Choice Words with Samantha Bee

Choices We Made: TV or Radio? (with Christa Miller)

Actor Christa Miller joins Sam to talk about the new season of Shrinking and her other role where she serves as music supervisor. Christa talks about how she loves giving new artists their big break on TV and how TV really is the new radio. They talk about the never-ending seasons of 90s sitcoms, choosing spending time with her kids over certain jobs and why it’s always risky to turn something down. She talks about her real life therapist being the inspiration for Shrinking and how she used to have a hard time making decisions until he helped her learn that the act of making the decision is the important part, not the outcome. Sam and Christa agree you really are only ever as happy as your unhappiest child, and they do some shared mom-gushing over Christa’s daughter, musician Charlotte Lawrence. Christa amazes Sam by talking about being Susan Saint James’ niece, growing up in NYC the daughter of a super model, and how in high school she would DJ at clubs after the real DJ was done for the night. Keep up with Samantha Bee @realsambee on Instagram and X. And stay up to date with us @LemonadaMedia on X, Facebook, and Instagram. For a list of current sponsors and discount codes for this and every other Lemonada show, go to lemonadamedia.com/sponsors. See ⁠omnystudio.com/listener⁠ for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Choices We Made: Lawyer or Journalist? (with Jodi Kantor)

Journalist Jodi Kantor joins Sam to talk about her new book, How To Start, and how, much to the chagrin of her parents, she dropped out of Harvard Law to go into a career in Journalism. They talk about why it is so uniquely hard to find a job out of college these days, and how even if you’re not a recent grad, AI is destroying the interview process and the need for entry-level jobs. They talk about why the American college system makes it so hard to take risks, the fog of technology, and the importance of focusing on craft if you can. They agree their kids will never take career advice from them and can only hear wisdom if it comes from Tik Tok, and why it would be best for everyone to find a career where they’re happy in ten minute increments.  Keep up with Samantha Bee @realsambee on Instagram and X. And stay up to date with us @LemonadaMedia on X, Facebook, and Instagram. For a list of current sponsors and discount codes for this and every other Lemonada show, go to lemonadamedia.com/sponsors. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Choices We Made: Secular Saint or Church Guitarist? (with George Saunders)

Author George Saunders joins Sam to talk about his new book Vigil and why people are so obsessed with turning him into a secular saint (and his childhood role of church guitarist). George explains that even though he’s not on social media he still finds ways to doom scroll, how the current government could have learned empathy if they bothered to read a few books, and how he found inspiration for Vigil without sounding too preachy. They talk about the importance of “vomit drafts” and the process of revisions, how his writing approach is about minimizing his anxiety, the choice to turn on or off some of the voices in your head, early rejection from The New Yorker, and choosing not to get killed just to be a great writer. They explain how they both put their choices up against the deathbed test, and how being compassionate doesn’t always mean being nice. Keep up with Samantha Bee @realsambee on Instagram and X. And stay up to date with us @LemonadaMedia on X, Facebook, and Instagram. For a list of current sponsors and discount codes for this and every other Lemonada show, go to lemonadamedia.com/sponsors. See ⁠omnystudio.com/listener⁠ for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Choices We Made: Shamed or Shameless? (with Jennifer Welch)

Jennifer Welch, host of the podcast “I’ve Had It”  joins Sam to talk about taking a midlife gap year in Manhattan and how the country is led by people with no shame, and you just can’t shame the shameless. They talk about how she navigates the daily shitstorm (by starting her day at 5am with four shots of espresso), staying on Twitter despite the Elon Musk factor, how growing up atheist in Oklahoma taught her how to dissociate from craziness around her, fellow Oklahoman Markwayne Mullin at DHS, and how to reckon with leaders who don’t value human life. But, Jennifer also somehow gives Sam a little optimism talking about the problems with strongmen leaders, and why Democrats need to stop chasing the elusive “reasonable Republican” voter. Plus, they unpack some potential 2028 candidates and rage over why democratic leaders can’t speak extemporaneously. Keep up with Samantha Bee @realsambee on Instagram and X. And stay up to date with us @LemonadaMedia on X, Facebook, and Instagram. For a list of current sponsors and discount codes for this and every other Lemonada show, go to lemonadamedia.com/sponsors. See ⁠omnystudio.com/listener⁠ for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Choices We Made: Moscow or ‘Merica? (with David Remnick)

The New Yorker editor David Remnick joins Sam to talk about if The New Yorker is the “slow food movement” of news and how today’s current events remind him of living in Moscow at the end of the Soviet Union. They talk about how the industry changed when Jeff Bezos bought the Washington Post and why his ownership is different in the second Trump administration than in the first, and how David is currently being sued by the president. They discuss how you can’t say the quiet part out loud anymore since there’s no quiet part, why David has been listening to Joe Rogan in the middle of the night, why teenagers are consuming so much fitness content, and how the two best decisions he’s ever made are marrying the right person and not signing up for social media when he first had the chance. Keep up with Samantha Bee @realsambee on Instagram and X. And stay up to date with us @LemonadaMedia on X, Facebook, and Instagram. For a list of current sponsors and discount codes for this and every other Lemonada show, go to lemonadamedia.com/sponsors. See ⁠omnystudio.com/listener⁠ for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices