Molly Worthen: "Charisma Is a Tool of the Weak"

Historian Molly Worthen discusses her new book Spellbound: How Charisma Shaped American History from the Puritans to Donald Trump — arguing that charisma isn't charm but a polarizing story that tells followers who the heroes are, who the villains are, and where they fit in. Also: Israel killed Ali Larijani, one of Iran's most powerful figures, and Western outlets responded by mourning a lost future negotiator. Produced by Corey Wara Video and Social Media by Geoff Craig Do you have questions or comments, or just want to say hello? Email us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected] For full Pesca content and updates, check out our website at https://www.mikepesca.com/⁠ For ad-free content or to become a Pesca Plus subscriber, check out ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://subscribe.mikepesca.com/ For Mike's daily takes on Substack, subscribe to The Gist List https://mikepesca.substack.com/ Follow us on Social Media:⁠⁠⁠⁠ YouTube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4_bh0wHgk2YfpKf4rg40_g⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/pescagist/ X https://x.com/pescami TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@pescagist To advertise on the show, contact ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠ or visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://advertising.libsyn.com/TheGist

Mickey Bergman, who negotiates the release of political prisoners, returns to explain how freeing hostages from the world's most hostile regimes runs entirely on emotional intelligence, not geopolitical leverage. He walks through two cases — using Bill Richardson's death to unlock a Venezuelan prisoner release, and a single carefully orchestrated meeting with Myanmar's military junta leader. Bergman also discusses the Gilad Shalit exchange that put Yahya Sinwar back in circulation. Plus, Mike updates the March Madness bracket with injury news: Ali Larijani is out for the tournament. And in the Spiel, why Burger King's Baba O'Riley rebrand is less a comeback than a confession. Produced by Corey Wara Video and Social Media by Geoff Craig Do you have questions or comments, or just want to say hello? Email us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected] For full Pesca content and updates, check out our website at https://www.mikepesca.com/⁠ For ad-free content or to become a Pesca Plus subscriber, check out ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://subscribe.mikepesca.com/ For Mike's daily takes on Substack, subscribe to The Gist List https://mikepesca.substack.com/ Follow us on Social Media:⁠⁠⁠⁠ YouTube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4_bh0wHgk2YfpKf4rg40_g⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/pescagist/ X https://x.com/pescami TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@pescagist To advertise on the show, contact ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠ or visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://advertising.libsyn.com/TheGist

Today on The Gist, Global Reach CEO Mickey Bergman discusses the high-stakes world of international hostage negotiation. He details the emotional intelligence required to deal with foreign officials and clarifies the behind-the-scenes realities of securing the release of Americans like Paul Whelan, Trevor Reed, and Brittney Griner. Plus, Mike opens the show by analyzing the Republican-backed SAVE Act. He argues the proof-of-citizenship voting bill is purely a messaging tactic with no chance of passing the Senate, and points out that many of the voters most likely to lack ready access to a birth certificate actually favor Donald Trump.  Produced by Corey Wara Video and Social Media by Geoff Craig Do you have questions or comments, or just want to say hello? Email us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected] For full Pesca content and updates, check out our website at https://www.mikepesca.com/⁠ For ad-free content or to become a Pesca Plus subscriber, check out ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://subscribe.mikepesca.com/ For Mike's daily takes on Substack, subscribe to The Gist List https://mikepesca.substack.com/ Follow us on Social Media:⁠⁠⁠⁠ YouTube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4_bh0wHgk2YfpKf4rg40_g⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/pescagist/ X https://x.com/pescami TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@pescagist To advertise on the show, contact ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠ or visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://advertising.libsyn.com/TheGist

