Best Michael James McDonald Podcasts (2025)

1
🏦 “Mergers & Athletes” — Goldman’s sports agency. Burberry’s british pivot. Sonder’s hotel drama. +RIP Penny 21:56

Play Pause

1d ago21:56

21:56

Goldman Sachs bought a VC and a sports talent agency… because they take a tiny % of huge $$$. Burberry’s stock is up 50% on their British pivot…. They’re leaning into England’s bad weather. Sonder abruptly shut down, leaving thousands without hotels… It’s WeWork 2.0. And RIP to the American Penny… (so we wrote a coin obituary) $ABNB $GS $BRBY NEWSL…

1
🩱 “Keeping Up With $5B” — Skims’ money situation. Country Music’s AI hit. Netflix’s theme park opens. +Harvard Grade InflAAAAtion 20:49

2d ago20:49

20:49

The #1 country song in America was made by AI… It's the 1st of many future AI firsts. Kim Kardashian’s Skims hit a $5B valuation… Wall Street thinks it’s worth more than Nike and Lulu. Netflix just opened its 1st theme park… because Disney buys, but Netflix rents. Harvard has an inflation problem… 60% of grades are straight A’s. #Gradeflation $NKE …

1
Dads, Daughters, and the Revolution: "One Battle After Another" (2025) with Brendan McDonald 2:31:41

3h ago2:31:41

2:31:41

Julian, Madeline, and Emilio are rejoined by Brendan McDonald, former producer of the iconic podcast WTF with Marc Maron, for a bonus episode about Paul Thomas Anderson's latest masterpiece, One Battle After Another. Kicking off with a check-in on Brendan's life following WTF's end this past October, the group roll through the many hills of PTA's n…

1
👵🏽🥡 “Silver Swipers” — DoorDash’s grannie growth. Softbank’s Nvidia ghosting. Italy’s Tortellini tariff. +McRib Bitcoin 21:51

3d ago21:51

21:51

DoorDash is the fastest-growing brand in America… shockingly because of your boomers. Softbank sold all its $5.8B of Nvidia stock… because AI $ is actually finite. Italian Pasta is getting a 107% tariff… the story explains the big Supreme Court ruling. Plus, the McDonald’s McRib is back on the menu… which could drive a Bitcoin surge. $DASH $NVDA $M…

1
🤡 “Forced Fun!” — Target’s Smile Rule. Trump’s $2k Tariff Dividend. OneSkin’s dude beauty. +Starbucks’ Bear-ista. 20:42

5d ago20:42

20:42

Target’s making workers smile if a customer is within 10 ft… but it’s not the only “Forced Fun biz. President Trump wants to send you … but we found 5 huge economic plot holes. OneSkin has biohacked the skin’s aging process… as Millennials trade “clean” for “clinical” Starbucks is saying “I’m sorry” for selling out of Bearistas. Not baristas, bear-…

1
🦺 “How Vests Won Wall St” — Vest Szn. Duolingo’s unhinged mistake. Air Travel’s Expedia moment. +AI Dog Pawdcasters 22:33

6d ago22:33

22:33

It’s Vest Season… So we tracked the history of Corporate America’s fave fashion to 1666. Duolingo’s stock had its worst day ever… because its Owl Mascot wasn’t unhinged *enough*. Expedia’s stock jumped to an all-time high Friday… changing the narrative on the economy. Plus, the newest trend in Podcasting is Pawdcasting… AI dogs are topping the char…

1
Show 377. Jack McConnell 1:07:08

4d ago1:07:08

1:07:08

This is PHENOMENAL. Jack was First Minister of Scotland 2001-2007. It was a tumultuous global time and he found himself at the centre of it at the Gleneagles summit. His stories about George W. Bush and Vladimir Putin are incredible. But there's loads more in this. Jack became the leader of a local authority at just 29. He'd joined the SNP at 16, b…

1
🦈 “Doo-Doo-Doo” — Baby Shark’s IPO. 85% off Ozempic. Lyft CEO David Risher. +Restaurant Hottie AI 26:11

8d ago26:11

26:11

President Trump struck a deal with Big Pharma for $150 GLP-1 drugs… a total euro move. On the 10th anniversary of the Baby Shark video… its owner PinkFong IPO’d at a $400 million valuation. Lyft’s CEO celebrated their best quarter yet… by joining The Best One Yet in-studio LooksMapping ranks restaurants by the hotness of their diners. $LYFT $UBER $…

