The Glenn Show

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit glennloury.substack.comSupport The Glenn Show at https://glennloury.substack.comIn this edition of the Q&A, Glenn and John take questions on MLK and white moderates, audience capture, civilian casualties in Gaza, "I have to do X" vs. "I get to do X," Trump's performance as president, the role of trustees and administration in determining university policy, and race and genes.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit glennloury.substack.comSubscribe to The Glenn Show at https://glennloury.substack.comThe livestreaming experiment continues here at TGS. I never know what’s going to come at me. I’m operating outside my comfort zone. Of course, that’s what makes it fun. The callers often ask me to weigh in on a whole range of subjects I’d never think up on my own, like embryo screening and the frustrations of Connecticut landlords. (And speaking of landlords, filmmaker and property owner Robert Spruill is back!) I have no meaningful knowledge in these areas, but now I get to learn a little about them, or at least think them through on the fly. Other topics, like Israel-Palestine, student debt, and election security, are more familiar. But I’m still never quite what kind of spin my callers will put on the ball.In other words, the calls are keeping me sharp and engaged. And I love getting to meet my audience in these brief encounters.But in order to keep this going, I need your help. Anybody can tune into our livestreams as they happen, and we’re making this one available to everyone, but normally if you’d like to watch the video later, you’ll need to become a full subscriber. The Glenn Show is almost entirely viewer supported, so to those of us who are already full subscribers, let me extend a heartfelt thank you. And if you’re not yet a full subscriber, please consider becoming one. The Glenn Show can only do what it does through the generosity of viewers and listeners. For a mere $6/month or $50/year, you’ll get weekly episodes of The Glenn Show earlier than their public release, monthly Q&A episodes with John McWhorter, access to the full Substack archives, and other exclusive bonus content. Subscribe at https://glennloury.substack.com

Support The Glenn Show at https://glennloury.substack.comThis episode was originally recorded for Danny and Derek's podcast American Prestige and cross posted here. Subscribe to American Prestige at https://americanprestige.supportingcast.fm/joinOrder Glenn's new book, Self-Censorship, here or where you get your books:Amazon: https://tinyurl.com/683p6kk3 Barnes & Noble: https://tinyurl.com/4yvz4fta Bookshop: https://tinyurl.com/44rznxwwVideo Links0:00 The origins of Self-Censorship4:11 Black and conservative in Reagan’s America8:30 The social science hall of fame12:45 Jews, assimilation, and the quantitative revolution17:56 Human universalism vs. ethno-national particularity21:42 Historicizing “the Jew”23:47 Danny: Larry Summers can’t see outside his own neoliberal paradigm27:50 Are we entering a period of, as Marx wrote, “mutual ruin”?30:46 Is capitalism leading us toward nuclear war?37:18 What the Manhattan Institute incident taught Glenn about his own book42:02 Glenn: “I’m rethinking everything”46:40 Is the right reverting to a pre-New Deal political paradigm?51:37 Is Israel a reversion to an Early Modern model of nation-building?58:07 American Jews’s role in Israel’s creation and perpetuation1:03:04 Why Glenn previously censored himself on Gaza1:09:30 Glenn: So far, I’m disappointed in TrumpRecorded August 6, 2025Links and ReadingsDanny and Derek’s podcast, American PrestigeGlenn’s new book, Self-CensorshipJohn Murray Cuddihy’s book, The Ordeal of Civility: Freud, Marx, Lévi-Strauss, and the Jewish Struggle with ModernityCorey Robin’s book, The Enigma of Clarence ThomasGlenn’s City Journal essay, “Clarence Thomas and Me”Seth Schwartz’s book, The Ancient Jews from Alexander to MuhamadOmar El Akkad’s book, One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against ThisGlenn’s post, “I Was Fired by the Manhattan Institute. Here’s Why.”Ta-Nehisi Coates’s book, The MessageSam Gindin and Leo Panitch’s book, The Making of Global Capitalism: The Political Economy of American EmpireAvi Shlaim’s book, Genocide in Gaza: Israel, Hamas, and the Long War on PalestinePeter Beinart’s book, Being Jewish after the Destruction of Gaza: A ReckoningGlenn’s conversation with Beinart This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit glennloury.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit glennloury.substack.comSupport The Glenn Show at https://glennloury.substack.comIn our latest livestream, TGS editor Mark Sussman and I discuss Michel Houellebecq's 2015 novel Submission and its rather unpleasant but compelling critique of modern existence, after which we take questions from viewers and callers. We get into some unexpected territory, like life after death (I don’t believe in it), the existence of alien intelligence (it seems probable to me), and psychedelics (that one’s on Mark). I’m truly enjoying these face-to-face conversations with viewers, and I encourage everyone who can call in to do so on our next stream.Anybody can tune into our livestreams as they happen, and we’re making this one available to everyone, but normally if you’d like to watch the video later, you’ll need to become a full subscriber. The Glenn Show is almost entirely viewer supported, so to those of us who are already full subscribers, let me extend a heartfelt thank you. And if you’re not yet a full subscriber, please consider becoming one. The Glenn Show can only do what it does through the generosity of viewers and listeners. For a mere $6/month or $50/year, you’ll get weekly episodes of The Glenn Show earlier than their public release, monthly Q&A episodes with John McWhorter, access to the full Substack archives, and other exclusive bonus content.Subscribe at https://glennloury.substack.com

