YouSaid · the spoken record

Harvey Levin

lines on the record: 59
first: 2026-06-22
most recent: 2026-06-22
sittings or episodes: 1
sources: podcast

Every line below is reproduced as it was said and linked to the record it came from. Nothing here is summarised or generated. Directory · Search · Corrections

“Just the way you interacted. I know, and you know what? And every time I tell you that, you think I'm either being insincere or you tell me to shut up.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Right back at you. And again, I'm sorry. I'm going to say it for everybody. You are one of the best hosts I have ever seen. What you did on your CNN special...”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“I know, I remember that day when we were together talking about that. Yeah, I mean, what I was always thinking was, look, you know, you have a television and... You know, you use one clicker to watch TV shows and then you use another to go online. But there are elements of what you get online with photo galleries and videos and related links and everything else that you could integrate into the various shows that you have on television. And it's producing a richer experience using assets from digital and linear. And I always thought these two could and I still believe will merge. I realize the name is kind of lame, but it's the best I could do on the spot.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Well, we've done over 80 documentaries, and we've worked with multiple streamers, and documentaries are a big part of our business. We've done some that I'm really, really proud of. And serious documentaries. I mean, we did a documentary on 9-11, the fifth plane, which nobody knew about. And there was a fifth plane that was targeted. And when you watch it, you'll believe it. But we've done lots of documentaries, some of which are, I think, really important. So documentaries are a big part of what we do. Social media is a big part of what we do. You know, the only reason I'm kind of hesitating is things are moving so quickly that I don't know what it's going to be like in five years. Is AI going to so transform things that even what you digest now in social media is going to be kind of obsolete? I don't know.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Some people say, yeah, and it's like, oh, I had to ask this question. Oh, I'm really sorry, but, you know, people are saying this. So they're all apologetic, but they're doing the same thing.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“I don't know that I can answer whether it's a good thing or not, but definitely I was watching one of the morning shows or a clip of one of the morning shows the other day. And one of the anchors was saying to a celebrity she was interviewing, look, I have to ask you about these rumors that you're dating so-and-so. Jennifer Lowell. A bunch of them do this. Carol”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Way, but it can be really compelling if you do it right and you edit it right where it's a different form of telling a story. There's any one thing that worked for us with a TV shows, it's that.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Yeah, you know, it's funny when we started the TV show, you know, a lot of people were telling me you got to have an anchor and you got to have reporters. And, you know, you do it the conventional way where an anchor throws to a reporter who does a story and then comes back and throws back to the anchor. And it's like, that's the last thing Hollywood needed was a sixth entertainment show like that. What we said was, look, we have a room full of people who work on these stories for a living. So why not throw them all in the center of the room? And they'll be the voice, they'll be the storytellers, and what was different is they live the stories. They know the stories. They're not reading off a teleprompter. So we could have a PA or an editor or a news producer, and they go back and forth. And in a very kind of casual way,”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Yeah. And so, you know, we're pivoting our business. We're live streaming our shows. We are really investing in YouTube. We've hired a whole group of Gen Zers and Gen Alphas. I have a bunch of 21-year-olds in the office now, and they are doing amazing work under the leadership of a guy whose name I don't want to mention because I don't want somebody to steal him. But we've really done something really important, I think, in that area with social media and Gen Z and Gen Alpha. And that's where the business is going. And, you know, look, when we started TMZ, it felt like everybody was trying to hang on for dear life to what they had. And it felt like something new to have a website where you were actually covering news at the time. It's not new anymore, Kara.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Well, I mean, if you look back 20 years, there were things we did back then that I think looking back feel harsh. And we have kind of tempered from the very beginning, for sure. More generally, I'm spending a lot of time pivoting our business. I think television has been great for us and knock on wood. Our shows are still doing well. But I don't know how long television is going to last. There's a shelf life there on podcast.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Yeah. I mean, maybe that's, and that's probably it. But one of the things that they're trying to navigate is just getting them to open up some. And Charlie's got a bag of tricks.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Yeah, I'll tell you, Charlie and Jacob, again, I'm sorry for crowing about them, but they have been able to get humor and... Frankly, more with Republicans than Democrats”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“You know, I find Tim Burchett really interesting. And, you know, some people think he's too out there. But I think Tim Birchett is really... Look, I'm kind of interested since you covered the party scene. Can I ask you a question?”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Yeah, I mean, AOC to me is fascinating. Mandami has become really interesting to me. I am so intrigued by the way he's been handling things and the way he got out there. With the NBA finals, it was masterful. I mean, it was masterful.