1
👠 “HOLD Tory Birch” — Fashion’s stock market. Elon’s $1 Trillion Rihanna payday. The Capitalism Election. +Tom Brady’s cloned dog 21:24

9d ago21:24

21:24

Will Elon quit Tesla tomorrow?... He may if shareholders don’t approve his $1 Trillion bonus (“Better Have My Money”) Hold: Gucci. Sell: Isabel Marant. Buy: Loewe…. Fashion Trading is the new “Life Dividend” flex. We just had the “Capitalism Election”... it came down to the Unholy Trinity of Unaffordability. Plus, Tom Brady just cloned his dog… and…

1
🐻‍❄️ “Artificial Santa” — Coca-Cola’s AI holiday ad. Axon’s bipartisan tasers. Beta’s e-airplane IPO. +Line-Waiting Biz 22:32

10d ago22:32

22:32

One stock defies politics: Axon… They found unity (reducing deaths) in a divisive topic (policing). Coca-Cola’s holiday commercial is here, and it’s AI-generated… headlines show hate, but data shows love. The publicly traded stock is Beta… they do electric airplanes, but the real business is Charge Cubes. Plus, the cool new business is waiting (lit…

1
🥬 “Organic Doritos?” — Whole Foods’ amazonification. Palantir’s anti-college recruiting. AI’s unpopularity problem. +Nvidia’s chicken stock 23:00

12d ago23:00

23:00

Palantir doesn’t want college experience… so it’s hiring 18-year-olds for full-time jobs. Did you notice Doritos at Whole Foods?... Because the organic grocer has been “Amazonified.” AI has a PR problem: Everyone hates it… except every company is focusing on it. Plus, Nvidia’s CEO Jensen Huang crushed beers at dinner… and Korean chicken stocks jump…

1
📺 “Nobody Wants This… Product placement” — Netflix's ad drama. Earnings Season’s exception. Neo’s home robot. +DoorDash’s cuffing szn 20:59

13d ago20:59

20:59

Netflix’s #1 show is full of conspicuous Dunkin logos… Enshittification or ingenious? Earnings season is 60% over, it’s the best in 4 years… But twenty somethings aren’t celebrating. Neo’s home robot is for sale for $20k… but you’re helping it as much as it’s helping you. Doordash data confirms you’re trying to lock down a guy/girl… because toothbr…

1
Show 376. Bethany Dawson 1:04:04

11d ago1:04:04

1:04:04

Well this is about way more than politics... Bethany is one of the stars of the Politico Playbook morning email. It's the must-read morning briefing which mixes top-level political analysis with plenty of juicy gossip. We talk about gossip, why it's important and how to get it... but we also talk about health and the importance of patients really p…

1
👻 “Paranormal profits” — Horror’s box office record. Starbucks’ delivery biz. Gov Shutdown’s 2nd month. +KPop (Lehman) Hunters 20:16

15d ago20:16

20:16

Horror took 17% of the US box office this year, a record high… it’s the divisive dividend. Starbucks sales grew last Q for the first time in 7 quarters … thanks to coffee delivery. The Government Shutdown’s entering month 2… food stamps and healthcare are the focus. Plus, our biz-themed Halloween costume is… K-Pop Lehman Hunters $SBUX $BCS $SPY NEW…

1
The Worst Noel: 'Black Christmas' (1974) with James Codoyannis 1:49:48

13d ago1:49:48

1:49:48

To kick off the latest cycle of "Unorthodox Holiday Suggestions", Emilio brings the original 'Black Christmas', Bob Clark's other holiday themed masterpiece from 1974, to the group just in time for spooky season. Joining the usual three cohosts is James Codoyannis, fellow cinephile and editor for film/TV who worked on the well-received, recently re…

1
🦈 “I’m out” — Shark Tank’s China trade deal. Nvidia’s $5T flowers. Fruitist’s $1B blueberry. +Candy Salad Trick-or-Treat 19:53

17d ago19:53

19:53

Nvidia became the 1st biz to hit $5T… because its chips are actually perishable like flowers. Fruitist carefully bred blueberries to be the size of golf balls… and now it’s worth $1 billion. Trump is meeting today with President Xi… Shark Tank entrepreneurs are on the edge of their seats. Plus, chocolate prices have hit all-time highs… so the new t…

1
☹️ “AI Party Police — Airbnb’s Halloween plan. Wikipedia vs Grokipedia. The Great Hiring Freeze. +Stock Market’s #1 Day 22:43

18d ago22:43

22:43

Airbnb is using AI to block parties this Halloween… It’s their new Party Pooper with a Purpose. Wikipedia visits are falling for the 1st time… and Elon Musk launched “Grokipedia”. Amazon is laying off 14K, UPS just laid off 48K… We’ll tell you how to prep for the Great Hiring Freeze. Plus, October 28th is the #1 stock market day of the year… and ma…

1
🐥 “Unplugged on Sunday” — Chick-fil-A’s vending machine. College Football’s $50M firings. CreedTok’s viral hit. +Exclamation Inflation!!!! 22:28

19d ago22:28

22:28

College football coaches are getting fired… but then paid millions #GoldenJockstraps Chick-fil-A’s 1st vending machine opened in Georgia… Because we live in a Kiosk Economy. The boxing movie “Creed” has gone viral 10 years later… b/c TikTok fan edits are letters of love. Plus, there’s a new form of inflation: Exclamation (Point) Inflation!!!! Creed…

1
🦿 “Self-Running Sneaks” — Nike’s moonshot merch. Carbone’s AI restaurant. The Scariest Stock Chart. +H’ween Biz Costumes 22:37

19d ago22:37

22:37

Nike’s dropped $1B on research for a motorized shoe… It’s betting on 3 wild moonshots. Carbone’s fancy restaurant invests in Magic AI… to customize your whole restaurant experience. The scariest stock market in America?... Stocks are going up, but jobs are going down. Plus, the best biz-themed Halloween costumes… Data Center Vampire (or Sexy Fed Ch…

1
Show 375. Harriet Cross 51:21

18d ago51:21

51:21

Harriet is a rare thing: a new Conservative MP who won her seat at the last election. In Scotland. She's already been made a whip. So how come she's rising so fast and what's it like entering the Commons when your party has suffered a historic defeat? And how has living in rural communities shaped her particular brand of conservatism? THE POLITICAL…

1
🏃‍♀️ “Doing Things” — Ty Haney, Founder of Outdoor Voices 49:47

22d ago49:47

49:47

The Rise, fall, and resurrection of the coolest athleisure brand of the 20-teens, Outdoor Voices. No one does things like Ty Haney - She’s the Anna Wintour of Athleisure, creating the Nike-devouring apparel brand Outdoor Voices after art school. Her super power is harnessing community, which brought OV a $100M valuation. In 2020, Ty was pushed out …

1
🏀 “FBI, NBA, & The Mafia” — Basketball’s insider trading. Netflix’s Stranger Things strategy. Ty Haney of OV. +Water Sommeliers 24:55

23d ago24:55

24:55

Basketball. Mafia Bosses. The FBI… 30+ people were arrested for NBA insider trading and illegal poker. Netflix’s Stranger Things Season 5 is taking over the holidays… and movie theaters. Ty Haney, Founder of Outdoor Voices, joins the pod… and shares her “4 Step Secret to Building Community.” Plus, the cool new restaurant trend is luxury bottled wat…

1
🎢 “Roller Coaster Tycoon” — Travis Kelce’s Six Flag’s investment. OpenAI’s web browser. NHL’s predictions deal. +Google’s Bed Bugs 22:22

23d ago22:22

22:22

We used OpenAI’s web browser for 1 full day… Here's our review on “ChatGPT Atlas”. The Kelce brothers invested in Six Flags with a hedge fund… It’s a hostile theme park takeover. The NHL is the 1st Big 4 sports league with an official predictions market… and it reminds us of airport security. Plus, Bed Bugs have taken over Google… because pests ret…

1
Found Footage Evolution with Shaun Seneviratne: 'The Blair Witch Project' (1999), 'Creep' (2014), and 'Searching' (2018) 1:50:47

21d ago1:50:47

1:50:47

For their Audience Interrogation cycle "Close Up" episode, Emilio, Julian and Madeline hit record and explore a genre that they are, admittedly, not as familiar with: Found Footage Films. They are joined by writer/director/teacher/musician Shaun Seneviratne, a fellow cinephile whose been historically lukewarm on Found Footage films, but enthusiasti…

