The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show

Hour 3 – Why We're Anti-Cancel Culture

Date: October 10, 2025
Podcast: The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show (iHeartPodcasts)

Episode Overview

This episode centers on recent high-profile news stories in politics and media, with a particular focus on cancel culture and its implications for free speech and media accountability. Clay Travis and Buck Sexton discuss the ongoing government shutdown, Democratic Party infighting, left-wing activism, media bias (particularly around Antifa and Jimmy Kimmel), and their firm opposition to cancel culture. The episode also features an extended interview with bestselling author and Navy SEAL Jack Carr, delivering candid advice on writing, creative life, and reflections on current events.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Government Shutdown & Democratic Party Dynamics

• Overview: Clay and Buck dissect the ongoing government shutdown, assigning blame squarely on the Democrats, highlighting inner-party conflicts, and referencing upcoming rallies.
• Key Points:
  • Speaker Johnson believes Democrats will ultimately fold but first must appease their "rabid base" through rallies and theatrics.
    • Clay Travis (02:19): “They're playing games with real people's lives...they can't face their rabid base. I mean, this is serious business hurting real people. And I just, I'm beyond words.”
  • Democrats are in a "tough spot," being cornered by progressive factions within their party, particularly those in New York.
    • Clay Travis (03:15): “I think the only reason Chuck Schumer let it happen is because he’s terrified of AOC...radical left wing ideas have taken root.”
  • Many Americans aren’t personally impacted by the shutdown; the media narrative may be shifting blame more than in previous shutdowns.

2. The Left, Antifa, and Media Narratives

• Overview: The discussion pivots to perceptions of Antifa, referencing a controversial monologue by Jimmy Kimmel in which he calls Antifa a "myth."
• Key Points:
  • Buck and Clay push back on denials of Antifa’s existence, sharing personal observations of Antifa activity and dissecting media attempts to “memory-hole” incidents of leftist violence.
    • Jimmy Kimmel clip (06:19): “There’s no Antifa…This is an entirely imaginary organization. This is no different than if they announced they rounded up a dozen Decepticons.”
    • Buck Sexton (06:36): “Clay, I've read books about Antifa. I've seen Antifa personally. I've never seen the Chupacabra, though.”
    • Clay Travis (06:46): “Yeah, he's wrong. And I've seen Antifa too…all these Antifa lunatics running around with spray paint cans and throwing Molotov cocktails…lots of graffiti, lots of the spray, lighting things on fire.”
  • Discusses double standards in legal consequences for political violence and media erasure of acts not fitting the prevailing narratives (e.g., attacks on conservative Supreme Court justices).

3. Cancel Culture – Critique & Reflections

• Overview: The hosts take a clear stand against cancel culture, using the Jimmy Kimmel controversy as a springboard to explore the broader censorship landscape.
• Key Points:
  • Criticism of Kimmel for making a false, politically motivated claim, and then framing resulting backlash as “mischaracterization.”
    • Buck Sexton (12:33): “How is someone mischaracterizing his words when what he said was clearly false and malicious?...He wasn't making a joke. He was making a political statement.”
  • Clay reiterates their anti-cancel-culture stance, referencing past incidents (Roseanne, Gina Carano) and arguing for a culture of forgiveness and open discourse, especially for those in creative and live environments.
    • Clay Travis (13:38): “This is why I'm anti cancel culture...I think as long as you are doing your best to try to be creative in the space, I don't think we should try to cancel people…They were poorly said, and they were rightly condemned, I think, by people who saw that he lied.”
  • The persistent danger facing right-leaning media from coordinated campaigns to silence dissenting views.

