The Nerve with Maureen Callahan

How Timothée Chalamet, Taylor Swift and Other Celebs Try Too Hard To Be Cool and The MTV Revolution

03 Dec 2025

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On this week's edition of the Nerve At Night, Maureen Callahan is joined by MTV co-founder Tom Freston for an inside look at how the network rewired the entire music industry and had a transformative effect on entertainment and politics. Freston walks Maureen through MTV's rock-and-roll golden era, his relationship with former Viacom Chairman Sumner Redstone, and their legendary clash over Tom Cruise. Later in the show, Maureen welcomes journalist Elle Hunt to break down the science of “cool,” including the personality traits that separate those who are genuinely cool from the trying-too-hard celebs, and how some stars seemingly make being uncool their full-time job. Maureen then turns to Troublemaker mail, reading audience stories about an arrogant A-Rod encounter, Michelle Obama’s eyebrow-raising remarks about black women and swimming, Oprah’s sky-high ticket prices for her appearance in New Zealand, and more.Tom Freston - https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Unplugged/Tom-Freston/9781668089798 Elle Hunt - www.ellehunt.netInstragram.com/elle_hunt120Life: Go to https://120Life.com and use code NERVE to save 15%Oxford Natural: To watch their full stories, scan the QR code on your screen or visit https://oxfordnatural.com/nerve/ to get 70% off your first order when you use code NERVE.Lean: Visit https://BrickhouseSale.com for 30% off Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

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