Free Republic

But here's where it gets even more interesting: are the tactics of the government really that different from those of the Mafia? Michael shares his firsthand experience with the inner workings of both, exposing corruption, backroom deals, and power plays that eerily mirror what happens in the political world. From tax schemes and money laundering to loyalty, fear tactics, and backstabbing, we break down the shocking parallels between organized crime and modern government. We also explore the world of sports gambling—one of the Mafia's biggest money-makers—and how its influence has evolved with legalization, corporate interests, and political involvement. How Trump...

John Morgan, a former major Democratic mega-donor, said Wednesday night that President elect-Donald Trump’s son, Barron, is “smarter” than Vice President Kamala Harris and her entire campaign. Harris has reportedly told her advisers that she is “staying in the fight” and is considering whether to launch another presidential campaign in 2028 or run for governor in California when Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s term ends, according to a Monday report by Politico. Morgan, an attorney who has grown increasingly critical of Harris’ campaign, argued that Barron Trump is smarter than anyone on the Harris campaign by encouraging his father to...

Prominent Hitler apologist and despiser of all things non-white, Corey J. Mahler, is about to be yet again condemned by his former denomination, with the Iowa District East of the LCMS voting on a resolution to condemn him and his podcast in the upcoming year. Mahler is a two-bit “theologian” with a few thousand Twitter followers who occasionally gets noticed after one of his particularly offensive tweets goes viral, as well as the co-host of the openly racist podcast Stone Choir. When he’s not posting memes crushing on his beloved Führer, Mahler is giving folks ample evidence of why he’s...

CNN pundit Van Jones says Democrats’ media strategy is a major reason Vice President Harris lost this week’s presidential election to former President Trump. “We got beat because the conservatives and Republicans built a different media system,” Jones said on the channel Thursday. “It had to do with online, had to do with podcasts, with streaming platforms. And they were spending their money there.” Jones bemoaned that many Democrats and mainstream media outlets were “laughing at Trump for throwing away his ground game and doing weird stuff online.” “It turned out we were the idiots,” he continued. “We woke up...

“The View” co-host Sara Haines said on Monday that Republican nominee Donald Trump is showing he “cares” about young voters by appearing on several podcasts that are popular with the demographic. Haines said Trump’s “podcast tour” is reaching massive audiences of young voters who do not watch traditional media, which she argued will have a positive effect for the former president. Vice President Kamala Harris, who has come under fire for her lack of media appearances, sat down with CNN host Dana Bash on Aug. 29 for her first and only sit-down interview one month after launching her presidential campaign....

Spotify has locked Joe Rogan into another “multiyear” contract worth as much as $250 million, per The Wall Street Journal, though the audio giant will no longer be the sole distributor of his popular podcast. A spokesperson for Spotify told The Post that The Journal’s estimates were “incorrect,” but declined to elaborate on the financial terms of the deal. However, the new licensing agreement does allow Spotify to sell ads for and distribute “The Joe Rogan Experience” (JRE) across several podcast platforms, including Apple and Amazon, as well as in a video format on YouTube, the spokesperson confirmed to The...

Apple has quietly tightened its reporting of how many people listen to podcasts, sending shock waves through an embattled audio industry still reeling from the end of the COVID-era production bubble. The shift, Apple wrote in a blog post, was technical: The dominant podcasting platform had begun switching off automatic downloads for users who haven’t listened to five episodes of a show in the last two weeks. But while few users noticed the shift, some of the biggest podcasts in the world saw their official listener numbers drop dramatically. Long-running shows that publish frequently were hit particularly hard. A user...

On Friday, September 29, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) announced a new “regulatory plan” for streaming services that operate in Canada, that earn $10,000,000 annually or more and offer broadcast content (podcasts). According to the CRTC, this is a new way to “modernize” media regulation in Canada so that, in the future, streaming platforms, such as Netflix or social media, “make meaningful contributions to Canadian and Indigenous content.” However, critics say this new measure actually seeks to restrict freedom of expression and silence the few remaining dissident voices in Canada. “Governments hide things by announcing them on Friday...

