guests on. But I am all for a guestless episode every week. Those are what convinced me to become a paying subscriber. Thank you Matt!
I'm surprised you get so many complaints. I think y'all are killing it. Keep up the good work. You guys and Blocked and Reported are only two podcasts I'd never cancel. Listening to smart, funny people talk about interesting topics is invaluable to me.
I appreciate all the hard work you all put into this endeavor. We see all the other things you are doing outside of this and still you put in the work to research your guests and be on your toes to ask meaningful questions (even if their responses suck).
You’ve built an amazing community (which can be fickle at times) but only because they have high expectations. Unfortunately you can’t please everyone, and the balancing act that your team has to do is challenging.
As a listener since Ep 1 when you all were figuring out how long you were going to make episodes “on the air”, it’s always a learning experience. As long as you stay true to yourselves and your core beliefs, I’m here to now watch you grow into your own and evolve as the climate around you changes.
But I think inquiring minds want to know since Michael let it slip an episode or two ago, are you still a media literacy podcast or have you made the transition to a political podcast? 🤔
Again, I appreciate you all. Thank you for the past decade, you all are amazing.
You guys are the best! Even when you bring on the dregs like Szeps. And, as a Jew with an unhealthy obsession for white nationalist films and documentaries, I can say Romper Stomper is one of the greats of the genre.
When it comes to guests, I have a very minor complaint:
Please, please, _please_ do a more consistent job introducing your guests, including what the most likely vector for us to know the person through. Especially as you expand out into a wider range of folks. It was probably half way into the Mark Harmon episode before I figured out who the heck it was.
It's not the worst thing in the world; it was an interesting enjoyable interview either way. But still.
-edit- it occurred to me that, as a die hard audio-only listener, maybe this a me problem, and you video folks out there, with the benefit of seeing the person, have an easier time. I certainly would have recognized that face, had I seen it.
This reminds me why Matt is the superego of the podcast (with Kmele as the ego and Moynihan the pure embodiment of the id).
Much appreciated on the state o’ the pod assessment Matt! And Im so excited about having more guestless episodes in the future. I have really enjoyed the interviews, but I miss the “three friends talking about shit” vibe that made me fall in love with TFC on day 1. Any chance y’all can bring back the Stupid Table for a limited run this summer?
Can I suggest another experiment? Listener questions for guests! Tyler Cowen does it and sometimes gets some good ones. You'd have to ruin the surprise by telling us who you've booked but you could limit it to paid subscribers (or NFC-only, sorry economy-plus subscribers) with <24 hours notice.
The Bharara interview: I was struck by how lame his response to the line of questioning about the gag order was. He said that they couldn't just let threats to a judge go unheeded. That justifies trying to unmask the commentators, perhaps - but not gagging Reason!
Do I remember correctly that Ken "Popehat" White eventually played a role in that story getting out? Times have changed.
Favorite recent guest: Sarah Isgur. Would love to listen to her on the show again.
Funny that it’s state of the union time. I was just thinking to myself that this year’s complaints are the opposite of last year. I second McWaters, send the history series back to the lab and give us more. I’m excited to see what the next year brings.
I saw Rollins in...gosh, had to be 1996, at the Monterey Jazz Festival. RIP, my man.
Also, I like the history stuff. Would love Michael to do one on...well frankly, just all things Germany from pre-WWI through WWII. He could cover everything from Nazi regalia to why folks were hell-bent pre-WWI to GTF out of Germany (my ancestors included). That would be a fun listen.
In view of the recent push by some on the anti-Israel left to try to rehabilitate the Jewish Bund of Eastern Europe as an alternative to Zionism, maybe a guest to discuss that. One would have thought that the concept of the Bund would have been buried in the ashes of WW2, it is being resurrected by the usual suspects.
I find it "Odd" that you are losing subscribers. I am only on year 2 of subscription (several months of freeloading prior) Did I miss something on the earlier shows that you have now pivoted from so much that what I have been experiencing is "New"? You all seem pretty consistent to me. I have left many a Pods in the last months due to hosts just being looney (and not in the fun Beautiful GF that gets you into situations type of looney) but interesting types who have become dullards (Sullivan) (and recently being kicked off one for pointing out the ridiculousness of 1 hosts diatribe) You guys have done nothing but gotten better, you introduce me to people I walk away loathing and some admiring (Well thats a bit strong) But this show is the one I am regular with , just gets better. Just this week you brought in some real "Winners" and ended with Josh who always makes for a great show. I dunno, I don't try and figure people out anymore (the outrage over the ads thing was weird), like Bukowski stated ""People, they are constantly angered by trivial things, but on a major matter like totally wasting their lives, they hardly seem to notice." I'm so "Bright that recently discovered I was paying for 2 subs to this channel so what do I know... 1 dog looking over there the other over there and this guys like "whadda ya want from me". I Don't paint anymore pictures. On another note I saw you back in the old studio today, was hoping the swanky Playboy After Dark type set was going to be your new.
if i remember correctly, moynihan mentioned on jonah goldberg's show that, when trump was elected, you had a subscriber dip, apparently because a lot of republican-ish types suddenly found that you were no nicer to trump than you were to biden. do i have that right?
