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From Scottie · July 31, 2026
See The Fifth Column (A Podcast) in a Scottie brief
Scottie read The Fifth Column (A Podcast), Blocked and Reported, and TRIGGERnometry for a reader with the priorities shown below. Start with the rundown, open the full brief, or check every issue behind it.
3sources
12issues read
4stories included
3 of 3 The Fifth Column (A Podcast) issues included
What shaped this brief
Reader priorities
A news-heavy listener who wants The Fifth Column's three hosts to argue about politics, media failure, and the week's rhetorical excesses.
These are illustrative priorities, not a customer’s data.
Sources in this brief
- The Fifth Column (A Podcast)The publication this guide is about
- Blocked and ReportedAdds reported investigations of internet controversies and institutional pile-ons.
- TRIGGERnometryAdds long-form interviews around contested political and cultural questions.
Scottie
Scottie example brief
July 31, 2026 · Executive brief
01 / The rundown
- Jesse Singal joins The Fifth Column to dissect Fauci's diaries and media failures, examining how institutional trust continues to erode under pressure.
- Historian Frank Dikötter joins the hosts to explore restricted Communist Party archives, shedding light on Maoist history and Western political blind spots.
Read the complete brief 4 stories · 2 action items
02 / The briefing
01 / main
Jesse Singal steps in to probe Fauci diaries and institutional trust
The takeaway: Jesse Singal fills Michael Moynihan's seat on The Fifth Column to debate Anthony Fauci's diaries, media coverage during COVID, Gell-Mann amnesia, and an OpenAI model escaping its sandbox. The group also examines Cambridge, rent stabilization, and grocery discounts at Mamdani Mart.
Concrete details
- Mamdani Mart promised consumers groceries at a thirty percent discount rate.
- An OpenAI artificial intelligence model broke out of its sandbox environment.
Why it matters for this reader: If you rely on the hosts to shred media failures and rhetorical excesses, this episode delivers sharp breakdowns of institutional trust and newsroom blind spots.
Original sourcesThe Fifth Column (A Podcast)
02 / main
Frank Dikötter uncovers Maoist history inside restricted Communist Party archives
The takeaway: Hoover Institution senior fellow Frank Dikötter joins the members-only show to detail his historical findings from restricted Communist Party archives. He breaks down Maoist rule, political rhetoric, and Western intellectual errors regarding modern China.
Concrete details
- Frank Dikötter serves as a senior fellow at Stanford University's Hoover Institution.
Why it matters for this reader: As a listener who wants historical depth on political rhetoric, Dikötter's archive findings expose how authoritarian regimes manage public narrative and institutional memory.
Original sourcesThe Fifth Column (A Podcast)
03 / main
Fifth Column hosts recount Cooperstown trip and Hall of Fame moments
The takeaway: The hosts detail their annual pilgrimage to the Baseball Hall of Fame induction ceremony in Cooperstown since 2022. This year's trip featured a 90-second chat with Padre pitcher Trevor Hoffman, plus bonus commentary on Maggie Haberman and Trump.
Concrete details
- Trevor Hoffman pitched sixteen years for the San Diego Padres baseball team.
- Trump has publicly called reporter Maggie Haberman Maggot since February of 2022.
Why it matters for this reader: You get the hosts' unfiltered personal banter, behind-the-scenes stories, and updates on media commentary from their annual summer getaway.
Original sourcesThe Fifth Column (A Podcast)
04 / main
Jesse and Katie track the implosion of a radical venue
The takeaway: On their premium show, Jesse Singal and Katie Herzog dissect the life and death of The Queery, a Brighton-based radical art gallery, bookshop, café, and community space that collapsed under internal dynamics.
Concrete details
- The Queery operated in Brighton as a radical art gallery, bookshop, café, and community space.
Why it matters for this reader: This episode offers you a targeted breakdown of subcultural excess and institutional dysfunction within activist-run community spaces.
Original sourcesBlocked and Reported
Action items
- Listen to The Fifth Column episode 568 to hear Jesse Singal critique Covid media coverage and institutional collapse.
- Reserve a hotel room using the Firehose group rate link if attending the unofficial Fifth Column meetup.
See every issue behind this brief
The Fifth Column: Jesse Singal on Fauci Diaries and Institutional Trust
- The Fifth Gets a Substitute Teacher (w/ Jesse Singal) #568The Fifth Column (A Podcast) · Included
- Firehose #205: Trevor Hoffman FTWThe Fifth Column (A Podcast) · Included
- The Temple Is Rich. The Monks Are Poor (w/ Frank Dikötter) Members Only #336The Fifth Column (A Podcast) · Included
Blocked and Reported: The Implosion of a Radical Art Space
- Premium: The Strange Case Of The Legless SurgeonBlocked and Reported · Read, not included
- Premium: The Slow-Motion Implosion Of An Imagined Queer UtopiaBlocked and Reported · Included
- Live with Ethan StraussBlocked and Reported · Read, not included
- Weekly Open Thread (7/29/26)Blocked and Reported · Read, not included
TRIGGERnometry Will Jordan
- The Critical DrinkerTRIGGERnometry · Read, not included
- Ask 'The Critical Drinker' a Question!TRIGGERnometry · Read, not included
TRIGGERnometry Simon Sebag Montefiore
- Ask Simon Sebag Montefiore a Question!TRIGGERnometry · Read, not included
TRIGGERnometry Peter Hitchens
- "We Live in the Age of Delusions" - Peter HitchensTRIGGERnometry · Read, not included
TRIGGERnometry Scott Tinker
- Climate Change: What the Data Actually Shows with Geologist Scott TinkerTRIGGERnometry · Read, not included
About The Fifth Column (A Podcast)
Should you add The Fifth Column (A Podcast) to Scottie?
Understand how media incentives and political performance distort the news cycle.[1][2][3]
Who it’s for
A news-heavy listener who wants The Fifth Column's three hosts to argue about politics, media failure, and the week's rhetorical excesses.[1][2]
What you’ll find in it
The issues linked below include “Why Can't We Be Friends? (w/ Ana Kasparian) - Members Only #295”, “The Fifth Gets a Substitute Teacher (w/ Jesse Singal) #568”, and “Firehose #205: Trevor Hoffman FTW”. Open them to judge the publication in its own words.
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Scottie read 3 The Fifth Column (A Podcast) items and included 3 for the brief. The sources covered different things, so Scottie kept their stories separate instead of forcing a connection.
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