W. Kamau Bell asks, “Who’s with Me?

Last week America lost one of its best white people, Dolly Parton. Bestowing such a title on someone could be damning with faint praise, but it is clear that Dolly Parton wasn’t your ordinary 80-year-old white lady. In fact Dolly wasn’t even your ordinary 40-year-old white lady. Remember that many of our nation’s 40-year-old white ladies are proud Trump voters. While Dolly never talked about who she voted for (like never), we definitely know how she lived.

On a recent episode of my podcast WHO’S WITH ME? journalist Sara Sidner talked about how breast cancer researchers are using A.I. to find a cure for cancer. That is great use of A.I. But I also understand that those researchers are using A.I. for its computing power and speed. They are inputting data and scientific ideas so the A.I. can go through it. Once the A.I. is done, the researchers will exhaustively and scientifically test whatever the A.I. spits out.

This is my legacy. Like yes, it’s his legacy, but it’s also my legacy. — Shannon Lee On the newest episode of my podcast WHO’S WITH ME? (the podcast) my guest is my friend Shannon Lee. Shannon is an author, singer, and podcaster. She is, however, best known as the daughter of martial arts legend and international icon, Bruce Lee. (From left to right) Brandon, Bruce, Linda, & Shannon / courtesy of Shannon Lee When I was a kid I had three heroes: The Hulk, Spider-Man, and Bruce Lee.

On episode 14 of my podcast WHO’S WITH ME? my guest is my former CNN coworker Sara Sidner. Sara has been a staple at CNN for years. She is currently the cohost of their morning show CNN Central News. Before that we sorta had similar jobs, traveling around the country and talking to people of all kinds. I learned a lot about Sara in this conversation. I had no idea that she was an only child (like me). I had no idea that she had grown up in the south (like me… sorta).

The stand-up comedy community used to be a very tight knit place. Or at least we were tighter than we are now. When I was coming up, comics who had very different stand-up acts would call all non-comics by the not weird at all nickname “civilians”. But the second Trump presidency has truly divided my community. And that sucks. Not because I need everyone to think the same way politically, but because Donald Trump is an authoritarian who is working to remake America in his own self-serving image.

LONDON, ENGLAND - AUGUST 17: Attendees hold placards during a vigil for former Cambridge professor Jason Arday / Photo by Alishia Abodunde / Getty The Sizzle… Saturday, I took my 8-year-old to see Spider-Man: Brand New Day. Don’t worry, comic book nerds. It was our second time seeing it. We are privileged to have a movie theater within walking distance of where we live. It is a decently long walk, and we do it regularly.

This week’s guest my podcast, WHO’S WITH ME?, is the comedy icon Margaret Cho. You can’t talk about Margaret Cho without talking about San Francisco. Margaret was born and raised in a pre-tech-bro San Francisco, so she came out of the womb representing Asian Americans and fighting for LGBTQ+ rights. She’s proudly a member of both communities. Margaret has been a friend of mine for years, but she is more than just a friend.

I would like to say that sending out these two episodes of my podcast WHO’S WITH ME? in one newsletter is purposeful, but it is not. Honestly, the last week was a family week. My wife and I took our girls to see my dad in Alabama. I told myself that while we were there that I would have time to go sit in a corner and send out a newsletter, but it is probably better for my family that I didn’t sneak away to work.

The Sizzle… On the evening of Saturday, April 25, 2026 gunshots rang out in the Washington Hilton in Washington, D.C. Gunshots are a weird occurrence in any hotel, but they are especially weird in a fancy hotel that is packed with D.C. luminaries, titans of journalism, and the president of the United States of America. It was the annual White House Correspondents Association dinner. What do I mean by “especially weird”? Well… HOW WOULD SOMEONE POSSIBLY GET A GUN INTO A HOTEL WHERE THE PRESIDENT IS?

Despite how it may appear, Leslie Jones and I have a good bit in common. After years of working in the the trenches as stand-up comedians, we both owe a debt of gratitude to Chris Rock for vouching for us in high spaces. Chris vouched for me to the legendary exec John Landgraf at FX, leading to my first TV show Totally Biased. Chris vouched for Leslie to the even more legendary exec Lorne Michaels of Saturday Night Live.