Dems unveil new podcaster they hope will become left-wing Joe Rogan
At Our Table, which launched on Thursday, is described on its website as a space for 'honest, unfiltered conversations about our nation's challenges and hopes'.
Harrison speaks with guests at his South Carolina home, including failed VP hopeful Tim Walz, and Hunter Biden, the disgraced son of former president Joe Biden.
The former DNC chair told Semafor he hopes the podcast will provide a political education ahead of the 2028 presidential primary.
'Civic education in America is at an all-time low,' said Harrison, 49.
'It's really important to start educating people about these processes that are so important in terms of determining who our leaders will be.'
Harrison said he also envisages At Our Table as a platform for Democrats to open up in the same way Donald Trump did for hours on air with Joe Rogan before he was elected for a second term in the White House.
The Joe Rogan Experience is one of the most popular podcasts of all time, with 14.5 million followers by the end of 2024. Trump's approval rating surged as he appeared on mainstream social media channels like Rogan's ahead of the presidential election.
Harrison told Semafor he had been mulling over launching a podcast 'for a while', and his first guests also include Maryland Governor Wes Moore, and South Carolina Rep. James Clyburn.
He said the Democratic Party had toyed with launching a YouTube channel called DTV, which he would anchor, but decided they didn't have the resources.
The former politician said though, that after seeing increasing numbers of Americans 'getting their news from social media channels', he felt a left-leaning podcast was 'needed'.
Harrison also outlined why he decided to interview Hunter Biden, who has been found guilty of illegally owning a gun while using drugs and filing his taxes late in recent years.
'In many ways, I think Hunter Biden has become a caricature in politics,' the podcast host told Semafor.
'A lot of people don't know how smart he is, don't know his background, don't know the stuff that he's worked on.
'They only know what either his allies or his enemies have put out there, and he's been defined by that.
'I thought it would be really interesting to pull back the curtain so that people got a chance to understand who he is, and for him to get an opportunity to talk about some of the things that maybe he's only been able to talk to his family members about.
Harrison said he hopes the podcast will become a platform for Democrats to open up in the same way Donald Trump did for hours on air with Joe Rogan before he was elected in 2024.
'We Democrats put ourselves in straitjackets, and we sanitize every damn thing that comes out of our mouths,' the podcast host said.
'So what does come out comes out without any soul. Republicans understand the power of emotion. It could be fear or it could be joy, but it's emotion, and they use it.'
Harrison added that by contrast to Trump ahead of the 2024 presidential election, Kamala Harris and Tim Walz were 'muzzled' by their press teams and did not do enough interviews.
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