During a conversation with journalist and author Michael Shellenberger on episode #2465 of JRE, the discussion turned to the fallout surrounding figures linked directly or indirectly to the files connected to Jeffrey Epstein.
Shellenberger was the one who raised concerns about what he described as a growing wave of cancellations tied to the disclosures. Among the names mentioned was physician and longevity expert Peter Attia, who reportedly lost a role at CBS after the controversy surrounding the released emails.
According to Shellenberger, the reaction to the files has started to resemble a cultural panic. “Literally the people that are being cancelled for this, like Peter Attia, these people are like vic tims of a… we’re in the middle of a complete moral panic,” he said. “We’re now, it’s like MeToo version two. People are having to leave boards.”
He noted that several of the people being scrutinized were individuals he does not particularly admire, mentioning figures such as Larry Summers and Bill Gates.
But Shellenberger argued that the backlash had gone beyond holding people accountable for wrongdoing and was now sweeping up individuals who may not have actually done anything improper.
“Peter Attia, like, he didn’t do anything wrong and he just like lost his job with CBS,” he said.
He also referenced reports that had circulated online about Attia’s absence while his wife was hospitalized, questioning how such details were becoming part of the narrative around the controversy. “He’s sort of now under this cloud and people go, oh but he was in the hospital and his wife was, he was with, absent, his wife was in the hospital. We don’t, like what are we doing here?”
He went on to criticize what he sees as the prevailing logic behind the backlash.
“The logic right now is that anybody who had any interaction with Epstein had to have known of all the abuse he was doing and are somehow responsible for it,” he said.
Podcast host Joe Rogan mostly reacted to the claims as they were presented, occasionally pushing back or expressing skepticism rather than fully endorsing the argument.
“Okay. But a lot of these people were hanging out with him and doing business with him after he was arrested,” Rogan said. “So this is all very public.”
Throughout the exchange, Rogan appeared neither fully convinced nor entirely dismissive while reacting to Shellenberger’s claims.
