The Deprogram

The Deprogram is a collaborative left-wing podcast on the subject of politics and capitalism from a perspective. It is hosted by Second Thought, Hakim and YUGOPNIK, who all also collaborate on the left-wing news channel First Thought.
== Hosts ==
*Second Thought
*Hakim
*YUGOPNIK
== Content ==
The Deprogram covers a wide range of topics, with episodes focused on , history and current news as well as critique of , and contemporary right-wing & anti-communist rhetoric. Numerous guests have appeared on the show, from popular left-wing figures and organisers to other content creators.
The tone of the show varies from laid back discussion involving millennial and "zoomer" humour, including "personal anecdotes" from Hakim, to more formal and educative discourse; this tone can often shift within the confines of single episodes.
=== Livestreams ===
Following its initial popularity, The Deprogram announced on March 31st, 2022, that it would hold its first livestreamTwitter @TheDeprogramPod: "The Deprogram will be doing a livestream 'episode' on our new YT channel on SATURDAY at 8PM (GMT+3)." on its YouTube channel, which it had started a month before on March 2nd. The stream went ahead two days later on April 2ndThe 1st Deprogram Live "Episode" Ft. The Trio: @SecondThought @YUGOPNIK @YaBoiHakim and was released to podcast platforms with a different name in place of a regular episode two weeks later on April 15th.Google Podcasts: The Deprogram #23: We're Debate Bros Now (Special Livestream Episode!)
The channel has since held livestreams almost every month,The Deprogram: Streams often taking the form of a public Q&A with the hosts.
=== Ongoing Series ===
There are several acknowledged and planned series within the podcast's episode structure, as well as examples of seemingly "unofficial" groups of episodes that follow a similar theme:
Episode Series / Groups of The Deprogram (as of 2023-07-05)
Series Title 	Description 	Episode Count
(2023-11-30)	Started 	Classification	Status
Communism is when no... 	Introduction to Marxist theory, socialism and communism 	3 	2021-12-12 (#6) 	Structured 	Complete
Presidential Masterclasses 	Reaction content to various Masterclass courses by those involved in a U. S. Presidential race	2 	2022-01-14 (#10)	Unofficial 	Ongoing
Deprogram At Home 	Advice on how to speak to friends, relatives and acquaintances about Marxism 	3 	2022-01-21 (#11)	Unofficial 	Ongoing
Habibi Lectures by Hakim 	Lectures by Hakim about historical examples of socialism or events involving such a system 	3 	2022-05-13 (#27)	Unofficial 	Ongoing
Send New(d)s 	Discussion of current news stories 	12	2022-08-05 (#39)	Structured 	Ongoing
Real Theory Hours 	Information and critique of Liberalism and adjacent subjects 	4 	2023-01-13 (#61)	Structured 	Complete
Every President's a War Criminal	Discussion of U.S. Presidents and the policies / actions they managed 	2 	2023-05-19 (#79)	Structured 	Ongoing
Back And To The Left 	Discussion of political assassinations throughout modern history 	3 	2023-07-07 (#86)	Structured 	Ongoing
What We Boutta Do 	Outline of what a socialist revolution looks like and requires at different stages 	2 	2023-09-29 (#98)	Structured 	Ongoing
=== Guests ===
List of guest appearances on The Deprogram (as of 2024-03-04)
Guest / Channel 	Episode(s)
Revolutionary Left Radio 	#15, #111
The Left Lens with Danny Haiphong 	#17
Alan MacLeod (MintPress News) 	#20, #35, #88
Lady Izdihar 	#21, #104
Luna oi! 	#25
Ben Norton (Geopolitical Economy Report)	#33, #115
 	#34
Blowback Podcast 	#40 (Brendan), #93
loloverruled 	#47
Константин Сёмин [Konstantin Syomin] 	#51, #96
Diego Ruzzarin 	#62
Radio Free Amanda 	#64
Chapo Trap House 	#66 (Felix), #84 (Matt)
Torkil Lauesen 	#67
Tomas Härdin 	#69
Boy Boy 	#71
Balkan Odyssey 	#72
HasanAbi 	#74
James Rehwald 	#75
National Network on Cuba 	#81
Kay and Skittles 	#85
Noah Samsen 	#87
FD Signifier 	#89
TrueAnon 	#92
BadEmpanada 	#99
Our Changing Climate 	#99
 	#102
Ben Clarkson 	#102
Tom Nicholas 	#103
Decolonize Palestine 	#105
Ian Neves - História Pública 	#107
GDF 	#110
Guerrilla History Podcast 	#111
Jack Saint 	#114
wow_mao 	#116
Sisyphus 55 	#118
1Dime 	#119
Radio War Nerd 	#120
=== Additional Content ===
In addition to the regular episodes and livestreams, the podcast offers bonus episodes to its Patreon contributers at a certain tier, some of which are used in lieu of regular episodes.The Deprogram Bonus Episode - LinkedIn Higher tier Patreon subscribers can also take part in monthly live chats with the hosts in the podcast's Discord channel.Patreon: The Deprogram - Habibi tier membership
Followings requests from The Deprogram's online community, the creators commissioned members of the podcast's Discord server to design merchandise for the show.The Deprogram Special Episode - The Gang Sells Out The merch store was announced on March 17th, 2023,Twitter @_Second_Thought: "You're not a real communist unless you sell merch."Patreon: The Deprogram - Post 80160284 with a follow-up special episode of the podcast released two days later announcing they had sold out to "Big T-Shirt".The Deprogram Special Episode - The Gang Sells Out
First Thought, a short-form left-wing news channel, was created out of The Deprogram's regular Send New(d)s series. It is anchored by JT and features new stories provided by all three of the podcast's creators. More information can be found in the History section below.
