I think the host should report on the administration he helped get elected.

Heard Astead on Sarah Longwell’s Bulwark Focus Group on YouTube. Impressive. He gave me a lot to think about. Intelligent and thoughtful. Even if you don’t agree with every one of his opinions, he’s clear and easy to understand. I highly recommend this podcast!

In your interviews with undecided voters, you never corrected them on the misinformation they were spouting. Nor did you circle back to provide clarity for your listeners. I thought journalists were supposed to provide the truth even when it’s not what people want to hear. Please work in this!!! On a totally petty note: Have you considered a nasal strip? You consistently sound congested and when all I have is your voice, it’s very distracting.

Thank you for such a great show. The past two years have been informative, funny, and frightening. But you gave us insight into real people and help me remember how real Americans feel. I will miss your weekly installments!

That was a wise assessment by one of your family members. Your Thanksgiving update was most appreciated. The bottom line, we have Joe and Jill Biden to thank for our current predicament. Arrogance and false pride allowed them to manage and hide his deteriorating condition from the American people.

Thank you for Astead and team for this work! It really helped to hear from real people during this election cycle. My one request is, Astead -please do another podcast. Your voice is a very reasonable one, and much appreciated in all the madness. Thank you 🫶🏽

The Democratic Party needs to call Astead. He has been on the ground talking to voters and could actually frame a message that speaks to the Democratic voters. Nancy Pelosi did an interview with the NYTs the day after the election. It was jaw dropping, just how unrealistic her perspective was on the Democrats performance in the election. My immediate thought was she has to go. Like Biden if she continues to be the leader of our party, we will not make gains. Please step aside, give Hakim, Gavin, Josh S., etc.. a chance. I was naïve enough to think that the fear of a Trump presidency would win out. The ”me” vote lacked the imagination of what Trump will do to our country. I’m sad to say that some of those effects will negatively affect the “me” & all voters. The Democratic Party needs to come up with a strategy on how to highlight all of the dangerous things Trump is doing in his presidency. They should take a page from his playbook… hold regular rallies across the country over the next 4 years, reminding people of what’s really going on! Going high ain’t working. We went to a gun fight with a knife and got spanked! Sorry that was long. lol!

Really enjoyed Astead’s interviews and thoughtful questions and discussions regarding the 2024 election cycle. I hope to continue hearing your voice through the years in this and other formats. Thank you!

I’m so thankful for a podcast that presents a democratic view that I can resonate with. I really wish I could talk with him. To be clear I’m a white man in my early 40s that does not feel represented by either party, but I do lean Democrat.

I voted for Trump. I am a libertarian. Astead was speaking to “real” America, before it was trending. This last interview with his family was so insightful, sincere, and without forced wit. Please continue working on the “Run down,” and document American (from families to farm folk to fraternities) thoughts on the next four years.

The Run Up has been my go-to podcast for staying hopeful during this troubled time, pre and now post election. Whatever Astead chooses to do (hopefully after he gives himself a long and relaxing holiday), I’ll be waiting to subscribe. Bless you Astead and everyone who makes the show.

I’m glad election season is over, except that I will miss this podcast so much! I’ve literally listened to every episode for the entirety of the show. Thank you Astead and team, hope to hear you again in a couple of years.

Astead and the team of journalists behind The Run-up are doing the work that political pundits— on the left and right—could never do: actually talking to real people about their views and why they have them. We only become stronger as a nation and a people if we can understand eachothers point of view, whether we agree or not. This podcast should be required listening for every Civics class in America. And for every person!

This podcast asks the right questions, interviews the right people, and gives listeners the perspective of a broad swath of how Americans were going to vote. It is because of this podcast that I expected Trump to win and made it hurt a little less. If you are a frequent listener you would know that the right wanted Trump, and most of the middle leaned that way too.

First of all let me tell you that I was disappointed to hear there will only be just one episode and they there won’t be anymore for a while, I always look forward to Thursday! Please let us know when will you back so I can look forward to that date! I am so glad that I have someone I can turn into for unbiased coverage of us politics, this is divided America and everyone is trying to push their agenda but it is important to get news that really matters and is not influenced by news medias personal agenda! Thank you and love your show!

