The Made-for-TV President
Antiheroes are great TV characters, but terrible real-world leaders.
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Episode Notes
On The Gist, Bolton is out.
In the interview, New York Times TV critic James Poniewozik is here to talk about his new book about Trump and television. He and Mike discuss how the increasing variety of television networks and the boom of reality TV led to Trump, and his similarities to the classic antihero trope. Poniewozik’s new book is Audience of One: Donald Trump, Television, and the Fracturing of America.
In the Spiel, mass shootings and mental health.
Email us at thegist@slate.com.
Podcast production by Daniel Schroeder and Pierre Bienaimé.
See The Gist live!
What’s so funny about comedy, anyway? Join Mike Pesca as he answers that for you LIVE. And he won’t be doing it alone! He’ll have actual comedians—Hari Kondabolu! Marina Franklin! Khalid Rahmaan!—by his side to discuss the ongoing changes in the business of making people laugh.
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