The Jordan Harbinger Show

Jordan Harbinger

(Apple's Best of 2018) In-depth conversations with people at the top of their game. Jordan Harbinger unpacks guests' wisdom into practical nuggets you can use to impact your work, life, and relationships. Learn from leaders (Ray Dalio, Simon Sinek, Mark Cuban), entertainers (Moby, Tip "T.I." Harris, Dennis Quaid), scientists (Neil deGrasse Tyson, Bill Nye), athletes (Kobe Bryant, Dennis Rodman, Tony Hawk) and an eclectic array of fascinating minds, from art forgers and arms traffickers to spies and psychologists.

  • 1 hour 38 minutes
    1302: Mariana van Zeller | The Drug Cartels Running Small-Town America

    Drug cartels have quietly infiltrated rural America. Trafficked host Mariana van Zeller walks us through the underworld hiding beneath our very feet.

    Full show notes and resources can be found here: jordanharbinger.com/1302

    What We Discuss with Mariana van Zeller:

    • Mexican drug cartels are deliberately setting up operations in small-town America — not big cities — because rural areas have minimal law enforcement, making it easier to hide distribution networks where a single sheriff can't compete with heavily armed cartel operatives.
    • Mariana van Zeller builds trust with dangerous sources — from cartel lieutenants to assassins — by ditching prepared question lists, sharing personal photos, and offering cigarettes, treating interviews as human conversations rather than interrogations to unlock genuine, unguarded responses.
    • Commercial airlines like Delta are among the biggest drug transportation networks in the US, with cartel distributors exploiting everyday travel infrastructure rather than the covert smuggling operations most people imagine — meaning the drug trade hides in plain sight.
    • The opioid-to-fentanyl-to-tranq-dope pipeline is a public health crisis, not a moral failing — most users started with a legitimate injury and a prescription, and the street drug xylazine now causes wounds resembling leprosy while hospitals stigmatize users instead of treating them.
    • Mariana's approach to journalism offers a powerful reminder that curiosity and empathy — not judgment — are what unlock the deepest understanding of people and problems, a mindset anyone can practice to have more meaningful conversations and see the world with clearer eyes.
    • And much more...

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    24 March 2026, 7:00 am
  • 55 minutes 20 seconds
    1301: Electric Vehicles | Skeptical Sunday

    Are electric vehicles a green revolution or just greenwashing on wheels? Nick Pell pops the hood and breaks it all down here on Skeptical Sunday!

    Welcome to Skeptical Sunday, a special edition of The Jordan Harbinger Show where Jordan and a guest break down a topic that you may have never thought about, open things up, and debunk common misconceptions. This time around, we’re joined by writer and researcher Nick Pell!

    Full show notes and resources can be found here: jordanharbinger.com/1301

    On This Week's Skeptical Sunday:

    • Electric vehicles carry zero tailpipe emissions, but the electricity powering them often comes from coal and natural gas plants — meaning your EV's true environmental footprint depends heavily on where you live and how your local grid generates power.
    • The cobalt fueling EV batteries comes overwhelmingly from the Democratic Republic of Congo — one of the poorest, most unstable nations on Earth — where child labor, armed militia control of mines, and toxic contamination of local communities remain deeply troubling realities.
    • EVs start with a larger carbon deficit than gas-powered cars due to battery manufacturing, but they erase that debt within 15,000 to 50,000 miles — and every mile driven after that threshold is cleaner than the equivalent gas-powered mile would be.
    • The average EV costs about $53,000 compared to $36,000 for a gas-powered car, with batteries alone accounting for 30 to 40 percent of the price — and federal tax credits that once softened the blow have been eliminated.
    • EV technology is rapidly evolving — with lighter, faster-charging batteries on the horizon and recycling infrastructure growing — so doing your homework on total cost of ownership, local grid sources, and available incentives can help you make a smarter, more informed decision.
    • Connect with Jordan on Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube. If you have something you'd like us to tackle here on Skeptical Sunday, drop Jordan a line at [email protected] and let him know!

    And if you're still game to support us, please leave a review here — even one sentence helps!

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    22 March 2026, 7:00 am
  • 1 hour 14 minutes
    1300: As a Cop You're No Stranger to Pal's DV Danger | Feedback Friday

    Your friend fled her wall-punching spouse and crashed at your place. Now she wants to go back, and your husband says to butt out. It's Feedback Friday!