Mr. Herndon is straying away from “journalist” to pundit. Those are murky waters where you can pretend you’re a political scientist and speak in 30 reductive and simplistic sound bites. If the CNN money is that good, perhaps make the transfer complete.

He does attempt to give voice to everyday people, but every question is dripping with Left-Wing innuendo and ideology. Almost.

I’m upset, but not at all surprised, at the results of the election because of Asted’s excellent reporting. This is what news should be. Not a hype machine. Thank you thank you thank you!

for every interview, every question, every tactful but telling “Mm-hm”—and for what it all adds up to. Thank you for letting us listen to each other.

This latest episode really helped me understand what happened this week. Astead’s ability to cultivate relationships with people on all sides of the political spectrum is really special in this era of journalism and media. Well done Astead and keep doing this work!

Astead is the absolute best political analyst. I love how he seeks out different perspectives and then provides his own, objective analysis. I appreciate how he boils things down and he’s super fun to listen to. Keep up the amazing work and thank you!!!!

Thank you for your integrity. As I face my despair at the election, I appreciate your truth speaking on the Daily about the failures of the DNC. I’m pretty sure you’re the smartest man in America

I absolutely adore this show and have been listening since the beginning. But I am worried. I have genuine concerns for Astead’s job security. What will you and the team do after the election? Continue this podcast? Please let us know. Stay well friends. I’m surviving Election Day stress with lots of donuts and coffee

So, we’re here. Does that mean you’ll change “The Run Up” to “The Run Down” and keep podding? You’re the best.

Edit to my edit - Thank you, Astead, for your reporting and helping us through the weeds of this seemingly never-ending election season. Looking forward to listening to whatever you do next. Edit to my earlier review: I really can’t say enough about Astead’s interview style. He is so thoughtful and curious about what people think, without a pre-conceived opinion of what the answers should be. This podcast is awesome! Honestly this in one of the only political podcasts I can listen to right now. Astead’s interview style is relaxed, non-judgemental and curious - you can tell he really enjoys talking with people and is respectful to everyone who takes the time to answer his questions. I look forward to every episode.

Thanks for getting the guys to open up on the tailgate episode — learned so much !

He accomplishes what is so hard to do in this media environment. Even if you don’t agree with his subjects or profiles; they are fair and balanced and objective. He lets them tell us their story. It’s both deep and compelling. That’s why he’s such a great journalist because depending on your perspective he’s going to interview people that will trigger us. Which is the point. To learn about people and hear their voices. To learn about our differences.

Astead is respectful, engaging and clearly curious about what the folks he interviews have to say. That is refreshing. It’s the only political podcast other than those produced by the BBC I can listen to in its entirety every time. I have gained insight into a broad spectrum of positions and why specific individuals hold them.

I subscribe to and love your podcast. I am center right and will be voting for DJT for the first time. My question is when you are interviewing someone and they say they are voting for Harris because of abortion concerns. Do you ever ask them if they know what the president will be able to do about abortion? I don’t think many people have any idea the number of stars that would have to align for any president to make any change.

Awful show built around the false equalization and validation of idiots and their warped world views.

I love this podcast! I really enjoy that the host travels the country and asks everyday people about their views. He asks thoughtful questions and is never judgmental. I feel like I am able to gain so much insight into different points of view and it’s just interesting to listen to people all over the US with different political leanings. I am a progressive liberal person, and while the host tends to focus more on republican/conservative people, I still enjoy and appreciate listening. It is not a heavily partisan podcast that’s trying to push a certain ideology. It’s nice to have something more neutral-leaning because there aren’t many shows like that.

But I struggle with this show. I appreciate his dedication to hearing differing perspectives, but sometimes it really does sound like he’s shilling for Trump. Go listen to “Question Everything” if you’ve ever been frustrated with Mr Herndon’s practiced neutrality. It was so refreshing to hear Astead’s personal perspective.

The podcast is a bit too unstructured and hard to follow cogently.

As a former newspaper reporter and now a professor of journalism ethics, I steer students to this podcast as the way interviewing should be done. I don’t know this journalist’s politics and that’s as it should be. Unbiased fairness like this is increasingly rare. Thank you,

The amount of times this show will just repeat trumps lies but will toss Harris under the bus for the smallest things. Fox News I’m sure approves this show.

