The Josh Innes Show - Paul Allen Drama Part 3: The Apology

Episode Date: January 27, 2026

Is there ever a time when you should apologize to the Mob? I've lived this life. I get it. Let's listen to Allen's apology and determine if it's a forced, canned apology or if he's really sincere. Also, the headlines about this story helped push the idea that what Allen said was terrible. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

All right, here we are. Episode three. Again, I know I'm kind of all over the place on this shit. But I feel like I have, and I didn't even go deep into this, but I know what it's like to be the guy that people are piling on who you know are not really offended. They just want the online currency or they just hate you and they want to tear you down anyway. I've fucking lived it.

And until you've done that, you have no fucking clue. I mean that with people who like me, people who dislike me. You don't know what it's like for that moment. in time as long or short as it is to be the guy that everybody in your town or across the country, whatever it is, in that moment on social media, thinks is the biggest piece of shit on the planet. And I've been there a couple fucking times and it fucking sucks and it's scary and you don't know what's going to happen with your job.

It fucking sucks. And I can tell you right now that Paul Allen is probably scared shitless. Now, it looks like he's going to survive it fine. But it's the worst feeling when you realize you didn't even say anything that bad, but because a pile on culture, something you said that was innocuous, people have now bastardized it a thousand different ways. Like, for example, I mean, play the audio for you one more time. I think that's important in this episode here.

I'm going to play this audio one more time. So this is Paul Allen, the audio that got everybody enraged. What about cayenne pepper? Yeah, I heard that's the thing now. I didn't know the cayenne pepper a bit. Put in your sock. Did you not see that? Yeah, the cayenne pepper in your sock.

The potential of trees exploding. Is that real? Can we talk about it? If in conditions like this, do paid protesters get hazard pay? Those are the things that I've been thinking about this morning. Yeah, probably not going to touch that one. Again, it's a throwaway line. That guy is under fire.

And in his mind, what he said was throwaway line, whatever. That line has now become this guy is a conspiracy theory peddler. And it's gone from one line about paid process. He didn't say every protester was a paid protester, but every comment I see about it is that Paul Allen said that all the protesters are paid protesters. He is pushing this dangerous conspiracy theory. Right? That's what we keep hearing.

Like every tweet I read about it is that. That Paul Allen is dangerous and he is pushing narratives and conspiracy theories that are bad for the country and he's a wacko and he's Alex Jones. That line right there is not a guy pushing a fucking conspiracy. Alex Jones is a guy that pushes conspiracy theories and hammers them for 45 minutes at a time and yells and has veins popping out of his neck and looks like he's about to die. That's pushing a conspiracy. Also, you don't know the context of that. He may have been, as far as we know, that line may have been a joke that was making fun of right-wing people. Again, I don't know his whole life backstory and who he votes for and everything else.

That line right there could have been making fun of right-wing people who have. are pushing that narrative. It could have been making fun of left-wing people. Could have been making fun of right-wing people. There is no label on that. There's no political side that that aligns with. Just a fucking joke. It's a throwaway line.

It's a joke. But it became, based on the way people covered it, the psychotic left-wing lunatic fuckheads, what it has become now, is it's become obvious that he was on the radio saying that all protesters are paid protesters and he's pushing this dangerous narrative. And this is terrible and he must be fired. And again, you have no fucking clue what it's like to be someone who said something that

you don't view as all that offensive and you know what you meant. And it's happened to me, it happened, I guess, twice in Philadelphia, too, really three times. And the people have no concept of what you meant. And even if they did, they don't give a fuck what you meant. They've convinced themselves that you mean what they want you to have meant in that, and they want to fucking end you. And I've been there twice. The Al Jolson picture was one of them, and then I got fired, so it obviously became a much bigger story. And the Jason Kelsey thing.

And the Jason Kelsey thing, again, I'm sitting there with a black guy next to me. That's how we talk. We're shooting the shit. I quoted a movie, and it became a firestorm because people demand that we get clicks. So it becomes a huge story and crossing broad runs with it. And then instead of people looking for reason and anything and listening to the audio and going, whatever, the guy's fucking around. People take it and you don't want to be the lone person that's on the island.