    And in case you didn't already know it, Jordan Harbinger (@JordanHarbinger) and Gabriel Mizrahi (@GabeMizrahi) banter and take your comments and questions for Feedback Friday right here every week! If you want us to answer your question, register your feedback, or tell your story on one of our upcoming weekly Feedback Friday episodes, drop us a line at [email protected]. Now let's dive in!

    Full show notes and resources can be found here: jordanharbinger.com/1300

    On This Week's Feedback Friday:

    • An eagle-eared listener spotted a mistake on episode 919 and wrote in to correct the record and clarify the facts!
    • Your close friend's spouse is punching walls, deflecting blame, and getting verbally aggressive — and now she wants to reconcile with him. You're a police officer who sees this stuff escalate for a living, and your own husband thinks you should just play nice to save the friendship. What do you do?
    • After seven years of trying, you finally got pregnant through IVF — only for your husband to end up on a ventilator at 20 weeks. You had to make the call to let him go, then immediately fight for your premature baby's life. Now your friend — who promised you a baby shower that never happened — just sent you an invitation to hers. How do you navigate that gut punch?
    • Your four-month-old daughter already has a digital footprint she never consented to, thanks to "Glamma" posting everything on Facebook and "Nan" uploading her photos into random AI apps that turned your baby into a purple fire-breathing monster. You're doing everything right with a private family photo app — but how do you get the grandparents on board without starting a war?
    • Recommendation of the Week: Hoopla and PressReader — two free library-card apps that give you instant access to e-books, courses, TV shows, and thousands of newspapers and magazines from around the world in their original print layout.
    • You've been dwelling on things you said (or never got to say) to people who are no longer in your life, and forgiveness feels like a destination you can't quite reach. Is self-forgiveness even possible — or is there a different path to peace that you haven't considered yet?
    • Have any questions, comments, or stories you'd like to share with us? Drop us a line at [email protected]!
    • Connect with Jordan on Twitter at @JordanHarbinger and Instagram at @jordanharbinger.
    • Connect with Gabriel on Twitter at @GabeMizrahi and Instagram @gabrielmizrahi.

    And if you're still game to support us, please leave a review here — even one sentence helps!

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    20 March 2026, 7:00 am
  • 1 hour 28 minutes
    1299: Laowhy86 | Decoding the Secret Slang of China's Censored Internet

    The China Show's Laowhy86 reveals how millions of Chinese citizens disguise dissent as puns, memes, and mythical creatures to dodge censors.

    Full show notes and resources can be found here: jordanharbinger.com/1299

    What We Discuss with Laowhy86:

    • China's internet operates as a closed ecosystem where apps like WeChat handle everything from payments to communication — and the government monitors all of it. Citizens who default on debts, post the wrong opinion, or even discuss banned topics can lose access to trains, flights, and basic services overnight.
    • Chinese citizens have built an ever-evolving coded language to dodge censorship — from "grass mud horse" (a pun on a profanity) to calling lockdowns "square cabins" and using "talk egg prices" to vent about the economy. What started as playful wordplay has become a high-stakes survival tool as punishments have escalated to years in prison.
    • The government now deploys AI — through campaigns like "Clear and Bright" — to predict and pre-emptively ban future slang before it even catches on. Large language models scan for creative workarounds, making the cat-and-mouse game between citizens and censors increasingly lopsided.
    • China's unwritten social contract — surrender your freedoms and we'll make you prosperous — is fracturing. Factory workers haven't been paid in months or years, youth unemployment data has been suppressed, and movements like "lying flat" reflect a generation that's checked out of a system that stopped holding up its end of the deal.
    • Even under the most sophisticated censorship apparatus on the planet, human creativity keeps finding cracks — blank paper protests, "deep-fried" videos, emoji puzzles, and cross-strait livestream trolling all prove that when speech is compressed, it doesn't vanish — it adapts, and understanding how that works sharpens your ability to read between the lines anywhere.
    • And much more...

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    17 March 2026, 7:00 am
  • 58 minutes 20 seconds
    1298: Bjorn Ekeberg | The Evidence-Backed Benefits of Red Light Therapy

    The red light therapy market is full of junk science and real breakthroughs. Recharge Health CEO Bjorn Ekeberg is here to separate scams from the science.