Support The Glenn Show at https://glennloury.substack.comVideo Links0:00 John: Not all of Trump’s demands on Columbia are crazy 3:45 Are the accusations of antisemitism at Columbia apt? 12:43 Ground News ad 14:22 The shifting public perception of the humanitarian crisis in Gaza 24:30 The historical legacy of Gaza’s starvation 27:40 Glenn: There are ways to destroy Israel without an army 32:21 The lull in American race politics 38:22 Has the race debate devolved to Sidney Sweeney’s jeans? 47:27 John’s theory of violent crime among black youthsRecorded August 5, 2025Links and ReadingsJohn’s April 23, 2024 NYT column, “I’m a Columbia Professor. The Protests on My Campus Are Not Justice.”Peter Beinart’s book, Being Jewish after the Destruction of Gaza: A ReckoningGlenn’s conversation with BeinartTa-Nehisi Coates’s book, Between the World and MeCourtney Moorehead Balaker and Ted Balaker’s documentary, The Coddling of the American MindSidney Sweeney’s American Eagle adJohn’s NYT column, “Do These Jeans Make My Ads Look Racist?”Glenn and John’s conversation with Randall KennedyGlenn and John’s conversation with Keith EllisonThomas Sowell’s book, Black Rednecks & White Liberals This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit glennloury.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit glennloury.substack.comSupport The Glenn Show at https://glennloury.substack.comOrder Self-Censorship here or wherever you get your books:Amazon: https://tinyurl.com/683p6kk3 Barnes & Noble: https://tinyurl.com/4yvz4fta Bookshop: https://tinyurl.com/44rznxwwIn this conversation, my editor Mark Sussman and I discuss Kamala Harris’s forthcoming book, 107 Days, and the dire state of publishing. I’ve been reading a lot of Thomas Sowell in preparation for a major address I have to deliver about his work in the Fall, and I suggest that Sowell might say that the declining profitability of writing and publishing might well be a good thing, insofar as it signals the market’s responsiveness to consumer demand and desire. This leads to a debate about the distinction (and perhaps the conflict) between aesthetic and economic value. Then it’s on to a broader discussion of Sowell. Next we move onto the story of a group of people establishing a Christian, LGBTQ-free, whites-only community in Arkansas. We close out with viewer questions about Brown University’s deal with the Trump administration, which somehow leads to a debate about climate science and the epistemological limitations of modernity. And finally, an evergreen topic: black patriotism.In the course of this conversation, Mark and I reference Michel Houellebecq’s 2015 novel, Submission. That’s because we plan to discuss the book on our next livestream, which we’ll announce in the coming days. So if you want to participate in the discussion or simply follow along, read the book. We’ll be taking calls, and I’m very curious what you all have to think of this brilliant, provocative, and (be warned) sexually explicit book.Anybody can tune into our livestreams as they happen, and we’re making this one available to everyone, but normally if you’d like to watch the video later, you’ll need to become a full subscriber. The Glenn Show is almost entirely viewer supported, so to those of us who are already full subscribers, let me extend a heartfelt thank you. And if you’re not yet a full subscriber, please consider becoming one. The Glenn Show can only do what it does through the generosity of viewers and listeners. For a mere $6/month or $50/year, you’ll get weekly episodes of The Glenn Show earlier than their public release, monthly Q&A episodes with John McWhorter, access to the full Substack archives, and other exclusive bonus content.

