The Matt Walsh Show

Episode 1720 – “Woke TV Is Back With A Vengeance In This New Paramount Show”
Date: January 20, 2026
Host: Matt Walsh

Episode Overview

Matt Walsh takes a scathing and satirical dive into the new Paramount+ series Starfleet Academy, asserting it to be the "worst, most laughably bad and wokest" TV series produced by a streaming service. Walsh uses the show as a lens to critique contemporary progressive culture, highlighting what he sees as the decline of both storytelling and Western values in modern entertainment. He broadens the conversation to include discussions on leftist ideology, the trans rights debate within the Democratic Party, progressive reinterpretations of Christianity, soft-on-crime policies, and finally—via a segment from the Lex Fridman podcast—a reflection on colonialism prompted by never-before-seen footage of uncontacted Amazonian tribes.

Main Topics & Key Insights

1. Starfleet Academy and the Death of “Classic Star Trek”

[00:53–27:41]

The Exchange That Sparked the Episode

• Stephen Miller (Trump’s former advisor) tweets that Paramount should “reconcile with William Shatner and give him total creative control,” which prompts Shatner to respond, agreeing and criticizing the show’s production.
• Walsh sees this interaction as emblematic of the current divide over cultural nostalgia and leftward shifts.

Old vs. New Star Trek Values

• Old Star Trek:
  • Progressive for its time but maintained competence, seriousness, and an acknowledgment of differences between groups (e.g., “Klingons were warriors, Vulcans were logical”).
  • “Star Trek’s beating heart was a professional 19th century naval crew in space … a love letter to right wing aristocracy and professionalism with a left wing coat of paint.” — Matt Walsh [05:15]
• New Star Trek:
  • Walsh argues the franchise has been “repainted” as blank-slate, leftist propaganda.
  • “No longer are Klingons a warrior race … Instead, they’re now into science and … bird watching.” [06:09]

Laughable Dialogue and Writing

• Walsh plays and mocks several awkward scenes, e.g.,
  • Klingon cadet: “I watch birds. My mother, she taught me to see the beauty in things.”
  • Other cadet: “Nice.”
  • “I can’t believe that’s a real show. … Daniel Day Lewis could not elevate that material.” — [07:22]

Feminization and Progressive Wish-Fulfillment

• Large portions of the writing staff are women, which Walsh links (controversially and provocatively) to “cratering" quality and to a worldview driven by “white liberal women.”
• “This is the dream of every leftist woman who voted for Kamala Harris … break an oppressed, multiracial criminal out of jail and then apologize to them. That’s the ultimate fantasy for a liberal white woman.” — [15:23]

Progressive Messaging and Narrative Incoherence

• Families separated by law enforcement = “suffering,” even when the mother is guilty of murder—moral inversion.
• Dialogue is jarringly contemporary, filled with “millennial sarcasm” that feels out of place in futuristic space adventures.
  • Example:
    • “If we could avoid another direct hit, that would be super helpful.” — Ship’s doctor, a 70yo male character [18:09]

Technical Blunders

• Walsh nitpicks scene where characters mistake “port” for “starboard,” saying it betrays a lack of basic knowledge and standards in writing.

DEI and Identity Politics Overload

• Characters lack distinctiveness, dialogue centers on diversity, equity, inclusion (DEI), and white men are cast as villains or as comic foils.
  • “To the extent that white people are portrayed positively in the show … they’re either salivating over criminals or they’re lesbians delivering DEI struggle sessions.” — [22:00]

“Blank Slate” Fantasy

• The show imagines multicultural criminals are secretly genius-level talents, if only “given opportunity”—a “blank slate” ideology the left embraces but is “factually, obviously wrong.”
  • “All he needed was a better environment and for his mother to get away with murder and everything would be fine.” — [15:38]

2. Wider Hollywood Trends and “Woke” Streaming Content

[23:00–27:49]

• Complaints of bad acting, cheap sets despite high budgets, and DEI-driven retconning of classic characters/settings.
• Points out similar trends in adaptations, e.g., a new Netflix Agatha Christie adaptation with heavy-handed colonialism lectures.
  • “Streaming services are full of this garbage … based on either fabricated history or anti-white feminist propaganda.” — [27:18]

3. Democrats and the Trans Rights Issue

[29:44–37:57]

• Reports (Axios) show 2028 Democratic presidential contenders are avoiding the topic of trans rights after electoral backlash.
  • “We have won on this issue. … This is the most absolute victory that conservatives have achieved on any cultural or political issue in the last 30 or 40 years.” — [33:23]
• Walsh insists Republicans should weaponize the issue in future elections.

