The Ruthless Podcast has kicked off its fifth annual “Hack Madness” tournament, a bracket-style showdown where liberal journalists compete for the title of “biggest media hack.” This year’s event features 66 contenders across four divisions: Liberal Activist, Way Too Online, Fake News, and Establishment. Top seeds include MSNBC’s Nicole Wallace, New York Times reporter Eugene Daniels, CBS’s Margaret Brennan, and NBC’s Norah O’Donnell.
The tournament, modeled after March Madness, lets voters decide which journalists have pushed the most biased narratives. Hosted by Comfortably Smug of the Ruthless Podcast, voting happens on X (formerly Twitter), with brackets available at RuthlessPodcast.com. Past winners like Washington Post’s Jennifer Rubin and CNN’s Brian Stelter set the bar for hackery, but 2025’s lineup promises fresh faces and tighter competition.
Conservatives see this as a hilarious takedown of the mainstream media’s left-wing slant. The event exposes how many journalists prioritize activism over honest reporting. For example, MSNBC’s Wallace, a vocal Trump critic, earned her top seed by spinning every GOP policy as a “threat to democracy.” Meanwhile, Brennan’s softball interviews with Democrats landed her in the Fake News division.
This year’s tournament already delivered drama. A nail-biter matchup between married New York Times reporters Susan Glasser and Peter Baker saw Baker narrowly advance—proof that even spouses can’t escape scrutiny in D.C.’s hyper-partisan media bubble. Other highlights include late-night liberals like Stephen Colbert and Jimmy Kimmel making their tournament debuts, a sign that “comedy” has become just another arm of left-wing propaganda.
The Ruthless team mocks the media’s lack of self-awareness. While outlets like CNN lecture Americans about “misinformation,” their own stars dominate the Hack Madness bracket. It’s no surprise—networks that spent years hyping Russiagate and downplaying Biden scandals are ripe for roasting. The tournament’s million-plus past voters prove audiences are tired of being gaslit by out-of-touch elites.
Hack Madness isn’t just entertainment. It’s a wake-up call about the state of journalism. When reporters like Eugene Daniels openly cheerlead for Democrats, they forfeit any claim to objectivity. The tournament reminds folks that trust in media has cratered—and for good reason.
As the brackets unfold, expect more clashes between “expert” pundits and activist journalists. The real winner? Conservatives who’ve known all along that the press serves the left. Whether it’s Stelter’s “democracy is dying” panic or O’Donnell’s fawning White House coverage, Hack Madness puts their bias on full display.
In the end, this tournament isn’t about picking a winner—it’s about holding the media accountable. While liberals whine about “disinformation,” Ruthless lets the people decide who’s earned the hack crown. And that’s a victory for free speech and common sense.
