{{short description|American socialist political podcast}} {{Use mdy dates|date=October 2020}} {{Infobox podcast | title = Chapo Trap House | image = DEA Patch - Cocaine Intelligence Unit.png | caption = The logo used by ''Chapo Trap House'' is an embroidered patch of the Drug Enforcement Administration's Cocaine Intelligence Unit. | host = {{ubl | Will Menaker | Matt Christman | Felix Biederman | Amber A'Lee Frost| Virgil Texas (2016–2021)}} | language = English | genre = Politics, Comedy | updates = Twice-weekly | length = 60–100 minutes | num_episodes = {{:List of Chapo Trap House episodes}} (episode list) | production = {{ubl | Brendan James (2016–2017) | Chris Wade (2018–present)}} | began = March 13, 2016 | website = {{official URL}} | related_shows = {{ubl | ''The Adam Friedland Show'' | ''Bad Faith'' | ''Blowback''<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://blowback.show/|title=Blowback|website=blowback.show|access-date=June 16, 2022|archive-date=May 19, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220519053603/https://blowback.show/|url-status=live}}</ref> | ''Cum Town'' | ''Red Scare (podcast)''| ''Street Fight Radio'' | ''The West Wing Thing'' | ''TrueAnon'' }} }}

'''''Chapo Trap House''''' (also referred to as '''''Chapo''''') is an American socialist political comedy podcast launched in March 2016 and hosted by Will Menaker, Felix Biederman, Matt Christman, and Amber A'Lee Frost. It is produced by Chris Wade.<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Fedorov |first=Andrew |date=2025-01-23 |title='Chapo Trap House' Isn't Going to Save the Democrats |url=https://www.vanityfair.com/news/story/chapo-trap-house-democrats-joe-rogan |access-date=2025-03-07 |magazine=Vanity Fair |language=en-US}}</ref>

The show provides commentary from a democratic socialist perspective, and its co-hosts are affiliated with the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA). The hosts are critical of both the Republican Party and the Democratic Party, particularly its centrist wing. ''Chapo'' supported Bernie Sanders in his first presidential campaign in the 2016 Democratic presidential primaries and his second campaign in the 2020 Democratic presidential primaries. The show's contentious style of left-wing political discourse that eschews civility in favor of casual, blunt, often vulgar expression has given rise to a broader movement called the "dirtbag left", a term coined by later co-host Frost.<ref name=":5">{{Cite news |last=Tolentino |first=Jia |date=2016-11-18 |title=What Will Become of the Dirtbag Left? |url=https://www.newyorker.com/culture/persons-of-interest/what-will-become-of-the-dirtbag-left |access-date=2025-04-08 |work=The New Yorker |language=en-US |issn=0028-792X|author-link=Jia Tolentino}}</ref>

The series was originally founded by Menaker, Biederman, and Christman in March 2016, with Brendan James as producer. Frost and Virgil Texas joined in November of that year. James was replaced as producer with Wade in November 2017. In 2018, an imprint of Simon & Schuster published ''The Chapo Guide to Revolution'', co-written by four of the original hosts along with James. The book debuted at number six on ''The New York Times'' Best Seller list.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/books/best-sellers/2018/09/09/hardcover-nonfiction/|title=Hardcover Nonfiction Books – Best Sellers – Sept. 9, 2018 – The New York Times|work=The New York Times|access-date=March 2, 2020|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=July 3, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200703030841/https://www.nytimes.com/books/best-sellers/2018/09/09/hardcover-nonfiction/|url-status=live}}</ref> Texas left the show in May 2021.<ref name="VanityFair2025"/> Frost took a hiatus for most of 2023 to publish her memoir and audiobook, ''Dirtbag: Essays''. Christman took a hiatus in September 2023 due to complications from a stroke, but rejoined in December 2024.<ref name="VanityFair2025"/>

==Content== The ''Chapo'' hosts and producers identify with radical left-wing politics and frequently deride conservative, neoliberal, moderate, and liberal pundits.<ref name="Mediaite" /><ref name="Pacific Standard" /> Writing for ''The New York Times'', Nikil Saval called ''Chapo Trap House'' and its hosts "prime originators of the far left's liberal-bashing."<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/05/magazine/hated-by-the-right-mocked-by-the-left-who-wants-to-be-liberal-anymore.html|title=Hated by the Right. Mocked by the Left. Who wants to be 'Liberal' anymore?|first=Nikil|last=Saval|newspaper=The New York Times|date=July 5, 2017|access-date=July 9, 2017|archive-date=July 9, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170709074115/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/05/magazine/hated-by-the-right-mocked-by-the-left-who-wants-to-be-liberal-anymore.html|url-status=live}}</ref> The ''Pacific Standard'' wrote: {{blockquote|Contemporary conservatism is the butt of many jokes on ''Chapo'', but the harshest critiques are often saved for the Democratic Party (and for contemporary liberalism more generally). ''Chapo'' has managed to strip away the layers standard of political discourse to highlight the brutality behind policies such as "double-tap" airstrikes and for-profit health care.<ref name="Pacific Standard" />}} Biederman said the show's audience is seeking alternatives to liberal media, which he calls "the dominion of either upper-middle-class smugness when it's even the least bit funny and insufferable self-righteousness when it's even the least bit conscious."<ref name="Paste" /> Similarly, Christman said that leftist perspectives in media tend toward either the "smug above-it-all snark of ''The Daily Show'' or the quaver-voiced earnestness of, like, Chris Hedges or something. Neither of those models offer the visceral thrill of listening to people who actually give a shit (as opposed to the wan liberalism of people who are mostly interested in showing how much smarter they are than Republicans)."<ref name="Paste" /> James said "[it] is not just that people suck, and that the media and politics is gross, but that it doesn’t have to be this way. If it was just, 'Well, this is how it is, let’s just go down laughing,' then they would just be ''The Daily Show''."<ref name="Pacific Standard" /> Menaker has said that ''Chapo'' is meant to be in "marked contrast to the utterly humorless and bloodless path that leads many people with liberal or leftist proclivities into the trap of living in constant fear of offending some group that you're not a part of, up to and including the ruling class."<ref name="Paste" />

[[File:Chapo Trap House, Live (cropped).jpg|thumb|right|''Chapo Trap House'' hosts Felix Biederman, Matt Christman, Amber A'Lee Frost, Virgil Texas, and Will Menaker (left to right) live at The Bell House in New York City in 2017]]

''Chapo Trap House'' is dense with inside jokes and hyper-specific references to ongoing political discussion on Twitter.<ref name="Brawley">{{cite web |last=Brawley |first=Eddie |url=http://splitsider.com/2016/09/explaining-the-chapo-trap-house-podcast-to-the-uninitiated/ |title=Explaining the 'Chapo Trap House' Podcast to the Uninitiated |date=September 9, 2016 |website=Splitsider |access-date=September 9, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160910124506/http://splitsider.com/2016/09/explaining-the-chapo-trap-house-podcast-to-the-uninitiated/ |archive-date=September 10, 2016 |url-status=dead }}</ref> The hosts are associated with Twitter communities called "Left Twitter" and "Weird Twitter," a name used to describe a loose group of Twitter users known for absurdist humor.<ref name="Paste" /><ref name="Mediaite" /><ref name="VanityFair2025"/>

