We learn The Lowdown Hoedown with Sterlin Harjo

Episode of Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! · November 7, 2026 · 47 min

Peter Sagal and panelists joke about Democrats' midterm sweep and other news, and Sterlin Harjo discusses his Oklahoma upbringing and plays a square-dancing quiz.

Summary

This live episode of Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! was recorded at the Studebaker Theater in Chicago with host Peter Sagal, announcer Alzo Slade, and panelists Adam Felber, Brian Babylon and Joyelle Nicole Johnson. The news quiz opened with jokes about the Democratic sweep in the 2026 midterm elections, which Sagal described as the biggest shift in congressional power in 50 years and which included every statewide office in Texas. Other segments covered millennials resisting reading glasses, Bob Dylan's hooded audience with Pope Leo XIV, romance audiobook narrators fielding complaints, and a Dutch cinema hypnotizing viewers to forget their favorite films.

In the Not My Job segment, filmmaker Sterlin Harjo said Reservation Dogs was largely drawn from his rural Oklahoma childhood, recalled laughing with his father at a Western about Seminoles in which actors dressed as Cheyenne and spoke Lakota, and described his father's taekwondo studio, where he reached brown belt. Harjo said free cable fueled his film education, that he taught himself editing with a school loan he long failed to repay, and that he dodged MacArthur Foundation calls for two weeks thinking they wanted him on a panel. He also cited a Sylvester Stallone quote about filming in Oklahoma that he printed on company T-shirts.

Harjo then answered questions about square dancing, getting one of three right (tractor square dancing); Slade nonetheless awarded him an honorary win. Later rounds covered a momfluencer's bone-marrow-frosted watermelon birthday cake, a chief small talk officer job, a listener limerick challenge, and a Lightning Fill in the Blank round won by Adam Felber.

Chapters

0:28
Opening and first caller
Peter Sagal introduces the show, guest Sterlin Harjo, and listener contestant Joel Shoemaker of Peoria.
2:13
Who's Alzo: midterms, reading glasses, Dylan and the Pope
Joel identifies quotes about Democrats' midterm sweep, millennials avoiding reading glasses, and Bob Dylan's meeting with Pope Leo XIV.
10:07
Panel questions: romance audiobooks
Panelists discuss complaints that romance audiobook narrators receive from listeners.
13:48
Bluff the Listener: movie theater gimmicks
Katie from Houston picks among three stories about theaters luring audiences and is fooled; the real one is a Dutch theater hypnotizing viewers.
20:04
Interview with Sterlin Harjo
Harjo discusses his Oklahoma upbringing, his father's martial arts studio, teaching himself filmmaking, the MacArthur grant and Tulsa King.
26:23
Not My Job: Lowdown meets Hoedown
Harjo answers three questions about square dancing, correctly identifying tractor square dancing.
32:25
Panel questions: bone marrow cake and small talk officer
Panelists guess a momfluencer's bone-marrow birthday cake and a company's chief small talk officer job.
36:30
Listener Limerick Challenge
Ava from Gainesville completes limericks about family concerts, cinnamon roll mac and cheese, and slipper injuries.
43:13
Lightning Fill in the Blank
Panelists race through news questions; Adam Felber wins.
48:35
Predictions and credits
Panelists predict the next unlikely summit after Dylan and the Pope.

Key points

What was said, by whom, with the exact words. Timestamps jump to the moment.

Peter Sagal
Sagal described the Democrats' midterm win as the largest congressional power shift in half a century.
“The Democrats' win in the midterms was the biggest shift in power in Congress in 50 years”
Listen from 3:42 · 2026 United States midterm elections
Adam Felber
Felber argued commentators were overusing hyperbole in describing the Republican losses.
“what I was hearing today was people calling it an extinction-level event for Republicans. Not a wave, but a tsunami”
Listen from 4:38 · 2026 United States midterm elections
Peter Sagal
Sagal reported that Democrats won every statewide office on the ballot in Texas.
“Every single statewide office in Texas that was up for election this year went to a Democrat. Every single one”
Listen from 5:10 · 2026 United States midterm elections
Joyelle Nicole Johnson
Johnson said repeat LASIK requires signing a frightening waiver about the risk of blindness.
“you got to sign a piece of paper that say, if you go blind, that's not our business”
Listen from 6:37 · Reading glasses and millennial aging
Sterlin Harjo
Harjo said Reservation Dogs largely reflects his own childhood.
“Yeah, I mean, a lot of it is, you know, but I think Reservation Dogs was kind of like my childhood, you”
Listen from 21:05 · Reservation Dogs
Sterlin Harjo
Harjo recalled a Western about Seminoles that inaccurately depicted them as Cheyenne speaking Lakota.
“everyone was like dressed as Cheyenne warriors and they all spoke Lakota, you know?”
Listen from 21:50 · Native American representation in film
Sterlin Harjo
Harjo said that even flawed representation struck him as a child because he lacked anything like Reservation Dogs.
“just the idea of being represented was like, wow, you know? Because I didn't have a reservation dog growing up,”
Listen from 22:00 · Native American representation in film
Sterlin Harjo
Harjo said his father blended martial arts styles at his studio, anticipating MMA.
“He was doing kind of MMA before it became a thing because he kind of just, like, he loved Bruce Lee”
Listen from 22:26 · Taekwondo
Sterlin Harjo
Harjo said free cable from a family friend unknowingly gave him a film education.
“my dad had a friend who worked for the cable company, and he hooked us up with a box for free cable”
Listen from 23:49 · Reservation Dogs
Sterlin Harjo
Harjo said he taught himself editing using equipment bought with a school loan he did not repay.
“I took a school loan out, bought a computer and taught myself how to edit, and a camera, and then I never paid the loan back”
Listen from 24:01
Sterlin Harjo
Harjo said he dodged the MacArthur Foundation's calls for two weeks believing they wanted him for a panel.
“And so I avoided them for like two weeks, just dodging them because I didn't want to do another panel”
Listen from 25:14 · MacArthur Fellows Program
Sterlin Harjo
Harjo said his company T-shirts bear a Sylvester Stallone quote disparaging filming in Oklahoma.
“the quote on my company t-shirt says, shooting in Oklahoma prepared me for a lifetime in hell. Sylvester Stallone”
Listen from 26:15 · Tulsa King
Sterlin Harjo
Harjo said square dances still take place in Oklahoma and that he learned dancing in a barn as a child.
“Fifth grade, I remember learning how to two-step in a barn with an actual barn”
Listen from 27:13 · Square dance
Peter Sagal
Sagal strongly recommended the second season of The Lowdown.
“Its second season of The Lowdown is airing now on FX and streaming on Hulu. I can't recommend it highly enough”
Listen from 30:41 · The Lowdown (TV series)
Linked moment · 36:30Skip to 36:30 using a listen link in the info box.
Joyelle Nicole Johnson
Johnson recounted crashing Rick James's funeral with her mother after moving to Los Angeles in 2004.
“we went to Rick James' funeral at the Forest Lawn Cemetery in L.A. and had a blast”
Listen from 38:56
Adam Felber
Felber suggested slipper injury data may reflect a self-selecting group of wearers prone to falling.
“Aren't the people who want to wear slippers around the house all day the kind of people who are going to be falling?”
Listen from 41:24 · Slipper-related injuries

