Factually! with Adam Conover

Headgum
  • 4.6 (2.2K)
  • COMEDY
  • UPDATED WEEKLY

Comedian Adam Conover talks to exceptional experts, revealing shocking truths and thought-provoking new perspectives. It’s an investigative comedy podcast for curious people who never stop asking questions.

  1. 1D AGO

    How to Beat the Gamification of Our Lives with C. Thi Nguyen

    The scoring mechanics of video games are ostensibly how the player is directed to have fun. Scores put interesting bounds on the experience of play, lead to creative solutions, and even inspire entirely new models of play, like speed running a video game. But when systems of metrics are applied to our actual lives, it’s… not as nice. “Gamification” is just one symptom of our society’s obsession with metrics, and while we tend to like to see Number Go Up, attempting to maximize our “scores” in various aspects of life only seems to make us unhappy. This week, Adam talks with C. Thi Nguyen, a professor of philosophy at the University of Utah and author of The Score: How to Stop Playing Someone Else’s Game. Together they unpack the hidden ways that metrics are used to control thought and limit perception of worth, and the life-affirming value of looking beyond the systems assembled around us. Find Thi's book at factuallypod.com/books -- SUPPORT THE SHOW ON PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/adamconover SEE ADAM ON TOUR: https://www.adamconover.net/tourdates/ SUBSCRIBE to and RATE Factually! on: » Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/factually-with-adam-conover/id1463460577 » Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0fK8WJw4ffMc2NWydBlDyJ About Headgum: Headgum is an LA & NY-based podcast network creating premium podcasts with the funniest, most engaging voices in comedy to achieve one goal: Making our audience and ourselves laugh. Listen to our shows at https://www.headgum.com. » SUBSCRIBE to Headgum: https://www.youtube.com/c/HeadGum?sub_confirmation=1 » FOLLOW us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/headgum » FOLLOW us on Instagram: https://instagram.com/headgum/ » FOLLOW us on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@headgum » Advertise on Factually! via Gumball.fm See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    1h 32m

  2. FEB 4

    Is the Trump Regime Crumbling? with Osita Nwanevu

    After the madness of the past decade, it can feel impossible to tell where we’re at in our political story as a country. Between Trump kidnapping the president of Venezuela, his ludicrous threats toward Greenland, and the ICE murders in Minneapolis, are we seeing the literal death of American democracy, or are we seeing the last gasps of a dying reactionary movement that has overextended itself? This week, Adam sits with Osita Nwanevu, a columnist at The Guardian and Contributing Editor at New Republic. Together, they discuss whether we’re in the ashes of democracy or the fertile soil for a better America. Find Osita’s recent book, The Right of the People: Democracy and the Case for a New American Founding at factuallypod.com/books -- SUPPORT THE SHOW ON PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/adamconover SEE ADAM ON TOUR: https://www.adamconover.net/tourdates/ SUBSCRIBE to and RATE Factually! on: » Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/factually-with-adam-conover/id1463460577 » Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0fK8WJw4ffMc2NWydBlDyJ About Headgum: Headgum is an LA & NY-based podcast network creating premium podcasts with the funniest, most engaging voices in comedy to achieve one goal: Making our audience and ourselves laugh. Listen to our shows at https://www.headgum.com. » SUBSCRIBE to Headgum: https://www.youtube.com/c/HeadGum?sub_confirmation=1 » FOLLOW us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/headgum » FOLLOW us on Instagram: https://instagram.com/headgum/ » FOLLOW us on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@headgum » Advertise on Factually! via Gumball.fm See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    1h 18m

