The Epidemic of Celebrity Cowardice (with Gianmarco Soresi and Caroline Kwan)

A Bit Fruity with Matt Bernstein

Matt Bernstein

News Commentary, News, Society & Culture

4.9 • 3.1K Ratings

🗓️ 20 February 2026

⏱️ 99 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Neil Patrick Harris would like to make art that is “apolitical.” Sydney Sweeney “is not a political person.” Jelly Roll is a “dumb redneck” who we shouldn’t want to hear from, but we will be hearing his thoughts on global events “soon.” Ethan Hawke says we shouldn’t seek moral guidance from “a bunch of jet-lagged, drunk artists,” and perhaps he’s right. But at a time when celebrities who were once known for their political outspokenness have gotten strangely coy (Taylor Swift and Beyoncé come to mind), one naturally begins to wonder if something is amiss. And when LeBron James, who cites civil rights hero Muhammad Ali as an inspiration, says he’s heard “only great things” about Israel — now we’re just being, well, played. Today, Gianmarco Soresi, Caroline Kwan and I examine the marked shift pop culture has taken towards spinelessness and attempt to remedy it. Listen to bonus episodes on Patreon! Thanks to today’s sponsors! Start managing your money better and cancel unwanted expenses at https://www.rocketmoney.com/fruity. Get 15% off a cuter, more sustainable way to clean at https://www.blueland.com/fruity. Follow Gianmarco on Instagram. Watch Gianmarco’s podcast, The Downside. Watch Caroline on Twitch. Find me on Instagram. Find A Bit Fruity on Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	So I wanted to start with a joke.
0:02.8	I'm so excited.
0:03.6	Let's hear it.
0:05.0	So a gay man in Germany identifies as apolitical.
0:11.9	I was wondering if you guys consider your art political.
0:15.9	And if so, how can movies these days help fight the rise of fascism in Europe and America?
0:22.8	Well, I think we live in a strangely algorithmic and divided world right now.
0:29.8	And so as artists, I'm always interested in doing things that are apolitical.
0:34.9	That's a joke.
0:36.7	Yeah, yeah, yeah. No, it's a joke. That's a joke.
0:37.7	Yeah, yeah, yeah, no, it's a good one.
0:38.8	Not a comedy podcast, guys. Sorry.
0:47.0	Hello, hello, and welcome back to A Bit Frutie.
0:50.9	It feels like every week for the last several months, a new celebrity has stepped
0:55.1	forward to bravely tell us one thing. They are not political. After flirting with MAGA alignment
1:02.4	for the better part of a year and gleefully becoming the object of Donald Trump's admiration,
1:06.9	the president tweeted about the jeans ad, and I wondered what that was like.
1:12.0	It was surreal.
1:12.9	It was surreal.
1:14.3	Sydney Sweeney declared herself, quote, not a political person.
1:18.6	Jelly Roll, who shook hands with Trump at a UFC rally not long ago, told journalists at the
1:24.2	Grammys that people shouldn't care to hear my opinion, man.
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Matt Bernstein, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Matt Bernstein and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.