How Jonathan Capehart Almost Sabotaged His Career

The Michael Steele Podcast

The Bulwark

Politics, Government, History, News

4.8 • 3.1K Ratings

🗓️ 29 May 2025

⏱️ 68 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Jonathan Capehart made Michael Steele put on a button-down for this interview, so you know it got real, fast. Jonathan joins the podcast to discuss his extremely awkward first encounter with Rev. Al Sharpton and the nature of their contentious relationship, Jonathan's work to save the NY Apollo Theater that led to his Pulitzer win and the time he self-sabotaged so badly that he ran out of a job interview with Bloomberg. Plus, Jonathan tells the story of coming out to his mom (and why it's important to hide your porn well, folks), his decision to resign from the Washington Post Editorial Board and the advice he'd give his younger self.

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Check out Jonathan Capehart's memoir here: https://www.amazon.com/Yet-Here-Am-Lessons-Search/dp/1538767066

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Transcript

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0:00.0	What did you say to me, Mr. K-Part?
0:02.6	What did you just say?
0:03.4	Wait, you were going to make me repeat it?
0:05.2	Yes, what did you just say to me?
0:06.5	I said, you're not going to put on a shirt collar for me.
0:08.6	You just told me I should dress more appropriate to be with you in your presence?
0:13.2	No, just, I mean, you know, I went and put on a shirt, I put a sweater on to be decent. And you, if you show up like you just came from the treadmill.
0:24.6	I'm just going to keep watching cab videos.
0:36.6	Jump from all kinds of hoops,
0:39.3	getting to look pretty because they are sitting there in a sweater
0:48.3	in a day of summer.
0:50.3	Is this better?
0:52.3	It's a button down let me do the button
1:00.3	yo folks my guest today is a dear buddy of mine i have a lot of fun fun with Jonathan K. Part. He makes me laugh,
1:12.9	and I just have a real good vibe every time we're together. He is a Pulitzer Prize winning
1:19.6	journalist, co-host of the weekend on MSNBC and Associate Editor at the Washington Post,
1:26.2	where he is also an opinion writer,
1:28.3	and you can and should read his work there.
1:32.5	He's also an analyst on the PBS News Hour.
1:35.8	His editorial campaign in 1999 to Save the Apollo Theater earned the board the Pulitzer Prize
1:42.9	for editorial writing.
1:45.0	He is a phenomenal individual who has an incredible journey and story that he tells in his new book, his new memoir.
	...

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