This podcast asks all the right questions but consistently reveals how utterly uninformed and misguided most Americans are. Even people who sound articulate routinely misstate the positions of the candidates and have no memory of the antisocial behavior of the former president. It is depressing but when we ask the question of how Trump won on November 6th 2024 democrats would do well to review these transcripts to strategize for 2028. Sadly I think Dems may have missed the boat again. Hope I’m wrong!

I understand that Astead is trying to gain the trust of “the other side” in order to interview them, but I think he could probe a bit more while remaining respectful. I want to know why people blame Kamala for what they see as the failures of the past four years. Do they understand the role of the Vice President in policy making (and lack thereof)? I want to understand why people blame Biden/Harris for pandemic inflation when in reality it’s more complicated. This woman blames Obama for wokeness, but why? You can’t just let that go without asking her for evidence, or to ask her why she chooses to blame Obama compared to the constant division stoked by Trump. Astead just lets people repeat misleading conservative talking points without any pushback, which I think undermines the show’s objective of helping us understand one another better.

I always look forward to each podcast. I love that no one on the staff is trying to convince you how to believe. They try to get you as much information so you can make your own decisions. Thank you.

This show and The Daily are my favorites of NYT. The only way I get my news, and I really appreciate all the different perspectives. Keep it up!

I’m actually shocked that you aired this undecided voters episode. Like what?!? What VP can they point to in history that ever visibly accomplished a policy agenda?!? They think educated voters are required yet literally haven’t read the policy agenda on her website. On one hand I appreciate your goal of shedding light on this, on the other it’s almost impossible to listen to.

I usually enjoy this podcast but I feel that this episode left me a bit unfulfilled. I don’t understand why undecided voters did not address the lies that Trump gave during the debate and how that affects their overall vote. He was so egregious that I don’t know how anyone can be turned off by it but then again I have my own confirmation bias. I just wish that it could it be addressed with undecided voters without leading them to an answer.

Do they really care about the issues/policy? Are they really clear on Trump’s concepts vs Harris’ plans? Are they really undecideds…these folks you keep tabs on? My guess: No. They seem like Trump voters who, maybe just want to keep their vote to themselves. Maybe this exercise has been played out. Why frustrate everyone?

Gives a platform to hatred and homophobia without any push back. Gives the most hateful people in our society an unobstructed voice to the masses. Some of the episodes are difficult to listen to when promoting hateful ideologies regarding the lgbtq community. These views, shrouded in religious “morality,” should be challenged. This podcast makes me realize how dumb so many across the country are.

All these interviews with so called undecided voters is just infuriating. I’m sorry but they all just sound like deeply uninformed morons

As an evangelical I appreciate and look forward to listening to the episodes where faith and policy intersect. But I believe most of political journalism is overlooking a growing meaty percentage of evangelicals - those of us who believe democrats have a more policies that lineup with biblical scripture. Ironically, many of us believe the argument of democratic policies are actually more pro life than the narrow approach to the Republican policy argument. There are a lot of us who don’t speak up because quite frankly, we don’t want to get into the debates that are necessary within the intersection of policy and the Christian faith. I would love to see this viewpoint represented in The Run-Up as your reporting on the various coalitions that will make or break the Republican ticket.

The daily podcast really disappointed me this year. I thought at least this podcast would keep some journalistic integrity. I really liked the host, but it seems like the whole of nyt has realized there’s more money in bowing down to the right

I started listening to this podcast to try getting unbiased information as I prepare to vote for the first time. However, it didn’t take me long to realize that this podcast very much favors the Democratic Party. Don’t recommend listening to this if you’re trying to have an open mind about ALL parties.

I listen to the daily all the time. This show is a joke with an incipid host

I used to look forward to each episode. Then I would start and episode and feel overwhelmed by the sense that the NYT was, frankly, just *whining*. These days. I usually look at the title and mostly decide to skip it for NPR, the Economist, WaPo, Axios, or something independent. Maybe it’ll return to form after this election. 🤞

Very well done, professional and thought provoking. Check it out!