Support The Glenn Show at https://glennloury.substack.comVideo Links0:00 Columbia’s $221 million-deal with the Trump administration4:11 Rajiv: The charges about antisemitism at Columbia are mostly pretextual13:34 How is Columbia’s resolution monitor going to assess merit in admissions?25:31 What really matters in college admissions?29:47 Why Brown’s agreement differs from Columbia’s34:16 Rajiv: If the Trump administration wants to destroy universities, it has the resources to do it40:07 Is Columbia’s Middle East Studies department cooked?43:15 Free speech is dying in universities and flourishing on podcasts (and Substack)50:19 Is a full-scale antisemitic backlash on the way?55:25 The question of genocide59:45 The Gaza War’s historical legacyRecorded August 1, 2025Links and ReadingsRajiv’s post, “The Columbia Deal” at Imperfect InformationRashid Khalidi’s open letter announcing the withdrawal of his courseKhalidi’s book The Hundred Years’ War on Palestine: A History of Settler Colonialism and Resistance, 1917-2017Roland Fryer’s WSJ piece, “DEI Is Worth Saving from Its Excesses” Glenn’s new book, Self-CensorshipColin Wright’s WSJ piece, “Cornell University Discriminated against Me”Dave Smith and Douglas Murray on the Joe Rogan ExperienceGreen Beret vet Tony Aguilar on the Tucker Carlson ShowIsraeli journalist Emmanuelle Elbaz-Phelps speaks with The Daily about starvation in GazaAvi Shlaim’s book, Genocide in Gaza: Israel, Hamas, and the Long War on PalestineOmer Bartov’s NYT piece, “I’m a Genocide Scholar. I Know It When I See It.” This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit glennloury.substack.com/subscribe

Support The Glenn Show at https://glennloury.substack.comIn lieu of a regular episode this week, I’m presenting a version of our latest livestream. Last week we debuted what I hope will be an ongoing feature of these livestreams: viewer call-ins. Nikita has been working on setting this up for a while now, and as you’ll see, we’ve still got some kinks to work out. We were able to take a number of calls from viewers, and on that score, this experiment was a resounding success.Anybody can tune into our livestreams as they happen, and we’re making this one available to everyone, but normally if you’d like to watch the video later, you’ll need to become a full subscriber. The Glenn Show is almost entirely viewer supported, so to those of us who are already full subscribers, let me extend a heartfelt thank you. And if you’re not yet a full subscriber, please consider becoming one. The Glenn Show can only do what it does through the generosity of viewers and listeners. For a mere $6/month or $50/year, you’ll get weekly episodes of The Glenn Show earlier than their public release, monthly Q&A episodes with John McWhorter, access to the full Substack archives, and other exclusive bonus content.Become a full subscriber at https://glennloury.substack.com This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit glennloury.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit glennloury.substack.comIt’s the middle of the summer, it’s hot, and John McWhorter and I are back for another Substack subscriber only Q&A session. In this episode, we take questions about leadership in the black community, critical listening, Percival Everett's novel James, immigration, white women studying black women's history, right-wing identity politics, and the Free Press.The Glenn Show is supported by listeners like you. To watch and listen to the full version of this episode and get all kinds of other benefits, become a full subscriber at https://glennloury.substack.com.

Support The Glenn Show at https://glennloury.substack.comVideo Links0:00 Glenn and Cornel’s early correspondence 2:20 Cornel: “Brother Glenn ain’t never been just a black conservative” 9:34 Ground News ad 11:10 One-eyed and two-eyed reason 19:33 The Loury family legacy 25:01 Does race still matter? 34:32 The black intellectual in a declining empire 45:56 Keeping nihilism at bay in the black community 51:42 Keep the funk, and die with a smile on your face 55:40 The Democratic Party plantationRecorded July 18, 2025Links and ReadingsGlenn’s memoir, Late Admissions: Confessions of a Black ConservativeToni Morrison’s book, The Source of Self-Regard: Selected Essays, Speeches, and MeditationsRalph Ellison’s book, Shadow and ActThomas Sowell’s book, The Conflict of Visions: Ideological Origins of Political StruggleCornel’s book, Race MattersTa-Nehisi Coates’s book, The MessageCornel’s book, Democracy Matters: Winning the Fight against ImperialismTa-Nehisi Coates’s book, We Were Eight Years in Power: An American TragedyColeman Hughes’s book, The End of Race Politics: Arguments for a Colorblind AmericaMahalia Jackson’s rendition of Clara Ward’s, “How I Got Over”John Coltrane’s album, A Love SupremeNiall Ferguson’s book, Colossus: The Rise and Fall of the American EmpireGlenn’s book, Race, Incarceration, and American ValuesFyodor Dostoevsky’s novel, The Brother’s KaramazovJoseph Conrad’s novel, Victory: An Island TaleCornel’s 2024 Gifford Lectures This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit glennloury.substack.com/subscribe