    Full show notes and resources can be found here: jordanharbinger.com/1298

    What We Discuss with Bjorn Ekeberg:

    • Red light therapy has real, evidence-backed benefits — particularly for musculoskeletal pain, inflammation, and recovery — but the market is flooded with junk products like LED toothbrushes and shower heads that can't deliver a meaningful dose, threatening to discredit the legitimate science behind it.
    • The real power of light therapy lies in near-infrared wavelengths — not just visible red light. Red light works on the skin's surface, but near-infrared penetrates deeper into tissue, stimulating mitochondrial function and improving cellular efficiency — which is why the distinction matters more than most people realize.
    • NASA research in the early 2000s showed that without exposure to red and near-infrared light, astronauts' healing processes slowed dramatically — confirming that our bodies depend on these wavelengths the way plants depend on sunlight, a connection modern indoor life has severed.
    • The biohacking and wellness industry moves faster than the evidence, creating a cycle where legitimate therapies get buried under wild marketing claims — from hair regrowth caps to fat-melting irons — which trains consumers to dismiss everything as snake oil.
    • Consistency and correct dosing are the keys to real results with red light therapy — whether for pain, gut health, or even deep sleep improvement — so start with a targeted protocol, track your progress, and treat it like any other health habit that compounds over time.
    • And much more...

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    This Episode Is Sponsored By:

    FlexBeam is a powerful wearable red light therapy device that's transforming the world of recovery and longevity. Developed with NASA-inspired technology and trusted by global elite athletes, FlexBeam is leading the way in optimizing recovery, and enhancing athletic performance, and championing long-term well-being. Check out FlexBeam here!

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    16 March 2026, 7:00 am
  • 1 hour 35 minutes
    1297: Iran | Out of the Loop

    Protests, missiles, and a regime on the ropes — Iran is at a turning point. Ryan McBeth explains the forces driving one of the world's most complex crises.

    Welcome to what we're calling our "Out of the Loop" episodes, where we dig a little deeper into fascinating current events that may only register as a blip on the media's news cycle and have conversations with the people who find themselves immersed in them.

    Full show notes and resources can be found here: jordanharbinger.com/1297

    On This Episode of Out of the Loop:

    • Iran is an ancient civilization stretching back 5,000 years — but most Americans only know the post-1979 version, which is like judging Rome entirely by the fall of its empire and missing the aqueducts, art, and architecture that came before.
    • The 1953 CIA-backed coup that toppled Iran's democratically elected government planted the seeds for the 1979 Islamic Revolution — a theocratic regime that crushed dissent, built a proxy empire through Hezbollah, Hamas, and the Houthis, and turned the IRGC into its enforcer.
    • Iran's proxy strategy is devastatingly cheap and effective — rather than build a navy, they fund groups like the Houthis to launch missiles based on Iranian targeting intel, giving Tehran plausible deniability while disrupting global shipping and oil markets.
    • AI-generated war footage and disinformation are rapidly becoming a frontline weapon — fake videos of captured soldiers and fabricated attacks spread faster than fact-checkers can respond, and producing convincing deepfakes now costs as little as $12 per video.
    • Despite decades of repression, Iranian citizens continue to protest and push for change — and experts suggest that if the regime falls, Iran's strong collective national identity makes a Libya-style collapse unlikely, offering real hope for a democratic future.
    • And much more!
    • Connect with Jordan on Twitter, on Instagram, and on YouTube. If you have something you'd like us to tackle here on an Out of the Loop episode, drop Jordan a line at [email protected] and let him know!
    • Connect with Ryan McBeth at his website, Twitter, Instagram, and on YouTube. If you’d like to stay on top of what’s happening in the world, subscribe to Ryan’s Substack!

    And if you're still game to support us, please leave a review here — even one sentence helps!

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    15 March 2026, 7:00 am
  • 1 hour 21 minutes
    1296: Saving Bro's Soul from Alt-Right Rabbit Hole | Feedback Friday

    Your brother's political curiosity took a dark turn into alt-right extremism. As his big sis, can you reach him before it's too late? It's Feedback Friday!

    And in case you didn't already know it, Jordan Harbinger (@JordanHarbinger) and Gabriel Mizrahi (@GabeMizrahi) banter and take your comments and questions for Feedback Friday right here every week! If you want us to answer your question, register your feedback, or tell your story on one of our upcoming weekly Feedback Friday episodes, drop us a line at [email protected]. Now let's dive in!