  3. JAN 28

    What Nuclear War Would Actually Look Like with Annie Jacobsen

    For decades, the threat of total nuclear annihilation cast a long shadow on everyday life. Nowadays, it almost seems like an old-fashioned kind of fear. Unfortunately, the possibility of human civilization ending at the touch of a button is more real than we think. Journalist Annie Jacobsen’s book NUCLEAR WAR: A Scenario outlines an excruciating and fascinating play-by-play of how the world as we know it could go up in smoke. Find Annie's book at factuallypod.com/books -- SUPPORT THE SHOW ON PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/adamconover SEE ADAM ON TOUR: https://www.adamconover.net/tourdates/ SUBSCRIBE to and RATE Factually! on: » Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/factually-with-adam-conover/id1463460577 » Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0fK8WJw4ffMc2NWydBlDyJ About Headgum: Headgum is an LA & NY-based podcast network creating premium podcasts with the funniest, most engaging voices in comedy to achieve one goal: Making our audience and ourselves laugh. Listen to our shows at https://www.headgum.com. » SUBSCRIBE to Headgum: https://www.youtube.com/c/HeadGum?sub_confirmation=1 » FOLLOW us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/headgum » FOLLOW us on Instagram: https://instagram.com/headgum/ » FOLLOW us on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@headgum » Advertise on Factually! via Gumball.fm See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    1h 24m

  4. JAN 21

    Susan Orlean Shares the Secrets of a Lifetime of Reporting

    Susan Orlean is one of the greatest living nonfiction writers. She has an uncanny ability to find stories in mundane, unexpected places, and approach them with such a level of authentic fascination that the reader can’t help but become fascinated too. This week, Adam sits with Susan to talk not just about her work, but the very idea of what a storyteller is. Find Susan’s new memoir, Joyride, at factuallypod.com/books -- SUPPORT THE SHOW ON PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/adamconover SEE ADAM ON TOUR: https://www.adamconover.net/tourdates/ SUBSCRIBE to and RATE Factually! on: » Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/factually-with-adam-conover/id1463460577 » Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0fK8WJw4ffMc2NWydBlDyJ About Headgum: Headgum is an LA & NY-based podcast network creating premium podcasts with the funniest, most engaging voices in comedy to achieve one goal: Making our audience and ourselves laugh. Listen to our shows at https://www.headgum.com. » SUBSCRIBE to Headgum: https://www.youtube.com/c/HeadGum?sub_confirmation=1 » FOLLOW us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/headgum » FOLLOW us on Instagram: https://instagram.com/headgum/ » FOLLOW us on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@headgum » Advertise on Factually! via Gumball.fm See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    1h 33m

  5. JAN 14

    You Are Being Robbed of Your Attention with D. Graham Burnett and Peter Schmidt

    Would you rather that your attention were a resource freely directed toward your interests, or a measure of how many ads can be propelled into your eyeballs in a single session? Our attention has been commodified, and an entire industry is trying to wring out every possible instance of it. D. Graham Burnett, a professor of history at Princeton, and experiential organizer Peter Schmidt are two of the spokespeople of ATTENSITY!: A Manifesto of the Attention Liberation Movement. This week, Adam sits with Graham and Peter to talk about attention, and how to take it back. Find the Friends of Attention's book at factuallypod.com/books -- SUPPORT THE SHOW ON PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/adamconover SEE ADAM ON TOUR: https://www.adamconover.net/tourdates/ SUBSCRIBE to and RATE Factually! on: » Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/factually-with-adam-conover/id1463460577 » Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0fK8WJw4ffMc2NWydBlDyJ About Headgum: Headgum is an LA & NY-based podcast network creating premium podcasts with the funniest, most engaging voices in comedy to achieve one goal: Making our audience and ourselves laugh. Listen to our shows at https://www.headgum.com. » SUBSCRIBE to Headgum: https://www.youtube.com/c/HeadGum?sub_confirmation=1 » FOLLOW us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/headgum » FOLLOW us on Instagram: https://instagram.com/headgum/ » FOLLOW us on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@headgum » Advertise on Factually! via Gumball.fm See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    1h 25m

