After garnering acclaim for the first in its series of specials based on 2 Dope Queens, HBO is continuing to mine the world of podcasts for premium content. The network has announced that it’s signed a deal with the creators of Pod Save America to create a series of hour-long specials focused on the 2018 midterm elections.
Launched in the wake of Donald Trump’s election in 2017, Pod Save America has been a blockbuster success. Its hosts are all former aides of President Barack Obama: Jon Favreau and Jon Lovett were his speechwriters, Dan Pfeiffer was a Senior Advisor, and Tommy Vietor served as National Security spokesperson. The quartet hold a twice-weekly “no bullshit conversation about politics.”
Now, thanks to a deal between HBO and Favreau, Vietor, and Lovett’s company, Crooked Media, they’ll host that conversation from the campaign trail and replay it on television. The four hour-long specials will be filmed on the road as the team follows stories in what promises to be an intense and interesting election season.
In a joint statement, Favreau, Lovett, and Vietor said,
“The best part of Pod Save America is taking the show on the road and meeting activists, candidates and people who are getting involved in politics for the first time. They know that the 2018 midterms are the most important elections of our lifetime, and the energy and excitement on the campaign trail is infectious. We are so grateful that HBO is taking a chance on us, even though these live shows will have so few dragons and sex robots.”
In the meantime, you can listen to Pod Save America at Crooked’s website or wherever you get your podcasts.