1
🍷 “LeBrunello James” — NBA’s wine season. China’s marriage markets. Warner Bros’ bidding way. +6-pound phone case 22:11

25d ago22:11

22:11

The NBA season kicked off last night…and it’s the official league of wine. Warner Brothers Discovery stock jumped 11% on word of a bidding war… Netflix, Comcast, and Paramount all want to buy it. An old Chinese tradition is getting new attention… in-person Marriage Markets run by parents in the park. Plus, we found the perfect solution to shorten y…

1
🏴‍☠️ “The Day the Internet Broke” — AWS’ outage. Canyon Ranch’s menopause resort. TiVo’s last day. +FBI’s art crime team 22:22

26d ago22:22

22:22

Canyon Ranch is opening a $500M hotel in Austin, but for just 1 customer… Women. The internet broke yesterday because of Amazon Web Services… It’s too connected to fail. TiVo, the TV pioneer, just sold its last TiVo… It’s a case study in “moats vs islands.” Plus, the Louvre theft in Paris isn’t unique… Art crime has been hitting an all-time high. $…

1
🌴 “Date Maxxing” — Medjool Dates’ surge. Apple’s F1 fashion. Ramp’s ‘The Office’ strategy. +Worst Tipping City 21:15

27d ago21:15

21:15

Apple snagged the TV rights to Formula1… Because racing is now a luxury fashion product. Ramp just hired the cast from ‘The Office’... and got the receipts on your most-expensed meal. Date-maxxing is viral… Medjool date sales hit all-time highs because it’s the 1 fruit winning from Climate Change. Plus, we found the worst-tipping city in America (t…

1
Show 374. Rosamund Adoo-Kissi-Debrah CBE 59:49

25d ago59:49

59:49

This is a powerful lesson in campaigning, pragmatism and processing grief. Rosamund's daughter Ella died in 2013 at the age of nine. She is still the only person ever in the UK to have air pollution registered as a cause of death. Since then, Rosamund has been a relentless campaigner for improving air quality. She has helped change policy here in t…

1
🪽 “Fashion Show 2.0” — Victoria’s Secret’s resurrection. Coterie’s $1B diaper. Ikea’s price pop. +Moneycrisp Apples 21:50

30d ago21:50

21:50

Victoria’s Secret got its mojo back Wednesday night, but so did the stock… it’s following Abercrombie’s playbook. Coterie diapers are being acquired for up to $1B… because even diapers need a status symbol. Ikea hates raising prices, but has to because of tariffs… As the Trade War hits 200 days, here’s who’s paying. Plus, the most profitable apple …

1
😏 “DTP (Down To Prompt)” — ChatGPT’s erotic pivot. Bill Simmons’ king-maker. Goldman’s D1 Athletes. +Tyra Banks’ hot ice cream. 20:04

1M ago20:04

20:04

OpenAI announced erotica will be allowed in the chat… Sam Altman is flooding the zone. Netflix is adding Spotify video podcasts… because Bill Simmons is the king-maker of pods. Big Bank earnings are wild, and powered by ex D1 athletes… It’s Goldman Sacks (as in football sacks). Tyra Banks wasn’t at the Victoria Secret fashion show last night… she w…

1
Movies That Scarred Us 2:06:02

28d ago2:06:02

2:06:02

If you're a lover of movies, there is, without a doubt, a disturbing movie (or several) that you saw when you were too young to process it. With imagery and scenes that have lodged themselves in your brain. And since the memory of the discomfort that movie brought you is still there somewhere, it changed us in a small but meaningful way. For this b…

1
🧋 “Anti-Slop Coffee Shop” — Claude’s AI café. Vulcan’s patriotic mine. Buldak’s $8B noodles. +Downpayment Work Perk. 22:32

1M ago22:32

22:32

Why did an AI brand open an NYC coffee shop?... Claude’s throwing shade at ChatGPT. China’s cutting off rare earth metals to America… So Vulcan raised $65M for Made in USA ones. Gen Alpha’s favorite brand is Buldak ramen noodles… but they’re so spicy, they got banned. Plus, the hot new work perk?... A downpayment on a home. $AMZN $MP $SPY NEWSLETTE…

