Modern WisdomCan The DailyWire Destroy Mainstream Media? - Jeremy Boreing
CHAPTERS
- 0:00 – 1:18
Explaining what you do when you do a lot of things
Jeremy jokes about being a "shampoo, razor, and chocolate mogul" and explains why entrepreneurs struggle to answer the simple question, “What do you do?” He frames identity as a box others place you in, and why he avoids overly honest labels.
- •Why “what do you do?” is a scary question for entrepreneurs
- •How first impressions become identity constraints
- •Jeremy’s early self-description: writer/producer/self-promoter
- •Chris on how titles shape how people perceive you
- 1:18 – 4:23
The Daily Wire origin story: three unlikely paths converging
Jeremy recounts how The Daily Wire emerged from the distinct backgrounds of Ben Shapiro, Caleb Robinson, and himself. He describes meeting Ben in Los Angeles and recognizing his potential as a rare talent worth building around.
- •Ben Shapiro’s early career and unusual strengths
- •Jeremy’s Hollywood ambitions and pivot into building
- •Caleb Robinson’s early entrepreneurship and practical grit
- •The Coffee Bean meeting and the early collaboration dynamic
- 4:23 – 6:56
From company-based media to personality-based media
A key inflection point (including Ben’s Piers Morgan moment) convinces Jeremy that media is shifting toward individuals rather than institutions. The strategy becomes making talent famous—and designing the business around that reality.
- •The Piers Morgan interview as a turning point
- •The move from corporate media brands to talent-centric media
- •“People don’t follow things, they follow people”
- •Authenticity can’t be growth-hacked; it’s emergent
- 6:56 – 7:59
Advice for creators: fame is easy; lasting trust is hard
Jeremy distinguishes between getting attention quickly and building a durable career as a trusted voice. He argues that staying power requires real competence, intellectual work, and delivering genuine value beyond hot takes.
- •Short-term audience building vs long-term credibility
- •You must actually be authentic/truthful/valuable to last
- •Avoiding pandering and audience capture
- •Why creators increasingly need real products and value creation
- 7:59 – 15:37
Treat the craft like an athlete: the Michael Knowles training arc
Jeremy tells the story of Michael Knowles reading two serious books a week for years to deepen his thinking. Chris expands this into the broader idea that creators should train like athletes—systematically improving performance, energy, and skill.
- •Knowles’ deliberate self-education as a moat
- •Athlete mindset applied to content creation
- •Coaching, drills, recovery, and “game tape” for creators
- •You can’t do everything—choose what you’ll be great at
- 15:37 – 20:10
Success pitfalls: convenience, leverage, and losing your humanity
They explore the temptations that arrive with fame, wealth, and power—especially the shift from risk-taking to risk-aversion. Jeremy warns that outsourcing can protect focus but can also erode your connection to ordinary life.
- •Fame/wealth/power as corrosive forces to handle carefully
- •Risk-taking builds wealth; preservation encourages fear
- •Outsourcing time sinks vs “outsourcing your humanity”
- •The danger of optimizing away basic human obligations
- 20:10 – 25:15
Is the right reactionary—and what should leadership do about it?
Jeremy accepts that the right is inherently reactionary but argues that modern conditions have pushed it toward something more revolutionary. He proposes a model of “lowercase r republicanism” that represents constituents while also challenging their worst impulses.
- •Why a healthy society needs both a healthy left and right
- •When the right becomes revolutionary, risks increase
- •Populism vs republicanism: representation plus leadership
- •Daily Wire’s stated goal: challenge the audience without betraying it
- 25:15 – 31:14
What the right is getting wrong: bad prescriptions, conspiracism, and cult dynamics
Jeremy argues the right often diagnoses problems accurately but reaches for simplistic or dangerous solutions. He highlights conspiratorial thinking, antisemitism, and “cultism” where telling one forbidden truth earns someone unearned trust across everything else.
- •Correct diagnosis doesn’t guarantee correct prescription
- •Pressure and institutional defeat can reduce thoughtfulness
- •Scapegoating elites → conspiracism and antisemitic narratives
- •“Forbidden truth” as a gateway to guru-like authority
- 31:14 – 34:25
Keeping hosts grounded: private crucibles, camaraderie, and domain discipline
Chris asks how Daily Wire prevents talent from drifting outside their competence. Jeremy describes informal, off-camera relationships where ideas are stress-tested privately, forming judgment and character through internal challenge rather than performative certainty.
- •Talking for a living invites premature certainty
- •Camaraderie and honest private conversation as guardrails
- •“Smashing ideas into other ideas” before they go public
- •Not everyone must agree, but beliefs are forged in a crucible
- 34:25 – 38:08
Learning from the left: creativity, building, and answering “now what?”
Jeremy credits the left’s creativity and concern for people failed by systems, then argues the right must become builders, not just critics. He also says conservatives often lack compassionate follow-through—practical guidance for people whose lives are already messy.
- •Healthy left traits: creativity and care for the left-behind
- •Daily Wire’s ‘create culture’ push: films, docs, products, kids content
- •Criticism alone is uninspiring; building is persuasive
- •The missing conservative skill: helping people after they’ve failed (the “now what?” problem)
- 38:08 – 42:48
Media, morality, and escaping the “purity compact” with your audience
They discuss purity spirals and the trap of branding yourself as morally perfect. Jeremy explains why he refuses to pander with “wholesome-only” content, aiming instead for entertainment that reflects real human tension, ideals, and grace.
- •Purity spirals as a “purity death spiral”
- •Audiences often want “what they want to want” vs what they actually watch
- •Why Daily Wire doesn’t aim to be Pure Flix-style content
- •Balancing moral ideals with grace and realism
- 42:48 – 45:11
Lady Ballers lessons: fear of humor and the extras controversy
Jeremy shares what surprised him most during production: how afraid people are to laugh, even among allies. He recounts the story of extras protesting on set and uses it to illustrate how politicized fear and audience expectations shape creative risk-taking.
- •Humor as a cultural weapon people claim to want but avoid using
- •Why creators fear audiences when they’ve accepted a purity standard
- •The on-set protest: “Ben Shapiro is a Nazi” incident
- •Refusing to let audience moral policing dictate comedy
- 45:11 – 51:26
After ‘peak woke’: cultural shifts, bureaucratic power, and the creator economy
Jeremy agrees peak woke may have been 2020 but warns the right is still losing where it matters—freedom and institutional control. They discuss the generational mismatch between old political leadership and young cultural creators, plus how technology outpaces society’s ability to adapt wisely.
- •Cultural victories vs institutional/regulatory losses
- •Fear of escalating conflict between worst left and worst right
- •Politics as old-guard; culture as young and gatekeeperless
- •Technology as hardware change; society lacks matching ‘software’
- 51:26 – 1:00:05
Jeremy’s favorite creators, and what’s next for Daily Wire
Jeremy lists creators and outlets he learns from, including voices he disagrees with, and praises broadcasting craft. The conversation closes with upcoming Daily Wire projects—animated comedy, kids programming (BentKey), and where to watch Lady Ballers.
- •Jeremy’s influences: Gary Vee, NPR craft, Jordan Peterson, Klavan, Beck, Prager
- •Chris pitches Douglas Murray; Jeremy agrees
- •Upcoming slate: Burcham (animated), BentKey kids platform, other projects
- •Where to watch Lady Ballers and subscription info