===Format and availability=== An episode of ''Chapo Trap House'' usually lasts between 60 and 80 minutes. Episodes are typically structured with a prepared "cold open," an interview with a guest, and commentary on current events. In post-production, relevant audio samples are interspersed into the episode's discussion.<ref name="Paste" /> The theme song—and inspiration for the show's title—is "SALUTE 2 EL CHAPO PART 1" by DJ Smokey.<ref>{{cite podcast |url = https://soundcloud.com/chapo-trap-house/episode-174-ooohh-baby-i-like-it-raw-1718 |title = Ooohh Baby I Like It Raw |number = 174 |website = Chapo Trap House |via = SoundCloud |date = January 7, 2018 |time = 1:08:30 |quote = WILL MENAKER: 'Finally, before we end the show, I wanna give a shout-out that's long overdue. I've been asked many times the theme song to the show, "SALUTE 2 EL CHAPO," where's it from? Finally gotta give a shout-out: DJ Smokey, in case you weren't aware of him. I was listening to a lot of his mixtapes when we did the first episode or around the time when the show was percolating in my mind, and I would say it was highly influential in the name choice.' |access-date = February 4, 2018 |archive-date = February 4, 2018 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180204183534/https://soundcloud.com/chapo-trap-house/episode-174-ooohh-baby-i-like-it-raw-1718 |url-status = live }}</ref> The show frequently features a reading series which usually features texts by conservative and neoliberal writers, such as Ross Douthat, Ben Shapiro, Dennis Prager, Megan McArdle<ref>{{Cite web |last=Sugarman |first=Jacob |date=2018-08-26 |title=Chapo Trap House Imagines the Most Perverse Outcome of Trump’s Presidency |url=https://www.truthdig.com/articles/chapo-trap-house-plumbs-the-most-perverse-possible-outcome-of-trumps-presidency/ |access-date=2025-04-07 |website=Truthdig |language=en-US}}</ref> and Rod Dreher.<ref name="Paste" /> Dreher in particular has become a regular staple on the podcast, being featured nearly 30 times<!-- 28 times as of the publication of the compilation -->.<ref>{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DjQOTDlw4Qg |title=The Complete Rod Dreher Saga {{!}} Chapo Trap House |date=2023-08-30 |last=Chapo Trap House |access-date=2025-03-15 |via=YouTube}}</ref> The hosts jokingly offered him a position as co-host, after Dreher lost his position at ''The American Conservative''.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Christman |first=Phil |date=2023-04-16 |title=For Years, the Left Has Laughed at Rod Dreher. Is That Over Now? |url=https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2023/04/rod-dreher-chapo-blog-american-conservative.html |access-date=2025-03-15 |work=Slate |language=en-US |issn=1091-2339}}</ref> A number of these pundits are also featured and critiqued in ''The Chapo Guide to Revolution.''<ref>{{Cite web |date=2018-10-17 |title=Stoned, woke and almost out of bed: 'Chapo Trap House' does revolution, Brooklyn hipster style |url=https://www.yahoo.com/news/stoned-woke-almost-bed-chapo-trap-house-revolution-brooklyn-hipster-style-090001126.html |access-date=2025-04-07 |website=Yahoo News |language=en-US|last=Nazaryan|first=Alexander}}</ref>

Weekly free episodes of the show are available via SoundCloud, Spotify, and iTunes, among other services. Subscribers who contribute at least $5 per month via Patreon gain access to additional weekly premium bonus episodes. By May 2017, the show generated more than $60,000 a month from subscribers,<ref>{{cite web |last=Smith |first=Jack |url=https://mic.com/articles/152700/liberals-are-making-bank-on-a-site-called-patreon-the-right-calls-it-hipster-welfare |title=Liberals are making bank on a site called Patreon. The right calls it 'hipster welfare.' |website=Mic |date=August 29, 2016 |access-date=September 6, 2016 |archive-date=September 15, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160915112057/https://mic.com/articles/152700/liberals-are-making-bank-on-a-site-called-patreon-the-right-calls-it-hipster-welfare |url-status=live }}</ref> and is as of September 2023 the third highest-grossing user on Patreon, earning over $180,000 per month,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Chapo Trap House: Patreon Earnings + Statistics + Graphs + Rank |url=https://graphtreon.com/creator/chapotraphouse |access-date=2023-09-25 |website=Graphtreon |language=en}}</ref> having once been the highest-grossing user on Patreon.<ref>{{cite web|title=Top Patreon Creators|url=https://graphtreon.com/top-patreon-creators|website=Graphtreon|access-date=May 31, 2019|archive-date=October 29, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151029225951/http://graphtreon.com/top-patreon-creators|url-status=live}}</ref> Geek.com cited the show's premium content as an example of a viable revenue model for new podcasters.<ref>{{cite web |last=Jensen |first=K. Thor |url=http://www.geek.com/news/geek-how-to-start-your-own-podcast-1658807/ |title=How to start your own podcast without any experience |date=June 23, 2016 |website=Geek.com |access-date=August 15, 2016 |archive-date=August 28, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160828153323/http://www.geek.com/news/geek-how-to-start-your-own-podcast-1658807/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

=== Special series === In addition to the regular podcast episodes, ''Chapo'' has released three scripted miniseries focused on history & politics. ''Hell of Presidents'', hosted by Christman and Wade, which details the administration and personality of every president of the United States;<ref>{{Cite web |title=Hell of Presidents {{!}} Collection from Chapo Trap House {{!}} 20 posts |url=https://www.patreon.com/collection/203603?view=expanded |access-date=2025-03-05 |website=Patreon}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Hell of Presidents |url=https://www.stitcher.com/show/hell-of-presidents |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210824065201/https://www.stitcher.com/show/hell-of-presidents |archive-date=August 24, 2021 |access-date=August 24, 2021 |website=Stitcher}}</ref> ''Hell on Earth: The Thirty Years' War and the Violent Birth of Capitalism'',<ref>{{Cite web |title=Hell on Earth Miniseries {{!}} Collection from Chapo Trap House {{!}} 17 posts |url=https://www.patreon.com/collection/950?view=expanded |access-date=2025-03-05 |website=Patreon}}</ref> focusing on the Thirty Years' War and the birth of capitalism, again hosted by Christman and Wade;<ref>{{Cite web |last=Earth |first=Hell On |title=Podcast ✠ Hell On Earth |url=https://hellonearth.chapotraphouse.com/views/podcast/ |access-date=2025-03-05 |website=Hell On Earth |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Pearis |first=Bill |title=Chapo Trap House launching new "Hell on Earth" history podcast, tell us about their favorite stuff of 2022 |url=https://www.brooklynvegan.com/chapo-trap-house-launching-new-hell-on-earth-history-podcast-tell-us-about-their-favorite-stuff-of-2022/ |access-date=2025-03-05 |website=BrooklynVegan |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Did the Thirty Years' War Produce Capitalism? |url=https://jacobin.com/2024/08/chapo-thirty-years-war-capitalism |access-date=2025-03-05 |website=jacobin.com |language=en-US}}</ref> and ''Seeking a Fren for the End of the World'', hosted by Biederman with writing by Joshua A. Cohen (@ettingermentum) and Spencer Rider, focusing on 'Conservative Inc.', the history of right-wing think tanks and media in the United States.<ref>{{Cite web |last=CHAPOTRAPHOUSE |date=2024-12-05 |title=Announcing a new mini-series from @ByYourLogic, SEEKING A FREN FOR THE END OF THE WORLD, examining the evolution of conservative media over the last 50 years & all things "Con, Inc." First episode premiering next Wednesday on your Chapo feed. |url=https://twitter.com/CHAPOTRAPHOUSE/status/1864722671658992091 |website=Twitter}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Seeking a Fren - Full Series {{!}} Collection from Chapo Trap House {{!}} 7 posts |url=https://www.patreon.com/collection/1201124?view=expanded |access-date=2025-03-05 |website=Patreon}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=ettingermentum |title="Seeking a Fren for the End of the World" is Out Now! |url=https://www.ettingermentum.news/p/seeking-a-fren-for-the-end-of-the |access-date=2025-03-05 |website=www.ettingermentum.news |language=en}}</ref> An additional series about the Spanish Civil War by Christman and Wade was planned but cancelled after Christman's stroke. It was released in book form in September 2024 as ''¡No Pasarán! Matt Christman's Spanish Civil War''.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=BUY MATT'S BOOK + OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS {{!}} Chapo Trap House |url=https://www.patreon.com/posts/buy-matts-book-112709037 |access-date=2025-03-05 |website=Patreon}}</ref> In 2021, Biederman and Christman hosted the series ''Time For My Stories'' on the now-defunct podcast platform Stitcher, discussing different TV drama series.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Time For My Stories |url=https://www.stitcher.com/show/time-for-my-stories |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210709181340/https://www.stitcher.com/show/time-for-my-stories |archive-date=July 9, 2021 |access-date=June 30, 2021 |website=Stitcher}}</ref> In 2025, Biederman began hosting ''THE PLAYERS CLUB!'', a series about video games, with the first season focusing on the ''Metal Gear'' franchise.<ref>{{Citation |title=The Players Club Episode 1: Metal Gear Solid (1998) - Am I My Brother’s Streaker? |url=https://soundcloud.com/chapo-trap-house/the-players-club-episode-1-metal-gear-solid-1998-am-i-my-brothers-streaker |access-date=2025-09-22 |publisher=Chapo Trap House |language=en}}</ref>

