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.comThis month, John and I tackle questions about grade inflation, the Great Courses, Chapt GPT, race and public art, Ta-Nehisi Coates on Palestine, the end of race-based affirmative action, Trump, Christopher Rufo, and my most recent appearance on the Tucker Carlson Show.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.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit glennloury.substack.comSupport The Glenn Show at https://glennloury.substack.comLast week, I did my second ever livestream, this time with my editor here at the Substack, Mark Sussman. We covered a lot of ground: self-censorship in both intimate and public settings, the golden age of MIT, the death of the influential economist Stanley Fischer, political correctness then and now, the use of the term “blood libel,” immigration, labor disputes and anti-trust in the tech industry, and class-based affirmative action.Full subscribers have access to the full audio and video of this recording. We at The Glenn Show rely on the generosity and support of our subscribers. So if you’re already a subscriber, thank you for all you do. And if you’re not one, consider becoming one. It’s about the cost of one beer a month, and less than that if you purchase a full year’s subscription. Sign up at https://glennloury.substack.com

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit glennloury.substack.comLast week we tried something new at TGS. I had a conversation with my lovely wife, LaJuan Loury, and my creative director, Nikita Petrov, live on three platforms at the same time: the TGS Youtube channel, the TGS Substack, and on Nikita’s Substack, Psychopolitica. We went for two hours and covered a lot of ground: LaJuan and I reported on our visit to Tucker Carlson’s “barn” in Maine, and I speculated about why LaJuan and Tucker, contrary to my expectations, really hit it off. LaJuan spoke a bit about her religious upbringing, we reminisced about where The Glenn Show was four years ago, when Nikita and I started working together, and we tried to assess how we fit into the very different political and media landscape of 2025, which required us to first discuss how we see this said landscape. We capped it off with a short Q&A at the end, where we responded to questions asked during the stream.I should also mention the conversation includes some very raw and emotional moments, especially when we discuss the dire situation in Gaza.The experiment continues! I’ll be livestreaming again this Thursday, June 12, at 6:00 PM Eastern on YouTube and Substack. This time I’ll be joined by my editor, Mark Sussman. Planned topics include my forthcoming book Self-Censorship, the future of elite universities, how to get proactive on racial disparities in the wake of affirmative action and DEI rollbacks, faith and reason, and the recent death of Stanley Fischer, an economist I got to know back in MIT days. But it’s a live conversation—you never know what’s going to happen or what we’ll end up talking about.The button below allow you to add the Substack version to you calendar:And if you navigate to the YouTube page of the stream, you can add a notification to alert you when the stream starts:

Support The Glenn Show at https://glennloury.substack.comThe Glenn Show will be taking a pause in the month of June. In this brief episode, Glenn explains why. 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.comVideo Links0:00 Intro 1:25 The response to Glenn’s appearance on Tucker Carlson’s show 4:03 Are institutions like the University of Austin the future of higher ed? 11:31 Ground News ad 13:14 When social justice musicology came for John’s syllabus 17:42 What role should social justice play in academic study? 28:40 John’s trip to the National Museum of African American History and Culture 35:50 Will the museum survive Trump’s assault on DEI? 44:47 Are Glenn and John complicit in anti-DEI overreach? 55:30 The racial animus question in anti-DEI reformRecorded on May 21, 2025Links and ReadingsGlenn’s recent appearance on Tucker Carlson’s showThe Chronicle of Higher Education’s interview with GlennGlenn’s forthcoming book, Self-CensorshipGlenn’s memoir, Late Admissions: Confessions of a Black ConservativeJohn’s conversation with actor Clifton DuncanThe BBC’s 1973 production of George Bernard Shaw’s Pygmalion, starring Lynn Redgrave and James VilliersKhalil Gibran Muhammad’s book, The Condemnation of Blackness: Race, Crime, and the Making of Modern Urban AmericaVictor Herbert’s operetta, Babes in ToylandJohn’s NYT piece on the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and CultureGlenn’s conversation with Brown University student Alex Shieh 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.comVideo Links0:00 Intro 0:50 Glenn takes a shot at defining “cryptocurrency” 5:28 Yaya fills in the gaps 10:15 Solving the double-spending problem 15:58 The partisan divide on crypto 21:27 North Korea’s crypto hackers 26:29 How crypto protocols create value 33:23 The case of Sam Bankman-Fried and FTX 35:13 How stablecoins can open up global financial markets to nations with weak or unstable currency 36:32 Memecoins: Buyer beware 41:07 China’s use of digital currency to expand its surveillance apparatus 47:35 Should a non-expert invest in crypto?Recorded May 15, 2025Links and ReadingsYaya and Emily Jin’s report, “China’s Digital Currency: Adding Financial Data to Digital Authoritarianism”Yaya podcast’s, DesignatedYaya’s audio thriller, The Jabbari Lincoln Files 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.comVideo Links0:00 Intro1:00 What is the “affirmative action myth”?8:02 Black progress before and after affirmative action11:41 Ground News ad13:29 How far does Jason’s critique of affirmative action extend?17:03 Contesting The Shape of the River26:37 Respectability, responsibility, and upward mobility32:40 Is Jason blaming the victims?35:54 Jason: No one’s buying the reparations argument43:26 How do figures like Ibram X. Kendi and Nikole Hannah-Jones end up at the center of progressive discourse?Recorded May 7, 2025Links and ReadingsJason’s new book, The Affirmative Action Myth: Why Blacks Don’t Need Racial Preferences to SucceedJason’s book, Please Stop Helping Us: How Liberals Make It Harder for Blacks to SucceedJason’s book, False Black PowerJason’s book, Maverick: A Biography of Thomas SowellDerek Bok and William G. Bowen’s book, The Shape of the River: Long Term Consequences of Considering Race in College and University AdmissionsMelissa Kearney’s book, The Two-Parent Privilege: How Americans Stopped Getting Married and Started Falling BehindAn Amos & Andy YouTube playlistJulia pilot episodeTa-Nehisi Coates’s Atlantic essay, “The Case for Reparations”Ibram X. Kendi’s book, How to Be an AntiracistThe NYT’s 1619 ProjectThe Woodson Center’s 1776 Unites Project 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 this installment of my monthly Q&A with John McWhorter, we tackle questions about elite universities and wealth, the value of DEI, Trump's expansion of executive power, The Great Gatsby, and ethics in higher education.

