Six Feet Apart with Alex Wagner

Being an American right now is a wild ride. Every day brings a new controversy, with breathless media narratives and the same loud voices rushing in to score political points. Then another Truth Social post drops and the circus moves on. But all that noise is drowning out the actual story. On Crooked Media’s new podcast Runaway Country, veteran journalist Alex Wagner talks to the voices at the center of the headlines: from the fringes of the resistance, to the marrow of MAGA, to the many people who’ve found themselves smack-dab in the crosshairs of a fight they never asked for. Because if you want to understand our unreal times, you’ve got to talk to the very real people who are experiencing it all first-hand. Join Alex as she brings together the stories of everyday Americans trapped in our national car with no brakes, alongside conversations with some of the smartest thinkers in politics. Buckle up, this road could lead anywhere.

New episodes every Thursday wherever you get your podcasts, and @RunawayCountryWithAlexWagner on YouTube. Make sure to subscribe, so you don’t miss an episode.

In a moment of profound unrest and unprecedented chaos, Americans are wondering what comes next. For citizens and businesses alike, this is a period of questioning, rethinking and rebuilding -- sentiments that have been reflected in many conversations we've had over the last ten weeks. For the very last episode of Six Feet Apart, we look at what the pandemic has done to one of our social institutions, the American restaurant, to better understand what went wrong, how it might get fixed, and what happens to everyone in the meantime. First, Alex talks to Riley, a server in Nashville who is working shifts at recently re-opened local pub. Then she speaks with to Danny Meyer, the CEO of Union Square Hospitality Group, about what re-opening might look like in the country's hardest-hit city, and the implications for the restaurant business on whole. And finally, she talks to Naomi Pomeroy, the chef and owner of the tiny, critically-acclaimed Oregon restaurant Beast, about what might happen to an independent restaurant surviving on tight margins in a moment of crisis and reinvention.

For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/sixfeetapart.

As people everywhere have been forced to take their lives and careers online, this week Alex delves into the most digital job of them all — the social media influencer. How does social influencing work in a time of social isolation? Do online beauty and travel gurus have the same appeal in a time of lockdown and lipstick-less Zoom calls? First, Alex speaks with Josh Zimmerman, a life coach for influencers, who offers big picture analysis about how online personalities are staying creative—and solvent—during a time of crisis. Then, she speaks with Alisha Marie, an influencer whose millions of followers are now tuning in to her stay-at-home routine—and the all pressures that come along with it.

For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/sixfeetapart.

For a country that loves to shop, COVID-19 has forced Americans to focus their spending sprees on toilet paper and masks. What's happened to that favorite American pastime — shopping — in the middle of a pandemic? Is anyone buying? Are warehouses simply filled with stuff… and will it go on sale? This week, Alex talks to Clare Vivier, the designer and owner of the fashion brand Clare V. Clare discusses how she's handled factory closures and shuttered warehouses. Then Alex talks to Kasi, a clerk at a Hobby Lobby in Missouri, whose doors opened to the public last week. She shares her experience going back to work to sell craft supplies, and whether crochet needles count as essential materials in a pandemic.

For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/sixfeetapart.

Amid a pandemic that’s touched every aspect of our lives—from the emotional to the financial—what has COVID-19 done to our sexual appetites? In this episode, Alex Wagner talks to three professionals with particular insight into the country’s deepest and (mostly) unspoken desires. First, we hear from Alison Boden, CEO of the porn site kink.com about how the nationwide lockdown has affected an industry not known for social distancing. Then, we're joined by J. Leigh, a BDSM dominatrix, forced to move out of the dungeon (literally) and on to the internet. And finally, we speak with Lotus Lain, an industry relations advocate and adult film actress who explains the ways in which porn actors have been better prepared for a global pandemic... than basically everyone else.

For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/sixfeetapart.

As federal authorities have moved farther away from the frontlines of this virus, state and local leaders are left to manage the spread of Covid-19. How are they balancing the safety of their citizens with the economic realities of a widespread shutdown? How are they dealing with the Trump White House? And how are they getting any sleep? First, Alex speaks with Governor Steve Bullock of Montana about the delicate balance of being a Democratic governor of a deep red state (and an upcoming candidate in the US Senate race). Then she speaks with Mayor Lori Lightfoot of Chicago, who is literally taking to the streets to keep people safe in the third largest city in America.

For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/sixfeetapart.

What happens to an already strained system in the middle of a pandemic? This week’s episode looks at America’s criminal justice system as prosecutors and inmates alike manage unprecedented challenges. First, Alex speaks to San Francisco's new District Attorney, Chesa Boudin. With a father who has been incarcerated nearly since his birth—and remains in prison today—Boudin was elected into office as a progressive reformer seeking to end the era of mass incarceration. Then, we talk to MaryBeth, an inmate in federal prison cleared for early release, but still grappling with a dangerous reality inside federal detention as she waits to go home.

Our interview with MaryBeth was made possible through the work of #Cut 50 — a bipartisan effort to cut crime and incarceration across all 50 states. For more on their work, visit cut50.org

For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/sixfeetapart.

Sports and athletic performances of all kinds are on hold indefinitely as the global pandemic continues to play out. While stadiums and auditoriums sit empty, what's happened to the athletes who once used them? Alex speaks with an Olympic hopeful, a prima ballerina, and a WNBA star to see how elite athletes are keeping their minds sharp and muscles strong in a moment of social isolation and deferred dreams.

For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/sixfeetapart.

As the lockdown enters its fifth week, people across the country are looking to escape the chaos, fear and anxiety of a global pandemic. Anything that can offer comfort or relief is in high demand—and that includes drugs. In this episode, Alex examines how people are buying drugs in social isolation, and the ways in which their dealers are managing the supply and demand of both regulated and unregulated substances. First up is the marijuana industry: Alex talks to Dean Arbit, CEO of bud.com, about skyrocketing demand and the specific highs his customers are looking for during COVID-19. Then she talks to "B," a dealer in Los Angeles selling cocaine, mushrooms and MDMA and learns how you move illegal drugs from six feet apart. This is an episode that will shed new light on the most intimate—and illegal—dimensions of human fear and loneliness.

For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/sixfeetapart.

This week, Alex talks to a funeral director and a Rabbi about how Covid-19 is affecting our regular rituals -- which also happen to be their jobs. First, she talks to funeral director Mark Flower about how he's handled new restrictions on funeral services as well as an increased demand for his business. Then, Alex talks to Rabbi Brous, who explains how the Jewish community she leads in Los Angeles is adapting to a ban on religious gatherings, and how everyone can find meaning from religion at this time.

For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/sixfeetapart.