Pod Save the People

Pod Save the People

On Pod Save The People, host DeRay Mckesson explores social justice, culture, politics – and the various ways they all collide – with cohosts Myles E. Johnson and Sharhonda Bossier. Each Tuesday, the crew digs into the current events driving the political discourse – bringing cultural context, actionable insights, and a hot take or two – to help empower listeners to engage as thoughtful members of their communities…and their group chats. Alongside special guests, the show uplifts overlooked news stories that impact people of color and amplifies underrepresented voices who are working to create meaningful change.

Episodes

March 24, 2026 97 mins

A federal appeals court revives a lawsuit against DeRay McKesson, prompting warnings that the decision could threaten First Amendment protections. In Los Angeles, a former police commander wins a $5.7 million judgment after alleging she was held to a different standard than her male colleagues. And in culture, Telfar announces it will donate 100% of net profits to global liberation efforts. DeRay interviews researcher and jou...

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Kash Patel announces that UFC fighters will help train FBI agents, the Washington Post experiments with subscription prices set by algorithms using readers’ personal data, and after years helping run one of morning TV’s biggest shows, a CBS News producer Shawna Thomas steps away with a simple message: “I’m tired”. DeRay interviews former Washington State Representative for the 30th Legislative District Jesse Johnson.

...

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March 10, 2026 65 mins

A growing “pardon industry” helps wealthy offenders hire lobbyists to secure clemency from the White House, Chinese billionaires use surrogacy to produce dozens of U.S.-born heirs to inherit their empires, and Jill Scott tops the R&B charts with “Pressha,” a reminder that while the powerful build dynasties, the culture does too.

News

Pardon Industry Offers Rich Offenders a Path to Trump

Chinese billionaire who has fathered m...

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March 3, 2026 74 mins

A tech billionaire makes a $108 billion push to continue the conservative takeover of traditional media, Kansas orders trans residents to surrender their driver’s licenses on one day’s notice, and at the BAFTAs, a racial slur interrupts a celebration of Black artistry.

News

A Father, a Son and Their $108 Billion Push for Media Moguldom

Kansas Orders Trans Drivers to Surrender Licenses With One Day’s Notice 

Anti-blackness...

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February 24, 2026 59 mins

Middle-class Americans are increasingly selling their own plasma to keep pace with an economy that keeps taking more than it gives, election officials in Georgia find fraudulent ballot applications tied to a PAC backed by Elon Musk, and international travelers are skipping the United States as ICE and aggressive border enforcement make visiting America feel less like a vacation and more like a risk.

News

Why the United ...

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February 10, 2026 90 mins

Advocates outline a concrete roadmap to dismantling ICE, new data shows Black defendants in San Diego are increasingly steered toward life-without-parole charges, and a reminder that being bougie and Black isn’t a trend but a legacy.

News

A clear roadmap to ending ICE starts with what we can demand today.

In San Diego, the racial divide in charges that can lead to life without parole has grown

Being Bougie...

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February 3, 2026 75 mins

Republicans unveil the most extreme federal voting restrictions proposed in modern history, Tennessee officials are accused of quietly propping up a payday lender’s failed sports betting operation, and scholars warn the U.S. may be entering the early stages of genocide against trans Americans.

News

New GOP anti-voting bill may be the most dangerous attack on voting rights ever 

How a Tennessee Official Kept Advance Financial’s S...

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January 27, 2026 81 mins

Trump signs a “Board of Peace” charter as allies push back on his Gaza plan, Illinois investigates allegations that a landlord tipped off ICE to target Black and Hispanic tenants in a Chicago building, and Ryan Coogler’s Sinners makes Oscar history with a record 16 nominations.

 

News


Trump signs Board of Peace charter at Davos as allies split on Gaza plan

Illinois Investigates Claim That Landlord Tipped Off High-Profile ICE Raid

'S...

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January 20, 2026 80 mins

The Justice Department moves to block the release of Epstein files, SpaceX rockets explode over active flight paths with little consequence, and a prominent gospel singer faces sexual abuse allegations—another reminder of how power shields itself across institutions and industries.

 

News

Justice Department urges a judge to reject a request from US Reps on the release of Epstein files

“We’re Too Close to the Debris”

Grammy-winning gospe...

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January 13, 2026 85 mins

Utah lets artificial intelligence start prescribing medication, Elon Musk’s Grok AI violates privacy by “undressing” non-consenting users, and a death inside a Mississippi jail raises familiar questions about brutality, cover-ups, and accountability. DeRay interviews Brooke Butler, Political Director of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, about Our Power, Our Country—the party’s earliest-ever investment to mobilize vot...

