The New Yorker Radio Hour — Episode 21

Date: March 11, 2016
Host: David Remnick & guests
Main Topics:

• Julia Louis-Dreyfus on political satire and authenticity in Veep
• Coming of age and creativity with young rapper Wiki
• Malcolm Gladwell on the social contagion of school shootings
• A modern-day ghost story involving Alexander Hamilton

Overview

This multifaceted episode features wide-ranging interviews and stories, from behind-the-scenes insights on the TV show Veep with Julia Louis-Dreyfus, to Malcolm Gladwell’s sobering sociological analysis of school shootings. Interwoven are an intimate profile of rapper Wiki and a playful-yet-haunting investigation into Alexander Hamilton’s ghost on Jane Street, NYC. The show blends humor, psychological depth, social commentary, and urban legend—living up to The New Yorker’s reputation for smart, compelling radio.

Segment 1: Julia Louis-Dreyfus on Veep and the State of Politics

Guest: Julia Louis-Dreyfus
Host: David Remnick
Timestamps: 03:10–32:20

Key Discussion Points

• Political Satire Meets Reality:
  • Veep started as political satire, but the 2016 election’s real-life absurdity redefined the show’s context.
  • “When this show started, it was political satire, and now it feels really, really like a somber documentary.” —Louis-Dreyfus [18:29]
• Research Behind the Scenes:
  • Julia’s preparatory conversations with real political staffers brought authenticity (and a dark humor) to her portrayal.
  • “I had one woman who’s a scheduler for a senator, and she said that she sleeps with her BlackBerry next to her head... She gets on his time zone...Nobody knows him better than I do.” —Louis-Dreyfus [09:12]
• Ambition and Vanity in Washington:
  • Both politics and show business are “craven, venal, money hungry, vicious, nasty, and a lot of huge amounts of ego.”
• Discussion of Vice Presidency:
  • Conversations with Joe Biden and Al Gore highlighted the frustration and anticlimax of the Number Two position.
  • “There is a kind of... There’s a reality there that’s kind of a bummer... I don’t think anybody who dreams about getting into politics dreams about being the vice president.” —Louis-Dreyfus [12:00]
• Election Parallels:
  • The strangeness of the 2016 election made Veep look tame in comparison.
  • “If you took language that these guys are saying, you put it into our script, we would get notes from HBO saying it’s too broad, it’s too much, it’s over the top.” —Louis-Dreyfus [19:13]
• Selina Meyer’s Politics:
  • The character is defined by self-preservation, not principle.
  • “Her politics are me politics ... she will hold any position if it keeps her in office.” —Louis-Dreyfus [22:20]
• Absurdity of the Process:
  • Staff meetings obsessing over pancake flipping or syrup varieties lampoon the low-stakes obsessions in high-stakes politics. (Clip at [24:13])
• Julia’s Early Career and SNL:
  • Culture shock: male-dominated writers’ room, drug use, and confusion over ensemble work and support.
  • “[At SNL]...I cried a lot. I was 21 and very young...I will absolutely take responsibility for a lot of it because I was very naive.” —Louis-Dreyfus [28:14]
• Gender Inequality in Hollywood:
  • Pushback on producing credits and the overall lack of women in positions of power remains endemic, even in “liberal Hollywood.”
  • “It’s a lot of chatter...I’m pushing back all the time as much as I possibly can.” —Louis-Dreyfus [30:51]

Memorable Quotes

• “Maybe I should run as Selina Meyer.” —Louis-Dreyfus [20:44]
• “Her politics are me politics. And she will hold any position if it keeps her in office.” —Louis-Dreyfus [22:20]
• “God, I’m so happy I’m not a real politician.” —Louis-Dreyfus [25:53]

Segment 2: NYC Upstart Wiki and the Edges of Growing Up

Guests: Wiki (Patrick Morales); Matt Trammell
Timestamps: 32:30–48:10

Key Discussion Points

• DIY New York Creativity:
  • Wiki—a 22-year-old rapper—describes his punk-rap fusion and the formative chaos of living with friends in Chinatown.
• Leaving Home, But Not Far:
  • Wiki reflects on moving out of his mother’s place, a rite of passage marked by both freedom and the necessity to “grow up and learn to clean my room.” [38:02]
  • “But for us [NYC kids]...you just kind of could go back and sleep on your mom’s couch if you really...you know what I mean?” —Wiki [40:10]
• Class, Access, and New York Quirk:
  • Even kids from different social backgrounds (private schools, public schools) mix, “there's a kind of equalizing” in NYC’s creative circles.
  • “We're all just kind of like weirdos, I think, honestly. We're all unique.” —Wiki [42:00]
• Genre-Hopping Youth:
  • The lines between punk, jazz, hip-hop blur in his generation; identity is fluid.
  • “I don’t have to be the rapper kid or the punk kid. I can be in a punk band and be rapping...” —Wiki [44:12]
• Art as Growth:
  • His solo tape Lil Me is more introspective than his work with Ratking, marking a turn from citywide concerns to personal narrative.