4. Jack Carr Interview: Writing, Inspiration, & Creative Process

• Overview: Buck and Clay welcome Jack Carr—Navy SEAL-turned-thriller-author and showrunner—for an engaging and practical discussion on writing, TV, and blending real-world current events into fiction.
• Key Insights:
  • On balancing writing and TV production:
    • Jack Carr (26:10): “Balance is a bit of a misnomer…every morning I get up and it's like being shot out of a cannon with kids, wife, dog and all the rest of it. So it's just a mass chaos. But I feel extremely fortunate to be working on multiple Hollywood projects, multiple books.”
  • Advice for aspiring writers:
    • Jack Carr (28:20): “Don't worry about anything else but writing that book…All of that bandwidth is now bandwidth that is not going into making that product, in this case a book, the best that it can possibly be.”
    • Focus on story first, then worry about agents/publishing once the manuscript is as good as it can be.
  • Creative process:
    • Starts with a title and theme as a "north star."
    • Writes a one-page executive summary for diagnostic purposes, then builds a story outline, and finally converts it into a full manuscript.
    • Jack Carr (29:22): "I have a theme that's going to guide the writing process...then I read a one page executive summary...then I turn that outline into the narrative."
  • Fiction and real events:
    • Carr describes how sometimes plots he invents become eerily real-world relevant (e.g., Russian invasion of Ukraine, quantum AI, Israel-Gaza conflict), but he insists his focus remains on story rather than overt headline-chasing.
    • Jack Carr (31:45): "I'm always interested in current events...but I'm not obsessed with trying to fit it into a story. Instead, I am focused only on the story. And if I'm only focused on this story...things have happened that I've written about that look like I'm projecting something."
  • Inspirations:
    • Influenced by Clancy, David Morrell, Nelson DeMille, and other thriller/classic authors.
    • Jack Carr (33:51): “It’s certainly Clancy, it’s David Morrell...all of those masters I read from the 80s through the 90s…they’re my professors in the art of storytelling.”
  • Best war movies—Jack Carr’s selection:
    • Band of Brothers, Platoon, and Uncommon Valor; also mentions Apocalypse Now and The Longest Day as top-tier.
    • Jack Carr (35:06): “Band of Brothers…Platoon…Uncommon Valor…those ones really stand out to me.”
  • Famous fans:
    • Deeply honored to earn praise from David Morrell, who created Rambo.
    • Charlie Sheen is also a fan.
    • Jack Carr (36:16): “David Morrell…actually gave me a blurb. When that blurb ends with I'm a fan. That one blew me away...”

5. Venezuelan Activist Wins Nobel Peace Prize

• Overview: Briefly covers the Nobel Peace Prize going to Maria Karina Machado for her fight against the Maduro regime, and her gratitude for U.S. and especially Trump’s support.
  • Clay Travis (21:26): “This is Maria Karina Machado, who won the Nobel Peace Prize, said…the recognition…is a boost to conclude our task to conquer freedom...I dedicate this prize to…the suffering people of Venezuela and to President Trump for his decisive support of our cause..."
  • Discussion on how South Florida’s right-leaning Latinos—Cubans and Venezuelans—keenly understand the dangers of socialism.
    • Buck Sexton (21:52): “I love my right wing Latinos. We just, we're very simpatico…they’ve experienced…what happens when communism is just basically a codified version of social justice wokeness.”

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Clay Travis (02:19):

  "They're playing games with real people's lives...they can't face their rabid base. I mean, this is serious business hurting real people. And I just, I'm beyond words."

• Jimmy Kimmel (06:19):

  "There’s no Antifa…This is an entirely imaginary organization. This is no different than if they announced they rounded up a dozen Decepticons."

• Buck Sexton (12:33):

  "How is someone mischaracterizing his words when what he said was clearly false and malicious? This is...you said something that was clearly untrue...He wasn't making a joke. He was making a political statement."

• Clay Travis (13:38):

  "This is why I'm anti cancel culture...I think as long as you are doing your best to try to be creative in the space, I don't think we should try to cancel people."

• Jack Carr on writing (28:20):

  "Don't worry about anything else but writing that book…All of that bandwidth is now bandwidth that is not going into making that product, in this case a book, the best that it can possibly be."

• Jack Carr — best compliment (36:16):

  "David Morrell…actually gave me a blurb. When that blurb ends with 'I'm a fan.' That one blew me away..."

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [01:35] – Government shutdown blame and Democrat political strategy
• [05:28] – White House on Antifa; Jimmy Kimmel's comments
• [11:25] – Kimmel’s reaction to backlash and cancel culture debate
• [23:28] – Jack Carr interview begins
• [26:10] – Jack Carr’s approach to balancing writing and Hollywood
• [28:20] – Jack Carr’s practical advice to new novelists
• [31:45] – Fiction’s relationship to current events
• [33:41] – Literary influences
• [35:06] – Favorite war movies
• [36:16] – Most surprising fan encounters

Final Thoughts

This hour of The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show is a brisk, no-holds-barred conversation that threads together current political events, the culture wars, and the fragility of robust public discourse in an age of cancel culture. Their unapologetic stance on free speech is reinforced by the practical wisdom and insight of Jack Carr, whose methods and reflections provide a window into both creative writing and navigating cultural crosscurrents.

For Listeners:
The episode is engaging for those interested in the intersection of culture, politics, and media—with practical inspiration for creatives, especially writers and anyone wrestling with the impact of cancel culture.