Podcast Summary: The Commentary Magazine Podcast – "So Long, Continetti"

Date: October 31, 2025
Host: John Podhoretz
Panelists: Abe Greenwald, Seth Mandel, Christine Rosen, Matthew Continetti
Episode Theme: A heartfelt farewell to longtime panelist Matthew Continetti, reflections on the podcast's evolution, and a spirited discussion of media culture and cancellation, culminating in a spirited exchange on the value of editorial meetings and the changing cast of the Commentary team.

1. Overview of the Episode

This episode serves as a retrospective and goodbye to Matthew Continetti, who is leaving his regular role on the podcast as he starts a new position at The Wall Street Journal. The team reminisces on both the show's growth and unique character, discusses changes in the media landscape, and touches on the role of "editorial meetings" in podcasting before weighing in on a controversial essay about "wokeness" and feminization. The episode is peppered with signature banter, audience shoutouts, and a final volley of recommendations from Matt.

2. Key Discussion Points & Insights

Matt Continetti's Departure: Reflections and Announcements

• Matt reveals he's joining the Wall Street Journal (03:49–05:16). He will be stepping away from Commentary Magazine, including the podcast and other columns, to become a contributor to their editorial pages and website.
• Fond Reminiscence of Matt's Tenure:
  • Started appearing regularly on the podcast in spring 2023, and has been writing for Commentary for over a decade.
  • Reflects on how his time at Commentary paralleled major pundit debates: "The first half of my career was spent arguing over the Iraq war, and the second half has been spent arguing over Donald Trump." (06:23)

The Making and Evolution of the Podcast

• Origin Story and Format
  • The podcast began unceremoniously with a hope not to spend money or require prep. “The whole podcast was a mistake…Noah Rothman bugging me…If you can figure out a way we can do a podcast where it doesn’t cost any money, we’ll give it a shot.” (10:58)
  • Early recordings took place using stacks of Talmud ("Shas") as mic stands:
    “Are you using a Shas as your microphone stand?” “It’s the Talmud." (13:10–13:26)
  • The show changed radically with the pandemic, going daily in March 2020, using Zoom.

Community & Editorial Approach

• Unique Voice and Consistency
  • The group rarely brings on outside guests, striving for a consistent cast to foster audience familiarity and demonstrate intellectual evolution. “We evolve… there is a lot of variation and learning over time and positions changing as facts change...” (16:36)
  • The podcast mimics an editorial meeting, giving listeners transparency into the process of hashing out and refining ideas. “We are kinda like a really good editorial meeting.” – Christine (22:33)
• Diversity Within Ideological Unity
  • Each panelist brings a unique perspective despite broad ideological common ground. “Everyone involved were really all quite different…in how we think about things… temperamentally. And that’s always been fun.” – Abe (25:00)
• Creative Cross-pollination
  • Podcast discussions often seed the day’s blog posts and the monthly magazine’s larger pieces.

Engaging with the Audience & Video

• YouTube Audience
  • Matt shouts out the several thousand YouTube viewers: "I'm the ally of the several thousand people who watch our podcast on YouTube each day.” (28:13)
  • Humorous references to backgrounds, set design, and odd fan messages (e.g., the Al Jolson album/blackface confusion).
    “Your ignorance is showing because Al Jolson was in fact the Michael Jackson of the 1920s…” – John (32:18)
• Audience Fascination with Christine
  • Christine is a frequent subject of listener feedback—both praised and defended by fans:
    “Either people love her or they complain on her behalf...that Christine, she’s so wonderful…I thrilled her every insight. And it’s like, you guys won’t let her talk. It’s just a classic situation of men talking over women and mansplaining.” – John (35:45)

The Next Chapter

• Incoming Panelist:
  • Eliana Johnson will join as a regular from next week, with playful nods to impending “girl power.” (37:33)

Culture Wars and Media Critique

• Debate on the “Feminization of Woke Culture”
  • Discussion about Helen Andrews’ essay claiming “woke” culture and cancelation are products of feminine social patterns. Christine critiques the chronology and intellectual rigor of this thesis, noting it's not a new insight and has circulated in right-wing spaces. (38:46)
  • The group reflects on the deeper roots of cancelation – as a human, not exclusively female, impulse:
    “It goes as far as, you know, religious societies…having the tradition of literal ostracism…the act of excommunication or ostracism, where a person is cast out of a community…” (40:15)

The Persistence of Cancel Culture

• Examples and Context
  • Discussion of Helen Andrews’ personal experience with public shaming and the infamous "Media Men" list: “Helen’s perspective was this stuff is aimed at bad men, right? But it’s not good for women.” – Seth (45:37)
  • Reflection on how cancellation, while severe, isn’t always permanent, citing public figures who have returned to prominence (“Louis CK is performing again. J. Bhattacharya is the head of the...National Institutes of Health, having been basically also that [canceled]." – John, 41:49, 49:00)