Misinformation about everything from election fraud to Covid-19 vaccines is reaching millions of Americans through a popular but opaque medium: podcasts. Many podcasts -- on-demand audio programs which users can listen to on smartphones -- bluntly promote false and unproven claims. The Brookings Institution found "War Room" from former Donald Trump aide Steve Bannon has aired the most false statements, amassing more than 135 million downloads while promoting allegations of vote rigging in the 2020 US election.

If any of you are having a hard to sitting through any content coming out of Hollywood without screaming, gagging or pulling out your hair, I made the following database that I will be continually updating (and you can help): https://www.notwokeshows.com

Spotify Technology SA (SPOT.N) on Monday announced it has formed a Safety Advisory Council to provide third-party input on issues such as hate speech, disinformation, extremism and online abuse. The group represents another step in Spotify’s efforts to deal with harmful content on its audio streaming service after backlash earlier this year over “The Joe Rogan Experience,” in which the podcaster was accused of spreading misinformation about COVID-19. The 18 experts, which include representatives from Washington, D.C. civil rights group the Center for Democracy & Technology, the University of Gothenburg in Sweden and the Institute for Technology and Society in...

The hugely popular, and hugely controversial, podcast host is threatening to quit the music streaming giant, leaving their $200 million deal on the table. During a recent episode of “The Joe Rogan Podcast,” the former mixed martial arts commentator got into a conversation with MMA fighter Josh Barnett about the cutthroat podcast industry ring. “I will quit. If it gets to a point that I can’t do it anymore, where I have to do it in some sort of weird way where I walk on eggshells and mind my p’s and q’s, f–k that!” Rogan said.

Florida-based political commentator Brian Craig talked about his podcast and other political news of the day.

Amidst a flurry of dealmaking for original content was Spotify's exclusive deal with Joe Rogan's widely popular podcast, The Joe Rogan Experience. Obviously, Spotify wants JRE, launched in December 2009, because it's one of -- if not the -- most popular podcasts in the U.S. and a handful of other countries. (JRE is currently No. 2 on Chartable's list of Apple podcasts in the U.S. and No. 1 on Stitcher's list of top podcasts.) The streaming giant paid handsomely, a reported $100 million for a multi-year licensing agreement for a global exclusive. Key takeaways Spotify's licensing deal with the Joe...

Today, I make a powerful juxtaposition of how the courts are creating rights for foreign nationals to travel here and access welfare and at the same time are ignoring the rights of Americans. Governors are now ordering interstate travel bans. I explain why this violates natural rights and why the courts consistently fail to protect real rights. Also, the latest math and science about the virus you won’t hear from the media.

Video Killed The Radio Star. Another one. We're six months or so into the podcast-only era of the erstwhile Laura Ingraham Show. For many she was our favorite red-in-tooth-and-claw conservative female who would laugh and sputter, as appropriate, at the lefty Journolist/NYT/WaPo mendacious gambit of the day as well as their constant gaslighting efforts. As a single mother of three, she often noted her lack of sleep and grueling schedule and that was BEFORE the Fox primetime show began. The handwriting was on the wall for months before she announced the retirement of her daily 3-hour radio show which required...

R.I.P. iTunes. Apple is phasing out its content download and streaming service, Bloomberg reports. CEO Tim Cook will unveil a spread of new features geared to move the company’s focus away from the iPhone starting Monday at the tech giant’s Worldwide Developers Conference.

Whether you're a history buff or just want a break from the present, there's a fascinating podcast out there for you. They say that those who fail to study history are doomed to repeat it—or maybe they're just missing out on some really great stories. These 11 podcasts take a look at the weird, complex, fascinating people and events that have shaped the world in ways big and small.

Apple confirmed on Monday that it had removed five out of six podcasts, which includes Jones' infamous The Alex Jones Show. Facebook has also removed four pages that belong to Jones. Both companies said Jones violated hate speech policies on their respective platforms. Apple and Facebook clamped down on content by Alex Jones Monday, with the former pulling five of his podcasts and the latter removing four pages controlled by him. Apple confirmed on Monday that it had removed five out of six podcasts, which includes Jones' infamous "The Alex Jones Show" as well as a number of other InfoWars...

The planet hadn’t seen a major war between all the Great Powers since the downfall of Napoleon at Waterloo in 1815. But 99 years later the dam breaks and a Pandora’s Box of violence engulfs the planet.