For this weekend's Saturday Show, Mike shares a recent Substack Live conversation with political analyst and commentator Chris Cillizza. They kick things off by diagnosing the crisis of adult male friendship, why society fails to foster it, and Mike's "erosion theory" of bonding. Then, they pivot to politics, contrasting Donald Trump's inability to sell the unpopular war in Iran with Ronald Reagan's successful messaging during the 1983 invasion of Grenada. Are modern Americans too accustomed to the friction-free "age of abundance" to accept genuine wartime sacrifices? Plus, a breakdown of the cynical legislative maneuvering behind the SAVE Act—noting that 36 states already require some form of voter ID, compared to 14 that do not—and a look at the shifting coalitions in the Texas Democratic primary, where affluent white liberals turned out in higher numbers than Black and Hispanic voters to propel James Talarico past Jasmine Crockett. Produced by Corey Wara Video and Social Media by Geoff Craig Do you have questions or comments, or just want to say hello? Email us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected] For full Pesca content and updates, check out our website at https://www.mikepesca.com/⁠ For ad-free content or to become a Pesca Plus subscriber, check out ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://subscribe.mikepesca.com/ For Mike's daily takes on Substack, subscribe to The Gist List https://mikepesca.substack.com/ Follow us on Social Media:⁠⁠⁠⁠ YouTube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4_bh0wHgk2YfpKf4rg40_g⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/pescagist/ X https://x.com/pescami TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@pescagist To advertise on the show, contact ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠ or visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://advertising.libsyn.com/TheGist

Today on The Gist, historic double Oscar-nominated director Geeta Gandbhir joins the show to discuss her Netflix documentary feature, The Perfect Neighbor. She breaks down the tragic murder of AJ Owens by her neighbor Susan Lorincz, explaining how Florida's "Stand Your Ground" laws, racial bias, and easy access to firearms enabled a deadly escalation. Gandbhir also explores the ethical complexities of using raw police body cam and Ring doorbell footage to document the community's grief without re-traumatizing the victim's family. Plus, why Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is acting like a media critic instead of fighting an actual war. And in the Spiel, Donald Trump's repeated attempts to unlawfully install loyalist U.S. Attorneys keep getting smacked down by federal judges—proving the Constitution's guardrails are made of steel, not hanging by a thread. Produced by Corey Wara Video and Social Media by Geoff Craig Do you have questions or comments, or just want to say hello? Email us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected] For full Pesca content and updates, check out our website at https://www.mikepesca.com/⁠ For ad-free content or to become a Pesca Plus subscriber, check out ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://subscribe.mikepesca.com/ For Mike's daily takes on Substack, subscribe to The Gist List https://mikepesca.substack.com/ Follow us on Social Media:⁠⁠⁠⁠ YouTube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4_bh0wHgk2YfpKf4rg40_g⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/pescagist/ X https://x.com/pescami TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@pescagist To advertise on the show, contact ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠ or visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://advertising.libsyn.com/TheGist

Jeff Nussbaum and Dan Rothschild debate the Iran war's shaky public support, the administration's failure to make a clear case for sacrifice, and whether the mission is deterrence, regime change, or just another round of mowing the lawn. Then they turn to the Democrats who won in 2025, asking whether Abigail Spanberger, Mikie Sherrill, and Zohran Mamdani are actually governing on affordability or drifting toward the usual cultural and ideological fights. Plus, in Goat Grinders, conference badges, left-side driving in St. Lucia, and the humiliations of the new Acela. Produced by Corey Wara Video and Social Media by Geoff Craig Do you have questions or comments, or just want to say hello? Email us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected] For full Pesca content and updates, check out our website at https://www.mikepesca.com/⁠ For ad-free content or to become a Pesca Plus subscriber, check out ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://subscribe.mikepesca.com/ For Mike's daily takes on Substack, subscribe to The Gist List https://mikepesca.substack.com/ Follow us on Social Media:⁠⁠⁠⁠ YouTube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4_bh0wHgk2YfpKf4rg40_g⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/pescagist/ X https://x.com/pescami TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@pescagist To advertise on the show, contact ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠ or visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://advertising.libsyn.com/TheGist

Aaron Tracy joins to talk about The Secret World of Roald Dahl, his podcast about the children's author as war spy, improvised medical inventor, and world-class fabulist with a vicious streak. The conversation gets into Dahl's improbable second act as a children's writer, the darkness that made books like James and the Giant Peach and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory endure, and the harder question of how to reckon with his explicit anti-Semitism. Also, a look at why Ronald Reagan sold the Grenada invasion to the public in a way recent presidents have not matched, and why Americans can sometimes be rallied by a rationale as much as by the facts. Produced by Corey Wara Video and Social Media by Geoff Craig Do you have questions or comments, or just want to say hello? Email us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected] For full Pesca content and updates, check out our website at https://www.mikepesca.com/⁠ For ad-free content or to become a Pesca Plus subscriber, check out ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://subscribe.mikepesca.com/ For Mike's daily takes on Substack, subscribe to The Gist List https://mikepesca.substack.com/ Follow us on Social Media:⁠⁠⁠⁠ YouTube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4_bh0wHgk2YfpKf4rg40_g⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/pescagist/ X https://x.com/pescami TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@pescagist To advertise on the show, contact ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠ or visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://advertising.libsyn.com/TheGist  

