Offline with Jon Favreau

How often do you talk to someone you disagree with—not in a Twitter pile on, but face to face?  With Donald Trump’s inauguration fast approaching (plus holidays full of opinionated relatives), Jon sits down with Dave Isay, the founder of StoryCorps, to talk about the healing power of conversation. StoryCorps is a segment on NPR’s Morning Edition, a podcast and the largest single archive of personal narratives in the world. Since 2016, it’s also facilitated conversations between Republicans and Democrats as part of its One Small Step Initiative, and the results are surprisingly heartwarming. Jon and Dave talk about strategies to overcome political polarization, what we learn when we talk to strangers, and how to have productive conversations with people who disagree with you. For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email [email protected] and include the name of the podcast.

While Offline is on a break this week, enjoy some of the best moments from the Crooked subscription exclusive show Terminally Online. Listen to learn more than you ever needed to know about the nuanced art of Balkan breakfast, RFK’s horny TikTok history, the ghosts in Tucker Carlson’s bedroom, and the complex backstory of the Costco Guys.If you want more, head to Crooked.com/Friends and subscribe! You'll get Terminally Online and other subscriber shows, and it's the best way to support Crooked Media as we build an independent, progressive media company.

Jon got piled on last week for tweeting that activist groups have pushed the Democratic Party out of supermajority territory. Waleed Shahid, a progressive strategist who’s worked for Bernie Sanders, AOC, and Justice Democrats, joins the show for an offline version of his and Jon’s online debate. Waleed explains why he thinks the blame is misplaced, and Jon weighs in on who—or what—is behind Democratic leaders losing touch with their base. But first! Trump’s new head of the Federal Communications Commission, Brendan Carr, is a Project 2025 author. What does this mean for social media, free speech, and Elon Musk’s ventures? Plus, new exit polling shows late-deciding, swing voters had wildly inaccurate beliefs about Kamala Harris’s policy positions. Is hyper-targeted misinformation a permanent part of our electoral process now? For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email [email protected] and include the name of the podcast.

Somehow the interminable “who is the liberal Joe Rogan” debate is still raging a week after the election. Jeremiah Johnson, co-director of the Center for New Liberalism and author of the substack “Infinite Scroll” joins Offline to explain what the Rogan question gets wrong, how Democrats should expand their tent, and why we all need to stop scrolling and start making things. But first! BlueAnon is at it again. Jon and Max break down election conspiracy theories—this time from liberals—and walk through how Trump will approach AI, crypto, and TikTok as president. Then, Offline producers Austin Fisher and Emma Illick-Frank sit down with the guys to compare draft picks for the left’s Joe Rogan, and to youthsplain the internet’s best and brightest. For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email [email protected] and include the name of the podcast.