Upon reaching a Patreon goal, the creators commissioned a full-length version of its intro/outro music from Sam Kužel and shortly afterwards released the song publicly on The Deprogram's Patreon and YouTube channel in April 2023.The Deprogram - Official Full Soundtrack This full-length variant features at the end of each subsequently released episode, replacing the previous shorter version (which is still used for the intro).
== History ==
=== Background and conception===
JT (Second Thought) describes the conception of The Deprogram podcast in the 50th episode,The Deprogram #50 - Pod About the Pod explaining that the desire to host a leftist podcast had been dormant "for a while" but was actively pursued in 2021 following the successful shift of his YouTube channel to political content. The premise of the podcast was to provide similar political content to Second Thought in a longer, more in-depth format. This was be done with a number of co-hosts to provide a more back-and-forth conversational format, as well as a desire not to host the content alone because he was, quote, "both boring and stupid".
In parallel with this, Hakim had already pursued an effort to create regular, podcast-adjacent content with Luna oi!Luna-Hakim Show but only managed to produce a small number of episodes because of conflicting schedules.The Deprogram #50 - Pod About the Pod Hakim also had a desire to start a podcast with YUGOPNIK, following their collaborative Iraqi-Slavic Solidarity LivestreamTwitter @yugopnik: Promotion for "Iraqi-Slavic Solidarity Livestream" in August 2021.
=== Formation and launch ===
Having already collaborated with YUGOPNIK,Second Thought - Why The United States Can't Handle CrisesYUGOPNIK - Why Capitalism can't handle crises. and having previously discussed a collaborative effort with Hakim which was "shelved" in an effort to protect his online anonymity after a close friend became a fan of Second Thought, JT approached both creators who were "immediately interested".The Deprogram #50 - Pod About the Pod YUGOPNIK describes this as a "great honour" and compares it to being asked to do a show by the CEO of CNBC because of the existing size and success of the Second Thought channel, as well as knowing that Hakim was also to be a part of the project. Hakim describes JT's offer as a coalescence of his previous efforts to make podcast-style content and exhibited much excitement at the opportunity.
The first episode was recorded approximately two weeks after the initial contact between the three creators,The Deprogram #50 - Pod About the Pod with a further few months of preparatory work being conducted before the channel was launched. Hakim praises JT and YUGOPNIK for their efforts during this time, stating "I didn't know [anything] about this". The first episode was released on podcast platforms on November 18th, 2021,Google Podcasts: The Deprogram #1 - IntroductionApple Podcasts: The Deprogram #1 - Introduction together with episode 2.Google Podcasts: The Deprogram #2 - American ExceptionalismApple Podcasts: The Deprogram #2 - American Exceptionalism
=== Early reception ===
The podcast had an generally positive reception from the left-wing online community, reaching the #2 position in Spotify's U.S. educational podcast chartTwitter @TheDeprogramPod: "The Deprogram Podcast ranks #2 after Lobster dad on top education podcast charts." and #47 in the U.S. overallTwitter @TheDeprogramPod: "And #47 in the US regardless of category. Sick." within a week of its launch. Its popularity continued to grow over the following months, with a guest appearance from Brett O'Shea of the Revolutionary Left Radio podcast on February 14, 2022,Google Podcasts: The Deprogram #15 - The Role of Alternative Media (Ft. RevLeft) symbolising a significant milestone in this growth. Shortly afterwards on March 2nd, the podcast launched a dedicated YouTube channel and uploaded its backlog with an animated video background, paving the way for the podcast's first livestream on April 2nd.The 1st Deprogram Live "Episode" Ft. The Trio: @SecondThought @YUGOPNIK @YaBoiHakim
=== First Thought ===
In response to the popularity of the "Send New(d)s" series within the show, the podcast's creators started First Thought as a dedicated news channel with a more short-form format. This was teased in a post on The Deprogram's Twitter accountTwitter @TheDeprogramPod: "No, it's not a joke." on March 27th, 2023, stating its launch to be April 1st. As promised, this turn out not to be a joke and the channel launched with its first episode on April 1st,First Thought 2023-04-01 - Trump’s in Trouble, Finland Joins NATO, Bakhmut Burns, and the Tates Get Out. with accompanying promotional content on The Deprogram's channel.The Deprogram - First Thought Teaser | We're Starting A News Show! First Thought has since altered its content to in-depth analysis of geopolitical events and situations, released on a reduced schedule. At the request of the community, the Send New(d)s segment continues to be an ongoing series on the podcast.
