The Epstein Files Book Club
We're reading together to make sense of the most sprawling scandal of our time. Comedian Jena Friedman and journalist Elise Hu break down the latest revelations from the trove of documents released about convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and his network of powerful people. We're trying to understand what’s real, what’s not and what we can do about it.
Recent Episodes
Flings of Leon Black
After multi-billionaire Les Wexner cut him off, multi-billionaire Leon Black became pedophile Jeffrey Epstein’s primary source of income from 2012 and on. In this episode, William Cohan — who is writing the book on Leon Black...
The Melania Presser No One Asked For
The US first lady’s unexpected White House statement denying substantive ties to Jeffrey Epstein took everybody – including Trump – by surprise. What was behind it? The timing coincides with a series of posts from her friend ...
Better Call ... Todd Blanche?
Pam Bondi is out as attorney general — and her 14-month tenure makes her the shortest timer as the nation's top lawyer since Watergate. To put it all into context, NPR’s Justice Correspondent Carrie Johnson joins Elise and Je...
What We Know About The Rothschilds, with Mike Rothschild
How do conspiracy theories take hold, and what makes them endure? The myths around The Rothschild banking family have been around (and used as anti-semitic tropes) for hundreds of years, and the theories are still very much a...
Love Story: Elon and Epstein
What the files actually tell us about the Elon-Epstein relationship
Epstein's Publicist Pen Pal wth Jessica Bennett
Over the final decade of Epstein’s life, former A-list Hollywood publicist Peggy Siegal helped him reintegrate into high society. She worked for studios with Oscar aspirations, throwing lavish parties and being an ultimate co...
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About the Hosts
Co-Host and Comedian
Jena Friedman is a comedian who cares about journalism. She is an Academy Award-nominated writer and comedian. She is the creator of SOFT FOCUS on Adult Swim and TRUE CRIME STORY: INDEFENSIBLE on AMC+. Her credits include writing on BORAT 2: Subsequent Movie Film, GOOD SPORTS WITH KEVIN HART AND KENAN THOMPSON on Amazon, NOBODY WANTS THIS on Netflix, THE CONNERS on ABC and THE LATE SHOW WITH DAVID LETTERMAN.
She was also a producer on THE DAILY SHOW WITH JON STEWART, through the end of his tenure in 2015, where she wrote and directed field segments.
She's a contributing writer to THE NEW YORKER and her first book, NOT FUNNY: ESSAYS ON LIFE, COMEDY, CULTURE, ETC., published by Simon & Schuster, is a national bestseller. Additionally, she has appeared on THE LATE SHOW WITH STEPHEN COLBERT, CONAN on TBS, THE NIGHTLY SHOW WITH LARRY WILMORE, and in the Sundance hit movie PALM SPRINGS, now on Hulu. Here's Jena's Ted Talk on THE JOKES AI WON'T TELL.
Co-Host and Journalist
Elise Hu is a journalist who appreciates comedy. She's a reporter, podcast host and author who spent more than a decade at NPR as a correspondent and host, and worked as a television correspondent for VICE News Tonight. Today, in addition to this show, she’s the host of TED Talks Daily, one of the world’s most listened-to podcasts, Raising Us, a parenting podcast from A Kids Co, and a co-host of Forever35, a women’s focused show about the ways we take care of ourselves.
As an international correspondent, Elise reported from more than a dozen countries and opened NPR’s first-ever Seoul bureau in 2015. Her experiences in Seoul inspired her debut non-fiction book, Flawless: Lessons in Looks and Culture from the K-Beauty Capital.
Prior to NPR, Elise helped found the nonprofit digital startup, The Texas Tribune, and spent more than a decade as a television news reporter. Her work has won the national Edward R. Murrow, Gracie, Webby, Signal, and duPont Columbia awards, among others. She’s an alum of the University of Missouri-Columbia’s Journalism school.