    Full show notes and resources can be found here: jordanharbinger.com/1296

    On This Week's Feedback Friday:

    • Your teenage brother has gone from healthy political curiosity to spouting antisemitic talking points and binging alt-right influencers. You're his cool big sister — but you moved across the country, and the window of influence is closing fast. How do you pull him back before it's too late?
    • Your former mother-in-law is elderly, broke, and living with an ex-husband who steals from her and destroys her belongings. Her own sons won't lift a finger. She's made you — her ex-daughter-in-law — the executor of her estate. How far does your obligation really go here?
    • You're 16 and you keep zoning out — during lessons, video calls, even just sitting still — making weird facial expressions and missing entire conversations. It's affecting your schoolwork and your social life. What's going on, and what can you actually do about it?
    • Recommendation of the Week: The "reduce interruptions" focus mode on Mac and iPhone — a middle ground between Do Not Disturb and chaos that lets the right people reach you while filtering out the noise. There seem to be comparable settings for Android users.
    • You trusted your manager as a mentor for years — until a combative team lead falsely accused you in a heated meeting, then complained to your manager first. Now your manager is siding with the complaints instead of hearing you out. Can this relationship — and your standing — be salvaged?
    • Have any questions, comments, or stories you'd like to share with us? Drop us a line at [email protected]!
    • Connect with Jordan on Twitter at @JordanHarbinger and Instagram at @jordanharbinger.
    • Connect with Gabriel on Twitter at @GabeMizrahi and Instagram @gabrielmizrahi.

    And if you're still game to support us, please leave a review here — even one sentence helps!

    This Episode Is Brought To You By Our Fine Sponsors:

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    13 March 2026, 7:00 am
  • 1 hour 33 minutes
    1295: Nir Eyal | Why Your Beliefs Matter More Than Your Willpower

    Beyond Belief author Nir Eyal returns to break down why belief — not motivation — is the missing piece behind every goal you've abandoned too early.

    Full show notes and resources can be found here: jordanharbinger.com/1295

    What We Discuss with Nir Eyal:

    • The number one reason people fail to reach their goals isn't a lack of knowledge or resources — it's that they quit. Motivation isn't a straight line from behavior to benefit; it's a triangle that includes belief. Without belief in both the process and the payoff, perseverance crumbles.
    • Limiting beliefs are invisible cages we mistake for facts. Phrases like "I don't have time," "I'm too old," or "someone like me can't do this" feel like objective truths, but they're actually tools that sap motivation and increase suffering — and most people never stop to examine them.
    • Venting feels productive but actually reinforces the distorted mental image you've built of someone. Instead, Nir uses a "turnaround" technique — asking if the opposite of your grievance could also be true — to collect a portfolio of perspectives and reduce suffering.
    • Visualizing dream outcomes doesn't motivate you — it physiologically relaxes you into inaction. Research shows people who "manifest" goals actually achieve less. What works is mental contrasting: rehearsing how you'll handle the inevitable obstacles and discomfort.
    • Your beliefs are tools, not truths — and you can swap them out like a carpenter reaching for the right instrument. Start examining one belief that's been holding you back, test it with honest questions, and try on a more liberating perspective for a week. Growth is possible at any age!
    • And much more...

    And if you're still game to support us, please leave a review here — even one sentence helps!

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    10 March 2026, 7:00 am
  • 1 hour 11 minutes
    1294: Sister’s off Her Meds, Now She Faces the Feds | Feedback Friday

    Your sister went off her meds, fled cops, got in a bar fight, and assaulted an officer. Now she faces felonies and won't let you help. It's Feedback Friday!

    And in case you didn't already know it, Jordan Harbinger (@JordanHarbinger) and Gabriel Mizrahi (@GabeMizrahi) banter and take your comments and questions for Feedback Friday right here every week! If you want us to answer your question, register your feedback, or tell your story on one of our upcoming weekly Feedback Friday episodes, drop us a line at [email protected]. Now let's dive in!

    Full show notes and resources can be found here: jordanharbinger.com/1294

    On This Week's Feedback Friday:

    • Your sister with schizoaffective disorder went off her meds, quit her job, led cops on a chase, started a bar fight, and injured an officer — and now she's facing felony charges while refusing your help and rejecting her own public defender. How do you save someone who won't be saved?
    • You're pretty sure your wife's business partners are hiding financials, breaching the partnership agreement, and planning to retire while still collecting profits she earns — but she's terrified of "being mean." How do you help her find her backbone before they bleed her dry?
    • Your selfless 69-year-old mom is being run ragged by your sister-in-law's marathon visits — nine-hour affairs with free meals, free babysitting, and zero cleanup — and she's too kind to say a word. She even quit her fitness class. How do you protect a woman who won't protect herself?
    • Recommendation of the Week: Gabe recommends keeping a quick daily travel log in your phone's notes app and pinning your favorite spots on a custom Google Maps list so you can relive your trips more vividly — and share killer recs with friends headed to the same destinations.
    • Your six-year-old son had a helmet-throwing meltdown at Little League, and now three families — including an assistant coach — have requested he not be on their team. You practiced an apology that never happened, and Opening Day is coming. How do you handle the awkward reunion?
    • Have any questions, comments, or stories you'd like to share with us? Drop us a line at [email protected]!
    • Connect with Jordan on Twitter at @JordanHarbinger and Instagram at @jordanharbinger.
    • Connect with Gabriel on Twitter at @GabeMizrahi and Instagram @gabrielmizrahi.

