Autocratic Despair
Nick Mortensen & Dr. Craig Johnson
Publishing Details
About This Podcast
Stare into the abyss of the United States' descent into Authoritarianism with a truly funny comedian from Green Bay, WI and a very serious PHD in Global Fascism Studies from Cal-Berkeley.
Very Funny. Very Serious.
Podcasting 2.0 Features
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Recent Episodes
S2E6 Oops! All Talarico Talk
We had a whole episode planned. A Delaney Hall follow-up with court receipts. A cold open about a flesh-eating parasite crawling north through Texas. A thing about active clubs. And then, on Monday,…
S2E5 The World Doesn't Stop...But it Should
DR. Craig returns from the wilderness this week — literally. After a week in the desert painting rocks, running trails, and pointedly not looking at his phone, he comes back with a thesis: the…
S2E4 Dave Troy Sounds Off
S-Tier Autocracy Knower Dave Troy sits in for Craig this week while Dr. Craig is on assignment (Turkish Hair Restoration Surgery). Troy is a technology entrepreneur, investigative journalist, and the…
S2E3 The Rizz Minister Has Been Getting it On!
This week on the Autocratic Despair podcast — a comedy about fascism, autocracy, and trying to have fun while the country falls apart — Nick opens at a seven on the despair scale after walking…
S2E2 A Whole Potato or a "Hole in a Potato"?
In which the boys debut a new shorthand for the show's central feeling: the moment you realize there are now so many golden statues of Donald Trump scattered across his Florida golf courses that when…
S2E1 Is That How You Get Your Jollies?
Episode 1 of Autocratic Despair opens with co-hosts Nick and Dr. Craig Johnson defining the show's central concept through two visceral scenarios: the reluctance to celebrate the Fourth of July…
S1E6 Preview: Dr. Craig is Fun at Parties
This week on the Autocratic Despair podcast, Nick and Dr. Craig take an unusually nuanced look at Cole Allen — the 31-year-old Caltech-educated tutor from Torrance, California who charged a security…
S1E5 Preview: Uncle Energy + All Aboard the Talarico Train
This week on another preview episode of the Autocratic Despair podcast, Nick and Dr. Craig start with a confession: they both enjoyed the Atlantic's report on FBI Director Kash Patel's alleged…
S1E4 Preview: The Prairieland Railroading Happening Right Now
The Autocratic Despair Podcast launches in May. Until then, enjoy this practice episode. This week on Autocratic Despair, Nick and Dr. Craig open with something they haven't been able to do very…
S1E3 Preview: Has Seth Rollins Gone Fashwave?
When the weight of watching democracy erode gets to be too much, where do you go? In this episode, Nick and Dr. Craig Johnson explore the surprisingly serious topic of retreating into childhood…
S1E2 Preview: Danhausen as the New Guy Fawkes?
In this preview episode of the Autocratic Despair podcast, host Nick Mortensen introduces Dr. Craig to Danhausen — a magical fun character from the WWE who is about to sweep the nation. Danhausen…
S1E1 Autocratic Despair Trailer
A 3 minute preview of our podcast - The Autocratic Despair Podcast - with Nick Mortensen and Dr. Craig Johnson that takes an excerpt from a podcast where we have a discussion about why we never got…
Frequently Asked Questions
Autocratic Despair has published 12 episodes since April 2026, covering topics in Comedy, Education.
Autocratic Despair is currently highly active with new episodes weekly. Average episode length is 37m.
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