''Hell of Presidents'' was named as one of the 10 best podcasts of 2021 by Entertainment Weekly.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The 10 best podcasts of 2021 |url=https://ew.com/podcasts/best-podcasts-of-2021/ |access-date=2025-03-05 |website=EW.com |language=en}}</ref> In 2024, ''Hell on Earth'' was honored at the Webby Awards in the category Best Limited Series Podcasts.<ref>{{Cite web |title=NEW Webby Gallery + Index |url=https://winners.webbyawards.com/winners/podcasts/features/best-limited-series?years=0 |access-date=2025-03-05 |website=NEW Webby Gallery + Index |language=en}}</ref>

Additionally, ''Movie Mindset'', hosted by Menaker and Hesse Deni from the ''Seeking Derangements'' podcast is an irregular series focused on film reviews including an annual horror film review subseries known as "Ghoulvie Screamset";<ref>{{Cite web |title=Movie Mindset S1 {{!}} Collection from Chapo Trap House {{!}} 11 posts |url=https://www.patreon.com/collection/951?view=expanded |access-date=2025-03-05 |website=Patreon}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=HORRORTOBER GHOULVIE SCREAMSET SCHEDULE {{!}} Chapo Trap House |url=https://www.patreon.com/posts/horrortober-90254899 |access-date=2026-02-05 |website=Patreon |language=en-US}}</ref> and ''Hinge Points'', hosted Christman and Danny Bessner of the ''American Prestige'' podcast, focuses on alternate history.<ref>{{Cite web |last=McAllister |first=Sam |title=Chapo Trap House {{!}} Pitch Perfect PR |url=https://pitchperfectpr.com/chapo-trap-house/ |access-date=2025-03-05 |website=pitchperfectpr.com |language=en-US}}</ref>

==History== ===Background and formation=== The three founding hosts met online through discussions on Twitter years prior to starting the podcast.<ref name="Pacific Standard">{{cite news |last=Shade |first=Colette |url=https://psmag.com/news/the-radical-cheek-of-chapo-trap-house/ |title=The Radical Cheek of 'Chapo Trap House' |date=November 4, 2016 |website=Pacific Standard |access-date=December 17, 2016 |archive-date=June 16, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220616150338/https://psmag.com/news/the-radical-cheek-of-chapo-trap-house |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Paste">{{cite web |last=Rhode |first=Jason |url=https://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2016/07/chapo-trap-house-are-the-vulgar-brilliant-demigods.html |title=Chapo Trap House are the Vulgar, Brilliant Demigods of the New Progressive Left |date=July 29, 2016 |magazine=Paste |access-date=August 15, 2016 |archive-date=August 21, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160821225148/https://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2016/07/chapo-trap-house-are-the-vulgar-brilliant-demigods.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Under the usernames @willmenaker (Menaker); @cushbomb (Christman); and @ByYourLogic (Biederman, also formerly @swarthyvillain and @spookymuscleman), they developed followings for their political commentary and have been called "minor Twitter celebrities."<ref name="Paste" /><ref name="AV1" /><ref name="Mediaite">{{cite web |last=Reisman |first=Sam |url=http://www.mediaite.com/online/meet-chapo-trap-house-the-funniest-and-most-fked-up-new-podcast-about-media-and-politics/ |title=Meet Chapo Trap House: The Funniest and Most F**ked Up New Podcast About Media and Politics |date=April 12, 2016 |website=Mediaite |access-date=August 15, 2016 |archive-date=August 9, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160809020244/http://www.mediaite.com/online/meet-chapo-trap-house-the-funniest-and-most-fked-up-new-podcast-about-media-and-politics/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

The three first recorded together as guests on an episode of the podcast ''Street Fight Radio'' to mock the film ''13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi''.<ref name="Pacific Standard" /><ref name=":5" /><ref>[http://www.streetfightradio.com/show/bryan-interviews-will-matt-and-felix-about-seeing-13-hours-in-theaters/ 2 22 2016 – Bryan Interviews Will, Matt, and Felix About Seeing 13 Hours : The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi in Theaters] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171220160009/http://www.streetfightradio.com/show/bryan-interviews-will-matt-and-felix-about-seeing-13-hours-in-theaters/ |date=December 20, 2017 }}, Street Fight Radio, February 22, 2016</ref> They had already discussed hosting a show together for some time, and, encouraged by positive reception to their ''Street Fight'' appearances, they created ''Chapo Trap House''.<ref name="Paste" /><ref name="Pacific Standard" /> They chose the name ''Chapo Trap House'' in the first episode as a joking reference to the Mexican drug lord Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán and a slang term for a drug house, intending the title to sound like the title of a rap mixtape.<ref name="Paste" /><ref name=":5" />

===Early years=== The show came to prominence during the 2016 Democratic Party presidential primary contest between former United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and United States Senator Bernie Sanders. The show's left-wing content became popular with supporters of the democratic socialist Sanders.<ref name=":5" />

