The Michael Shermer Show

Jennifer Fraser, author and researcher on bullying and gaslighting, explores the psychology and neuroscience behind manipulation. She discusses how abuse cultures form, why authority can distort perception, and how predators groom and exploit vulnerabilities. Conversation highlights detection strategies, institutional complicity, and the recurring patterns that show up across schools, workplaces, sports, and relationships.

Bart Ehrman, James A. Gray Distinguished Professor and bestselling scholar of the New Testament, discusses how Jesus reshaped moral concern for outsiders. He traces ancient ethics, the Hebrew and Greco-Roman limits on altruism, the historical Jesus and apocalyptic context, and how Christian practice built hospitals and charities. He also reflects on his own move from evangelicalism to agnostic atheism.

Lionel Shriver, novelist and essayist known for confronting divisive social issues, discusses shifting political labels and why immigration now dominates politics. She tackles the changing authority of novelists, religion’s role in modern politics, debates over trans medicine and birthright citizenship, and how policy, enforcement, and culture shape integration and social cohesion.

Zion Lights, a British science communicator who moved from activism to evidence-based environmental policy, shares her nuclear advocacy. She recounts leaving protest tactics behind. She challenges anti-nuclear politics, revisits Fukushima and Chernobyl perceptions, and compares renewables, SMRs, and France’s energy path. She argues for reliable energy to address poverty and climate.

Jeremy Jones, co-founder of Rhetor and creator of DOGEai, uses AI to expose government fraud and restore accountability. He discusses mining massive public datasets for anomalous billing, building autonomous watchdog tools, and the challenges of getting bureaucracy and politics to act. He also touches on immigration incentives, education reform, and how AI empowers independent investigators.

Matt Kaplan, science correspondent at The Economist and author of I Told You So!, tells short biosketches of scientists who were mocked then proven right. They discuss why institutions and careers protect consensus. They explore mRNA’s long slog to success, historical medical backlash like childbed fever, and how funding, replication, and peer review shape which ideas survive.

A response to an inquisitive letter from Texas eighth graders prompts a wide-ranging chat about Christianity, the Bible, and who Jesus might have been. Topics include religious background and why beliefs change, fallibilism and Bayesian certainty, parallels between Jesus stories and ancient myths, and whether resurrection narratives work as metaphorical, moral tales rather than literal history.

Jay Belsky, developmental psychologist and author of The Nature of Nurture, explains why identical childhoods affect children differently. He discusses developmental plasticity, orchids and dandelions, epigenetics, puberty timing, and evolutionary logic for sibling and parenting differences. Short, provocative takes on parenting, policy, and why averages can hide the real story.

Adam Szetela, a literary scholar (Ph.D. Cornell) who studies publishing, culture wars, and free speech, discusses how outrage and social media reshape book publishing. He explains sensitivity readers, risk management, and how a few loud actors can drive institutional caution. The conversation maps reputational threats, apology dynamics, and why incentives often favor safety or spectacle.

Marcie Hume, a documentary filmmaker and former BBC producer known for vérité storytelling. She recounts a decade-long film chronicling Corey Feldman’s unraveling and the cult-like dynamics around fame. Talks cover how truth gets weaponized, cameras turning life into performance, legal threats around releases, and why observing people over years reveals unexpected behavior.