Causation is always an inexact science. But numbers started going down in December 2024. There's always an amount of customer-grumbling when the White House changes hands (this is even more true over at Reason), but I don't see a similar drop after the 2020 election.
If I were a bettin' man, I'd say that it's less about the shift in what the boys are doing and more about the lack of camaraderie in the chat space. Some might blame the boys, but when shit grows, the familial vibes tend to go by the wayside. Not their fault or problem - it's a free-market approach, and maybe that part will work itself out.
The chat has always been a dysfunctional family but it has gotten quite unpleasant and ragey on occasion recently. I still love it, but there are certain subthreads I won’t touch with a ten foot pole…
I had never visited the "Chat" before this month, I just saw the comments here (and on the YouTube vid they release) and those are usually few and some disagreements pointed out and other basic convo's but the Chat is a whole other place. Don't think I need to send time there, its there and its there if I want to attend but I agree has nothing to do with the Fella's and not sure why someone would consider dropping the show because of a area they have no control over (Except to terminate it I suppose, that would cause even more troubles I assume).
It’s nice to know you take your listeners’ opinions to heart. If we didn’t love you guys, we wouldn’t have so many opinions. ❤️
"We experimented with a limited-run (and sadly discontinued!) sidebar historical series;" Well, drat! That series was the one that finally got me to get off my cheap ass and start paying.
Yeah, I’m sad to learn that; I was actually really enjoying it. Particularly Matt’s “Early American history was _weird_ take”
I was confused why I didn’t hear about the next episode. I hope it didn’t have to do with listeners tuning in… you don’t focus on that detail when there is only ONE semiquincentennial… please get her going… they are glorious.
This series was great, and you should definitely think again about cancelling it.
Sorry! Experimentation is unpredictable!
I think you need to go back to the lab on that one
Your historian interviews, and Moynihan's older ones, are some of my favorite episodes in the history of the pod. I've loved the increase in interviews but would like more of that kind of deep dive material
I apologize for everything I’ve said, done, and will say in the future. Congrats on the new heights and thank you for the updates and the experiments, and for caring.
I’ve only ever suggested video in one email about distribution and growth well after you had it in the works I think.
I’m an audio man.
My father was an audio man and his father before him.
Oddly his father’s father was shot before radio was available for lodging too many complaints against the village accordion player…
I appreciate you guys having guests on. But I am all for a guestless episode every week. Those are what convinced me to become a paying subscriber. Thank you Matt!
I'm surprised you get so many complaints. I think y'all are killing it. Keep up the good work. You guys and Blocked and Reported are only two podcasts I'd never cancel. Listening to smart, funny people talk about interesting topics is invaluable to me.
You honor me Matt. 🫡
I appreciate all the hard work you all put into this endeavor. We see all the other things you are doing outside of this and still you put in the work to research your guests and be on your toes to ask meaningful questions (even if their responses suck).
You’ve built an amazing community (which can be fickle at times) but only because they have high expectations. Unfortunately you can’t please everyone, and the balancing act that your team has to do is challenging.
As a listener since Ep 1 when you all were figuring out how long you were going to make episodes “on the air”, it’s always a learning experience. As long as you stay true to yourselves and your core beliefs, I’m here to now watch you grow into your own and evolve as the climate around you changes.
But I think inquiring minds want to know since Michael let it slip an episode or two ago, are you still a media literacy podcast or have you made the transition to a political podcast? 🤔
Again, I appreciate you all. Thank you for the past decade, you all are amazing.
You guys are the best! Even when you bring on the dregs like Szeps. And, as a Jew with an unhealthy obsession for white nationalist films and documentaries, I can say Romper Stomper is one of the greats of the genre.
ditto; that is a great movie
When it comes to guests, I have a very minor complaint:
Please, please, _please_ do a more consistent job introducing your guests, including what the most likely vector for us to know the person through. Especially as you expand out into a wider range of folks. It was probably half way into the Mark Harmon episode before I figured out who the heck it was.
It's not the worst thing in the world; it was an interesting enjoyable interview either way. But still.
-edit- it occurred to me that, as a die hard audio-only listener, maybe this a me problem, and you video folks out there, with the benefit of seeing the person, have an easier time. I certainly would have recognized that face, had I seen it.
Introduce the guests you fucking drunks!
This reminds me why Matt is the superego of the podcast (with Kmele as the ego and Moynihan the pure embodiment of the id).