  6. JAN 7

    The Hidden Plot to Legalize Corruption with David Sirota

    It kind of seems like political corruption should be illegal, doesn’t it? Whether it’s happening on the right or the left, the whole filthy ordeal has made our government more dysfunctional for everyone. How did we get to this place where corruption isn’t just allowed but expected? This week, Adam talks with investigative journalist David Sirota about his new book, based on his podcast, MASTER PLAN: The Hidden Plot to Legalize Corruption in America. Find David's book at factuallypod.com/books -- SUPPORT THE SHOW ON PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/adamconover SEE ADAM ON TOUR: https://www.adamconover.net/tourdates/ SUBSCRIBE to and RATE Factually! on: » Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/factually-with-adam-conover/id1463460577 » Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0fK8WJw4ffMc2NWydBlDyJ About Headgum: Headgum is an LA & NY-based podcast network creating premium podcasts with the funniest, most engaging voices in comedy to achieve one goal: Making our audience and ourselves laugh. Listen to our shows at https://www.headgum.com. » SUBSCRIBE to Headgum: https://www.youtube.com/c/HeadGum?sub_confirmation=1 » FOLLOW us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/headgum » FOLLOW us on Instagram: https://instagram.com/headgum/ » FOLLOW us on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@headgum » Advertise on Factually! via Gumball.fm See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    1h 27m

  7. 12/31/2025

    An AI Expert Challenges an AI Skeptic, with Ethan Mollick

    Even if the AI bubble bursts, the technology won’t just disappear. We’re going to live alongside some version of AI, so we have to ask: what does our future with AI look like? This week, Adam invites Ethan Mollick, AI expert and professor at Wharton School of Business, to challenge his skeptical view on AI and look at how it might impact our daily lives. Find Ethan's book at factuallypod.com/books -- SUPPORT THE SHOW ON PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/adamconover SEE ADAM ON TOUR: https://www.adamconover.net/tourdates/ SUBSCRIBE to and RATE Factually! on: » Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/factually-with-adam-conover/id1463460577 » Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0fK8WJw4ffMc2NWydBlDyJ About Headgum: Headgum is an LA & NY-based podcast network creating premium podcasts with the funniest, most engaging voices in comedy to achieve one goal: Making our audience and ourselves laugh. Listen to our shows at https://www.headgum.com. » SUBSCRIBE to Headgum: https://www.youtube.com/c/HeadGum?sub_confirmation=1 » FOLLOW us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/headgum » FOLLOW us on Instagram: https://instagram.com/headgum/ » FOLLOW us on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@headgum » Advertise on Factually! via Gumball.fm See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    1h 29m

  8. 12/24/2025

    An AI Safety Expert Explains the Dangers of AI with Steven Adler

    Why should we assume that AI is safe? As the technology has grown at an alarming rate, companies like OpenAI have seen wrongful death lawsuits begin to stack up as their product drives users to suicide. With the mental health risks, the societal risks, and the unknown risks, we have to ask, can AI ever really be safe? This week, Adam speaks with Steven Adler, an A.I. researcher who led product safety at OpenAI, about the dangers of AI and our best prospects for living alongside this technology.  SUPPORT THE SHOW ON PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/adamconover SEE ADAM ON TOUR: https://www.adamconover.net/tourdates/ SUBSCRIBE to and RATE Factually! on: » Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/factually-with-adam-conover/id1463460577 » Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0fK8WJw4ffMc2NWydBlDyJ About Headgum: Headgum is an LA & NY-based podcast network creating premium podcasts with the funniest, most engaging voices in comedy to achieve one goal: Making our audience and ourselves laugh. Listen to our shows at https://www.headgum.com. » SUBSCRIBE to Headgum: https://www.youtube.com/c/HeadGum?sub_confirmation=1 » FOLLOW us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/headgum » FOLLOW us on Instagram: https://instagram.com/headgum/ » FOLLOW us on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@headgum » Advertise on Factually! via Gumball.fm See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    1h 35m
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4.6
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Comedian Adam Conover talks to exceptional experts, revealing shocking truths and thought-provoking new perspectives. It’s an investigative comedy podcast for curious people who never stop asking questions.

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