You don't want to be the lone person that's like, you know, guys, I didn't find that all that bad. Nobody wants to be that person. It's easier to go with the flock and say that what you heard is the most offensive thing you've ever fucking heard. And that's what you get in the Paul Allen thing. And I've lived it and I've been there. and until you have, you have no fucking clue. And it's a national story. It's in Minnesota, but it's a national story, and it's wrapped around.

Now it became like, as far as people know, he said this the day the guy got shot, which he didn't either. But I've lived it. I fucking know it. And it is the worst place to be in because you don't know what your job's going to be. You're like, all right, you got a call with corporate tomorrow. You know, should you apologize? And I'm a believer that if you say something that you truly know what you meant and you stand by what you said and it was a joke and you know it was a joke, apologizing to people and bowing down and taking a knee to these psychotic people is the wrong move. But anyway, here's Paul Allen who opened up his radio show.

I guess this would have been yesterday because yesterday's Monday with an apology. Good morning. I made a comment on Air Friday about protesters in the weather that was insensitive and poorly. timed and I'm sorry. It was a misguided, attempted humor, and while it was never met with any ill intent or political affront, I absolutely and wholeheartedly want to apologize to those who I'll interrupt. That does not sound like an authentic apology because it's not, but that's what happens when you're forced to apologize because a mob is coming after you. And by the way, it shouldn't be a real apology, but you can hear by how fast he's going through that.

I give him credit he's not doing the fake grovel. We've had that discussion before about how to deliver the fake apology on the radio. You got to like shuffle the papers and breathe heavy sometimes and sigh and have long pauses to let people know that you know exactly what you fucking did wrong. But listen to the way he's motoring through that apology. That ain't shit. Motoring through that apology. That is a fake apology. Look, that's what I remember when I had to do the apology for the, the clobology for the, the, the clobling.

left lip thing in Philadelphia. It was, you know, they handed me a sheet of paper. They told me to read this. I read it. That was that. That's what that is. If that were a real apology, there'd actually be some pauses. My man's just reading something.

He's motoring. Genuinely were hurt or offended by it. Nine to noon doesn't formulate political opinions. We don't bash or praise political discussions or even focus on political issues. This time slot always has been a sports-centered space built to entertain. a place where we chat about sports, offer an escape from the heavy stuff, and give listeners the distraction they need from everything else going on.

I guarantee you this dude, when he saw that this became a huge story, was like, what the fuck? Like, and imagine the pressure this guy's feeling now, because you talk about having a dream gig. You're the voice of an NFL team. You've got a midday talk show. That talk show probably has a 20 share.

You're making bank. You're doing endorsements. Your life is good. Now there's an argument to be made that like, dude, if you're the voice of the fucking Vikings, like, why even have a talk show? Because let's be real. Play-by-play guys can't really have opinions on any heavy issues anyway. And they're not going to be super critical of the team anyway because they work for the team, basically. So what's the point of even having a talk show other than making more money, which I'm sure he's doing?

So I guess I answered my question. As I've stated many times before, we serve you, not the other way around. We're very fortunate and thank you for counting on us, as long as you. you have. It means more than you'll ever know. My best was lacking Friday, and for that I am sorry. I am taking a few days off, but wanted to express these thoughts and my sincere apology with you before I do. We thank our friend Paul Chartian for handling nine to noon today. And then commercial. So that's that. Obviously, that's an inauthentic apology, but it shouldn't be an authentic apology because it's

bullshit. And I know that there's a belief that you should never apologize. And look, I'm not a believer in that because sometimes you do things to people. More so it's on a people thing and not a bigger picture thing. But sometimes you offend somebody in your family or you hurt their feelings and you didn't mean to. Like that happened with me and Jilly the other night. I was talking about money or something. And I was like, well, shit, I pay $2,000 fucking dollars a month for the rent. And she took that as me saying that she doesn't do it. anything or whatever, which I didn't. And I apologize. Because that's, again, not what I meant to say. What I'm not going to do is apologize to a mob of fucking people who don't really care. They just use

me as their next pinata to try to continue their fight against Trump. And I'm just the object of the day. And they're allegedly offended. And they don't care about the context. They don't care about your context. They don't care about what you meant. They don't care about any of that. All they care about is that you're the guy that they have now determined is this maga super demon and everything you said must lead to you being canceled. Now, what I've seen from left wing people is, oh, so we can't point out that Charlie Kirk is a piece of shit and we got people losing jobs, but this guy is going to keep his job. Well, I mean, if you can't see the difference between celebrating that a guy got his head blown off, which a lot of those left-wing people did and felt justified in doing so because they've convinced themselves that Charlie Kirk was the biggest piece of shit on the planet, if you can't recognize the difference between saying that you're glad someone got his head blown off and a quick one-liner about paid protesters, then you're just a fuck-tard and you have nothing to offer. You're just a worthless human. Like, really that's what we need to start looking more at.