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January 6, 2026 80 mins

Prediction markets turn global politics into profit as traders cash in on Nicolás Maduro’s capture, the federal government faces constitutional backlash for labeling ICE observers “domestic terrorists,” and Black women survivalists prepare for another Trump era by building systems of self-reliance where the state has failed.

 

News

The Government Unconstitutionally Labels ICE Observers as Domestic Terrorists
Maduro's capture gives ...

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December 16, 2025 80 mins

The U.S. threatens new sanctions on the International Criminal Court—so long as it agrees not to prosecute Donald Trump—while American service members quietly worry they’ll be left holding the legal bag for overseas military strikes. Plus, a reminder of what accountability and care can look like, as the Redd Family Collection of Black Art anchors community, history, and cultural power at the Tubman African American Museum. DeRay in...

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December 9, 2025 59 mins

Dollar stores are caught quietly overcharging the very communities they claim to serve, a failed psychology essay at the University of Oklahoma ignites a national debate over religious discrimination, and CNN’s new partnership with a prediction market raises fresh questions about where journalism ends and gambling begins.

 

News


How the dollar-store industry overcharges cash-strapped customers while promising low prices

OU essay sp...

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December 2, 2025 70 mins

Death row prisoners granted clemency under Biden now brace as the Trump administration rolls out retaliatory prison policies. Podcast influencers who made millions glamorizing “wild births” are now tied to infant deaths across the globe, as investigations reveal a deadly pipeline of anti-medical radicalization. And Gen Z’s viral “quarter-zip movement” signals a generation rewriting the rules of professionalism.

 

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Death Row Prison...

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November 18, 2025 87 mins

Trump grows increasingly agitated as Epstein files inch toward public release, Marjorie Taylor Greene becomes the latest Republican to wobble on loyalty, and new visa data shows some foreigners being denied entry to the U.S. for… being obese?? Meanwhile, a new AI study finds large language models occasionally breaking bad, Democrats gear up for insurgent primaries over the shutdown betrayal, and New York restaurants are outsourcing...

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November 11, 2025 76 mins

Government shutdown chaos deepens as hosts debate the fate of the 'Blue Wave', the DOJ targets judges with immigrant defense backgrounds, LAPD ignores City budget hiring more officers than it can afford, and Outkast finally gets their flowers at the 2025 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. DeRay interviews journalist Brian Goldstone about his new book There Is No Place for Us: Working and Homeless in America.

 

News

The LAPD is hiring more ...

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A wave of layoffs hit Corporate America as the federal shutdown drags on, a drug bribery sting in Mississippi exposes 14 police officers among the 20 arrested, Trump’s White House denounces a Drexciya-inspired Smithsonian exhibit, and new research shows foodborne UTIs disproportionately impact low-income communities. DeRay interviews the team behind the new HBO Max documentary The Alabama Solution: directors Andrew Jarecki & Ch...

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October 28, 2025 56 mins

Millions brace for food stamp losses as the federal shutdown drags on, Steve Bannon pushes Trump’s fantasy of a 2028 presidency, Eric Adams calls Andrew Cuomo 'snake and a liar' then endorses him for NYC Mayor, George Santos pens jailhouse blog ahead of pardon, the NBA faces a Mafia-backed betting scandal, and Angela Rye/Joe Budden conflict sparks debate over “elitism” in Black media.

 

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Santos From Behind Bars: Solitary Confineme...

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October 21, 2025 71 mins

Candace Owens barred from entry into several countries, Gavin Newsom caught slipping by Van Lathan and reparations leaders, while videos of Charlie Kirk’s murder remain online by design. PSTP hosts debate on mass movements in America and honor the life and legacy of Miss Major Griffin-Gracy, a Stonewall veteran and legendary trans activist.

 

News

Miss Major Griffin-Gracy, Stonewall Veteran and Legendary Trans Activist, Has Died at 78

...

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October 14, 2025 91 mins

It’s chaos, capitalism, and counterprogramming this week: Katie Porter’s office implodes, Turning Point USA takes its culture wars to the Super Bowl, a billion-dollar political betting platform blurs the line between democracy and data, and a Philly creative turns her home into resistance art. DeRay interviews LaShawn Harris, author of Tell Her Story: Eleanor Bumpurs & the Police Killing That Galvanized New York City.

 

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Turni...

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