The team behind the podcast has since expanded from the original three hosts. ''Vice'' investigative journalist Brendan James joined as producer after appearing as a guest, and former ''The Onion'' writer and twitter personality<ref name="Pacific Standard" /> Virgil Texas and Amber A'Lee Frost joined the show as alternating co-hosts after the 2016 American presidential election.<ref name=":5" /><ref name="Pacific Standard" /> James left the show in November 2017, later being replaced by producer and writer Chris Wade.<ref>{{Cite tweet |user=deep_beige |number=926878128043122688 |date = November 4, 2017 |title=personal note: After a lotta fun, I'm bowing out from Chapo. It's bittersweet cause I'm proud of the show, but i'm all podcasted-out}}</ref> James became co-host of the ''Blowback'' podcast in 2019.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Greenberg |first=Jake |date=2020-08-05 |title=Blowback: An Honest History of the Iraq War |url=https://podcastreview.org/review/blowback/ |access-date=2025-03-15 |website=Podcast Review |language=en-US}}</ref>

===''The Chapo Guide to Revolution''=== Biederman, Christman, James, Menaker, and Texas authored a satirical book about American politics, ''The Chapo Guide to Revolution: A Manifesto Against Logic, Facts, and Reason'', published in August 2018 under the name Chapo Trap House. It debuted on ''The New York Times'' Best Seller list at number 6 under the Hardcover Non-Fiction category and number 7 under the Combined Print & E-Book category.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/books/best-sellers/2018/09/09/hardcover-nonfiction/|title=Hardcover Nonfiction Books – Best Sellers – Sept. 9, 2018 – The New York Times|work=The New York Times |via=NYTimes.com|access-date=October 18, 2019|archive-date=May 11, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190511195918/https://www.nytimes.com/books/best-sellers/2018/09/09/hardcover-nonfiction/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/books/best-sellers/2018/09/09/combined-print-and-e-book-nonfiction/|title=Combined Print & E-Book Nonfiction – Best Sellers – Sept. 9, 2018 – The New York Times|work=The New York Times |via=NYTimes.com|access-date=October 18, 2019|archive-date=May 11, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190511195932/https://www.nytimes.com/books/best-sellers/2018/09/09/combined-print-and-e-book-nonfiction/|url-status=live}}</ref>

===2020 election=== During the 2020 United States presidential election cycle, ''Chapo Trap House'' interviewed Democratic presidential candidates Marianne Williamson, Andrew Yang, John Delaney, Joe Sestak, Tom Steyer,<ref>{{Citation|title=Chapo Trap House x Vic Berger: Dispatch From Iowa Caucuses| date=February 6, 2020 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xd_GSBTVksA|language=en|access-date=February 10, 2020|archive-date=July 11, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200711221931/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xd_GSBTVksA&gl=US&hl=en|url-status=live}}</ref> and Bernie Sanders.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://soundcloud.com/chapo-trap-house|title=Chapo Trap House|website=SoundCloud|access-date=August 16, 2016|archive-date=August 13, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160813070312/https://soundcloud.com/chapo-trap-house|url-status=live}}</ref> In February 2020, ''The New York Times'' profiled the group's large live shows in early Democratic Party primary states, noting that they had "morphed into a touring political rally" for the election of Bernie Sanders.<ref name="Bowles">{{Cite news|last=Bowles|first=Nellie|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/29/us/politics/bernie-sanders-chapo-trap-house.html|title=The Pied Pipers of the Dirtbag Left Want to Lead Everyone to Bernie Sanders|date=February 29, 2020|work=The New York Times|access-date=March 2, 2020|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=January 5, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220105212307/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/29/us/politics/bernie-sanders-chapo-trap-house.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Post-2020 changes=== On June 29, 2020, Reddit banned the unofficial ''Chapo Trap House'' subreddit, citing violations of Reddit's new community guidelines and the subreddit's persistent failure to moderate rule-breaking content.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Isaac |first=Mike |date=June 29, 2020 |title=Reddit, Acting Against Hate Speech, Bans 'The_Donald' Subreddit |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/29/technology/reddit-hate-speech.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200629194704/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/29/technology/reddit-hate-speech.html |archive-date=June 29, 2020 |access-date=June 29, 2020 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Newton |first=Casey |date=June 29, 2020 |title=Reddit bans r/The_Donald and r/ChapoTrapHouse as part of a major expansion of its rules |url=https://www.theverge.com/2020/6/29/21304947/reddit-ban-subreddits-the-donald-chapo-trap-house-new-content-policy-rules |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200810150923/https://www.theverge.com/2020/6/29/21304947/reddit-ban-subreddits-the-donald-chapo-trap-house-new-content-policy-rules |archive-date=August 10, 2020 |access-date=June 29, 2020 |website=The Verge |language=en}}</ref> The r/The_Donald and r/Cumtown subreddits were banned as well. The hosts of ''Chapo Trap House'' had previously repudiated the subreddit.<ref>{{cite web |last=Kimball |first=Whitney |date=June 29, 2020 |title=Reddit Brings the Banhammer Down on r/The_Donald and 2,000 Other Subs |url=https://gizmodo.com/reddit-brings-the-banhammer-down-on-r-the_donald-and-2-1844207865 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201013183951/https://gizmodo.com/reddit-brings-the-banhammer-down-on-r-the_donald-and-2-1844207865 |archive-date=October 13, 2020 |access-date=October 1, 2020 |work=Gizmodo}}</ref>

Texas started co-hosting the ''Bad Faith'' podcast with Briahna Joy Gray in September 2020.<ref>{{Cite magazine|date=February 18, 2021|last=Kludt|first=Tom|title={{-'}}My Job Is Not to Protect "the Squad{{"-}}{{'-}}: Briahna Joy Gray Wants to Upend Democrats' Political Strategy|url=https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2021/02/briahna-joy-gray-wants-to-upend-democrats-political-strategy|access-date=July 21, 2021|magazine=Vanity Fair|language=en-US|archive-date=June 22, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210622163125/https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2021/02/briahna-joy-gray-wants-to-upend-democrats-political-strategy|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=''Bad Faith'' website |url=https://badfaith.libsyn.com/ |access-date=August 5, 2021 |website=badfaith.libsyn.com |language=en |archive-date=August 5, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210805043726/https://badfaith.libsyn.com/ |url-status=live }}</ref> In May 2021, it was announced that Texas was leaving ''Chapo Trap House''. The podcast's Patreon page described the parting as amicable.<ref>{{Cite web|date=May 19, 2021|title=Update on Show Personnel|url=https://www.patreon.com/posts/update-on-show-51464722|url-status=live|website=Patreon|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210804145558/https://www.patreon.com/posts/update-on-show-51464722 |archive-date=August 4, 2021 }}</ref>

Christman suffered an unspecified medical incident in September 2023,<ref name="christman-medical">{{cite web |url=https://www.patreon.com/posts/89694571 |title=Reason Why The Show Is Late |website=Patreon |date=September 22, 2023}}</ref> later revealed as a stroke.<ref name="christman-stroke">{{cite podcast |url = https://www.patreon.com/posts/847-spanish-war-107430175 |title = Spanish Civil War, part 3: No Pasarán! |number = 847 |website = Chapo Trap House |via = Patreon |date = July 4, 2024 |time = 0:00:00}}</ref> The hosts announced that Christman would "require a significant period of recovery" and his return to the show was indeterminate.<ref name="christman-medical" /> Later that year, Frost returned from a hosting hiatus with the release of her memoir and audiobook, ''Dirtbag: Essays''.<ref>{{cite podcast |url = https://pod.link/1097417804/episode/829ff9dc64513a6afa5a34cfe0a76dd7 |title = Goon Dad |number = 781 |website = Chapo Trap House |via = Official site |date = November 13, 2023 |time = 0:00:00}}</ref> In July 2024, Wade announced that Christman's ''Spanish Civil War'' episode series, which had been interrupted by his stroke, would be written and released as a self-published book.<ref name="christman-stroke" /><ref name=":0" />

In 2025, the group released Y''ear Zero #1: A Chapo Trap House Anthology'', a horror anthology comic book published by Bad Egg Publishing.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Perez |first=Javier |date=2025-08-11 |title=Will Menaker on YEAR ZERO, a Chapo Trap House anthology |url=https://www.comicsbeat.com/interview-will-menaker-on-year-zero-a-chapo-trap-house-anthology/ |access-date=2026-04-08 |website=The Beat |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Vann |first=Michael G. |date=2026-04-02 |title=Chapo's Comic Book Is a Riveting Political Horror Show |url=https://jacobin.com/2026/04/chapo-comic-book-horror-sci-fi |access-date=2026-04-08 |website=Jacobin |language=en-US}}</ref>

==Hosts==

===Will Menaker=== Will Menaker is one of three co-founders and regular co-hosts of ''Chapo Trap House''. He has been described as the podcast's "planner" and "showrunner," often choosing the topics of discussion for each episode.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Chapo Trap House are the Vulgar, Brilliant Demigods of the New Progressive Left |url=https://www.pastemagazine.com/media/chapo-trap-house/chapo-trap-house-are-the-vulgar-brilliant-demigods |access-date=2023-08-01 |website=Paste Magazine |language=en-US}}</ref> He was raised in a self-described liberal family on the Upper West Side of New York, composed of himself and his adoptive parents: Katherine Bouton, an editor at ''The New York Times'', and Daniel Menaker, an editor at ''The New Yorker'' and Random House.<ref name="Pacific Standard" /> After graduating from Skidmore College, Menaker worked as an assistant editor at Liveright, a W.W. Norton imprint, but left in 2016 when Chapo encountered commercial success.<ref name="Pacific Standard" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Schafer |first=Joseph |date=August 17, 2018 |title=DOPE Interviews {{!}} Chapo Trap House's Will Menaker |url=https://dopemagazine.com/chapo-trap-house/2/ |website=DOPE Magazine |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221104204631/https://dopemagazine.com/chapo-trap-house/2/ |archive-date=4 November 2022}}</ref><ref name=":5" /> Menaker has stated that the Iraq War and endorsements of the war by Congressional Democrats were the catalyst for his turning away from being a liberal Democrat to left-wing and socialist politics.<ref name="Pacific Standard" />

Menaker is in a relationship with ''The Intercept'' journalist Katherine Krueger, a frequent guest on the podcast.<ref>{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DmOzomJuPIE |title=A Guy Who Never Dies feat. David J. Roth {{!}} Chapo Trap House #1007 |date=2026-02-04 |last=Chapo Trap House |time=1:01:57 |access-date=2026-02-18 |via=YouTube}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2026-02-01 |title=Katherine Krueger |url=https://theintercept.com/staff/katherine-krueger/ |access-date=2026-02-18 |website=The Intercept |language=en-US}}</ref> In 2019 Krueger and Menaker were sued by former Donald Trump 2016 presidential campaign spokesman Jason Miller over a ''Splinter News'' article written by Krueger regarding allegations against Miller,<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |last=Gardner |first=Eriq |date=2019-08-28 |title=Gizmodo Beats Jason Miller Defamation Lawsuit Over “Abortion Pill” Story |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/gizmodo-beats-jason-miller-defamation-lawsuit-abortion-pill-story-1235101/ |access-date=2026-02-18 |website=The Hollywood Reporter |language=en-US}}</ref> and Menaker calling Miller a "rat-faced baby killer" on Twitter.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2018-10-18 |title=‘Chapo Trap House’ Host Called Jason Miller a 'Rat Face Baby Killer.’ Now He’s Being Sued. |url=https://www.thedailybeast.com/ex-trump-adviser-jason-miller-sues-will-menaker-of-chapo-trap-house-over-tweet/ |access-date=2026-02-18 |website=The Daily Beast |language=en}}</ref> Judges in New York and Florida dismissed Miller's suits and ordered him to pay the legal fees of ''Gizmodo'' (which owns ''Splinter News'').<ref name=":3" /><ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-05-22 |title=Trump Flack Ordered to Pay $42K in Legal Fees for Failed Suit |url=https://www.thedailybeast.com/trump-flack-jason-miller-told-to-pay-dollar42k-in-legal-fees-for-failed-suit/ |access-date=2026-02-18 |website=The Daily Beast |language=en}}</ref>

===Matt Christman=== Matt Christman, ''Chapo'' co-founder and co-host, grew up in the Rust Belt town of Manitowoc, Wisconsin.<ref name="Pacific Standard" /> He described his household as essentially apolitical; his father listened to conservative talk radio and identified as a Republican, while his mother never outwardly expressed any political views; both avoided the topic of politics in discussions. His father died during his junior year of high school. Before his high school graduation, Christman experienced a sudden onset of severe back pain with no readily apparent external cause. He underwent an intensive diagnostic process (including a spinal tap and MRI scans), surgery, and months of physical therapy. He made a partial recovery but his condition progressed into Brown-Séquard syndrome. As a result, he continues to walk with a limp. In an interview with ''CounterPunch'', Christman spoke about his experience and how it had impacted the course of his life and development of his worldview:

{{blockquote|I left the hospital in a wheelchair and then I spent the next four/five months rehabbing to be able to stand and walk. And I went from having braces on both of my legs to just one, and I went from a wheelchair to the braces, to crutches, to a cane, within six months. Had to do a bunch of horrible, really grody stuff to my body. And at the end of it, I kind of hit a plateau where I now have a limp, still, because I have something called Browns-Sequard syndrome {{sic}}, which is where the damage to your spine affects two halves differently. So my right leg is normal in terms of strength but it's completely numb all the time, like it's asleep. And then my left leg is very weak, and I drag it. It's been that way since this happened. Amber's theory is you see white males who are committed Leftists, and if they're serious about it, there’s something that happened that gave them a sense of real vulnerability. They don't take for granted their position anymore. I never thought about it that way. It was never a conscious thing. But when I look at my interests and my milieu, I think that theory is kind of persuasive. I just kind of laid low and felt vulnerable.<ref name="Schiller 2019" />}}

Christman attended Carroll University in Wisconsin.<ref name="Pacific Standard" /> He met his first wife in Milwaukee and moved with her to Ann Arbor, Michigan where she worked as an academic librarian.<ref name="Pacific Standard" /> Christman was unable to find work himself, describing himself as an "unemployable failguy".<ref name="Pacific Standard" /> A former active member of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), he participated in founding a local chapter when he lived in Cincinnati, Ohio.<ref name="Schiller 2019">{{Cite web |last=Schiller |first=Lucy |date=2019-02-08 |title=Forward Left: An Interview with Matt Christman of Chapo Trap House |url=https://www.counterpunch.org/2019/02/08/forward-left-an-interview-with-matt-christman-of-chap-trap-house/ |access-date=2023-08-01 |website=CounterPunch.org |language=en-US}}</ref> In 2020, he met his current wife Amber Rollo. They have one child together.<ref name="VanityFair2025" />

Christman suffered a stroke in September 2023. He returned to the show in December 2024; as of January 2025 he was "not fully recovered" but was "easing back into work."<ref name="VanityFair2025" />

