Topic: The Diplomat

Dana Brunetti argues that Netflix and other studios are suffering because their content has become "overly woke" and bland. He notes that audience attention spans have shifted from "appointment viewing" like The West Wing to "doom scrolling" on mobile devices. The hosts discuss the habit of using TV as background noise while engaging with other media on smartphones.

The hosts discuss current television trends, including the "gory" biblical series House of David and the Netflix political drama The Diplomat. A "boomer moment" ensues as they complain about modern television seasons having only eight episodes compared to the 30-plus episodes typical of the Sid Caesar era.

A trend in recent television shows like *The Diplomat*, *Black Doves*, and *The Agency* is identified as being overtly "anti-British," portraying UK officials as incompetent or corrupt. This media shift coincides with political tension between Elon Musk and Prime Minister Keir Starmer. Starmer's recent comments at Prime Minister's Questions emphasized that the UK would not lower food standards for a U.S. trade deal.

The hosts discuss the second season of the Apple TV+ series "Severance," noting its "creepy" premise regarding corporate brain modification. They also mention the second season of "The Diplomat" on Netflix and the quirks of modern voice-to-text technology. This casual conversation about current media serves as a transition toward the end of the broadcast.

The U.S. State Department ordered the closure of the Russian consulate in San Francisco, the oldest in the country, dating back to 1852. Black smoke was seen billowing from the consulate chimney as staff reportedly burned records before the Saturday deadline. The closure is a retaliatory move following Russia's expulsion of hundreds of U.S. diplomats.

A "Spot the Spook" analysis focuses on Nicholas Burns, a former American diplomat and professor at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government. His educational background at Johns Hopkins and his linguistic skills in French, Arabic, and Greek are identified as red flags for potential intelligence community ties.

A diplomatic row has erupted between Russia and the Netherlands following the arrest of a Russian diplomat in The Hague and the subsequent beating of a Dutch diplomat in Moscow. The tension is exacerbated by the detention of 30 Greenpeace activists on the Arctic Sunrise vessel and the suicide of Russian activist Alexander Dolmatov in Dutch custody. King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima were recently pelted with tomatoes in Moscow as a result of these strained relations.