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“At all I think it's going to be mostly up to Jacob and Charlie. And, you know, it really depends on how things shape up. I'm not going to be sending people to Texas and other battlegrounds. You know, look, we're not equipped to cover the midterms the way a CNN or Fox News or any of them. I mean, we just don't have the resources. And that's not our sole mission. So we're going to do what we can do and things that we think are interesting, but it's not going to be at the level of what you're seeing elsewhere. It's just not.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Yeah, I've never viewed other media outlets as competitors, and I'll tell you why, that if the New York Post or People magazine or any of them break a story, it creates interest and we can seize that and we can find an angle to it. And, you know, nobody looks at just, if you're into pop culture or celebrity news, nobody looks at just one outlet. They'll look at five or six. And if somebody finds a story that's really good and we can find angles to it, it helps us. And it also creates more interest in the universe of celebrity or pop culture. So I don't view any of them as competitors. We need to do our share of breaking stories and following stories. But, you know, if somebody else breaks... A story. I don't view it as a zero sum game at all”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Do you really I mean, I was getting calls from celebrities saying, oh, come on, lay off him, man. He's the savior for Los Angeles. I know. And there were people who were watching the AI ads, you know, with Spencer Pratt as Batman. And again, it's sort of like you're a savior or you're a fool and an enemy. And things are in the middle most of the time.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“There's nothing he can do that's bad. And if you stray from that, you're a traitor. And I reject that. And what we did with Spencer Pratt was we just tried to view him as honestly as we could.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“And they weren't happy that we broke the story that he had signed a deal with a reality show production company. But at the same time, I was really, really critical of Karen Bass. And, you know, I think that kind of gets to the problem we have in this country, which is you're either 100% for somebody or you're their enemy. And that's the way it seems like both sides view things right now. And I don't look at it that way. And, you know, to me, you could find virtues and you can find problems with one person. And it doesn't mean you're against them or for them. Just being honest about them. And I think what's happened in the media is that it's become so tribal that if you don't like Trump, there's nothing he can do that's good. And if you love Trump,”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“So that's an interesting one that there are people who think that we were pushing Spencer Pratt's candidacy. And there are people who thought we were trying to sink it. And, you know, I talked to Spencer, and he was not happy with our coverage that he was not living in that trailer, that he seemed to say he was. They were not happy.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Look, you know, we have a blog role and the idea for me at least with the blog role was you don't like this scroll down, you might like that. And we kind of do it with our television show with pacing our TV show, that there may be a subject that somebody doesn't particularly care about, but they know something else is coming down the pike in 30 seconds. And so it's the way we program as well. And the great thing, for example, of social media for us, and that's really where I'm pivoting our business, is that it's not all or nothing, that if you do something and take chances and service a group here and a group there, somebody's not going to go away. They're just not going to look at a story that maybe we did on Iran. To me, that's the beauty of social media.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“And there are many stories like it. I mean, birthright citizenship. I mean, you have to do somersaults to make the argument. All sorts of things. First Amendment. So I think that is the root issue that at least I'm personally concerned with, is that the Constitution, I think, is viewed as an obstacle.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Unsurprising, I guess, joined the crowd. It kind of makes me feel like we've accomplished something if they've taken notice and gotten angry because they get angry a lot. Look, if I have a fundamental issue with this administration, that is that there is not reverence for the Constitution. I think that the administration looks at the Constitution as an obstacle. And I think that that is at the heart of everything right now. That, you know, it used to have, you know, people had reverence for it. And now it's like, how do we turn it on its head and get around it?”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“I'll tell you, Kara, the biggest friend that you have to me in journalism is the telephone, that, you know, you should make 100 phone calls a day when you are searching for stories. And 97% of the time, they're going to say, I got nothing. But the more you persist, the more you're going to strike gold. And I mean, we did a story not too long ago about these voicemails, these anti-Semitic voicemails that Congressman Jared Moskowitz was getting. That was a good story. I wouldn't call it a scandal, but it's a reality.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“He's great. I can't. I will tell you this, that I have told Jacob, in fact, I talked to Jacob about it today and Charlie, that get in touch with members of Congress. And let's find out what's going on here. And if there is a really interesting story, I never said scandal because it doesn't have to be scandalous to be a really important story. I mean, let's go back to the first big story. Mel Gibson. I wouldn't call that a scandal. It was just a story. And so we're looking for the same thing. And I've told Jacob and Charlie that one of the big things you got to do is network and get to know these people and get them to trust you.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Yeah, I mean, if we get a call from somebody who works, say, at a hospital, we cut it off because we are not going to violate HIPAA. So that's just cut off. If somebody from, say, a police department calls up and says, I'm going to give you a tip, but will you pay us $200? It's over. We cut it off. We don't do that. You know, if it's bedroom police, we don't do it. If it's a telephoto lens of something where you could not otherwise see it and it feels intrusive, that happens a lot. And a lot of times we'll get photos from photo agencies, as do others. And you look at it and say, how is this picture taken and where was it taken? There are some things that feel unfair. And I can't give you a benchmark on what an Fairness means, but we talk about that a lot.