On In The Tank Podcast #523, Linnea Lueken, Jim Lakely, Chris Talgo, and S.T. Karnick break down the latest reminders that socialism doesn’t “fix” anything—it wrecks it. From political theater in Washington to chaos in corporate America, and from Venezuela’s collapse to what’s brewing in New York City, the panel connects the dots on how bad ideas keep spreading.

The panel digs into Democrats holding a candlelight vigil… for Jan. 6. Then the crew looks at a Hilton franchise caught in a PR firestorm after targeting ICE bookings, and asks the obvious question: when did basic law enforcement become a corporate punching bag?

The conversation also turns to Venezuela’s oil—why anyone still wants access to it, what decades of socialism did to the country, and why America shouldn’t be taking notes. Finally, the panel looks at NYC’s trajectory, including Mamdani’s tenant-power agenda and what it could mean for the city if these policies keep gaining ground.

Join us LIVE at 1 p.m. ET every Friday on YouTube, Rumble, X, and Facebook.

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In The Tank broadcasts LIVE every Thursday at 12pm CT on on The Heartland Institute YouTube channel. Tune in to have your comments addressed live by the In The Tank Crew. Be sure to subscribe and never miss an episode. See you there!

Climate Change Roundtable is LIVE every Friday at 12pm CT on The Heartland Institute YouTube channel. Have a topic you want addressed? Join the live show and leave a comment for our panelists and we'll cover it during the live show!

Hollywood is at a breaking point—and audiences can feel it.

On In the Tank Podcast #522, Linnea Lueken, Jim Lakely, Chris Talgo, S.T. Karnick, and Donald Kendal dig into what’s reshaping movies and TV right now: DEI-era gatekeeping, studios quietly changing course, shrinking opportunities for creators, and the growing role of AI in entertainment.

They’re joined by Christian Toto, returning for his fifth annual appearance, to break down how Hollywood’s incentives filtered out creative voices—and why so many films now feel safe, preachy, and lifeless.

The panel also tackles Disney’s new AI deal involving OpenAI’s Sora platform and what it means for writers, actors, and storytelling itself. Plus: the crew runs through their “Unhinged” list of the worst movies and TV of 2025—and what might actually be worth watching next.

If Hollywood has lost its edge, this episode explores why—and what comes next.

Join us LIVE at 1 p.m. ET every Friday on YouTube, Rumble, X, and Facebook.

Visit our sponsor, Advisor Metals: https://climaterealismshow.com/metals

Chapters:
00:33 Intro
01:57 Special Guest Introduction
03:55 Support Our Sponsor!
05:50 Unhinged: Worst Movies of 2025
22:08 Film Affected By DEI
49:15 AI in Movies? Good or Bad?
1:19:25 The Future of Movies: Embracing The Experience

STORIES COVERED ON THE SHOW:

DEI To Blame? - Writers and other roles in movie companies are being filtered by DEI politics in Hollywood. Does this have an effect on the quality of films?

https://www.compactmag.com/article/the-lost-generation/

https://variety.com/2025/film/news/hollywood-drops-dei-programs-donald-trump-disney-paramount-amazon-1236327202/

AI in Movies - Where is it good, and Where does it suck?

https://thewaltdisneycompany.com/disney-openai-sora-agreement/
https://archive.ph/2xtns

Optimism for the Future: the best films of 2025, what to look forward to in 2026 and beyond.

https://x.com/vegasstarfish/status/1961588349799731453
https://www.imdb.com/calendar/

In The Tank broadcasts LIVE every Thursday at 12pm CT on on The Heartland Institute YouTube channel. Tune in to have your comments addressed live by the In The Tank Crew. Be sure to subscribe and never miss an episode. See you there!

Climate Change Roundtable is LIVE every Friday at 12pm CT on The Heartland Institute YouTube channel. Have a topic you want addressed? Join the live show and leave a comment for our panelists and we'll cover it during the live show!

The signs are all around us. The climate cult is losing its grip on our politics and culture. The UN’s climate conference, COP30 in Brazil, was a flop that even the alarmist cheerleaders in the legacy media could not ignore. A major paper justifying radical climate action was just retracted. The Sierra Club is shedding a shocking number of members. And when was the last time you saw climate alarmist propaganda shoved annoyingly into your favorite TV show or movie – which was very common not so long ago?

The Heartland Institute’s Jim Lakely, Anthony Watts, Sterling Burnett, and Linnea Lueken will be joined by special guest Jason Isaac, Founder and CEO of the American Energy Institute and a former state legislator in Texas. We will also cover some of the Crazy Climate News of the Week, including a new pro-coal movie with an unexpected twist, how to handle a climate crazed wife, a claim that living modern life causes $5 billion of climate damage an hour, and why Americans in blue states pay so much more for energy than those in red states.

Visit our sponsor, Advisor Metals: https://climaterealismshow.com/metals

Stories we covered on this program:

1. QUEEN OF COAL
Daily Caller: Netflix To Platform Film About ‘Trans Woman’ Who Yearns For Coal Mines
https://dailycaller.com/2025/12/08/netflix-pump-show-trans-woman-who-yearns-coal-mines-home/

2. TAKE MY WIFE, PLEASE
How Can I Stop My Wife From Badgering Our Friends About Climate Change?
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/10/style/how-can-i-stop-my-wife-from-badgering-our-friends-about-climate-change.html

3. $5 BILLION OF DAMAGE PER HOUR
THE GUARDIAN: ‘Food and fossil fuel production causing $5bn of environmental damage an hour’
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/dec/09/food-fossil-fuel-production-5bn-environmental-damage-an-hour-un-geo-report-

4. BLUE STATE ENERGY BLUES
INSTITUTE FOR ENERGY RESEARCH: Blue States, High Rates
https://www.instituteforenergyresearch.org/the-grid/blue-states-high-rates/

5. EPA EXITS ALARM BUSINESS
NY TIMES: E.P.A. Erases Mention of Humans Causing Climate Change From Some Web Pages
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/09/climate/epa-website-climate-change-causes.html

In The Tank broadcasts LIVE every Thursday at 12pm CT on on The Heartland Institute YouTube channel. Tune in to have your comments addressed live by the In The Tank Crew. Be sure to subscribe and never miss an episode. See you there!

Climate Change Roundtable is LIVE every Friday at 12pm CT on The Heartland Institute YouTube channel. Have a topic you want addressed? Join the live show and leave a comment for our panelists and we'll cover it during the live show!