Anatomy of a Hit Piece ft. Jack Posobiec and Steve Sailer — Daily Persuasion w/ Joshua Lisec Ep. 30

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ABOUT TODAY'S EPISODE:

What if the worst thing someone ever said about you was the first thing everyone read?

Welcome to Daily Persuasion with Joshua Lisec — Episode 30: Anatomy of a Hit Piece — where bestselling author and ghostwriter Joshua Lisec breaks down, step-by-step, what is a hit piece, how it works, and why media literacy is now a survival skill.

In this jaw-dropping episode, Lisec is joined by Jack Posobiec (aka Jack Poso) and the ever-thoughtful Steve Sailer to unpack a real-time example of a hit piece published by The Guardian US. The story targeted a private event featuring Posobiec, Sailer, and Amy Wax, painting them with predictable labels: “extremist,” “conspiracy theorist,” “far-right.” The goal? To silence legitimate voices through manipulation techniques and linguistic sleight of hand.

Lisec reveals how these persuasion techniques are designed to emotionally condition the audience before any facts are shared — textbook persuasion psychology. If you've ever wondered how to persuade someone to do something without presenting real evidence, hit pieces are the dark side of the force. And as Lisec demonstrates, they often include examples of persuasion in advertising, only weaponized against people instead of products.

One of the core persuasion lessons in this episode is that fake news doesn't need to lie outright — it just needs to frame. And with help from figures like Jason Wilson (the author of this particular Guardian hit job), they do it exceptionally well. Wilson, known for his black market journalism, doxes events and people, inserting persuasive techniques like emotionally loaded adjectives to precondition how readers should feel. The Guardian, especially Guardian US, specializes in this kind of conservative controversy creation — where the accusation becomes the evidence.

But as Lisec says, “Bad reviews from bad people are good reviews.” In the Bulletproof book — Lisec’s co-authored deep dive into the Trump assassination attempts with Jack Posobiec — the same kind of smear tactics were launched to derail attention from their fact-based reporting. The Bulletproof book has become a cultural flashpoint because it refuses to cave to propaganda, which makes it a natural target for hit pieces. And hit pieces, as this Daily Persuasion episode shows, are designed not to debate — but to unhuman.

Lisec also breaks down how Unhumans, another book he wrote with Jack Poso, explains the ideological root of today’s journalistic malpractice. It’s not merely political — it’s psychological warfare. The authors dive into how persuasive writing and mass manipulation techniques are used by media outlets to control public sentiment. Whether it’s labeling nationalist leaders “murderous dictators” or calling practicing Catholics “extremists,” the strategy is always the same: control the narrative, silence the dissent.

And yet, the tactic often backfires. When The Guardian unintentionally gave Lisec a glowing two-paragraph “ad” within their smear — praising his credentials as the only certified ghostwriter and hypnotist in the world — it turned the hit piece into free PR.

So, what is a hit piece? It's not journalism. It’s reputation assassination dressed in editor-approved rhetoric — a form of persuasion so effective that most people don't know they’re being manipulated. But after watching Episode 30 of Daily Persuasion with Joshua Lisec, you will.

This episode is essential viewing if you’re trying to build media literacy, understand persuasion examples, or simply want to protect yourself against the techniques of persuasion in writing used to defame, deceive, and discredit. Learn how to see the strings — and cut them.

Watch Episode 30: Anatomy of a Hit Piece now.

Because the more you understand persuasion techniques, the less they can be used against you.