===Felix Biederman=== Felix Charles<ref>{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VGzZy5GULJ0 |title=Stavvy's World #137 - Felix Biederman and Nick Mullen {{!}} Full Episode |date=2025-07-14 |last=Stavvy's World |time=1:22 min |access-date=2025-07-15 |via=YouTube}}</ref> Biederman, ''Chapo'' co-founder and co-host, was raised in the affluent, historically liberal neighborhood of Hyde Park in Chicago, and cites his upbringing in the city as motivating his criticism of the "establishment" Democratic party.<ref name="Pacific Standard" /> After attending the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota, he moved to New York to work as a freelance writer, often covering mixed-martial-arts for ''Deadspin'' and the ''New York Observer''.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-10-04 |title=Felix Biederman |url=https://deadspin.com/author/byyourlogic |access-date=2023-08-01 |website=Deadspin |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Felix Biederman |url=https://observer.com/author/felix-biederman/ |access-date=2023-08-01 |website=Observer |language=en-US}}</ref> Together with Texas and Blake Zeff, he co-created the fictional centrist political pundit Carl Diggler for ''CAFE'', also voicing him on his in-character podcast ''The DigCast''.<ref name="Pacific Standard" /> Biederman has cited ''Native Son'' by Richard Wright and ''Master of the Senate'' by Robert Caro as some of his most influential books.<ref name="Pacific Standard" /> In 2018, Biederman wrote and narrated ''Fighting in the Age of Loneliness'',<ref>{{Cite web |last=Bois |first=Jon |date=2018-11-26 |title=Fighting in the age of loneliness: A history of MMA |url=https://www.sbnation.com/a/mma-history |access-date=2025-04-07 |website=SBNation.com}}</ref> a five-part documentary about MMA directed by Jon Bois of SB Nation.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Stando |first=Matt |title=We Watch It For The Music {{!}} Fighting in the Age of Loneliness |url=https://impact89fm.org/87584/music/we-watch-it-for-the-music-fighting-in-the-age-of-loneliness/ |access-date=2025-04-07 |website=Impact 89FM {{!}} WDBM-FM}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Chretien |first=Cole |date=2018-12-10 |title=Fighting In the Age of Loneliness hits hard in an era defined by uncertainty |url=https://thesheaf.com/2018/12/10/fighting-in-the-age-of-loneliness-hits-hard-in-an-era-defined-by-uncertainty/ |access-date=2025-04-07 |website=The Sheaf |language=en}}</ref>

===Amber A'Lee Frost=== Amber A'Lee Frost is a writer and musician<ref name=":6">{{Cite web |last=Frost |first=Amber A’Lee |title=Amber A’Lee Frost, Author at American Affairs Journal |url=https://americanaffairsjournal.org/author/amber-alee-frost/ |access-date=2025-04-08 |website=American Affairs Journal |language=en-US}}</ref> who was a regular guest in the first year of ''Chapo'', and officially joined as a co-host in November 2016.<ref name=":5" /> She was raised in Indiana, attending high school in Pittsboro.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Frost |first=Amber A'Lee |title=Dirtbag: Essays |date=2023-12-05 |publisher=St Martin's Press |isbn=9781250269621 |publication-date=2023-12-05 |pages=}}</ref> In 2011 she moved to New York, where she worked for the Working Families Party, the Democratic Socialists of America, and then Bernie Sanders's 2016 presidential campaign.<ref name=":4">{{Cite web |title=Dirtbag |url=https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250269621/dirtbag/ |access-date=2025-03-07 |website=Macmillan Publishers |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name=":7">{{Cite web |date=5 December 2023 |title=Dirtbag: Essays |url=https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/amber-lee-frost/dirtbag-frost/ |access-date=7 March 2025 |website=Kirkus Reviews}}</ref> She has written for ''Columbia Journalism Review'', ''Jacobin'', ''The Baffler'' and ''Current Affairs''.<ref name=":6" /><ref>{{Cite web |date=2017-08-26 |title=Current Affairs {{!}} Culture & Politics {{!}} Amber A'Lee Frost |url=https://www.currentaffairs.org/news/author/amber-alee-frost |access-date=2025-04-08 |website=www.currentaffairs.org |language=en}}</ref> Frost also taught a freshman writing course at New York University.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2016-06-06 |title=Confession Booth {{!}} Amber A’Lee Frost |url=https://thebaffler.com/salvos/confession-booth-frost |access-date=2026-02-05 |website=The Baffler |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Panel {{!}} Dark Charisma with Amber A’Lee Frost, Daniel Keller and Sean Monahan {{!}} Swiss Institute |url=https://www.swissinstitute.net/event/panel-dark-charisma-with-amber-alee-frost-daniel-keller-and-sean-monahan/ |access-date=2026-02-05 |language=en-US}}</ref> Her first book of essays, ''Dirtbag'', was published by St. Martin's Press in 2023.<ref name=":4" /><ref name=":7" /> She also contributed to ''Rosa Luxemburg: Her Life and Legacy'' (2013) and ''False Choices: The Faux Feminism of Hillary Rodham Clinton'' (Verso, 2016).<ref name=":6" />

==Reception== Avid fans of ''Chapo Trap House'' are called ''Grey Wolves'', a joke referencing the neo-fascist, nationalist Turkish movement of the same name.<ref name=":5" />

A review of the second episode in ''The A.V. Club'' called the show "tremendously funny" and said "it feels like an absolutely essential listen." The reviewer cautioned prospective listeners that the show's left political perspective and amateur audio quality are "not for everyone," but said the hosts' "energy and desire to improve the political landscape of this country is not only unparalleled, but also contagious: if listening to this podcast doesn't make you want to become a more politically engaged person, it's hard to imagine what will."<ref name="AV1">{{cite web |last=Griffith |first=Colin |url=http://www.avclub.com/detail/aaron-rodgers-stops-you-made-it-weird-talk-about-u-234371 |title=Podmass: Aaron Rodgers stops by You Made It Weird to talk about UFO sightings: ''Chapo Trap House'' |date=March 28, 2016 |magazine=The A.V. Club |access-date=August 15, 2016 |archive-date=August 8, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160808125211/http://www.avclub.com/detail/aaron-rodgers-stops-you-made-it-weird-talk-about-u-234371 |url-status=live }}</ref> A subsequent ''A.V. Club'' review of the seventh episode noted the show's marked improvements in audio quality and the hosts' newfound confidence and flow in discussion, while retaining the "raw energy and urgency that has fueled the show from the get-go."<ref name="AV2">{{cite web |last=Griffith |first=Colin |url=http://www.avclub.com/detail/orange-new-blacks-diane-guerrero-debt-and-deportat-236045 |title=Podmass: ''Orange Is The New Black''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s Diane Guerrero on debt and deportation: ''Chapo Trap House'' |date=May 2, 2016 |magazine=The A.V. Club |access-date=August 15, 2016 |archive-date=August 24, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160824161906/http://www.avclub.com/detail/orange-new-blacks-diane-guerrero-debt-and-deportat-236045 |url-status=live }}</ref> The publication eventually named the episode of the show following the election of Donald Trump one of the best individual podcast episodes of the year 2016.<ref name="AV3">{{cite web |last=Griffith |first=Colin |url=http://www.avclub.com/article/our-favorite-podcasts-2016-246495 |title=Our favorite podcasts of 2016 |date=December 5, 2016 |magazine=The A.V. Club |access-date=December 17, 2016 |archive-date=December 13, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161213052315/http://www.avclub.com/article/our-favorite-podcasts-2016-246495 |url-status=live }}</ref>