It's just how worthless these people are. Not everybody has value. I'm a big believer in that. People who spend their days on social media that are losers and spend their time trying to get people fired consistently, those people serve no greater good to society. Because if you've got all day to sit around on social media and demand that people get fired over throwaway one-liners in the middle of a radio show.

I'm going to guess you don't have much of a family life. I'm going to guess you don't have kids. I'm going to guess you don't have a wife or a boyfriend. I'm going to guess that you jerk off to really weird shit like octopuses and shit with tentacles and that Asian shit. I'm going to guess that you're a fucking weirdo. Again, I'm not going to kink shame you. But you're a fucking weirdo. Because if you have time to sit around and do that all fucking day,

then you truly have nothing to offer anyone. I do not believe that every human has value. I don't. And maybe I'm an asshole for saying that. But I think what social media has proven to us is that not everybody provides value to society. If your contribution is listening to Paul Allen, make a throwaway line which in no way can you determine

if that's a pro right wing or pro left wing thing. cannot. There is nothing that. Now, I don't know what the rest of the audio of him across the ears has sounded like. I don't know if it's obvious that he's one way or the other. Also, it shouldn't fucking matter. But that piece of audio I played, there was nothing in that audio that would lead me to say, hey, you know what?

He's attacking left-wing people. Because if you want to spin it that way, I can go right back at it and say, he's mocking right-wing people for believing in these conspiracy theories. And that's what we're supposed to do, right? You want people to be objective and be down the middle and not pick a side, right? That's what we want. And also, it also shows how easy people are to brainwash and they don't listen to things for themselves. So when like an awful announcing puts out that video.

So let's say awful announcing puts out a video. And they post that. And that's where I saw this. So there's the video on awful announcing, which you talk about another useless group of people. Their entire existence is to shit on broadcasters. I'm going to guess the person. that runs awful announcing was a wannabe that couldn't fucking make it. So they spend their entire life just posting audio of people that they're offended by to try to ruin those people.

But awful announcing posts this. And they phrase it and they word it as, you know, Paul Allen pushes dangerous right wing fake protesters agenda, some shit like that. That's all people have to see. It's not a you be the judge. Was this offensive? Was he right or wrong? it is that the headline has determined already. The Twitter post has already determined before you've ever heard that piece of audio

that this is what this guy meant and it's offensive. So people are already going into it. First of all, they're already angry people because they're on Twitter. But then they go into it with the mindset of already thinking this guy's a piece of shit because he said this thing that I disagree with and he's a scumbag. And now you cannot look at that objectively or listen to that objectively. There's no way you can. I mean, I can because I'm not an imbecile.

I think a lot of people can because they're not imbeciles. But the people who are worthless, the social media people whose only existence is whether there are people that are bots and not even real, or they are people whose entire lives are spent on the computer bitching about people and trying to get people fired because it's fun and it provides them some sort of joy in life or meaning in life, once you've told that group of psychotic people, that cultish group of people, that the audio they're about to hear is already offensive, there's no way they are going to go into that listening to it and go, that really wasn't all that bad. And even if they did, they're not going to say that because

they don't want to be on the other side of it. They don't want to be the ones getting canceled. They don't want to be the ones told that they are scumbags. So they're just going to ride with it because it's pylon culture. And brother, I've lived it. I know what that's like. And it is the loneliest fucking place to be, man. You have, like, I'm not trying to look for sympathy here. Hey, hold on.

Let me do this. Again, I try to keep these in about 15 minutes. Let me get another episode in here. Okay. So we will continue after we start another episode. So episode number four of this whole thing here, we will do that after this.