== Controversies ==
=== Comments on the October 7th Palestine-Israel conflict escalation ===
Following the escalation of the ongoing Israel-Palestine conflict on 7th October, 2023, the hosts reiterated and amplified their long-standing public support for Palestinian liberation and the efforts of Hamas fighters against Israeli settler-colonial activity. This largely constituted a perspective that the events described as an "unprecedented terror attack" by western news media and creators was, in fact, a military operation in response to the decades-long oppression of Palestine by Israel, with some comments being deliberately controversial and sparking a large backlash from social media and other content creators.
===== Departure from Nebula =====
In response to these comments and the wide backlash, numerous subscribers demanded that the platform take down The Deprogram as well as its associated channels.r/Nebula (Reference to deleted instances of these threads) This culminated in Nebula giving an ultimatum to "make a both-sides statement or leave the platform", to which the hosts chose the latter option and parted ways with the platform.Second Thought: Second Thought Is Now On Means TV. Second Thought, one of the founding members of the platform, subsequently announced that the hosts were unwilling to "compromise [their] principles for business optics",Second Thought: Second Thought Is Now On Means TV. and that a "both-sides" statement conflicts with what he believes is a "very black and white issue".Second Thought: Why You Should Be A Socialist In 2024 Nebula silently removed Second Thought and its associated content from Nebula around 18 - 19 Octoberr/TheDeprogram "Second Thought and First Thought just got silently removed from Nebula" which was celebrated by those calling for the result.Twitter @keffals: (Post about "success" RE: channel's removal from Nebula)
== Trivia ==
*JT (Second Thought) delivered the very first sentence of the podcast's first episode and flustered it.The Deprogram #1 - Introduction Whether or not this was deliberate or due to nerves, it helped to set the tone of the podcast as not taking itself too seriously and contributed to the easy flow of the episode
*A Donkey Kong Amiibo, a Nintendo GameCube (which JT is playing), and a poster for Avatar: The Last Airbender can be seen in the background of the Deprogram episode's placeholder on YouTube. JT's response to this is, "get lost, Joker Man".The 1st Deprogram Live "Episode" Ft. The Trio: @SecondThought @YUGOPNIK @YaBoiHakim
*The Deprogram online community are notorious for making jokes at the expense of the name of the Second Thought channel.The 1st Deprogram Live "Episode" Ft. The Trio: @SecondThought @YUGOPNIK @YaBoiHakim The podcast's creators leaned into this inside joke when naming their news channel, First Thought.Twitter @TheDeprogramPod: "No, it's not a joke."
== Recurring Jokes / References ==
*Hakim & Yugopnik constantly flirting with each other.The Deprogram #1: Introduction (5:16)
*Hakim's prolific usage of "Deez Nuts" jokes.
*"No step on snek".
*Hakim's "Liberal on the Wall".
*Hakim's medical stories, often involving large testicles.
*JT's imprisonment of the other hosts in his cellar.
*Hakim: "I'm so tired".
*Yugopnik: "Snake eating its own ass".
*Hakim is free healthcare for the Deprogram Discord community.
* is the centre of worldwide revolution.
*Hakim's disdain for the French language and those who use it.
*All revolutionary plans should only be used in .
== References ==
Category:Commentary YouTubers
Category:News YouTubers
Category:Educational YouTubers
Category:Iraqi YouTubers
Category:American YouTubers
Category:Users who joined in 2021