Today on The Gist, bestselling author Nir Eyal joins the show to discuss his new book, Beyond Belief: The Science-Backed Way to Stop Limiting Yourself and Achieve Extraordinary Results. He explains how the lead singer of Sofi Tukker cured her chronic neuroplastic pain by "throwing ass," why vision boards and manifesting actually ruin your chances of success, and why the placebo effect is getting statistically stronger every year. They also break down the critical difference between facts, faith, and beliefs—and why treating our beliefs as immutable truths is tearing society apart. Plus, Mike gives it to you straight. A geographical rundown of the world's most important, and underrated, straits. Interested in Nir's book?  geni.us/beyondbelief Free belief change guide is here: nirandfar.com/belief-change Bonus content and the 30-Day Belief Transformation Journal is here: nirandfar.com/beyond-belief Produced by Corey Wara Video and Social Media by Geoff Craig Do you have questions or comments, or just want to say hello? Email us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected] For full Pesca content and updates, check out our website at https://www.mikepesca.com/⁠ For ad-free content or to become a Pesca Plus subscriber, check out ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://subscribe.mikepesca.com/ For Mike's daily takes on Substack, subscribe to The Gist List https://mikepesca.substack.com/ Follow us on Social Media:⁠⁠⁠⁠ YouTube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4_bh0wHgk2YfpKf4rg40_g⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/pescagist/ X https://x.com/pescami TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@pescagist To advertise on the show, contact ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠ or visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://advertising.libsyn.com/TheGist

Today on The Gist, Princeton PhD researcher Elizabeth Tsurkov joins the show to share her harrowing experience of being kidnapped and held hostage in Iraq for over 900 days by the Iranian-backed militia Kataib Hezbollah. She details the brutal realities of her captivity, how she used her intellect to outsmart her captors by leaving hidden "breadcrumbs" for intelligence agencies in forced confession videos, and the bizarre reality of being ordered to write geopolitical analysis for the militants. She also provides a rare, firsthand look at how the proxy group reacted in real-time to the October 7th attacks and the subsequent regional fallout. Plus, the differing approaches of the Trump and Biden administrations to hostage recovery. Produced by Corey Wara Video and Social Media by Geoff Craig Do you have questions or comments, or just want to say hello? Email us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected] For full Pesca content and updates, check out our website at https://www.mikepesca.com/⁠ For ad-free content or to become a Pesca Plus subscriber, check out ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://subscribe.mikepesca.com/ For Mike's daily takes on Substack, subscribe to The Gist List https://mikepesca.substack.com/ Follow us on Social Media:⁠⁠⁠⁠ YouTube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4_bh0wHgk2YfpKf4rg40_g⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/pescagist/ X https://x.com/pescami TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@pescagist To advertise on the show, contact ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠ or visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://advertising.libsyn.com/TheGist

For this Saturday Show, Mike takes the guest seat on Lifelong with Ethan Suplee. Actor Ethan Suplee (Remember the Titans, My Name Is Earl) is well-known for his incredible physical transformation, having lost hundreds of pounds. Together, he and Mike get into a deep, candid discussion about the lifelong psychology of weight management, the economic politics of GLP-1 drugs, and why the extremes of the "Healthy at Every Size" movement veer into anti-science cultism. Plus, Mike reveals his biological "bliss molecule" advantage against anxiety. https://www.americanglutton.net/listen Produced by Corey Wara Video and Social Media by Geoff Craig Do you have questions or comments, or just want to say hello? Email us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected] For full Pesca content and updates, check out our website at https://www.mikepesca.com/⁠ For ad-free content or to become a Pesca Plus subscriber, check out ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://subscribe.mikepesca.com/ For Mike's daily takes on Substack, subscribe to The Gist List https://mikepesca.substack.com/ Follow us on Social Media:⁠⁠⁠⁠ YouTube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4_bh0wHgk2YfpKf4rg40_g⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/pescagist/ X https://x.com/pescami TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@pescagist To advertise on the show, contact ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠ or visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://advertising.libsyn.com/TheGist