5 December 2025
Alyssa Rosenberg (The Washington Post) and Noreen Malone (The New Republic)
On Critic Proof, Alyssa and Noreen compare New Girl creator Liz Meriwether with Girls creator Lena Dunham, especially in terms of their presentation of sex on TV. Alyssa describes how New Girl has grown on her despite her apprehensions about star Zooey Deschanel. She also discusses Mindy Kaling’s show The Mindy Project. Why are the breakout characters on the new crop of female-centric comedies mostly male? Is charm on the decline among men? Is the “unromantic comedy” on the rise? Are traditional romantic comedies bad for women? Turning back to New Girl, they suggest that romcoms could succeed by becoming more realistic about love and life.
Play entire video
Alyssa Rosenberg
Noreen Malone
Noreen’s profile of Liz Meriwether in TNR
Emily Nussbaum on Lena Dunham in NY Magazine
Benjamin Schwarz’s piece on the decline of charm in The Atlantic
NY Magazine piece on the decline of movie stars and rise of pop stars
Tina Brown’s biography of Princess Diana
Jezebel post on the decline of romantic comedies
Alyssa on the rise of the unromantic comedy
Megan McArdle’s case for getting married young
Critic Proof | Jun 3, 2013 | Alyssa Rosenberg & Noreen Malone
Nonzero (The Wright Show)
The Hard Truth about Peace in Ukraine
Robert Wright and Nikita Petrov discuss the state of Russia-Ukraine—including the latest on peace negotiations and whether Trump’s bargaining strategy is working; the military and economic realities; Zelensky’s corruption scandal and political future; what the Blob is “thinking”; and more.
Nonzero (The Wright Show)
The Life and Legacy of William F. Buckley
Robert Wright talks with Sam Tanenhaus, author of a sweeping new biography of Buckley, about the conservative icon’s influence and impact, from moving the GOP rightward to foreshadowing the age of Trump and Tucker Carlson.
Nonzero (The Wright Show)
China Hawks in Retreat?
In conversation with Robert Wright, Kaiser Kuo, host of the Sinica Podcast, argues that China hawkism has waned and assesses the causes and consequences.
Nonzero (The Wright Show)
Larry Summers, Jeffrey Epstein, and Other Elite Malefactors
Robert Wright and psychologist Paul Bloom discuss the latest Epstein developments—including the Steve Bannon and Larry Summers revelations, whether MAGA can survive the fallout, and more!
Nonzero (The Wright Show)
Will One AI Rule Us All?
Robert Wright and Alex Komoroske, co-founder and CEO of Common Tools, discuss OpenAI’s business model and Alex’s plan to save us from its implications.
Nonzero (The Wright Show)
Is Reality Falling Apart?
Robert Wright and Nikita Petrov discuss Trump 2.0, Peter Thiel, Russia-Ukraine, Covid, “inner emigration,” deepfakes, and other ways disorder has become the new normal.
Nonzero (The Wright Show)
Pax Americana?
Robert Wright debates the uses and misuses of American military power with Shadi Hamid, author of the new book The Case for American Power.
Nonzero (The Wright Show)
Zohran, Epstein, and Two Decades of Bob and Mickey
Two decades after Bloggingheads.tv debuted, Robert Wright and Mickey Kaus look back on the blog era—and also discuss this week’s election results, Tucker-Fuentes, the AI bubble, and (of course) Jeffrey Epstein.
Nonzero (The Wright Show)
Tucker Carlson, Nick Fuentes, and the Gatekeeper Question
Robert Wright and Paul Bloom discuss whether podcasts and other DIY media have put an end to gatekeeping and speech codes. Plus: Tucker for prez? William F. Buckley as proto-MAGA; and more!
Nonzero (The Wright Show)
Trump-Xi Truce, Gaza Ceasefire & Other Sketchy Deals
View these comments on a non-video page
View these comments on a non-video page