Weekly Roundup: A Battle of Fonts and Freedoms: Analyzing Trump’s Authoritarianism and Growing Unpopularity
Brad and Dan return to unpack another week of chaos, contradictions, and creeping authoritarianism in American politics. They open with what seems like a small story but carries outsized symbolic weight: the State Department’s decision to ditch Calibri and return to Times New Roman. It’s a font change driven not by aesthetics but by politics, […]
Special Episode: When We All Get to Heaven Ep 1
In this special episode of ‘Straight White American Jesus,’ the host introduces the podcast series ‘When We All Get To Heaven,’ which chronicles the history of the Metropolitan Community Church of San Francisco during the AIDS epidemic. The series, produced by Lynn Gerber and available on Slate, uses an archive of 1200 cassette tape recordings […]
It’s in the Code ep 172: “Projecting Enemies”
Josh Hawley argues that “man’s mission” is to combat evil. Defining men in this way makes evil necessary, and it transforms every political, social, and cultural disagreement into a moral conflict of cosmic significance. In this episode, Dan shows how this leads Hawley to distort the “modern culture” and “liberals” he opposes. He also looks […]
042: Committing War Crimes for God
You’ve heard a lot about WHAT Pete Hegesth is doing in the Caribbean and whether it amounts to war crimes; but nobody’s talking about WHY. Why are Trump, Hegesth, and others in this regime so willing to thumb their nose at things like the Geneva Conventions? Why are they willing to even come close to […]
Olivia Nuzzi, Mormon Wives, and the Death of Democracy
Brad is joined by Alan Elrod, CEO and founder of the Pulaski Institute, for a wide-ranging conversation about what happens to democracy when entertainment values replace empathy. They start with the Olivia Nuzzi scandal and what it exposes about journalistic ethics, voyeurism, and the public’s fascination with watching someone fall apart in real time. From […]
Chris Dileo on Meet Your Maker
In this episode of Horror Joy’ Meet Your Maker series, Jeff and Brian welcome author Chris Dileo to discuss his new book, Empty Devils (Cabelo Books, 2025), and his deeply personal relationship with horror. Dileo emphasizes that reading is a process of cooperation between the reader’s imagination and the writer’s world. He discusses how he […]
Weekly Roundup: Cultural Crusades: From Hegseth’s Boat Attacks to Oklahoma’s Classrooms
Brad and Dan return with a packed Weekly Roundup that cuts through the noise of culture war headlines to get at what is really happening in American politics and religion this week. They start with the bizarre story dominating Congress: alleged Venezuelan narco boats, U.S. military strikes, and the growing scrutiny around Pete Hegseth’s involvement. […]
It’s in the Code ep 171: “A Man Like God”
Josh Hawley builds his account on masculinity and manhood on the idea that men are created in God’s image and, as such, are his representatives on earth. But what is Hawley’s God like? What kind of God does Hawley worship? Who is this God that is the pattern for human manhood? In this episode, Dan […]
041: Yes, Die Hard is a Christmas Movie, says a scholar of religion and the law
Andrew settles the debate once and for all, yes, Die Hard is a Christmas movie. Things are dark, especially this time of year. So enjoy a little lighthearted fun as Andrew takes you behind the scenes of this debate and then wins it. This isn’t some some clickbait bandwagon episode. Andrew been having this argument […]
National Guard Shooting Reveals the Right’s Dangerous Western Supremacy
Brad takes a hard look at the American right’s response to the recent shooting of two National Guardsmen in Washington, DC, and shows how the rhetoric around the tragedy signals a shift from overt Christian nationalism to something even broader and more dangerous: Western supremacy. He traces how this worldview draws from older ideas about […]