In the Podcast World, Gavin Newsom Is In, Alix Earle Is Out, and Alex Cooper and Dave Portnoy Are Eternal

If a tree falls in the forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound? Unclear, but podcasts, despite their abundance, seem to be doing just fine, if the intercorporate drama between Alex Cooper, host of the ultra-popular Call Her Daddy and founder of podcast company Unwell Network, Alix Earle, her (former?) friend and host of the Hot Mess podcast, is any indicator.

Earle and her Hot Mess podcast were reportedly dropped by Unwell this week, and Barstool Sports’ Dave Portnoy, Cooper’s former boss and something of a frenemy, given their shared history and industry, just couldn’t help but stir the pot on social media. (Representatives for Earle and Unwell did not respond to Vanity Fair’s request for comment.) In the modern evolution of talk radio, there sure is a lot of behind-the-scenes whispering.

Yes, the podcast world can be messy and crowded, but that hasn’t stopped Gavin Newsom from joining the fray, with the California governor announcing a new show with iHeartMedia, This is Gavin Newsom.

Please, please! One person speaking at a time! All this chatter is enough to drain a person’s AirPods.

The audiophiles are all abuzz discussing how unwell (sorry) things appear to be between Alex and Alix.

A quick “previously on” for those catching up with Cooper: In 2018, she and Sofia Franklyn started Call Her Daddy, an advice and comedy podcast that they co-hosted, at Barstool. In spring 2020, Franklyn left the show amid a dispute with Barstool, and by June 2021, Cooper had also left Portnoy’s Barstool and signed a lucrative deal with Spotify, keeping custody of the podcast in the aftermath. The show shifted its focus from sex and dating to put more emphasis on mental health and interviewing high-profile guests.

Cooper launched the Unwell network in August 2023, signing Earle and her Hot Mess podcast, among other talent. In August 2024, Cooper announced a new distribution deal with SiriusXM replacing Spotify, worth a reported $125 million.

On Tuesday, Variety reported that Unwell had dropped Hot Mess from its offerings and renounced all rights to the show’s name. The tea leaves were already there, at least a cup of them: When Unwell and Cooper hosted a Super Bowl party in New Orleans earlier in February, Earle did not attend, even though she was also in town for the game.

Unnamed sources told Us Weekly that the relationship between the two has taken on “a lot of tension.” “They’ve had a lot of drama between them [since] they decided to collaborate on Unwell,” a source told the outlet. “They clashed over business, and their friendship is over because of it.”

And where tension over podcast business and friendships is, there too is Dave Portnoy, who couldn’t help but insert himself with a vague but shady post calling back to drama with another character in the extended podcast universe, Grace O’Malley. O’Malley is a former Barstooler and ex-bestie of Brianna LaPaglia (also known as Brianna Chickenfry). O’Malley split with Barstool in December 2024, speaking publicly about pay discrepancies among employees and claiming LaPaglia was better compensated (which Portnoy addressed on TikTok in January, asserting the difference in their salaries was because “Bri was a much more bigger personality, way more followers, bigger everything”). After O’Malley’s exit, Cooper posted a TikTok showing a screenshot of a 38-minute call between her and O’Malley, captioning it, “You can stop tagging me. I know what needs to be done.” The announcement that O’Malley would join Unwell came soon after.

On Wednesday, Portnoy pulled the ol’ copy-paste of that caption and shared a screenshot to his Instagram showing a lengthy call to a contact labeled “alixearlenew,” launching speculation that Earle would be finding a new seat at Barstool.

Not so fast: Portnoy shut that down in his own comments section, writing, “Update–I didn’t call her. I just thought it was funny.” What was that we were saying about hot messes?

Besides, Earle can speak for herself. On Wednesday, she posted an Instagram Reel announcing that she was investing in an alcohol brand, which she didn’t name but said would have more news on in the coming month.

“I wanted to do something in the alcohol space since I graduated college,” the 24-year-old said in the clip. “I’ve been trying to find some way to get involved.”

She began speaking with the brand, which “had already been around for a few years but never really took off” and that she is helping to relaunch, since this summer, she said.

The Instagram page for Hot Mess still lists Unwell as its producer in its bio, and was still sharing new content on its grid on Thursday.

If there’s a population that knows about infighting and shifting personal and professional allegiances, it’s career politicians, which may be why Newsom is adding “podcast host” as a side hustle to that gubernatorial gig.

In an interview with Politico on Tuesday, Newsom said that his new show would welcome guests from both sides of the aisle for candid debate and discussion, citing Bill Maher as an inspiration.

“We already know what our disagreements are with the MAGA movement,” he said. “I want to understand what the motivations are, the legitimacy of those motivations, and just really understand where people are coming from. They are influential—they are. They explain more things in more ways on more days about what’s going on and if we’re not trying to understand their motivations, we will be victims of their motivations.”

It also doesn’t do anything to squash that persistent rumor that Newsom is mulling a presidential run for 2028, once his final term as governor wraps. It can’t be ignored that being seen as a rational personality who understand and is willing to engage with differing political opinions is an asset to candidates, not to mention the most excellent flavor of opposition research. Newsom said that he already has some half-dozen guests who have agreed to be on the show, which will launch in coming weeks.

“I don’t want to lose these folks by letting their names out there,” he said. But expect some red sauce, given the hint he teased: “Look at the lineup at CPAC.”

As if we haven’t heard enough from Elon Musk. Whatever, maybe he’ll bring his chainsaw.