1
🪞 “Mirror, no Mirror?” — Aritzia’s mirrorless fashion. Nobel’s Creative Destruction prize. Strava’s Garmin lawsuit. +Failure Day 22:55

1M ago22:55

22:55

Canada’s Aritzia is now as valuable as The Gap or Levi’s… But it’s doing it with mirrorless dressing rooms. Strava sued Garmin as the running app preps to IPO… It’s social networks vs. satellite networks. The Nobel Prize in Economics goes to “Creative Destruction”... so we read the paper from the 3 professors. Plus, it’s International Day of Failur…

51
Show 373. Amy Callaghan 47:35

1M ago47:35

47:35

Amy has led an extraordinary life and she's still only in her 30s. While the SNP MP for East Dunbartonshire she suffered a brain hemorrhage. As she recovered, she had to battle the arcane rules of the House of Commons in order to speak and vote on behalf of her constituents. Having narrowly beaten Jo Swinson in 2019, Amy then lost the seat in 2024.…

1
🏙️ “JamieLand” — JPM’s Return-to-Office Tower. Scoreability’s LinkedIn for Athletes. Walmart’s Store of the Future. +Pumpkin Spice Weddings 22:46

1M ago22:46

22:46

JP Morgan Chase’s new skyscraper just opened… including 19 restaurants & custom scents. Scoreability is LinkedIn of high school athletes… Because college sports is a for-profit growth industry. Walmart just launched the “Tire Center of the Future”... It’s the omni-channel labradoodle of retail. The hot new month to get married? October… It’s the pu…

1
💄 “The Carrie Bradshaw Index” — Where to Live Solo. Amazon’s Prime Day retirement. Pizza by the Slice. +Jack’s Nvidia Poem. 22:05

1M ago22:05

22:05

Amazon was sued for fake deals on Prime Day… it’s time to retire Prime Day. Where can Americans afford to live solo in 2025?... Introducing The Carrie Bradshaw Index. Restaurants are opening pizza shop side hustles… because pizza by the slice is a profit puppy. Plus, since it’s Q4, Jack wrote some publicly traded poetry… on Nvidia $DOM $SPY $AMZN N…

1
🐊 “4th-and-Pickle” — Gatorade’s picklejuice plan. ChatGPT’s chief-of-app. Spunge’s sneaker disruption. +150 Friend Rule. 21:05

1M ago21:05

21:05

It’s the LAST DAY to Vote for The Best Idea Yet to win “Best Business Podcast”: https://vote.signalaward.com/PublicVoting#/2025/shows/genre/business NFL players are pounding pickle juice to kill cramps… It’s an opportunity for Gatorade You can now order DoorDash or search Zillow in ChatGPT… AI just killed the app. Spunge is the first major sneake…

1
Pursuing the Money Shot: 'Nightcrawler' (2014) and 'Civil War' (2024) with Michael Cramer 2:04:58

1M ago2:04:58

2:04:58

Julian, Madeline, and Emilio continue their episode cycle on Audience Interrogation with a "Two-Shot" on Dan Gilroy's "Nightcrawler" (2014) and Alex Garland's "Civil War" (2024), and are joined for the conversation by Michael Cramer, professor of Film History at Julian's alma mater, Sarah Lawrence College. Looking at this surprisingly fitting pair …

1
Show 372. Bridget Phillipson - LIVE 1:07:19

1M ago1:07:19

1:07:19

Bridget is one of the biggest stars of the Labour government. As well as being Education Secretary, she is standing to be Labour's Deputy Leader. It's the first major test of members' opinion since Labour came into office. She's led a fascinating life. Growing up in poverty, but making it to Oxford via Byker Grove. So what drives her, what changes …

1
🥇 “$4K” — Gold’s “debasement” trade. Rowan’s $150M Ear Piercing. Sharpies’ Made in America. +Netflix’s Loud Ad Law. 22:44

1M ago22:44

22:44

2M ago22:56

22:56

Starbucks is decaffeinating itself, closing 400 stores… but there’s hope for Starbs at McDonald’s. 3 NFL teams just sold at record prices... They sold to Private Equity, but what about fan shares? Spotify deleted 75M AI songs, while AI slop is slowing your work day… Welcome to the AI Garbage Truck Era. Plus, Anthropologie is selling a rock?… For $1…