People

In the conversation

Peter SagalHost of NPR's news quiz Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!
Alzo SladeJournalist serving as the show's judge and scorekeeper
Sterlin HarjoCreator of The Lowdown and Reservation Dogs
Joyelle Nicole JohnsonStand-up comedian and panelist
Adam FelberWriter, comedian and Wait Wait panelist
Brian BabylonComedian, fashion designer and Wait Wait panelist

Discussed

Donald TrumpPresident of the United States whose conduct of the Iran war is the episode's main subject
Bob DylanAmerican singer-songwriter who invited Strings to play with him on tour
Pope Leo XIVHead of the Catholic Church
Ted CruzU.S. senator who called the Druski sketch beneath contempt
Ethan HawkeAmerican actor starring in The Lowdown
Sylvester StalloneAmerican actor, screenwriter and director known for the Rocky and Rambo franchises; author of the memoir The Steps
Henry FordAmerican car manufacturer who funded distribution of the Protocols of the Elders of Zion
Bruce LeeMartial artist and actor who inspired LL Cool J to act
Rick JamesFunk musician whose funeral Joyelle Nicole Johnson attended
Bridget LevineInfluencer who frosted a watermelon birthday cake with bone marrow
Cristiano RonaldoPortuguese footballer who played for Manchester United, Real Madrid and Juventus
Benjamin NetanyahuPrime Minister of Israel

Topics

Stephen Miller’s Promotion, Big Tech’s Reality Check, and Guest Harvey Levin
Pivot · Nov 8, 2026 · 1 h 10 min
Kara Swisher and Scott Galloway, live in Los Angeles, interview TMZ founder Harvey Levin and discuss Stephen Miller's promotion, post-midterm tech stocks, data centers, and Elon Musk.
What Happened on Tuesday? (Live from Crooked Con)
Pod Save America · Nov 8, 2026 · 1 h 40 min
Dan Pfeiffer's Crooked Con panel dissects Democrats' 2026 midterm wave, then Jon Favreau interviews Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro on governing, AI, Iran, and 2028.
Midterm Blood Bath, $4T AI Sell Off, Data Center Freeze, What's Next for Trump
All-In with Chamath, Jason, Sacks & Friedberg · Nov 7, 2026 · 1 h 33 min
The All-In hosts dissect the Republicans' 2026 midterm collapse, Trump's path forward, a $4 trillion AI stock sell-off over data center fears, and OpenAI's exponential time hypothesis result.
How the Democrats Did It
The Ezra Klein Show · Nov 7, 2026 · 1 h 7 min
Ezra Klein and Michelle Goldberg dissect how Democrats won the 2026 midterms across Texas, Georgia, Michigan, Kansas and the South, and what the new party looks like.
#2578 - Calley Means
The Joe Rogan Experience · Nov 6, 2026 · 2 h 25 min
Calley Means tells Joe Rogan why he resigned from the Trump administration, alleging lobbyist-driven obstruction of MAHA health policies on glyphosate, vaping, kratom and food.
Afternoon Breaking Updates with Ben 11/5/2026
The MeidasTouch Podcast · Nov 5, 2026 · 1 h 17 min
Ben Meiselas reacts to the Democrats' 2026 midterm sweep, urging aggressive oversight and impeachment while attacking Trump's Iran war policy and officials.

From the publisher

This week, Sterlin Harjo, creator of "Reservation Dogs" and "The Lowdown” explains why he could take us in a fight, and panelists Brain Babylon, Adam Felber, and Joyelle Nicole Johnson ride the Blue Wave. Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include bonus episodes, the chance to be a contestant in those bonus episodes(!), and sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org . See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy

Summary, chapters and key points were generated from the episode transcript on November 9, 2026. Quotes are checked word for word against the transcript.

Categories: Comedy·News Commentary·TV & Film