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“The same standard, and look, we have researchers, we have producers, we have lawyers, we vet things here. We don't just throw things up on our website or on social media. Things get vetted. And look, we have debates all day long. There is a lot that comes across our desks where we say no way are we going to do that. And this has gone on since day one. What you see on the site is a fraction of the various tips and stories that we get, some of which may feel intrusive, may cross the line with privacy, may look like bedroom police, or may just have that kind of yuck factor that we talk about all the time. We do it every day.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“That we get tons of tips because, you know, I have reporters here. And the idea is establish relationships, work with people. When we get, you know, when we broke, I don't know, Bobby Christina's death, Whitney Houston's daughter. It's like, what are we going to do? Call people up randomly and say, hey, we're going to pay you. Somebody's going to say, how dare you? And it's going to come out that we offered it.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“We don't do that. We don't live off of that. What we do pay for is video and photos. And we have done that from day one. And guess what? So does everybody else. And I kind of loved the fact that there were a lot of news organizations that came out and said, oh my God, TMZ is paying for videos. And I love that because it was an advertisement to other people saying, hey, contact TMZ because they pay for it too. There are photo agencies that they license things with all the time. And we had a guy here whose father-in-law sold a picture of a burning apartment building to the LA Times for $100 in an LA Times hat. And that was 25 years ago. So everybody pays for photos. Everybody pays for video. What you don't pay for are interviews because then you're incentivizing people to make things up, to make it worthwhile. And let me just say.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Hey, Kara, we can get them for free And look, I was a news reporter in Los Angeles for 15 years before I started any of this and broke lots and lots of stories. And it's not about, oh, what do you do? Do you call random police stations up and say, hey, if you give me something, I'll give you $10,000. I mean, if we did that, you would hear about that over the last 21 years. And you haven't because we don't. And, you know, the way that we get almost all of our stories is relationships. That, you know, we established relationships with lawyers in town, with every publicist in town, with celebrities, with police departments. And they will work with you. And I knew this when I was at KCBS in Los Angeles. They will always work with you if you're honest. With them. And if you break trust,”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“You know, look, I've seen these stories, and there was a story that came out that we're paying $100,000 per tip in Washington, D.C. It's ridiculous. I'll give you that.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“That TMZ should have that personality. And I was worried, to be honest with you, when we broke the Mel Gibson story, you know, people started writing stories about us saying, oh, we're a serious outlet that is competing with so-and-so and so-and-so. And I thought, my God, we just don't want to lose our personality. So I doubled down to make sure that we kept doing those things. So we didn't get pigeonholed into that voice.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Yeah, you know, I guess in crude terms, it's kind of high low. There are a lot of media outlets that have a voice, that you have a certain voice and you stay in that lane. And I always thought there's something wrong with that. It's too narrow. That if you have a voice, it means that there may be a really good story that's outside of your lane there and you don't do it. You got to keep your voice. We never had a voice. What I wanted us to have was a personality. And a personality is somebody can be really serious at one time, funny another time, even snarky at another time. But when you have a personality, it opens it up to doing all sorts of things and not being confined to that one lane. So from the beginning, at least my goal was.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“And I agree with you on the Paramount Plus business that this should have been an event open to everybody. And I think putting it behind a paywall, I think that's really wrong. But, you know, it's funny. You think about the party that the DNC threw for John Kennedy in 1962.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“And there's also diversity in UFC. There's diversity with the fighters. It crosses lots of lines. And I think there's an element of elitism when people say, oh, this is below the dignity of the White House. It's an event. And, you know, he invited military folks. And, you know, it's something that is very popular and just the way Ronald Reagan liked Frank Sinatra and Obama liked Hamilton. Why can't Donald Trump like the UFC?”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“First of all, that comment about Michelle Obama was disgusting. I will say this, and I did this today on our social media, and I'm just getting trash like crazy, which is unsurprising. And if you want to have at me. But believe me, I know you and I know you will. I don't have a problem with a UFC event at the White House. And I'll tell you why. Presidents have always held gala events. You know, Obama had Hamilton come to the White House. Reagan had Frank Sinatra sing. And, you know, you could go on and on and on. The reality is, you know, UFC may or may not be your taste, but it is wildly popular in America.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“So, you know, I don't think it can be all or nothing, but I don't want them to be partisan. And I want them to understand what makes these people tick.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“To the info. Well, I mean, look, I mean, a point of view, should they have a point of view on the government going away without passing a bill so that people get fed? Yeah.