Ellison’s Playbook & NFL’s $100B Bonanza

Julia Ioffe joins Peter to discuss the tragic killing of Alex Pretti in Minneapolis, the growing shift in American public opinion against ICE, and why even Republicans are beginning to push back on Trump’s deportation war. She also breaks down Trump’s Greenland gambit—what he stood to gain, and what it means after the president claimed victory in Davos by touting a new U.S. deal granting access to the Arctic territory. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

27 Jan 28min

Amid the snow and the football, Jon Kelly and Peter Hamby reunite for a spirited conversation about the most riveting questions in the media firmament. Can Bari Weiss outflank her proliferating player haters inside CBS following the ‘60 Minutes’ scandalette? And will Amazon Prime’s Melania movie reach its audience of one? To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

26 Jan 21min

NCAA president Charlie Baker joins John to confront the growing sense that college sports are in troubled waters. Baker breaks down the chaos of the transfer portal, the accelerated professionalization of college athletics, and why Congress may need to step in to impose uniform eligibility rules. He also discusses the NCAA’s media rights deal with ESPN, makes the case for expanding March Madness, and much more. For more great episodes of The Varsity, click here To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

24 Jan 47min

Ian Krietzberg joins Peter to discuss the mounting controversies surrounding X’s A.I. assistant Grok, which has been accused of generating non-consensual sexualized images of women—and why lawsuits against Elon Musk’s A.I. ventures are all but inevitable at this point. Ian also charts the soaring popularity of Anthropic’s new coding tool, Claude Code, and whether software engineers should begin planning to make a career pivot as the user-friendly tool is sure to spark fresh fears about A.I.’s impact on real-life jobs. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

23 Jan 24min

Leigh Ann Caldwell joins Peter to break down a rare moment of Republican relief, as Trump signals a diplomatic exit from the Greenland standoff after weeks of saber-rattling toward NATO allies. They also discuss the growing talk of impeaching DHS secretary Kristi Noem over her management of ICE—and why the threat carries more weight than it might appear. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

22 Jan 21min

Dylan Byers joins Peter for a clear-eyed look at the scrutiny facing Bari Weiss’s leadership at CBS News—what her critics are getting right, what they’re missing, and whether she can recover from an increasingly rocky start. Then they game out the Politico succession, and why Axel Springer might favor an external hire to revitalize the business. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

21 Jan 20min

Abby Livingston joins Peter for a close look at Minnesota’s political landscape as the state once again lands at the center of the national drama—this time as ground zero for Trump’s immigration crackdown. They examine Tim Walz’s exit, Amy Klobuchar’s ambitions, and a suddenly fierce Democratic Senate primary now being reshaped by immigration politics. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

20 Jan 22min

Jon Kelly returns for a special episode to unpack the meaningful, if unsurprising, leadership change at Politico and contemplate what it suggests about parentco Axel Springer’s ambitions. Then he and Peter weigh in on the latest Bari Weiss discourse. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

19 Jan 18min