Why is military humor so dark—and why might that actually be a good thing?
This week, Garrett Smith, Dave Caudle, and Simon Coon sit down with John Acevedo—Marine infantry veteran and CEO of Veteran Entertainment Television (Vet Tv)—for a conversation about military culture, dark comedy, veteran community, and what happens when the people who lived the experience get to tell the story themselves.
John traces his path from Vanderbilt ROTC and the Marine Corps infantry to joining Vet Tv in its earliest days, when a Facebook post, a Kickstarter campaign, and a Slack invite helped launch what would become a media platform built around the absurdity, frustration, trauma, and humor of military life.
At the center of Vet Tv's philosophy is a simple idea: humor drops people's guard. John explains why the company's comedy often starts with real frustration or trauma, how laughing about shared experiences can rebuild the sense of community veterans lose after leaving the military, and why dark comedy can open the door to conversations that are anything but funny.
The crew also digs into Vet Tv's expansion beyond scripted comedy—from candid conversations about Afghanistan to filming with Ukrainian troops within sight of Russian lines—and its partnership with Reveal on Battle Lab, where military units and defense technology companies test emerging capabilities in realistic force-on-force environments.
Along the way, they get into drone warfare, what internet commenters get wrong about military training, adapting tactics for the next fight, and an idea whose time may have come: a Silicon Valley-style comedy about the defense tech industry.
Dark humor, serious technology, and absolutely no shortage of Marine-on-Marine abuse. It's Goat Rodeo.
In this episode
- John Acevedo's path from Vanderbilt ROTC to Marine infantry officer and Vet Tv
- How Vet Tv grew from Donny O'Malley's early writing and viral military comedy
- Why Vet Tv starts with frustration and trauma instead of sanitized military stories
- "Healing through humor" and rebuilding community among veterans
- Why comedy can create an opening for much more serious conversations
- Vet Tv's expansion from scripted comedy into documentaries and unscripted content
- Filming with Ukrainian troops near the front lines
- How veteran credibility creates access traditional media doesn't always have
- Reveal and Vet Tv's partnership on Battle Lab
- Why realistic force-on-force experimentation matters for emerging defense technology
- Drones, counter-UAS training, and preparing troops for a rapidly changing battlefield
- What civilians—and internet commenters—get wrong about military training
- Why changing the way America fights requires practice, not just new technology
- The case for a Silicon Valley-style comedy about defense tech
Featured Guest
John Acevedo
- CEO, Veteran Entertainment Television (Vet Tv)
- Marine Corps Veteran
- Former Marine Infantry Officer
- Producer and Entertainment Executive
- Partner on Reveal's Battle Lab series
Chapters
00:00 Cold open: Why humor drops people's guard
00:12 Welcome to Goat Rodeo & introducing John Acevedo
02:05 From Vanderbilt ROTC to the Marine Corps
05:26 Military culture, boot camp & the Marine Corps melting pot
07:31 Infantry leadership and leaving active duty
09:00 Skipping the MBA and joining the startup that became Vet Tv
11:27 The viral content that helped launch Vet Tv
12:39 Why Vet Tv starts with frustration and trauma
14:13 Healing through humor and rebuilding veteran community
17:15 Vet Tv, Reveal and the origins of Battle Lab
19:55 Moving beyond comedy and talking candidly about war
22:03 Vet Tv goes to Ukraine
24:44 Why Vet Tv creates instant trust with warfighters
25:15 Inside Battle Lab: testing technology against a thinking enemy
27:46 What civilians get wrong about military training
29:28 How Vet Tv handles the internet experts
30:48 Drones, live fire and preparing for the next battlefield
32:36 You can't change the way you fight without training
33:15 Does defense tech need its own Silicon Valley?
35:21 American Nightmare, JFK & Simon defends his shirt
Connect with Goat Rodeo
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Our Podcast
National security, defense tech, and geopolitics; serious topics, but that doesn't mean we have to be boring about it. The Goat Rodeo Podcast brings you three military veterans turned defense insiders, breaking down the biggest stories shaping the future of warfare.
Expect sharp insights, unfiltered debates, and the occasional defense industry hot take, because let's be honest, this space can be a total goat rodeo.
Listen on other platforms: https://linktr.ee/GoatRodeoPodcast