    And if you're still game to support us, please leave a review here — even one sentence helps!

    This Episode Is Brought To You By Our Fine Sponsors:

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    6 March 2026, 8:00 am
  • 1 hour 4 minutes
    1293: Abigail Marsh | How Fear Separates Saints from Psychopaths Part 2

    Psychopathy is treatable, altruism is contagious, and 'sociopath' is a word we should probably retire. Abigail Marsh makes the case here on part 2 of 2. [Find part 1 here!]

    Full show notes and resources can be found here: jordanharbinger.com/1293

    What We Discuss with Dr. Abigail Marsh:

    • Psychopathy isn't the life sentence people assume it is. Personality disorders like psychopathy and borderline are far more treatable than the popular narrative suggests, and many people with psychopathic traits actively want to change, recognizing their behavior patterns aren't working for them.
    • Most of the world's worst atrocities aren't committed by psychopaths — they're committed by groups of ordinary people who believe they're completely justified. The real danger isn't the remorseless loner; it's collective moral certainty that one side's aggression is righteous.
    • Fear is the secret bridge between altruism and psychopathy. Psychopaths don't process fear — their own or others' — while extreme altruists are hypersensitive to it. Same brain structure, different tuning, and that gap determines who rushes toward danger and who shrugs.
    • Our brains are survival machines, not accuracy machines — and negativity bias warps our view of humanity. Bad behavior is actually rare, but we encode it in high fidelity, leading us to wildly overestimate how selfish and dangerous other people really are.
    • Altruism creates ripple effects that reshape lives in ways you'd never predict. One kind response to a stranger — even an online troll — can shift someone's entire outlook. Well-being fuels generosity, and generosity fuels well-being, so start the cycle anywhere and watch it compound.
    • And much more... [This is part two of a two-part episode. Find part one here!]

    And if you're still game to support us, please leave a review here — even one sentence helps!

    This Episode Is Brought To You By Our Fine Sponsors:

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    5 March 2026, 8:00 am
  • 1 hour 12 minutes
    1292: Abigail Marsh | How Fear Separates Saints from Psychopaths Part 1

    What separates someone who'd donate a kidney to a stranger from someone who might steal one? Abigail Marsh explains the neuroscience of fear on part 1 of 2.

    Full show notes and resources can be found here: jordanharbinger.com/1292

    What We Discuss with Dr. Abigail Marsh:

    • Psychopaths don't lack all emotion — they specifically lack the ability to recognize and feel fear. Where most people see terror on someone's face, a psychopath sees something unidentifiable — a deficit that fundamentally rewires how they relate to other humans.
    • Many of psychology's most famous studies — the Stanford Prison Experiment, the Milgram shock test, the Kitty Genovese bystander story — turned out to be deeply flawed or outright fabricated. Humans are actually far more compassionate than these narratives suggest; CCTV data shows bystanders intervene 90% of the time.
    • Psychopathy isn't caused by "bad parenting" in any simple way — it's a neurodevelopmental disorder with significant genetic heritability, much like autism or ADHD. Blaming parents echoes the same harmful logic that once attributed schizophrenia to "cold mothers."
    • Household chaos — literal noise, inconsistent rules, revolving caregivers — makes it significantly harder for children to learn behavioral patterns. It's not just abuse that derails development; it's the inability to pick out a reliable signal from an overwhelming amount of environmental noise.
    • The sweet spot of effective parenting — and really, of shaping better humans — is combining genuine warmth with consistent boundaries. Love without structure breeds entitlement; structure without love breeds resentment. But together, they build the foundation for compassion and resilience in any child.
    • And much more... [This is part one of a two-part episode. Stay tuned for part two later this week!]

    And if you're still game to support us, please leave a review here — even one sentence helps!

    This Episode Is Brought To You By Our Fine Sponsors:

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    3 March 2026, 8:00 am
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