''Mediaite'' called the show "consistently, absurdly funny and impressively literate on the diverse subjects it tackles," citing the hosts' "breadth of awareness about (seemingly) everything that's been published in every media outlet for the past few decades, and a depth of knowledge on various, arcane subjects."<ref name="Mediaite" /> ''Paste'' described the show as "not deliberately offensive, but unapologetically honest&nbsp;... so hilarious and delightfully vulgar I can barely stand it."<ref name="Paste" /> ''Pacific Standard'' wrote, "Whether you think ''Chapo Trap House'' and its fans are bullies or righteously hilarious seems to come down to whether you think calling a ''Washington Post'' reporter 'smooth brain' is an acceptable move within the political discourse."<ref name="Pacific Standard" /> ''The Irish Times'' commended its "more bracing and venomous approach to politics" than other podcasts and named the show one of the best podcasts of 2016.<ref name="Irish Times">{{cite web |last=O'Reilly |first=Seamas |url=http://www.irishtimes.com/culture/tv-radio-web/the-best-podcasts-of-2016-that-you-ve-probably-never-heard-of-1.2907281 |title=The best podcasts of 2016, that you've probably never heard of |date=December 15, 2016 |newspaper=The Irish Times |access-date=December 17, 2016 |archive-date=June 16, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220616150342/https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/tv-radio-web/the-best-podcasts-of-2016-that-you-ve-probably-never-heard-of-1.2907281 |url-status=live }}</ref>

''The Advocate'' praised the show for its "scathing, hilarious, erudite analysis on politics and media from a far-left perspective," and favorably analogized the thrill of listening to how Alex Jones and Rush Limbaugh make their right-wing fans feel.<ref name="Advocate">{{cite web |last=Brillon |first=Gordon |url=http://www.theadvocate.com/baton_rouge/entertainment_life/article_bf50f466-59bc-11e6-a42d-2fde38cd849d.html |title=Talk talk: Here are the podcasts we are listening to this week |date=August 4, 2016 |magazine=The Advocate |access-date=August 15, 2016 |archive-date=August 16, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160816140917/http://www.theadvocate.com/baton_rouge/entertainment_life/article_bf50f466-59bc-11e6-a42d-2fde38cd849d.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Comedy website ''Splitsider'' recommended the episode featuring video editor Vic Berger, who did an in-depth interview about his surreal Vine and YouTube shorts covering the 2016 presidential election season.<ref name="Splitsider">{{cite web |last=Wright |first=Megh |url=http://splitsider.com/2016/07/this-week-in-comedy-podcasts-sooo-many-white-guys-debuts/ |title=This Week in Comedy Podcasts: 'Sooo Many White Guys' Debuts |date=July 14, 2016 |website=Splitsider |access-date=August 15, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160824165047/http://splitsider.com/2016/07/this-week-in-comedy-podcasts-sooo-many-white-guys-debuts/ |archive-date=August 24, 2016 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

In a 2016 column, Robby Soave of libertarian magazine ''Reason'' criticized the show as "apparently a group therapy session for Bernie bros."<ref name="Reason">{{cite web |last=Soave |first=Robby |url=http://reason.com/blog/2016/06/14/if-a-left-wing-peter-thiel-sued-a-right |title=If a Left-Wing Peter Thiel Sued a Right-Wing Gawker, Liberals Would Cheer. They Said So. |date=June 12, 2016 |magazine=Reason |access-date=August 15, 2016 |archive-date=August 16, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160816152425/http://reason.com/blog/2016/06/14/if-a-left-wing-peter-thiel-sued-a-right |url-status=live }}</ref> Soave wrote in reaction to host Will Menaker commenting on one of his tweets, saying that he believed Menaker had a hypocritical view of free speech rights, and said the hosts "would gleefully applaud the silencing of everyone to their right."<ref name="Reason" /> Soave later appeared as a guest on a premium episode of the podcast, "17&nbsp;– The Road to Soavedom," in which he debated the hosts on freedom of speech in the media and the viability of public education.<ref>{{Citation|title=Episode 17 Teaser – Choose The Color Of Your Destruction|url=https://soundcloud.com/chapo-trap-house/episode-17-teaser-choose-the-color-of-your-destruction|language=en|access-date=March 25, 2019|archive-date=March 25, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190325034543/https://soundcloud.com/chapo-trap-house/episode-17-teaser-choose-the-color-of-your-destruction|url-status=live}}</ref>

The original version of the 2019 role-playing video game ''Disco Elysium'' features voice-acting cameos from Biederman, Christman, Menaker, and Texas.<ref>{{cite web |date=October 13, 2019 |title=Good spot! Has anyone found Felix, Will or Virgil yet? @ByYourLogic @willmenaker @virgiltexas – Studio ZA/UM |url=https://twitter.com/studioZAUM/status/1183424558667354112 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191013173901/https://twitter.com/studioZAUM/status/1183424558667354112 |archive-date=October 13, 2019 |access-date=October 18, 2019}}</ref> The creators of the game, Studio ZA/UM, lauded the podcast on Twitter, saying they had been "huge [''Chapo''] fans since the beginning."<ref>{{cite web |date=October 16, 2019 |title=Thank you Will. We've been such huge @CHAPOTRAPHOUSE fans since the beginning so your support means the world to us! – Studio ZA/UM |url=https://twitter.com/studioZAUM/status/1184592958731051009 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191016230652/https://twitter.com/studioZAUM/status/1184592958731051009 |archive-date=October 16, 2019 |access-date=October 18, 2019}}</ref> These voices were later replaced when the game was patched to ''Disco Elysium: Final Cut'' on PC and were never present for the console versions.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Boson |first=Holly |date=2021-05-07 |title=New quests and voices add even more political edge to Disco Elysium: The Final Cut |url=https://www.polygon.com/reviews/22421322/disco-elysium-final-cut-review-ps5-ps4-pc-stadia/ |access-date=2025-09-21 |website=Polygon |language=en}}</ref>

In 2025, Biederman and Menaker had cameo appearances in the film ''Castration Movie Anthology ii. The Best of Both Worlds'', directed by Louise Weard.<ref>{{Cite web |title=970 - The Glimmering feat. Hesse Deni (9/18/25) {{!}} Chapo Trap House (event occurs at 1:27:49) |url=https://www.patreon.com/posts/970-glimmering-9-139223893 |access-date=2025-09-22 |website=Patreon |language=en-US}}</ref> <!-- expand with Jacobin article about the Hell on Earth miniseries https://jacobin.com/2024/08/chapo-thirty-years-war-capitalism --> The podcast is credited for bringing the slang words "failson" and "chud" into prominence.<ref>{{Cite web |title=failson |url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/slang/failson |access-date=2025-07-25 |website=www.merriam-webster.com |language=en}}</ref>