Final Thoughts and Goodbyes

• Matt’s Self-Reflection:
  • Admits to mistakes in not taking public stands during COVID critique: “I’m ashamed of that now because I took the road of least resistance there…I didn’t want to become a major fighter, a combatant in the COVID wars…” (49:00–52:31)

3. Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the Show's Unscripted Nature:
  “Nothing that ever happens here happens as a result of a plan at all. Ever, ever, ever, ever. Whole podcast was a mistake.” – John (10:58)
• On Evolution:
  “There is a lot of variation and learning over time, and positions changing as facts change that you can only really experience if you listen to something for a long, long time.” – John (16:36)
• On Ideological Diversity:
  “We’re all on the same page in a broad ideological sense, but different in how we think about things, in who we are, where we are, both geographically and in life and temperamentally.” – Abe (25:00)
• On Cancel Culture's Universality:
  “The thing about cancellation is that it is a deep human impulse …the fear of ostracism was a fear of death.” – John (40:15)
• On Audience Dynamics:
  “Christine is the Rorschach test of the show in some ways, I would say to our audience, based on the emails we get, because either people love her or they complain on her behalf…” – John (35:45)

4. Important Timestamps

| Timestamp (MM:SS) | Segment/Theme | |-----------------------|-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 03:49–05:16 | Matt announces departure and new Wall Street Journal role | | 06:23 | Matt’s retrospective on his career (Iraq War debates, Trump era) | | 10:58 | Origin story: “The whole podcast was a mistake…” | | 13:10–13:26 | Talmud (“Shas”) as microphone stand anecdote | | 16:36 | John on the importance of continuity and evolution | | 22:33 | Editorial meeting analogy, “like a really good editorial meeting” – Christine | | 25:00 | Abe on panelist diversity and fun of the format | | 28:13 | Matt’s shoutout to YouTube viewers | | 32:18 | John’s defense of his Al Jolson album | | 35:45 | John on Christine’s role as audience Rorschach test | | 37:33 | Announcement of Eliana Johnson as new regular | | 38:46 | Discussion: Helen Andrews’ essay on “feminization” of cancel culture | | 40:15 | John on ostracism and cancel culture’s ancient roots | | 45:37 | Seth on Helen Andrews and the Media Men list | | 49:00 | John confesses lack of support for canceled COVID dissidents | | 52:31 | Matt echoes reluctance to challenge the COVID orthodoxy early in pandemic | | 54:51–61:37 | Matt’s triple recommendations: “India After Gandhi”, “American Kings”, “Manhattan Murder Mystery”| | 61:39 | Final well-wishes and vows of future return |

5. Notable Quotes (with Attributions & Timestamps)

• Reflecting on Career in Commentary:
  • “The first half of my career was spent arguing over the Iraq war, and the second half has been spent arguing over Donald Trump.” – Matt (06:23)
• On Continuity:
  • “There is a lot of variation and learning over time, and positions changing as facts change that you can only really experience if you listen to something for a long, long time.” – John (16:36)
• On Editorial Dialogue:
  • “We are kinda like a really good editorial meeting. When a really good team that works on ideas gets together on a regular basis and hashes out those ideas, disagrees, pushes back, learns from each other—that’s a great editorial meeting.” – Christine (22:33)
• On Cancel Culture:
  • “The thing about cancellation is that it is a deep human impulse...and it goes as far as, you know, religious societies…having the tradition of literal ostracism, the act of excommunication or ostracism, where a person is cast out of a community…” – John (40:15)
• On Regret in Commentary:
  • “I’m ashamed of that now because I took the road of least resistance there…I wasn’t, didn’t want to become a major fighter, a combatant in the COVID wars because I was trying to analyze them, among other things, and, you know, they were right and everybody else was wrong and they were mistreated…” – John (49:00)

6. Matt Continetti’s Final Recommendations (54:51–61:37)

1. History:
   India After Gandhi by Ramachandra Guha – “A history of India since independence...highly informative, from partition to Modi.”

2. Sports:
   American Kings: A Biography of the Quarterback by Seth Wickersham – “If you’re interested in quarterbacking, this is a great book...it introduced me to Bob Waterfield, one of the first celebrity quarterbacks.”

3. Film:
   Manhattan Murder Mystery (1993) – “One of my favorite, if not my favorite, Woody Allen movie. Diane Keaton just shines…If you love New York, like I love New York, it’s a great Woody Allen New York movie.”

7. Closing

The episode concludes with warmth and camaraderie, both for Matt and the culture they’ve built together. Matt promises, in the spirit of MacArthur, “I shall return” (61:57). The team looks ahead to a new era with Eliana Johnson, promising both continuity and fresh perspective in their ongoing “editorial meeting” for listeners.

For New Listeners

This episode offers an ideal entry point to the Commentary Magazine Podcast: it highlights the show’s origins, the depth of its editorial discussions, its evolving cast, and its distinctive blend of serious ideas with behind-the-scenes warmth, humor, and vulnerability.