4. Progressive Christianity and Religious Truth

[37:57–50:35]

• Case Study: Democrat James Talarico, Texas State Rep & Senate candidate, espouses the “all religions point to the same truth” view in an Ezra Klein interview.
• Walsh ridicules this as un-Christian and illogical:
  • “Christianity is the only true and valid religion on the planet. Every other religion is false. If you can’t say that as a Christian, then you’re not a Christian.” — [44:02]
  • Compares faith claims to a game of guessing jar contents: “We can’t both be right … one of us is right, or none of us is right.” — [46:12]

5. Soft-on-Crime Policies in Illinois

[50:35–55:20]

• Governor J.B. Pritzker signs the “Clean Slate Law” allowing non-violent criminal records to be automatically sealed.
• Walsh dismisses rehabilitation as the primary goal, advocating for punishment first; objects to classifying serious offenses as “nonviolent.”
  • “There is no rehabilitation without punishment. … Punishment is, by definition, intentional suffering inflicted on people who've done a bad thing.” — [54:45]

6. Reflections on Uncontacted Amazonian Tribes & Colonialism (via Lex Fridman Podcast)

[57:45–1:06:39]

New Footage of Uncontacted Tribes

• Conservationist Paul Rosolie shares footage of uncontacted Amazonian tribes—a historic anthropological moment.
  • “This is the first time that the tribes have been filmed. … there’s a documented interaction happening.” — Paul Rosolie [57:58]

Walsh’s Take

• Highlights their pre-Stone Age existence, lack of technology, short and brutal lives, and argues their “noble savage” status is a myth.
• “Colonialism was a great good, was by and large a benevolent act.” — [1:04:45]
• Argues for contact and modernization for tribal peoples, despite “romanticized” Western views:
  • “Westerners say it would be sad if you modernize and these tribes disappear. That’s a selfish perspective. For us, it’s a novelty. … In reality, their lives are quite terrible in many ways.” — [1:05:54]

Notable Quotes & Moments

• On Starfleet Academy:
  • “The reason we should talk about the state of Star Trek … is that it’s a useful window into what the modern left has become, where they went wrong, and how to defeat them.” [03:49]
  • “At least it really subverts your expectations to have a gay bird-watching Klingon.” [07:55]
• On dialogue quality in modern TV:
  • “You tried delivering those lines in an award-winning way. Daniel Day Lewis could not elevate that material.” [07:33]
• On DEI storytelling:
  • “To the extent that white people are portrayed positively in the show … they’re either salivating over criminals or they’re lesbians delivering DEI struggle sessions.” [22:00]
• On Trans Rights as a Campaign Issue:
  • “When there’s an issue that your opponents are terrified of … yeah, bring it up.” [36:42]
• On Progressive Christianity:
  • “Christianity is the only true and valid religion on the planet. Every other religion is false. If you can’t say that as a Christian, then you’re not a Christian.” [44:02]
• On Colonialism:
  • “Colonialism was a great good, was by and large a benevolent act. Not perfectly, not all the time, these are not perfect people, but by and large a great good.” [1:04:45]

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Star Trek/Starfleet Academy Deep Dive: [00:53–27:41]
• Hollywood Trends and Netflix Agatha Christie Example: [23:00–27:49]
• Democrats and Trans Rights Discomfort: [29:44–37:57]
• Liberal Christianity Critique: [37:57–50:35]
• Clean Slate Law & Punishment vs. Rehab: [50:35–55:20]
• Lex Fridman—Uncontacted Amazonian Tribes & Colonialism: [57:45–1:06:39]

Final Thoughts

This episode typifies Matt Walsh’s polemical and biting approach: blending pop culture, politics, and philosophical hot takes with equal parts mockery and social commentary. While primarily lampooning “woke” entertainment, Walsh uses these examples to build broader arguments against leftist ideology and for traditionalist conservatism—culminating in a passionate defense of Western progress, both in TV writing and in global history.
Tone: Sarcastic, combative, direct, and deliberately provocative.