===Political influence=== In March 2019, it was revealed former U.S. Senator from Alaska Mike Gravel filed for an exploratory committee regarding a possible 2020 presidential campaign after being convinced to run by students David Oks, Henry Williams, and Elijah Emery, who learned about Gravel from ''Chapo Trap House''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://docquery.fec.gov/cgi-bin/forms/C00699637/1320193/|title=Form 1 for Mike Gravel for President Exploratory Committee|website=docquery.fec.gov|access-date=March 25, 2019|archive-date=March 23, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190323220949/http://docquery.fec.gov/cgi-bin/forms/C00699637/1320193/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite web|url=https://politi.co/2TRnRqz|title='Do you know how old I am?': Teens draft Gravel to run for president|last=Montellaro|first=Zach|website=POLITICO|date=March 20, 2019 |language=en|access-date=March 25, 2019|archive-date=June 16, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220616150342/https://www.politico.com/story/2019/03/20/mike-gravel-president-chapo-trap-house-1230332|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/gravel-2020-810542/|title=88-Year-Old Mike Gravel Is the Latest Teen Sensation|last=Bort|first=Ryan|date=March 20, 2019|magazine=Rolling Stone|language=en-US|access-date=March 25, 2019|archive-date=January 8, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220108131844/https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/gravel-2020-810542/|url-status=live}}</ref> Gravel's formerly dormant Twitter account soon went viral after being used by the students to attack various politicians, including Democrats Amy Klobuchar, Cory Booker, Joe Biden, and Kamala Harris, in an effort to move discussion of the 2020 Democratic presidential candidates leftward.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" /><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://splinternews.com/mike-gravels-viral-2020-campaign-is-the-brainchild-of-a-1833434906|title=Mike Gravel's Viral 2020 Campaign Is the Brainchild of a New York Teen|last=Crosbie|first=Jack|website=Splinter|date=March 20, 2019 |language=en-US|access-date=March 25, 2019|archive-date=March 24, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190324230543/https://splinternews.com/mike-gravels-viral-2020-campaign-is-the-brainchild-of-a-1833434906|url-status=live}}</ref> The Mike Gravel campaign performed an AMA on the r/Chapotraphouse subreddit on April 8, the day the campaign officially launched.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.reddit.com/r/ChapoTrapHouse/comments/baxpi1/mike_gravel_2020_campaign_ama_gravel_teens_tell/|title=Mike Gravel 2020 Campaign AMA – Gravel Teens Tell All|website=reddit|language=en|access-date=April 16, 2019|archive-date=May 6, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190506231905/https://www.reddit.com/r/ChapoTrapHouse/comments/baxpi1/mike_gravel_2020_campaign_ama_gravel_teens_tell/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/mike-gravel-president-2020-twitter-819247/|title=The Teens Have Officially Convinced Mike Gravel to Run for President|last=Stuart|first=Tessa|date=April 8, 2019|magazine=Rolling Stone|language=en-US|access-date=April 16, 2019|archive-date=April 8, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190408200928/https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/mike-gravel-president-2020-twitter-819247/|url-status=live}}</ref>

Italian weekly news magazine ''L'espresso'' attributed ''Chapo Trap House'' listenership with rising membership in the Democratic Socialists of America throughout early 2019, saying the podcast is {{nowrap|"[a]}} real and physical program, which is bringing thousands of young Americans to subscribing themselves to the DSA: the young Democratic Socialists of America."<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.reddit.com/r/ChapoTrapHouse/comments/b4w0ve/one_of_the_main_publications_in_italy_lespresso/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190325035430/https://www.reddit.com/r/ChapoTrapHouse/comments/b4w0ve/one_of_the_main_publications_in_italy_lespresso/|url-status=dead|archive-date=March 25, 2019|title=r/ChapoTrapHouse – One of the main publications in Italy ("L'Espresso") has published an article on Chapo Trap House. Translation in the comments.|website=reddit|language=en|access-date=March 25, 2019}}</ref>

===Critique of the Democratic Party=== During the 2020 Democratic Party presidential primaries, ''The New York Times'' profiled the ''Chapo Trap House'' hosts' characterizations of candidates challenging Vermont Senator and presidential candidate Bernie Sanders, the hosts' preferred candidate. The hosts called supporters of former Vice President Joe Biden "gelatinous 100-year-olds", referred to former Mayor Pete Buttigieg as "a bloodless asexual", and said former Mayor Michael Bloomberg should lose "so badly that this midget gremlin won't even have a shot even with a trillion dollars." When the hosts mentioned the name of Massachusetts Senator and presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren during a live event, the crowd hissed. According to the article, "the Sanders campaign maintains a close relationship with the podcast. His senior adviser, David Sirota, and his national press secretary, Briahna Joy Gray, have also been on the podcast."<ref>{{cite news |last1=Bowles |first1=Nellie |title=The Pied Pipers of the Dirtbag Left Want to Lead Everyone to Bernie Sanders |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/29/us/politics/bernie-sanders-chapo-trap-house.html |access-date=March 7, 2020 |date=March 1, 2020 |archive-date=January 5, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220105212307/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/29/us/politics/bernie-sanders-chapo-trap-house.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Describing the podcast's simultaneous intense criticism of the Warren 2020 presidential campaign and its associations with the Sanders campaign, Zach Beauchamp of ''Vox'' wrote, "If Sanders's fans are really serious about helping their guy, they need to think carefully about whether what they're doing is actually working."<ref>{{cite news |last1=Beauchamp |first1=Zach |title=Elizabeth Warren's exit interview is a warning for the dirtbag left |work=Vox |url=https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2020/3/6/21167830/elizabeth-warren-bernie-sanders-rachel-maddow-bernie-bros |access-date=March 7, 2020 |date=March 6, 2020 |archive-date=March 6, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200306191919/https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2020/3/6/21167830/elizabeth-warren-bernie-sanders-rachel-maddow-bernie-bros |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Beauchamp |first1=Zach |title=The raging controversy over "Bernie Bros" and the so-called dirtbag left, explained |url=https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2020/3/9/21168312/bernie-bros-bernie-sanders-chapo-trap-house-dirtbag-left |work=Vox |access-date=March 9, 2020 |date=March 9, 2020 |archive-date=March 9, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200309213646/https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2020/3/9/21168312/bernie-bros-bernie-sanders-chapo-trap-house-dirtbag-left |url-status=live }}</ref>

==See also== * List of ''Chapo Trap House'' episodes *Political podcast

==References== <references> <ref name="VanityFair2025">{{Cite magazine |last=Fedorov |first=Andrew |date=January 23, 2025 |title=Chapo Trap House Isn't Going to Save the Democrats |url=https://www.vanityfair.com/news/story/chapo-trap-house-democrats-joe-rogan |magazine=Vanity Fair |quote=Trump’s takeover of the manosphere left liberals pining for their own Joe Rogan. But the hosts of Chapo, still stung by Bernie’s defeats, would rather let the party establishment burn.}}</ref> </references>

==External links== {{wikiquote}} * {{Official website|https://chapotraphouse.com/}}

{{podcast platform links}} {{authority control|additional=Q40945201,Q40945344,Q40945290}}

Category:2016 podcast debuts Category:American satire Category:American political satire Category:American satirists Category:Socialism in the United States Category:Socialist podcasts Category:Counterculture of the 2010s Category:X (social network) accounts Category:Weird Twitter Category:Audio podcasts Category:Talk show podcasts Category:Counterculture of the 2020s Category:Members of the Democratic Socialists of America Category:Writing groups and collectives Category:Independent podcasts Category:American political commentators Category:Progressivism in the United States Category:American anti-capitalists Category:American comedy podcasts