Notable Moments

• Wiki’s coming-of-age is both hyper-local (never far from home) and global (touring Europe), resulting in an earnest and relatable artistic voice.
• “Part of growing up [is] being able to call yourself immature...it’s just Little Me...but then kind of like having pride behind it.” —Wiki [46:24]

Segment 3: Malcolm Gladwell on School Shootings—A Sociology of Contagion

Guest: Malcolm Gladwell
Host: Dorothy Wickenden
Timestamps: 48:25–01:08:10

Key Discussion Points

• The John LaDue Case:
  • A “completely normal” honor roll kid, John plotted mass murder, not out of rage or trauma, but as a technical challenge—a product of cultural meme more than mental illness.
  • “His interest in killing other people is minimal. He has barely even thought about that.” —Gladwell [49:37]
• Making Little Bombs is Normal:
  • “Kids have been playing with chemistry sets and making bombs for as long as there have been chemistry sets.” —Gladwell [51:40]
• Mark Granovetter’s Theory of Riots:
  • Riots are driven by individuals with varying thresholds for action: the first throw the rock; the rest follow based on how many have gone before.
  • Gladwell applies this to school shooters: at first, only deeply disturbed youths act; later, relatively normal kids join as the act is normalized by precedent. [55:21]
• School Shootings as Social Epidemics:
  • These events are “powerful contagious adolescent cultural pathologies”—they spread culturally, not just individually.
  • “The longer this phenomenon persists, the more likely it is for someone who's relatively normal to participate.” —Gladwell [57:32]
• Limits of Media and Gun Control:
  • The “don’t publicize the shooter” solution doesn’t address the self-sustaining subcultures found online.
  • Gun control, while vitally important broadly, won’t solve this particular, complex contagion.
  • “Gun control can solve the much bigger problem of the kind of unpremeditated shootings...school shootings are a wholly separate and more complex phenomenon.” —Gladwell [01:06:33]
• Possible Interventions:
  • Rather than suppressing adolescent fascination with weapons, Gladwell advocates for safe social channels, noting the same impulses led some to become great scientists.
  • He speculates the end of the draft “left adolescent boys’ fascination with guns unresolved” in a new, disruptive way.

Memorable Quotes

• “People are looking for an easy solution here.” —Gladwell [01:05:38]
• “Let’s do that, as opposed to denying that it exists.” (On channeling bomb/gun fascination safely) —Gladwell [01:07:28]
• “School shootings are a wholly separate and more complex phenomenon. Let's not muddy the waters.” —Gladwell [01:06:54]

Segment 4: Ghosts, Hamilton, and Who Tells Your Story

Reported by: Becky Cooper
Timestamps: 01:08:15–01:29:30

Key Discussion Points

• Spooky NYC Real Estate:
  • An anxiety-inducing experience in a Jane Street house prompts the question: Is Alexander Hamilton’s ghost present?
• The Plaque is Wrong—History and Haunting:
  • Research suggests Bayard’s house, and thus the true location of Hamilton’s death, is not where the historical plaque designates.
• Personal Testimony & Séance:
  • Irene, former owner, claims to have seen Hamilton’s apparition; a medium identifies the ghost as Philip—Hamilton’s son.
  • “I remember he had light colored knee trousers, a slim man, wearing a white powdered wig, very good looking white silk shirt with a jabot.” —Irene Connors [01:15:11]
• Skepticism and Storytelling:
  • Even the medium’s facts are a bit cloudy (Hamilton had two sons named Philip, neither died a small child in the house), but the narrative power remains.
• Legacy and Lore:
  • “Who lives, who dies, who tells your story?” —A line from Hamilton the musical, underscoring the lasting power of stories and public memory.

Standout Moments

• Uncertainty and playful skepticism run throughout—a New Yorker vibe: “Maybe spirit is a better word than ghost...” —Irene [01:27:57]
• “Maybe as long as we’re telling Hamilton’s story, he’s somewhere looking over our shoulder, hoping that we get it right.” —Becky Cooper [01:29:10]

Noteworthy Quotes & Moments

• Julia Louis-Dreyfus: “Her politics are all about her and staying alive.” [22:06]
• Wiki: “Part of growing up is being able to call yourself immature. You know what I’m saying?” [46:24]
• Malcolm Gladwell: “What we’re looking at here is a powerful contagious adolescent cultural pathology.” [01:04:22]
• Becky Cooper: “Maybe as long as we’re telling Hamilton’s story, he’s somewhere looking over our shoulder, hoping that we get it right.” [01:29:10]

Segment Timestamps Recap

03:10–32:20 | Julia Louis-Dreyfus (Veep, politics, comedy, gender, showbiz)
32:30–48:10 | Wiki / Matt Trammell (coming of age, music, NYC, identity)
48:25–01:08:10 | Malcolm Gladwell / Dorothy Wickenden (school shootings, sociology, contagion, guns)
01:08:15–01:29:30 | Becky Cooper (ghost story, Hamilton, legacy, urban legend)

Conclusion

This episode typifies The New Yorker Radio Hour’s knack for weaving together wit, cultural commentary, intimate profiles, and societal inquiry. From Louis-Dreyfus’s sharp humor and reflections on political artifice, to Wiki’s creative coming-of-age in New York, through Gladwell’s unsettling and nuanced take on collective violence, and finally to the mythic resonance of Alexander Hamilton’s ghost—listeners are treated to insight, empathy, and a bit of the extraordinary in the everyday.