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Coverage
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Already covered, newly in the news
These topics have had a full episode, so they're left out of the ranked list. Each now has a fresh hook, which makes it a candidate for a Classic re-upload, a short, or a follow-up.
Guests the show hasn't had
Each scholar's best-known book lines up with a topic on the ranked list. None has been on a mainline episode. "On the show so far" counts only mentions in transcripts.
How this list was built
- The source was every mainline transcript in the shorts-pipeline database: 220 videos, from Ep 1 through the Oct 7, 2026 upload. Classic re-uploads, clips and all Patreon bonus content are left out. The three uploads from Oct 12–21 are counted by title only.
- Each transcript was read in full. Every topic with real airtime was tagged as the episode's focus, a segment (roughly 2+ minutes) or a mention, about 9,000 tags in all.
- About 800 candidates were tested against those tags and a keyword search of every transcript. They covered themes and debates, biblical and extra-biblical books, well-known passages, people (biblical, historical, scholars, public figures) and practices and doctrines.
- Anything that has already been the focus of an episode was dropped. The rest was trimmed to 170 pitchable topics and scored.
- Three checks followed. Two separate passes re-read the transcripts to confirm nothing here already has a full episode, and fixed the coverage labels. A third pass checked every dated news hook against its source.
Scoring
Score = 100 × (0.40·Timeliness + 0.35·Audience + 0.25·Channel fit) ÷ 5, plus 3 if the topic has never been discussed or only mentioned in passing
TimelinessA news hook, release, court date or holiday in the next ~3 months, or a 2026 story that's still live.
AudienceBroad curiosity or search demand, beyond the existing audience.
Channel fitHow close it is to formats that already do well on the channel, such as pundit responses (Webbon 69k, Vance 65k), "Is X biblical?" myth-busting, and textual or translation deep dives. Also how well it suits Dan McClellan's expertise.
Coverage labels
Never discussedNo real discussion anywhere.
Passing mentions onlyA few sentences somewhere.
Segment onlyA substantial stretch inside another episode, but no episode of its own.
Parts discussed, no whole-book episodeChapters came up, but no episode tours the book.
News hooks reflect reporting through Oct 22, 2026. Re-check dates before scheduling. The spreadsheet version lets you change the weights and re-sort.