Much appreciated on the state o’ the pod assessment Matt! And Im so excited about having more guestless episodes in the future. I have really enjoyed the interviews, but I miss the “three friends talking about shit” vibe that made me fall in love with TFC on day 1. Any chance y’all can bring back the Stupid Table for a limited run this summer?
We were just reminiscing about the Stupid Table yesterday with Josh-O!
Matt can we bring back the mail bag? It’s been awhile. I love reading what the other listeners have to say.
Yeah, I’ve been remiss.
Can I suggest another experiment? Listener questions for guests! Tyler Cowen does it and sometimes gets some good ones. You'd have to ruin the surprise by telling us who you've booked but you could limit it to paid subscribers (or NFC-only, sorry economy-plus subscribers) with <24 hours notice.
The Bharara interview: I was struck by how lame his response to the line of questioning about the gag order was. He said that they couldn't just let threats to a judge go unheeded. That justifies trying to unmask the commentators, perhaps - but not gagging Reason!
Do I remember correctly that Ken "Popehat" White eventually played a role in that story getting out? Times have changed.
Favorite recent guest: Sarah Isgur. Would love to listen to her on the show again.
You do remember correctly!
https://reason.com/2015/07/12/reasons-subpoena-popehat/
Funny that it’s state of the union time. I was just thinking to myself that this year’s complaints are the opposite of last year. I second McWaters, send the history series back to the lab and give us more. I’m excited to see what the next year brings.
I saw Rollins in...gosh, had to be 1996, at the Monterey Jazz Festival. RIP, my man.
Also, I like the history stuff. Would love Michael to do one on...well frankly, just all things Germany from pre-WWI through WWII. He could cover everything from Nazi regalia to why folks were hell-bent pre-WWI to GTF out of Germany (my ancestors included). That would be a fun listen.
In view of the recent push by some on the anti-Israel left to try to rehabilitate the Jewish Bund of Eastern Europe as an alternative to Zionism, maybe a guest to discuss that. One would have thought that the concept of the Bund would have been buried in the ashes of WW2, it is being resurrected by the usual suspects.
I find it "Odd" that you are losing subscribers. I am only on year 2 of subscription (several months of freeloading prior) Did I miss something on the earlier shows that you have now pivoted from so much that what I have been experiencing is "New"? You all seem pretty consistent to me. I have left many a Pods in the last months due to hosts just being looney (and not in the fun Beautiful GF that gets you into situations type of looney) but interesting types who have become dullards (Sullivan) (and recently being kicked off one for pointing out the ridiculousness of 1 hosts diatribe) You guys have done nothing but gotten better, you introduce me to people I walk away loathing and some admiring (Well thats a bit strong) But this show is the one I am regular with , just gets better. Just this week you brought in some real "Winners" and ended with Josh who always makes for a great show. I dunno, I don't try and figure people out anymore (the outrage over the ads thing was weird), like Bukowski stated ""People, they are constantly angered by trivial things, but on a major matter like totally wasting their lives, they hardly seem to notice." I'm so "Bright that recently discovered I was paying for 2 subs to this channel so what do I know... 1 dog looking over there the other over there and this guys like "whadda ya want from me". I Don't paint anymore pictures. On another note I saw you back in the old studio today, was hoping the swanky Playboy After Dark type set was going to be your new.
As referenced, our paid subs are at an all-time high! But, it’s annual-renewal season….
if i remember correctly, moynihan mentioned on jonah goldberg's show that, when trump was elected, you had a subscriber dip, apparently because a lot of republican-ish types suddenly found that you were no nicer to trump than you were to biden. do i have that right?
Causation is always an inexact science. But numbers started going down in December 2024. There's always an amount of customer-grumbling when the White House changes hands (this is even more true over at Reason), but I don't see a similar drop after the 2020 election.
Ah great, as stated above, not that bright I am, the subs might go down a "Tick" as I don't plan on paying for 2 subs again.
If I were a bettin' man, I'd say that it's less about the shift in what the boys are doing and more about the lack of camaraderie in the chat space. Some might blame the boys, but when shit grows, the familial vibes tend to go by the wayside. Not their fault or problem - it's a free-market approach, and maybe that part will work itself out.
The chat has always been a dysfunctional family but it has gotten quite unpleasant and ragey on occasion recently. I still love it, but there are certain subthreads I won’t touch with a ten foot pole…
I had never visited the "Chat" before this month, I just saw the comments here (and on the YouTube vid they release) and those are usually few and some disagreements pointed out and other basic convo's but the Chat is a whole other place. Don't think I need to send time there, its there and its there if I want to attend but I agree has nothing to do with the Fella's and not sure why someone would consider dropping the show because of a area they have no control over (Except to terminate it I suppose, that would cause even more troubles I assume).
Subscriber for life. You could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody, and I wouldn't unsubscribe.