Support The Glenn Show at https://glennloury.substack.com. Pre-order Glenn's forthcoming book, SELF-CENSORSHIP: https://www.amazon.com/Self-Censorship-Glenn-C-Loury/dp/1509567402/ref=sr_1_1?crid=223KUFY8BN0X&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.ar6rmRPzp7pEiJss0o1eUeLbLwOgX_qrXHtWjMS3_m_GjHj071QN20LucGBJIEps.goECGgv0OxAPgLR8kNnsISu5AK6OSVoa5qWVmqRNqwY&dib_tag=se&keywords=self-censorship+glenn+c.+loury&qid=1746808862&sprefix=self-censor%2Caps%2C237&sr=8-1Video Links0:43 Ross: Trump's economic policies are the worst I've seen in my life 7:36 Glenn's new book, SELF-CENSORSHIP 12:00 Trump’s bid to become the most powerful person in the history of the world 21:17 The disruptive effects of tariffs, financial regulatory manipulation, and extraordinary debt levels 27:58 Ross: Alienating our allies is only going to strengthen China 33:41 Glenn: Those who lost out to globalization are getting their way 41:04 Will Trump heed economic warning signs? 48:10 Can Congress constrain Trump?Recorded April 19, 2025Links and ReadingsEdward Luce’s Financial Times piece, “Trump, Truss, and the ‘Moron Premium’”Larry Kotlikoff’s SubstackLarry Kotlikoff’s post, “30-Year TIPS Are Looking Mighty Attractive”Glenn’s most recent conversation with Larry KotlikoffMichael Sandel’s book, The Tyranny of Merit: What’s Become of the Common Good? 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.comVideo Links0:00 Intro 00:31 Prefatory remarks 4:15 Glenn: The Trump administration’s defunding of the universities is mischievous in the extreme 9:06 Ground News ad 11:01 Doesn’t maintaining the preeminence of American universities require diversity of thought? 18:47 John McWhorter has entered the building 20:25 How did higher ed lose the general public’s support? 23:05 The university’s role in public discourse 26:26 Was affirmative action a success or a failure? 31:36 The partisan balance in education funding 42:21 The costs and benefits of tenure 50:09 Can education preserve democracy if students aren’t doing the reading? 1:01:59 Are we irrevocably polarized as a nation? 1:07:28 Q&A: You don’t seem as excited by Trump as you once were. What is disappointing you? 1:11:40 Q&A: If higher ed serves society, why do so many elite grads use their degrees to get rich? 1:16:01 Q&A: How do you teach diversity to students who’ve never spent time around people different from them? 1:19:15 Q&A: What’s the difference between contrarianism and provocation? 1:21:23 Q&A: Should fewer people go to college?Recorded April 22, 2025Links and ReadingsMichael Sandel’s book, The Tyranny of Merit: What’s Become of the Common Good?John Stuart Mill’s book, On LibertyJohn Milton’a AreopagiticaAlan Bloom’s book, The Closing of the American Mind: How Higher Education Has Failed Democracy and Impoverished the Souls of Today’s StudentsJohn’s new book, Pronoun Trouble: The Story of Us in Seven Little WordsGlenn’s memoir, Late Admissions: Confessions of a Black ConservativeThe Great CoursesFyodor Dostoevsky’s novel, Crime and PunishmentDostoevsky’s novel, The Brothers KaramazovLeo Tolsty’s novel, War and PeaceTolstoy’s novel, Anna KareninaPlato’s dialogue, The Republic 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