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Dissatisfied and really didn't have much contact. In fact, no contact with him after that. And that was February. I didn't have any contact with him because I was getting increasingly upset. I believe it was September of that year, 2017, when Donald Trump said fire those sons of bitches referring to Colin Kaepernick taking the knee. And I thought, I'm done. That was it.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Said, what can I ask him to do that would be useful because I was alarmed at what I was hearing? And Derma and I talked about it. And what I ended up talking to Trump about was, A, that you can't alienate the Black Caucus the way you are and that you should meet with John Lewis and other members of that coalition. Why would you want to create that kind of adversary relationship? They're important. And the second thing I wanted to talk to him about was the nonsense about transgender bathrooms, that it was a non-issue that he was trying to make a federal issue. And I walked out of there.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Yeah, and I mean, I thought for better or worse, he was going to be a one-term president. And, you know, he did it. He won, he do it for one term, and then he'd leave. So literally the first day he says he's going to run for re-election when that comes up. And I was alarmed. So I had a show on Fox called Objectified, where I interviewed celebrities and world leaders and kind of used objects that they kept over the years to kind of get into their lives. And I wanted to interview Netanyahu at the time. So I was having breakfast in DC with Ron Dermer shortly after Trump became president. And Ron Dermer was the Israeli ambassador to the United States. And I spent a good portion of that breakfast talking to him saying, I'm alarmed. Because I was going to go see Trump in the Oval Office later that morning.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Well, first of all, the scenario there is wrong. What happened was I was not so much supporting Trump as I was taking a position that was contrary to everybody else in the office. And also, I did know him. And I thought he wanted to be a one-term president. And the person I knew was kind of a laissez-faire guy. I mean, he knew I was gay. It was not an issue with him. He felt to me, you know, in the 15 years I knew him before he ran that he was kind of a live and let-live guy. And that's not only my opinion, but I've talked to a lot of people who knew him back then before he decided to run, who felt the same way. And so I thought he was top.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Well, it can be anything. I mean, you know, when they got invited to a Pentagon news conference. And so Jacob, look, I mean, they're at the Pentagon. I mean, what's TMZ doing at the Pentagon? So Jacob asked Hexap, what goes through his mind and his body when he orders a military strike, when a bomb drops? Is it fear? Is it power? That's in fact he even said, well, that's a TMZ question, and it is because it's not necessarily asking about strategy of war and all the other things that the other reporters ask, but it just felt like we kind of want to know.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Because I saw glimmers of that with Jacob, and he didn't have the experience out in the field, but there was something. He loves politics, and he's just such a unique character that I thought I'd roll the dice on him, and I just cannot believe how good he is. I am so proud of them. And this is 90 plus percent casting. That's what this is. And they are A++, as far as I'm concerned. I'm so proud of them.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Smoke, Kara, but you did that so incredibly well with your series on CNN that you just followed the conversation. You didn't have an outline. And I saw it when I watched you. And I know I was bugging you, texting you, telling you how good you were. But that is a skill that a lot of people don't have. They get pre-programmed to doing things.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Well, you know, I start with the negative. What I tell, what I've told Jacob and Charlie is do not pretend like you're a White House correspondent or somebody covering the hill. You know, the reason I sent them there is because they are fantastic and they are authentic and they are different from everybody in Washington, D.C. have to act a certain way because this is the way you act when you're a reporter in DC. I just told them, dress the same way, act the same way. In fact, don't act. Just be yourselves. Charlie has done this done interviews with people for a dozen years. So he's really good, not in interviews, but having conversations. And I think that's the distinction. Charlie is fabulous at just having a conversation and letting things kind of flow. I'm not trying to blow.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“I don't view it that way I view it as pop culture. We cover pop culture. And pop culture can be a lot of things. You know, it can be sports, it can be entertainment. And pop culture is politics because a lot of the things that affect everybody emanates from Washington, D.C. and emanates from the courts. It emanates from Congress, from the president. And it affects all of us. So they are integral part of pop culture. So to me, it has never been a stretch.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Because there was a freshness to Obama coming into office and kind of more of an openness, at least it felt that way. And people were excited. They wanted to talk about it. There were people who were upset about it. And I think that was a real moment. And that's why I wish we could have launched back then. So I think this would have worked with Obama. And I do want to just say one thing, that, you know, you're referring to this as, you know, politicians being a form of celebrities. Right.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Think it would have worked with Obama. I think it absolutely would have worked with Obama, and that's when we wanted to launch. So I”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Yeah, that there are ways of forcing issues that need to be talked about that I see this sometimes with White House news conferences where they'll ask a question, it gets deflected, they may do a follow-up, and if they deflect again, they just drop it.”
2026-06-22 · On with Kara Swisher · TMZ’s Harvey Levin Says Politics Is Pop Culture · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT