On the Media

The suspected killer of the UnitedHealthcare CEO has been crowned a hero by many on social media. On this week’s On the Media, what the fandom reveals, and what the coverage of it has missed. Plus, tune in to part two of The Harvard Plan. Hear how plagiarism allegations at the university exploded into a toxic discourse about DEI and “diversity hires.”

[01:00]  Hosts Brooke Gladstone and Micah Loewinger examine how the suspected killer of the UnitedHealthcare CEO became an internet sensation, what the spectacle itself reveals, and the gulf between the reactions on TikTok and in mainstream media. 

[15:29] Reporter Ilya Marritz, in part two of this collaboration with WNYC’s On The Media, Harvard’s first Black president Claudine Gay is accused of academic plagiarism, just days after giving testimony to Congress. The drip-drip of new allegations keeps the story in the headlines. It also reinforces critics’ allegation that Gay is a “diversity hire,” unworthy of the job. We hear from two of the writers who broke that news, and from a defender of Harvard’s diversity efforts.

Check out our collaboration with the Boston Globe here. 

Further reading/listening/watching:

• “Luigi Mangione’s Full Story Isn’t Online,” by John Herrman
• "Beware, fellow plutocrats, the pitchforks are coming," Ted Talk by Nick Hanauer

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Last week, the website for Enron – yes, that Enron – came back online. And on Monday the new CEO, Connor Gaydos, introduced himself, with what the fine print called "First Amendment protected parody." And it so happens that Gaydos is a source of another satirical piece of news… "Birds Aren't Real." On this week's midweek podcast, we re-air a conversation between Brooke Gladstone and writer Ian Beacock, about how the fake conspiracy theory gained traction, and what it reveals about our culture.

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Many of Donald Trump’s cabinet picks are emulating online influencers in their efforts to sell products and promote themselves. On this week’s On the Media, hear about the phenomenon academics are calling “influencer creep.” Plus, a look at the short, troubled tenure of Harvard’s 30th president, Claudine Gay, and the media firestorm that ensued.

[01:00]  Host Micah Loewinger speaks with Drew Harwell, technology reporter at The Washington Post, and Elaina Plott Calabro, staff writer at The Atlantic, on how, and why, Donald Trump is filling his cabinet with influencers. 

[14:27] Reporter Ilya Marritz, in part one of our collaboration with the Boston Globe, dives into Claudine Gay's groundbreaking tenure as Harvard's first Black president. Gay’s appointment began with high hopes in September 2023, but soon devolved into a proxy battleground for American cultural wars — spurring escalating disputes over anti-Semitism and free speech, tarnishing her presidency as a symbol of diversity's failings. This series slows down the whipsaw chain of events to bring listeners direct eyewitness accounts of what happened, from professors, wealthy donors, and spiritual leaders.

Further reading/listening/watching:

• “Trump and allies blur the lines between politician and influencer,” by Drew Harwell
• “The Man Who Will Do Anything for Trump,” by Elaina Plott Calabro

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Over the weekend, president-elect Donald Trump nominated a little-known, largely inexperienced civil servant to an enormous role in his upcoming administration – Kash Patel as FBI director. 

Firing current FBI director Christopher Wray, who has 2 years left in his 10 year term, would itself be an alarming break in norms. Atlantic staff writer Elaina Plott Calabro, profiled Kash Patel in August, chartint his rise to power, starting at the very beginning of his legal career. She explains how he came to loathe the media, and love Trump.

Further reading:

"The Man Who Will Do Anything For Trump," by Elaina Plott Calabro

"What the FBI Has Done, and Kash Patel Could Do," by Jon Allsop

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

How did the right get their vice grip of the airwaves, all the while arguing that they were being censored? On this week’s On the Media, a look at the early history of American radio, and why, in the post-war era, the U.S. government encouraged more diverse viewpoints on the airwaves — until it didn’t. Plus, the technological and legal changes that led to the popularity of conservative talk radio hosts like Rush Limbaugh. 

[00:10] Reporter Katie Thornton explains how radio programming shifted from the 1930s to the 1960s, and how the FCC attempted to prevent propaganda on the airwaves. Plus, what legal challenges conservative radio faced during the Civil Rights Era. 

[10:07] Reporter Katie Thornton takes a deeper look at The 700 Club, a Christian television news show that helped give rise to a network of conservative Christian radio stations.

[22:51] Reporter Katie Thornton describes how the introduction of high-quality FM radio led AM radio to focus on talk radio, and the factors that made way for Rush Limbaugh to become the breakout star of conservative talk shows.

Further reading/listening/watching:

• Messengers of the Right: Conservative Media and the Transformation of American Politics by Nicole Hemmer
• News For All The People: The Epic Story of Race and the American Media, by Joseph Torres and Juan González
• Shadow Network Media, Money, and the Secret Hub of the Radical Right, by Anne Nelson
• Talk Radio’s America: How an Industry Took Over a Political Party That Took Over the United States, by Brian Rosenwald

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Our latest episode featured Micah's interview with Hank Green, a very popular YouTuber and science communicator. We got a lot of nice feedback about the conversation, and there were some interesting exchanges that we couldn’t fit in the radio version. So we’re bringing you a longer edit here. Hank describes how content creators depend on legacy media; his inspiration for making videos in 2007; and how OTM can reach a bigger audience.

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

A recent report from the Pew Research Center finds that 1 in 5 Americans get their news from influencers. On this week’s On the Media, YouTuber and science communicator Hank Green explains how he makes the truth go viral. Plus, hear how tech billionaires plan to escape the end of the world.

[01:00] Host Micah Loewinger speaks with Renée DiResta, researcher studying online manipulation and professor at Georgetown University, about what the data tells us about how news consumption is changing. Plus, how news influencers are rewriting the power dynamics of media.

[17:04] Host Micah Loewinger interviews science communicator, YouTuber, and entrepreneur Hank Green about how he makes the truth go viral, how he connects with his audience of many millions, and how he chooses what topics to cover.

[33:44] Host Brooke Gladstone talks with Douglas Rushkoff, whose many books  probe the practice and philosophy of digital technology, about whether the apocalypse survival fantasies of tech billionaires are actually viable. 

Further reading/listening/watching:

• Invisible Rulers: The People Who Turn Lies Into Reality, by Renée DiResta
• “Everyone Was Wrong About Avocados - Including Us,” by SciShow
• “Why do Cars Suddenly Look Like Putty??” by Hank Green
• Survival of the Richest: Escape Fantasies of the Tech Billionaires, by Douglas Rushkoff

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

In the run up to the election Donald Trump was doggedly pursuing the votes of young men. He courted them, as we described on the show, through interviews with influencers like Joe Rogan and Adin Ross, and Logan Paul. These personalities are part of the so-called manosphere, where anti-feminist, often right-wing politics are the norm. While reporting on this corner of the internet, host Micah Loewinger has been thinking a lot about a conversation he had with Richard Reeves, author of the book of Boys and Men: Why the Modern Male is Struggling, Why It Matters and What to Do About It. When Micah spoke to him last year, he said that the mainstream political discourse around men is fundamentally broken.

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Many of Donald J. Trump’s cabinet picks have something in common: a very close relationship with Fox News. On this week’s On the Media, hear about the revolving door from the conservative network to the White House. Plus, election conspiracy theories from Kamala Harris supporters go viral. And a satirical news site buys up Alex Jones’ Infowars.
 

[01:00] Host Brooke Gladstone speaks with Matt Gertz, senior fellow at Media Matters, about the re-opened revolving door between conservative media and the Trump administration. 

[11:52] Host Micah Loewinger sits down with Anna Merlan, senior reporter at Mother Jones, to discuss the flurry of apparent Democratic voters questioning election results on social media, and why, without backing from public officials, “BlueAnon” is likely a nonstarter.

[20:05] Host Brooke Gladstone chats with Bill Adair, founder of PolitiFact and author of the new book Beyond the Big Lie, about the history of fact-checking and why the field – in desperate need of resources and reinforcements – is struggling to break through in our information ecosystem. 

[33:23] Host Micah Loewinger talks with Matt Pearce, former staff writer at the LA Times, and president of Media Guild of the West, about the media’s audience problem.

[43:00] Host Brooke Gladstone calls up Ben Collins, CEO of The Onion, because The Onion bought Alex Jones’ Infowars. Need we say more. 

Further reading / listening:

• “A comprehensive review of the revolving door between Fox and the second Trump administration," by Matt Gertz
• “Election Conspiracy Theories Are For Everyone,” by Anna Merlan
• Beyond the Big Lie: The Epidemic of Political Lying, Why Republicans Do It More, and How It Could Burn Down Our Democracy, by Bill Adair
• “Lessons on media policy at the slaughter-bench of history,” by Matt Pearce
• “Here’s Why I Decided To Buy ‘InfoWars',” by Bryce P. Tetraeder, Global Tetrahedron fictitious CEO

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Many media outlets were prepared for conspiracy theories and lies to spread after the election. But many thought that it would be coming from Donald Trump or his supporters spreading the “Big Lie.” But since Donald Trump’s win, some social media posts from Kamala Harris supporters and people on the left have gone viral questioning the outcome of the election. 

Host Micah Loewinger speaks with Anna Merlan, senior reporter at Mother Jones covering disinformation, technology, and extremism, about the viral post-election delusions and how conspiratorial thinking can be expected from any losing party.    

Further reading:

“Election Conspiracy Theories Are for Everyone,” by Anna Merlan

“The 200-Year History of Using Voter Fraud Fears to Block Access to the Ballot,” by Pema Levy

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Since Donald J. Trump won the election, journalists have been retreading his path to victory, and discussing how the press should cover his next presidency. On this week’s On the Media, hear how a group of powerful podcasters helped boost Trump to his second term. Plus, an exiled Russian journalist shares rules for surviving an autocracy.

[01:00] Hosts Brooke Gladstone and Micah Loewinger and Executive Producer Katya Rogers discuss the day after the election. We also hear from OTM listeners about how they’re feeling post-election, and what they want to see covered in the next Trump presidency.

[14:13] Host Micah Loewinger muses on the influence of Joe Rogan in this election, and looks at how Rogan, who previously said he held progressive views, ended up endorsing Trump.

[28:13] Host Brooke Gladstone interviews M. Gessen, opinion columnist at The New York Times, about their rules for surviving autocracy. They discuss the fallacy of Americans “voting against their interests”; what the path of Viktor Orbán suggests about Trump’s next steps; and how to keep the dream of democracy alive.

Further reading / listening:

• “Where Does This Leave Democrats?” by Ezra Klein
• “Joe Rogan’s Galaxy Brain,” by Justin Peters
• “Is the Gen Z bro media diet to blame?” by Rebecca Jennings
• “Autocracy: Rules for Survival,” by M. Gessen
• Surviving Autocracy, by M. Gessen

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

As the election approaches, conspiracy theories have flooded social media. On this week’s On the Media, hear why journalists are struggling to keep up with disinformation, on and offline. Plus, what does The Washington Post’s non-endorsement really mean? And, a look at the media coverage of the Uncommitted movement.

[01:00] Host Micah Loewinger speaks with Brandy Zadrozny, senior reporter at NBC, about the growing swirl of disinformation around the election—and the toll it’s taking. 

[14:26] Host Brooke Gladstone takes a close look at the implications of The Washington Post’s decision to skip a presidential endorsement, and what it means to “obey in advance.”

[24:07] Host Micah Loewinger interviews democratic strategist Waleed Shahid, a co-founder of the Uncommitted Movement, about how the press has covered Arab and Muslim voters.

[37:34] Host Brooke Gladstone talks with historian Ira Chinoy, author of Predicting the Winner: The Untold Story of Election Night 1952 and the Dawn of Computer Forecasting, about how newspapers in the 1800s, radio stations in the 1920s, and television in the 1950s helped to make election night the spectacle it is today. 

Further reading:

• “Extremists inspired by conspiracy theories pose major threat to 2024 elections, U.S. intelligence warns,” by Brandy Zadrozny
• "On anticipatory obedience and the media," by Ian Bassin and Maximillian Potter
• Predicting the Winner: The Untold Story of Election Night 1952 and the Dawn of Computer Forecasting, by Ira Chinoy

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Donald Trump is being called a fascist – by his former appointees and his opponent Kamala Harris.

On Sunday, in a rally at Madison Square Garden in New York, Trump and his allies traded in crude and racist insults, amplifying the nationalistic rhetoric his camp has become known for. The event drew stark comparisons to another gathering at the Garden–a 1939 "Pro-American Rally," put on by the German-American Bund, a pro-Nazi group, with 20,000 of its members in attendance. 

The MAGA rally, for some, was the tipping point for calling Donald Trump a fascist. For others, it was simply another piece of evidence placed atop an already very tall stack.

Host Brooke Gladstone speaks with Jason Stanley, a professor of philosophy at Yale University and author of Erasing History: How Fascists Rewrite the Past to Control the Future. He first warned about Trump’s fascist rhetoric in 2018, and explains why it's more important than ever to call it by its name.

A portion of this interview originally aired in our October 25, 2024, program, Fascism, Fear and the Science Behind Horror Films.

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Donald Trump is being called a fascist – by his former appointees, as well as by his opponent Kamala Harris. On this week’s On the Media, a historian of fascism explains why he sounded the alarm back in 2018. Plus, the science behind why horror films make your skin crawl.

[01:00] Host Brooke Gladstone speaks with Jason Stanley, a professor of Philosophy at Yale University and who has written several books on fascism. He first warned about Trump’s fascist rhetoric in 2018, and explains why it's more important than ever to call it by its name. 

[20:05] Host Brooke Gladstone sits down with science writer Nina Nesseth to explore how horror filmmakers make our skin crawl, the anatomy of a jump scare, and why all screams aren’t created equal. Her book Nightmare Fuel: The Science of Horror Films delves into question – why do we crave being scared senseless in the movie theater? 

[32:50] OTM producer Rebecca Clark-Callender dives into the history of Black horror to see what it is and who it's for, ft: Robin R. Means Coleman, professor of Media Studies and of African American and African Studies at the University of Virginia and co-author of The Black Guy Dies First: Black Horror Cinema from Fodder to Oscar; Tananarive Due, author, screenwriter, and lecturer on Afrofuturism and Black Horror at University of California, Los Angeles; Rusty Cundieff, writer and director of Tales from the Hood (1995); and Betty Gabriel, actor widely known for her acclaimed performance as "Georgina" in Jordan Peele's blockbuster Get Out (2017). 

Further reading:

• Erasing History: How Fascists Rewrite the Past to Control the Future, by Jason Stanley
• How Fascism Works: The Politics of Us and Them, by Jason Stanley
• Nightmare Fuel: The Science of Horror Films by Nina Nesseth
• Horror Noire: A History of Black American Horror from the 1890s to Present by Robin R. Means Coleman

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

For the last few years, patriotism has been stuck in the wheelhouse of the GOP. A Gallup poll from June shows that 60% of Republicans — compared to 29% of Democrats — express extreme pride in being American. Donald Trump wraps himself in flags at each rally, walking out to God Bless America. But recently, Democrats have been taking it back, little by little. At a rally in Philadelphia, the crowd erupted into chants of, “USA! USA! USA!” and at the DNC, former Republican representative Adam Kinzinger proclaimed, “The Democrats are as patriotic as us.” That same night, Kamala Harris claimed that Americans all have the “fundamental freedom” to clean air and water, and the right to an environment free from the pollutants that “drive the climate crisis.” 

A group of researchers at New York University, led by Katherine Mason, are investigating this unlikely pairing – flag-waving, steak grilling, good ol’ American patriotism and climate change. They released a new study measuring the effectiveness of this combination in changing stubborn minds. This week, host Brooke Gladstone sits down with Katherine Mason to discuss the effectiveness of combining patriotism with climate change, and how to harness peoples’ inherent psychological need for stability to promote social change. 

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

This election is set to be the most expensive ever. On this week’s On the Media, what does a billion dollars in campaign funds actually buy? Plus, Democrats condemned dark money for years. Now they embrace it.

[01:00] Hosts Brooke Gladstone and Micah Loewinger explore why Donald Trump came to be so reliant on his billionaire donors. Plus, Andrew Perez of Rolling Stone details Trump’s history of promising his benefactors big favors. And Bloomberg reporter Annie Massa breaks down the relationship between Trump and megadonor Jeff Yass.

[09:48] Host Micah Loewinger speaks with Kenneth Vogel, who covers money, influence, and politics at the New York Times, about the rise of the dark money political infrastructure following the 2010 Supreme Court decision Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission.

[24:53] Host Micah Loewinger sits down with Helen Santoro, money and politics reporter at The Lever, about Kamala Harris’ robust political history as a proponent of dark money reform, and her recent about-face.

[38:16] Host Brooke Gladstone talks with Steven Sprick Schuster, professor of economics at Middle Tennessee State University, to discuss if raising more money actually helps you win an election.

Further reading / listening:

• “Republicans Tell Trump That Elon Musk’s Super PAC Is Blowing It,” by Asawin Suebsaeng, Miles Klee, and Andrew Perez
• “How Jeff Yass Became One of the Most Influential Billionaires in the 2024 Election,” by Annie Massa
• “Democrats Decried Dark Money. Then They Won With It in 2020,” by Kenneth Vogel and Shane Goldmacher
• “Harris’ Turn To The Dark (Money) Side,” by Helen Santoro
• “Does Campaign Spending Affect Election Outcomes? New Evidence from Transaction-Level Disbursement Data,” by Steven Sprick Schuster

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

The new film “The Apprentice,” takes us back to New York in the 1970s, to when Donald Trump was just starting to make a name for himself, and to his introduction to Roy Cohn, the ruthless attorney and political fixer. The fictionalized depiction of real events, shows how Cohn molded Trump into his protégé, imparting his political lessons on how to wield political power, manipulate the media, and bend the truth. 

The film was directed by Ali Abbasi and written and executive produced by Gabriel Sherman, with notable actors such as Jeremy Strong playing Roy Cohn, Sebastian Stan as Donald Trump, and Maria Bakalova as Trump’s first wife, Ivana.

 The team faced a complicated path to bringing “The Apprentice” to theater screens – struggling with procuring financing, searching for a distributor in the United States, and also facing legal threats from the Trump team – but it finally opened in theaters in the United States on October 11th. 

On Monday, Trump wrote on Truth Social about the film: “It’s a cheap, defamatory, and politically disgusting hatchet job, put out right before the 2024 Presidential Election, to try and hurt the Greatest Political Movement in the History of our Country…”

Host Brooke Gladstone sat down with screenwriter and executive producer of the film, Gabriel Sherman, on Friday, October 11th.

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

When Fox News launched in 1996, critics joked about its incompetence. But just a few years later, the network proved itself to be a political force. On this week’s On the Media, hear how Fox News rose to power during the election of 2000. 

Hosts Brooke Gladstone and Micah Loewinger introduce Slow Burn’s host Josh Levin. Levin spoke with the hosts, reporters, and producers who built Fox News, many who’ve never spoken publicly before. And you’ll hear from Fox’s victims, who are still coming to terms with how the channel upended their lives.

Further reading / listening:

• Slow Burn: The Rise of Fox News - SEASON 10
• Crazy Like a FOX: The Inside Story of How Fox News Beat CNN, by Scott. Collins
• Murdoch’s World: The Last of the Old Media Empires, by David Folkenflik 
• How to Steal an Election: The Inside Story of How George Bush’s Brother and FOX Network Miscalled the 2000 Election and Changed the Course of History, by David W. Moore
• The Loudest Voice in the Room: How the Brilliant, Bombastic Roger Ailes Built Fox News-and Divided a Country, by Gabriel Sherman

A portion of this episode originally aired on our September 25, 2024 podcast, OTM Presents Ep. 1 of Slow Burn's The Rise of Fox News: We Report. You Can Suck It

.

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

It’s been less than two weeks since Hurricane Helene made landfall in Florida, tearing through the southeast United States. And already, Hurricane Milton is looming as a deadly sequel. With states still reeling from the physical and emotional toll of the first storm, more trouble has been brewing online. This week on our podcast extra, host Micah Loewinger sits down with Will Oremus, technology reporter for The Washington Post, to talk about how he and his colleagues have been documenting the spread of false information on social media following the disaster.

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Israel has launched a ground invasion into Lebanon. On this week’s On the Media, hear from a reporter in Beirut on the state of the press as the country braces for more violence. Plus, the state of book censorship in America.

[01:00] Host Brooke Gladstone speaks with Nada Homsi, correspondent at The National’s Beirut bureau, on what the press looks like in Lebanon as Israel launches a ground invasion into the country.

[14:23] Host Brooke Gladstone sits down with Raviv Drucker, an Israeli journalist, to hear about his role in the unreleased documentary, The Bibi Files, directed by Alexis Bloom. The film uses never-before-seen leaked interrogation footage of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his inner circle to lay out his corruption case.

[31:05] Host Brooke Gladstone talks with Kelly Jensen, an editor at the online publication Book Riot, about how book censorship has shifted over the past year to a government affair – with new laws and regulations passed in Idaho, Utah, and South Carolina among other states. 

[39:36] Host Brooke Gladstone interviews Peter Parnell and Justin Richardson, whose children’s picture book, And Tango Makes Three, is among the long list of banned titles across the country. Hear why they’re suing in Florida to make their book — and others — accessible again.

Further reading:

• “Hezbollah’s dominance raises questions about Lebanon’s army role in Israel conflict,” by Nada Homsi
• "It’s Still Censorship, Even If It’s Not a Book Ban," by Kelly Jensen
• And Tango Makes Three, by Justin Richardson, Peter Parnell, and illustrator Henry Cole
• Jacob's Missing Book, by Sarah Hoffman, Ian Hoffman, and illustrator Chris Case

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

And exclusive sneak peek of a brand new radio play starring Edie Falco, John Turturro and Tony Shalhoub. Inspired by Sinclair Lewis’ dystopian novel, It Can’t Happen Here, Richard Dresser’s novel, and now 6-part radio play called It Happened Here 2024, offers a glimpse of what could happen after the 2024 election if fascism creeps into the USA. 

The story centers around the Weeks family as they brace for the election. Paul and Ruth’s family work to defeat the so-called Great Leader. Paul’s brother Garret and his family are on the other side. Family get-togethers are tense. When the Great Leader, with a giant boost from the Supreme Court, shockingly wins the quote, “most important election ever,” the family is thrown into chaos.

It Happened Here 2024 describes a country that still has Netflix and free two-day delivery, where the only thing lost is freedom....

Listen to the rest of the episodes wherever you get your podcasts!
 

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

In Georgia, a controversial new rule to hand-count ballots is being challenged in court. On this week’s On the Media, how the big lie of 2020 is shaping elections in 2024. Plus, how newsrooms are preparing for a whirlwind of disinformation on election night — and beyond. 

[01:00] Host Micah Loewinger speaks with Sam Gringlas, politics reporter at WABE, about the controversy surrounding new election rules in Georgia and the officials backing them. 

[14:37] Host Micah Loewinger interviews Ari Berman, voting rights correspondent at Mother Jones, about the wave of efforts by Republican lawmakers across the country to change voting and election laws, and what happens if we have a tie in the Electoral College. 

[25:59] Host Brooke Gladstone sits down with Benjamin Mullin, media reporter for The New York Times, to hear how newsrooms are bracing for election night 2024. 

[37:30] Host Brooke Gladstone speaks with Mark Clague, professor of musicology at the University of Michigan, about the role of music in this year's presidential campaigns, the history of political anthems, and the consequences of pop star celebrity culture seeping further into our political sphere. 

Further reading:

• “Georgia's Republican-led election board OKs controversial rule to hand-count ballots,” by Sam Gringlas
• “Officials Voted Down a Controversial Georgia Election Rule, Saying It Violated the Law. Then a Similar Version Passed,” by Doug Bock Clark
• “How Republicans Could Block a Democratic Victory in Georgia,” by Ari Berman
• “Minority Rule: The Right-Wing Attack on the Will of the People―and the Fight to Resist It,” by Ari Berman
• “News Outlets Brace for Chaos on Election Night (and Perhaps Beyond),” by Benjamin Mullin and Michael M. Grynbaum
• “Taylor Swift’s endorsement of Kamala Harris shows how big a role music is playing in the 2024 election,” by Mark Clague

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

When Fox News launched in 1996, critics called it “disorganized, incompetent, and laughably inept”. And during that election cycle it barely registered. But everything changed in 2000, when Fox News called Florida (and the presidency) for George W. Bush before any of the other networks. Potentially altering the outcome of the election in Bush’s favor.

Our midweek podcast this week is episode one of the new series of Slow Burn from Slate which takes that pivotal moment as its starting point to examine the place FOX News has carved out in our culture. The series traces the channel’s surging popularity in those early years, and profiles a bunch of people who rose up to try and stop it.

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Lies that immigrants are eating pets in Springfield, Ohio have inspired dozens of threats against the town, and toward Haitian-Americans across the nation. On this week’s On the Media, hear how public acceptance of political violence has grown. Plus, how January 6 became a recruiting tool for one of the country’s largest militias.

[01:00] Host Brooke Gladstone speaks with Macollvie Neel, special projects editor at The Haitian Times, to talk about the recent wave of rhetoric and threats aimed at the Haitian community in Springfield, Ohio, and why Neel and other reporters saw it coming. 

[13:29] Host Brooke Gladstone interviews Lilliana Mason, Professor of Political Science at Johns Hopkins University, about the growing acceptance of political violence in America, and the reasons behind it. 

[27:14]  Host Brooke Gladstone sits down with Matthew Dallek, a historian and professor of political management at George Washington University, to look at the history of political violence and presidential assassinations. 

[37:32] Host Micah Loewinger speaks with Joshua Kaplan, reporter at ProPublica, about how one powerful, but largely unseen militia avoided scrutiny after January 6th. And why a day that led many members to quit, turned into a call to arms. 

Further reading:

• “Haitians in Springfield: A tale of Black immigration in ‘Anytown USA,’” by Macollvie J. Neel
• “How to Prevent a Spiral of Political Violence in America,” by Lilliana Mason
• “Radical American Partisanship,” by Nathan Kalmoe and Lilliana Mason
• “The Fading Line Between Rhetorical Extremism and Political Violence,” by Matthew Dallek
• “Political Violence May Be Un-American, but It Is Not Uncommon,” by Matthew Dallek and Robert Dallek
• “Armed and Underground: Inside the Turbulent, Secret World of an American Militia,” by Joshua Kaplan

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Last Tuesday, as audience members and press were still milling about the presidential debate stage in Philadelphia after the spotlights dimmed, the real bombshell of the night dropped — Taylor Swift's endorsement Kamala Harris and Tim Walz. And this week, pop star Billie Eilish and her brother Finneas took to Instagram, announcing that they were voting for Harris and Walz. 

Swift and Eilish stand amid a sea of pop stars, including, among others, Beyonce, Charli xcx, and Cardi B, who have cheered on the Harris campaign — which has felt more like a weeks-long rave than the usual pre-election slog. The soundtrack for the Democratic National Convention was provided by a sunglass-clad DJ Cassidy, while the RNC featured performances by Kid Rock and bands like Sixwire. Politics and music, this year in particular, seem inextricable. For the midweek podcast, host Brooke Gladstone speaks with Mark Clague, a professor of musicology at the University of Michigan, about the role of music in this year's presidential campaigns, the history of political anthems, and the consequences of pop star celebrity culture seeping further into our political sphere. 

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Kamala Harris has come under fire for ignoring interview requests from the press. On this week’s On the Media, the debate over whether giving media access actually helps inform voters. Plus, a guide to understanding election polls, and how they’ve evolved since the failures of 2016 and 2020.

[01:00] Host Brooke Gladstone explores a rising complaint from some in the political press that Vice President Kamala Harris isn’t engaging enough with reporters, featuring: Perry Bacon Jr., Washington Post columnist, Matt Bai, a journalist at the Washington Post who has interviewed many presidential candidates, and David Lurie, a contributing writer for Public Notice.

[19:57] Host Micah Loewinger speaks to Courtney Kennedy, Vice President of Methods and Innovation at Pew Research Center, to reassess our Breaking News Consumer’s Handbook on polls and answer the age-old question: should we care about them at all?

[34:26] Host Micah Loewinger speaks with Gordon Hanson, an economist and a co-director of the Reimagining the Economy Project at Harvard University’s Kennedy School, about why tariffs have rebounded in political popularity amongst Democrats and Republicans. 

Further reading:

• “Harris should talk to journalists more. Particularly the wonky ones,” by Perry Bacon Jr.
• “The media gets nothing from Kamala Harris. That’s mostly on us,” by Matt Bai
• “Kamala Harris is cutting off Trump’s political oxygen,” by David Lurie
• “Key things to know about U.S. election polling in 2024,” by Scott Keeter and Courtney Kennedy
• “Washington’s New Trade Consensus: And What It Gets Wrong,” by Gordon Hanson

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Last summer, OTM host Micah Loewenger reported a piece about the rise of worker-owned newsrooms: Hell Gate, a local New York publication, and Defector, a national outlet focused on sports and culture. 

Inspired by Defector and Hell Gate, more worked-owned outlets have come on the scene — including 404 Media, known for its mix of fun internet coverage and hard-nosed investigations. In this week’s midweek podcast, Micah speaks to 404 co-founder Samantha Cole about the challenges they have faced since they started their own outlet. Plus, what their success can teach us about the future of news.

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

At a town hall event hosted by Fox, Donald Trump shared a number of falsehoods, and appeared to confuse who he was running against. On this week’s On the Media, how mainstream outlets fail to hold the Republican candidate accountable. Plus, meet the right-wing American pundits who’ve received payouts from the Kremlin.

[01:00] Host Brooke Gladstone speaks with Daniel Drezner, professor of International Politics at Tufts University. Drezner discusses how the political press continues to struggle to cover Trump, and his campaign against Vice President Kamala Harris. 

[12:34] Host Brooke Gladstone interviews Dan Froomkin, editor of presswatchers.org. Froomkin explains why fact checkers at legacy outlets are too often adding to political confusion.

[20:49] Host Micah Loewinger speaks with Will Sommer, reporter for the Washington Post who writes about conservative media. They discuss a federal investigation into how the Russian-funded media network RT funded and influenced content of a conservative media company in the U.S., which appears to be the Tennessee-based Tenet Media. 

[35:01 ] Host Micah Loewinger speaks with Dan Taberski, the host and creator of the podcast series “Hysterical,” about the ties between a medical mystery in Le Roy, New York in 2011, and the unending Havana Syndrome saga. 

Further reading:

• “The Very Weird Media Coverage of the 2024 Presidential Race,” by Daniel Drezner
• “'Fact-checking' does a (hopefully fatal) face plant,” by Dan Froomkin
• “Inside Tenet Media, the pro-Trump ‘supergroup’ allegedly funded by Russia” by Will Sommer

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Brooke and Micah update the listeners about a new funding model for the show. 

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

During election season, voters hope to glimpse the true selves of presidential candidates. And sometimes, revealing details hide in plain sight. On this week’s On the Media, one reporter sifts through political memoirs for truths about politicians and the people they lead. Plus, in vivid detail, a novelist imagines the private lives of former presidents.

[01:00] Host Brooke Gladstone speaks with Carlos Lozada, New York Times Opinion columnist and a co-host of the weekly “Matter of Opinion” podcast. Lozada explains how he mines political memoirs for deeper understanding of our political figures by examining what they include and what they omit.

[16:43] Brooke speaks with Vinson Cunningham, author of the novel Great Expectations. Cunningham, who is now a theater critic at The New Yorker, worked on the 2008 Obama campaign and later in the White House. Great Expectations is inspired by that time in his life and the difficult-to-read candidate for the presidency.

[35:05] Brooke interviews novelist Curtis Sittenfeld about her exploration of the minds of political figures through fiction, first in American Wife (inspired by Laura Bush) and next in Rodham, which considers what Hilary Clinton’s life would have looked like if she had never married Bill. They discuss the questions that led Sittenfeld to write those novels and why fiction based on real people makes readers so uncomfortable — especially the sex scenes.

This show originally aired on our May 3, 2024 program, How to Read a President, with Carlos Lozada, Vinson Cunningham, and Curtis Sittenfeld.

Further reading:

• The Washington Book by Carlos Lozada
• Great Expectations by Vinson Cunningham
• American Wife and Rodham by Curtis Sittenfeld
• Curtis Sittenfeld: ‘People misunderstood the sex scenes in Rodham’

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

A recent update to the Apple podcast app also included a tweak to how podcast downloads work. As a podcast user you’re free to shrug and move on. But for podcast creators this could be a big deal. According to data from Podtrac, overall downloads across the industry were down 15 percent as of February.  This American Life lost 20 percent of their downloads. Some shows at NPR saw a 30 percent dip. In this week's midweek podcast, OTM producer Molly Rosen looks at how Apple has shaped the podcast industry.

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

When President Biden campaigned for re-election, he highlighted threats to democracy and his long track record. But since Kamala Harris took over the ticket, the party has landed on new messaging. On this week’s On the Media, a democratic strategist explains why we heard words like joy and freedom over and over at the Democratic National Convention. Plus, hear how Christian nationalism is shaping American politics.

[01:00]  Host Brooke Gladstone interviews Anat Shenker-Osorio, a democratic messaging strategist who has advised PACs and committees in battleground states, about the party’s new messaging strategy. They discuss how mockery shrinks strongmen to size; why voters seem to like the word “freedom” more than “democracy”; and more. 

[16:39] Brooke speaks with Matthew D. Taylor, scholar at the Institute for Islamic, Christian, & Jewish Studies in Baltimore and author of the forthcoming book, The Violent Take It by Force: The Christian Movement That Is Threatening Our Democracy. They discuss different strains of Christian nationalism — from the sentimental view of America as a Christian nation, to the desire to uphold Christian supremacy. Plus, how the phenomenon has shaped American politics for centuries.

[32:23] Brooke continues her conversation with Matthew D. Taylor. Taylor introduces Brooke to the world of independent charismatic Christianity and its media, where an extreme form of Christian nationalism has taken root. Plus, the Christian leaders who stoked violence on January 6th.

A portion of this episode originally aired on our April 19, 2024 program, Meet the Media Prophets Who Preach Christian Supremacy. Plus, Journalism in ‘Civil War’

Further reading / listening:

• The rise of the "Brat Pack" — and a new Democratic political style by Anand Giridharadas
• Why Kamala Harris’ New Politics of Joy Is the Best Way to Fight Fascism, by Anat Shenker-Osorio
• How the Alabama IVF Ruling Was Influenced by Christian Nationalism by Matthew D. Taylor
• Christian Nationalism (Un)Defined by Matthew D. Taylor

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

This is an episode from the Vox daily news podcast, Today, Explained. Host Noel King spoke with OTM regular, Rick Perlstein. As a historian of US politics he is often called upon to draw comparisons between today’s events and those of the past. This year in particular, the echoes with 1968 are unavoidable: the DNC is again in Chicago, there are protests outside (this time its about Gaza, then it was the Vietnam War).

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

New York City’s alternative weekly newspaper, The Village Voice, birthed a generation of legendary writers. On this week’s On the Media, how the Voice transformed journalism and what’s being lost as alt-weeklies across the country die off. Plus, a look at how AI sludge is flooding old news websites. 

[01:00] Host Micah Loewinger speaks with Tricia Romano, author of The Freaks Came Out to Write, about the early days of The Village Voice, including one reporter’s mission to stop Robert Moses and its revolutionary music section. 

[16:02] Micah continues his conversation with Tricia Romano, getting into the Voice’s sale to Rupert Murdoch, the tensions within the paper, and how Craigslist led to its ultimate demise.

[34:41] Micah speaks with Wired tech reporter Kate Knibbs about how the site of publication The Hairpin mysteriously relaunched with a slate of bizarre, AI-generated articles. Knibbs managed to track down the new owner of the site, a Serbian entrepreneur known as DJ Vujo.

Portions of this episode originally aired on our April 12, 2024 program, The Rise and Fall of Alt-Weeklies, and Backpage.com vs The Feds, and our February 9, 2024 program, If You Can’t Beat ’Em… Join ’Em? Journalism in an AI World.

Further reading:

• The Freaks Came Out to Write: The Definitive History of the Village Voice, the Radical Paper That Changed American Culture
• “Zombie Alt-Weeklies Are Stuffed With AI Slop About OnlyFans,” by Kate Knibbs

“Confessions of an AI Clickbait Kingpin,”

 by Kate Knibbs

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

In 2011, a group of high school girls in the small town of Le Roy, New York started coming down with mysterious medical symptoms. When their parents took to the story to the press, it became a national news sensation, attracting the attention of everyone from the environmental activist Erin Brokovich to a former Bachelor contestant with a medical diagnosis tv show. Host Micah Loewinger speaks with Dan Taberski, the host and creator of a new podcast series called Hysterical, about what happened in Le Roy, New York and what this and other similar events can tell us about the relationship between the media and hysteria.

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

This week, Kamala Harris’ VP pick Tim Walz went viral for being a typical Midwestern dad. On this week’s On the Media, the narratives surrounding Walz, and the political appeal of the car-tinkering, grill-manning father figure. Plus, the news influencers covering the election, and what their work reveals about the future of legacy journalism.

[02:22] Host Brooke Gladstone examines the narratives swirling around Gov. Tim Walz, and chats with Charlie Warzel, staff writer at The Atlantic, about the many memes, videos, and tweets claiming the VP nominee is “dad-coded.” 

[14:50] Host Micah Loewinger speaks with Nathan Grayson, reporter and co-founder of the gaming publication Aftermath. They discuss Donald Trump’s recent interview with live streamer Adin Ross and Trump’s courtship of edgelord influencers like Logan Paul. Plus, is there a place for politicians on platforms like Twitch and Kick?

[33:18] Host Micah Loewinger talks with Makena Kelly, who writes about politics and the internet for Wired, about how the Republican and Democratic national conventions are inviting influencers to watch. Then, Micah checks in with Taylor Lorenz, columnist at the Washington Post and host of the podcast Power User, about how the rise of short-form video is impacting the news industry. 

Further reading / listening:

• “Dad Is on the Ballot” by Charlie Warzel
• Stream Big: The Triumphs and Turmoils of Twitch and the Stars Behind the Screen (forthcoming in 2025) by Nathan Grayson
• The Influencers with as Much Presidential Access as the Press, by Makena Kelly
• Democratic convention will host hundreds of online influencers, by Taylor Lorenz

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Brooke Gladstone interviews Kathryn Hughes, author of Catland, about the storied history of the cat lady trope, how cats became beloved by so many in our culture, and the many meanings ascribed to the animals.

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Vice presidential nominee J.D. Vance’s remarks on childless cat ladies have ties to a movement urging people to have more children. On this week’s On the Media, find out why declining birth rates are regarded by some as a harbinger of doom. Plus, the storied history of so-called cat ladies, and why they often face contempt.

[01:00] Host Micah Loewinger on our “weird” politics, why every day in our news cycle feels like an eternity, and the debate over Donald Trump’s interview at the National Association of Black Journalists conference.

[06:38] Host Brooke Gladstone speaks with Rachel Cohen, policy correspondent at Vox, about J.D. Vance and the belief that falling birth rates foretell social and economic catastrophe.

[23:49] OTM producer Candice Wang reports the story of an older, more established population anxiety: the fear that there are simply too many people for our planet to sustain.

[32:55] Host Brooke Gladstone interviews Kathryn Hughes, author of Catland, about the storied history of the cat lady trope, how cats became beloved by so many in our culture, and the many meanings ascribed to the animals.
 

Further reading / listening:

• “The movement desperately trying to get people to have more babies” by Rachel Cohen
• Building the Population Bomb by Emily Klancher Merchant
• The Book That Incited a Worldwide Fear of Overpopulation by Charles C. Mann
• Reproductive Rights and Wrongs: The Global Politics of Population Control by Betsy Hartmann
• Catland: Louis Wain and the Great Cat Mania by Kathryn Hughes

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

“The Sound of Sport” was produced by Peregrine Andrews for Falling Tree Productions and originally broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2011. Dennis Baxter is the host of the documentary which was made right around the time of the London Olympics in 2012. Some things have changed in the intervening years, but if you're watching the Paris Olympics, this documentary is a perfect companion. 

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Conservative media outlets are testing a series of talking points to discredit the leading Democratic candidate for president. On this week’s On the Media, hear how right-wing coverage of Kamala Harris compares to what Hilary Clinton received. Plus, podcast host Ezra Klein reflects on how his early call for President Biden to step aside came true.

[01:00] Host Micah Loewinger speaks with Kat Abughazaleh, a video creator also known as Kat Abu, about how right-wing attacks on the presumptive Democratic nominee Kamala Harris compare to those on Hillary Clinton in 2016, and how conservative media outlets were unprepared to coordinate a campaign against Harris. 

[14:02] Host Brooke Gladstone speaks with Jamilah King, editorial director at Mother Jones, about Kamala Harris’ rise from district attorney in Oakland, California to the second highest office in the United States, and the narratives that have followed her and her political career through the years.

[30:34] Micah speaks with Ezra Klein, New York Times columnist and host of ‘The Ezra Klein Show,’ to reflect on Joe Biden’s withdrawal from the presidential race, and Klein’s role as one of the earliest voices calling for Biden to step aside.

Further reading / listening:

• Fox’s Racist, Sexist Attacks on Kamala Aren’t Landing. Yet. by Kat Abughazaleh
• It’s Kamala’s Campaign Now by Jamilah King
• Democrats Have a Better Option Than Joe Biden by Ezra Klein

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Moments after President Biden withdrew from the presidential race on Sunday, GOP leaders rushed to tug at any loose threads in his withdrawal. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson threatened legal challenges to his withdrawal, calling it “unlawful,” and other GOP leaders like J.D. Vance referred to the move as a “coup” and “a threat to democracy.” For the midweek podcast, host Brooke Gladstone speaks with Rick Hasen, a legal scholar and law professor at UCLA, to break down how the arguments against the president’s withdrawal hold no legal legitimacy, why Kamala Harris’ ascension as likely nominee is an example of the democratic process working, not failing, and other narratives emerging from the GOP in response to Biden’s exit from the race. 

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

At the Republican National Convention, Donald J. Trump named J.D. Vance as his pick for Vice President. On this week’s On the Media, hear how Vance went from liberal darling to MAGA leader, with a little help from a billionaire. Plus, meet the right-wing Christians who see the failed attempt on Trump’s life as evidence of his divine anointing by God.

[01:00] Host Brooke Gladstone charts the media’s role in shaping J.D. Vance's rise. Vance rose to fame as a liberal media darling who frequently lambasted Donald Trump after the publication of his blockbuster memoir “Hillbilly Elegy,” to Trump’s VP pick and a new leader of the MAGA movement. Ian Ward, a reporter at Politico, and Simon van Zuylen-Wood, a staff writer at New York Magazine, speak to how Vance’s vision of America extends far beyond Trumpism. 

[15:03] Host Micah Loewinger speaks with Andrew Prokop, senior politics correspondent at Vox, about Vance’s roots in the so-called New Right, a scrappy but growing offshoot of conservatism that aims to seize and destroy societal institutions they believe are controlled by the left. Plus, John Herrman, tech columnist at New York Magazine, explains what Big Tech sees in MAGA.

[36:35] Brooke speaks with Matthew D. Taylor, author of the forthcoming book The Violent Take it by Force, about how the attempted assassination of Trump has amplified a subset of evangelicals who believe that prophecy foresaw the event. These right-wing Christians see Trump as an anointed candidate, saved by God. 

Further reading / listening:

• The Radicalization of J.D. Vance by Simon van Zuylen-Wood
• 55 Things to Know About JD Vance, Trump’s VP Pick by Ian Ward
• J.D. Vance’s radical plan to build a government of Trump loyalists by Andrew Prokop
• Why Silicon Valley Elites Are Turning MAGA by John Herrman
• How the Assassination Attempt Has Ignited the Prophecy World by Matthew D. Taylor
• The Violent Take It by Force: The Christian Movement That Is Threatening Our Democracy by Matthew D. Taylor

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Across the globe, summers are getting unseasonably, and scarily hot, and last year the United Nations announcing that we've entered the era of "global boiling."  And yet it's hard to grapple with the damage caused by extreme heat. It's the deadliest kind of climate disaster, but victims of heat often die out of sight of the public eye. FEMA doesn't even respond to extreme heat waves in the way it does to other "major disasters." Jake Bittle is a staff writer at Grist covering climate impact.  Brooke spoke to Bittle last year about the invisibility of extreme heat, the challenge it presents to news outlets, and the potential value of naming heat waves. 

This is a segment from our August 18, 2023 show, Read All About It.

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Immigration is one of the most important issues in this year’s presidential election. This week, On the Media traces how root causes of mass migration from Central America to the United States over the past decade stem back to the Cold War. Plus, a deep dive on terms like “colonialism” and “decolonization,” and what they mean in the context of Israel-Palestine.

[01:00] Host Brooke Gladstone speaks with Jonathan Blitzer, who covers immigration for The New Yorker and is author of the book, Everyone Who Is Gone Is Here, about how the root causes of mass migration from Central America to the United States over the past decade stem back to the Cold War. This interview originally aired on our February 2, 2024 show.

[15:30] Brooke continues her conversation with Jonathan Blitzer about how the past and future of Central America and the United States are inextricable, and the far-reaching consequences of Congress’ refusal to reform the immigration system since 1990. This interview originally aired on our February 2, 2024 show.

[30:58] Brooke Gladstone speaks with Iyad el-Baghdadi, a Palestinian human rights activist, writer, and co-author of The Middle East Crisis Factory, about the value of historical parallels to describe the conflict in Palestine, and why the precise meanings behind words like “decolonization” and “colonialism” are crucial. This interview originally aired on our March 8, 2024 show.

Further reading / listening:

• Everyone Who Is Gone Is Here
• The Middle East Crisis Factory

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

In January 2023, a TV show called In the Know debuted on Peacock. The comedy is a parody of a daily NPR show produced in New York City, with rather cringey characters portrayed by stop-motion puppets. Each episode also features an interview with a real person who appears on Zoom. The show is written by Zach Woods, Brandon Gardner, and Mike Judge, creator of Beavis and Butthead (who also voices the character of Sandy the movie critic). Woods, known for playing Gabe on The Office and Jared from Silicon Valley, plays the central role of Lauren Caspian, billed as the third most famous NPR host. Brooke speaks with Zach Woods and Brandon Gardner about why public radio provides such rich ground for satire, and how comedy can restore complexity to the world. 

This interview originally aired on our January 26, 2024 show.

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Every year on the Fourth of July, households across America embrace the aesthetics of patriotism. On this week’s On the Media, find out how the early country music industry got a major boost from the US military and became associated with the “sound of patriotism.” Plus, how a song written by a Canadian became an anthem for the Confederate “lost cause.”

[01:00] Host Micah Loewinger speaks with Joseph Thompson, a professor of history and author of the new book Cold War Country, about how hillbilly music transformed into the powerful country music industry, starting with a little assistance from the US military in the 1940s and 50s.

[18:40] Micah continues his conversation with Joseph Thompson about how country music came to be linked to a certain type of American patriotism, and why some of country music’s most famous jingoistic songs are more complex than many listeners think. 

[32:15] Brooke Gladstone speaks with Jack Hamilton, pop critic for Slate and author of the book Just Around Midnight: Rock and Roll and the Racial Imagination, about how “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down” became an anthem for the Confederate ‘Lost Cause.’ This interview originally aired on our January 8th, 2021 show.

Further reading / listening:

• Cold War Country: How Nashville's Music Row and the Pentagon Created the Sound of American Patriotism
• Just Around Midnight: Rock and Roll and the Racial Imagination

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Last month, Clarence Thomas acknowledged several luxury trips that were gifted to him by billionaire Harlan Crow. But the pair’s financial ties had long been public knowledge, thanks to a bombshell report by ProPublica in 2023.  The gifts included lavish vacations, trips on private yachts and jets — and even a trip to Indonesia valued at as much as half a million dollars. Most of these gifts went undisclosed, despite that being required by law. But this isn’t Thomas’ first rodeo. He has reportedly accepted a slew of gifts in the past, including $1200 worth of tires from an Omaha businessman, and a bust of President Lincoln valued at $15,000.

Brooke speaks to Corey Robin, a journalist and political science professor at Brooklyn College and the City University of New York Graduate Center, about Clarence Thomas relationship with money and power, and Robin’s article in Politico, "The Clarence Thomas Scandal Is About More Than Corruption. It’s about his jurisprudence." 

This interview originally aired on April 21, 2023.

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Some of the most outrageous stories about President Biden are originating from a single, unverified source. On this week’s On the Media, hear about the shadowy organization that’s influencing election narratives. Plus, factual errors are at the heart of a recent Supreme Court decision. Learn how we can reform the system.

[01:00] Host Brooke Gladstone interviews Judd Legum, author of Popular Information, about how a rightwing outlet is presenting itself as a neutral news source, all the while pushing coordinated messaging about President Biden.

[18:04] Host Micah Loewinger speaks to Mark Joseph Stern, senior writer at Slate, about the factual errors in a recent Supreme Court ruling concerning guns.

[35:48] Micah interviews Allison Orr Larsen, professor of law at William and Mary, about how so many contested facts reach the highest court via amicus briefs. Plus, how to reform the so-called “amicus machine.”

Further reading:

• “Sinclair floods local news websites with hundreds of deceptive articles about Biden's mental fitness,” by Judd Legum
• “Clarence Thomas’ Opinion Legalizing Bump Stocks Is Indefensible,” by Mark Joseph Stern
• “The Supreme Court Decisions on Guns and Abortion Relied Heavily on History. But Whose History?” by Allison Orr Larsen
• “It’s a Fact: Supreme Court Errors Aren’t Hard to Find,” by Ryan Gabrielson (2017)

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

This week, we turn away from the media for a moment, to a realm thousands of feet beneath the ocean’s surface – where sperm whales swim. These behemoths spend most of their lives in complete darkness, surfacing only for a few minutes at a time. They have the largest brains of virtually any other creature on earth, and they grow to be the size of one school bus, even two – and weigh as much as ten of them. But despite leading wildly different lives, scientists say they may communicate with each other – much like we do. 

In May, scientists at CETI, or Cetacean Translation Initiative, published a study claiming that they use a complex phonetic alphabet that echoes the structures of human languages. This week, host Brooke Gladstone speaks with Shane Gero, a biologist focusing on the acoustic complexity and social behavior of whales and Biology Lead at CETI, about this phonetic alphabet, and how it might be the first of many steps that could lead to translating what these sea giants are saying – and saving their lives. 

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Why does every social media platform seem to get worse over time? This week’s On the Media explores an expansive theory on how we lost a better version of the internet, and the systems that insulate Big Digital from competition. Plus, some solutions for fixing the world wide web.

[01:00] Host Brooke Gladstone interviews Cory Doctorow, journalist, activist, and the author of Red Team Blues, on his theory surrounding the slow, steady descent of the internet. 

[15:59] Brooke asks Cory if the troubles that plague some corners of the internet are specific to Big Digital, rather than the economy at large—and how our legal systems enabled it all. Doctorow explains how the antitrust practices of the early 1900s went awry, and what exactly he means by “twiddling.” 

[31:29] Cory and Brooke discuss possible solutions to save the world wide web.  Among them: better enforcement of privacy laws, interoperability, and the ever elusive "right-to-exit." Plus, hear about the one industry that so far has been mostly immune to the forces of "enshittification." 

This episode originally aired on our September 1, 2023 program, How Big Tech Went to Sh*t.

Further reading:

• “The ‘Enshittification’ of TikTok” by Cory Doctorow
  “Too big to care,”  by Cory Doctorow

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Over the past few months, The Washington Post has weathered a slate of unfavorable news. In May, publisher and CEO Will Lewis revealed the Post lost 77 million dollars last year. Lewis also announced a big restructuring and, as reported by Semafor’s Max Tani, the paper’s chief technology officer should have "AI everywhere in our newsroom." 

But then things started changing at the top of the news organization. Sally Buzbee, who had served as the executive editor for the Post over the last three years, resigned. And in the wake of her departure CEO Will Lewis, and his chosen replacement for Buzbee, Robert Winnett, became the center of multiple investigations. Allegations of paying sources, using informants who secured scoops via deception, and even approving destruction of evidence have now made headlines. This week, Micah sits down with NPR media correspondent,  David Folkenflik to make sense of the news, and what it all might mean for one of America’s most storied papers. 

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Over the past two decades, 900 British postal workers were wrongfully prosecuted for fraud. On this week’s On the Media, hear how a TV show about the Post Office Scandal sparked a political reckoning in the U.K. Plus, meet the Redstones – the complicated family behind Paramount Global.

[00:00] Host Brooke Gladstone interviews Jonathan Freedland, columnist at the Guardian and host of the Politics Weekly America podcast, about how coinciding election campaigns in the US and the UK this year are influencing each other from across the pond.

[00:00] Brooke explores how a recent British TV drama about the "Post Office Scandal" sparked a long overdue political reckoning in the U.K., and shone a light on the stories of British postal workers wrongfully prosecuted for fraud. Brooke interviews reporter Rebecca Thomson, who first broke the story in 2009; reporter Nick Wallis, author of The Great Post Office Scandal and consultant for the television drama; and Lee Castleton, a former subpostmaster in East Yorkshire.

[00:00] Lastly, Brooke interviews Rachel Abrams, senior producer and reporter for The New York Times Presents and co-author of Unscripted:​​ The Epic Battle for a Media Empire and the Redstone Family Legacy. They discuss the Redstones, the family behind the media empire Paramount Global.

Further reading:

• The Great Post Office Scandal by Nick Wallis
• Mr. Bates vs The Post Office, PBS
• Unscripted:​​ The Epic Battle for a Media Empire and the Redstone Family Legacy by Rachel Abrams and James B. Stewart

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

This week's midweek podcast comes from our colleagues at the New Yorker Radio Hour:

On the Netflix reality-TV dating show “Love Is Blind,” contestants are alone in windowless, octagonal pods with no access to their phones or the Internet. They talk to each other through the walls. There’s intrigue, romance, heartbreak, and, in some cases, sight-unseen engagements. According to several lawsuits, there’s also lack of sleep, lack of food and water, twenty-hour work days, and alleged physical and emotional abuse. New Yorker staff writer Emily Nussbaum has been reporting on what these lawsuits reveal about the culture on the set of “Love Is Blind,” and a push for a new union to give reality-TV stars employee protections and rights. “The people who are on reality shows are a vulnerable class of people who are mistreated by the industry in ways that are made invisible to people, including to fans who love the shows,” Nussbaum tells NYRH host, David Remnick. Nussbaum’s forthcoming book is “Cue the Sun! The Invention of Reality TV.” 

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

This week, the Department of Justice accused one of the most influential right wing outlets of laundering tens of millions of dollars. On this week’s On the Media, a former reporter on his progression from defining the disinformation beat to running one of the most famous fake news outlets, The Onion. Plus, a satirical movement about birds illuminates the inner workings of conspiracies.

[01:09] Host Micah Loewinger interviews Ben Collins, newly minted shareholder and CEO of the satirical site The Onion, about how his background in disinformation reporting led him to his latest gig. 

[18:03] Host Brooke Gladstone speaks with Ian Beacock about Birds Aren’t Real, a prank conspiracy theory that is itself a case study in how misinformation spreads.

[34:41] Lastly, Brooke interviews Annalee Newitz about their latest book, Stories Are Weapons: Psychological Warfare and the American Mind. They discuss how stories have long been spun as a means of controlling people — from the 18th century to today’s culture wars. 

Further reading:

• “Trump, QAnon and an impending judgment day: Behind the Facebook-fueled rise of The Epoch Times,” by Brandy Zadrozny and Ben Collins
• “Birds Aren’t Real: The Prank That Turned Misinformation on Its Head,” by Ian Beacock
• Stories Are Weapons: Psychological Warfare and the American Mind by Annalee Newitz

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Something happened on the internet this week that was at once HUGE and also kind of a foregone conclusion. Jimmy Donaldson better known as Mr. Beast has been for many years basically the king of YouTube. But, as of this week, Mr Beast is now officially the most subscribed YouTuber in the world with 271 million followers at time of recording. His clickbaity game-show style videos, with their extravagant sets and giant payouts, have come to define this era of the site. 

Remember Squid Game, the Korean Netflix sensation? That show got around 265 million views. Mr Beast’s “real life” Squid Game video got 616 million views. 

That’s why he’s number 1. And there’s actually a very interesting history of jockeying for YouTube’s top spot. Mr. Beast has overtaken a giant Indian entertainment company, T-series (266 million subscribers) which had reigned unchallenged for years. 

In 2019, Micah worked with Brooke on a piece about the last time a big Western YouTuber went head to head with T-series. Back then it was a guy who was sort of the Mr Beast of that time, a youtuber known as PewDiepie.

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

When Donald J. Trump was found guilty on all counts in the hush money trial, some in the press were caught off guard. But the former president and conservative pundits primed for this result with a strategic messaging campaign. On this week’s On the Media, hear how Trump uses Truth Social to disseminate talking points to a web of right-wing influencers.

[01:10] Host Micah Loewinger analyzes the media coverage following the announcement of the verdict in Trump’s hush money trial and the ways that rightwing media had been primed to respond. He also interviews Sarah Ellison of the Washington Post about how a network of right-wing influencers amplify Donald Trump’s Truth Social posts, carrying their reach far beyond the platform. 

[22:58] Micah speaks with Matthew Goldstein, business reporter at the New York Times, about the short, rocky history of Trump Media and how the company became the latest memestock. 

[35:58] Lastly, host Brooke Gladstone interviews Lynsey Addario, an award-winning photojournalist who has covered humanitarian crises abroad for over two decades, about how accurately Alex Garland’s film “Civil War” depicts what it's like to report on violent conflict and her real-life experiences covering wars abroad.

Further reading:

• “How Trump’s allies amplify his Truth Social messages to the wider world,” by Sarah Ellison
• “How Donald Trump’s Financial Future Became Tied to Trump Media,” by Matthew Goldstein

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Micah breaks down media hype about AI. According to Sam Harnett, a former tech reporter, journalists are repeating lazy tropes about the future of work that once boosted companies like Uber, Airbnb, and Fiverr. Plus, Julia Angwin, founder of Proof News, debunks fantastical claims by AI companies about their software. And Paris Marx, host of Tech Won’t Save Us, explains how AI leaders like Sam Altman use the press to lobby regulators and investors.

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

A majority of Americans believe that the economy is in a recession even though it’s not. On this week’s On the Media, hear why there’s a mismatch between facts and feelings about the economy. Plus, how the outlandish claims of AI companies often go unchecked by the press.

[01:09] Host Micah Loewinger interviews Jeanna Smialek of The New York Times about whether the ‘vibecession’ is back and the factors that are shaping negative perceptions of the economy.

[14:41] Micah speaks with Gordon Hanson, economist at Harvard University’s Kennedy School, about how President Biden has adopted, and even escalated, former President Trump’s tariffs on China, and why the political narratives around tariffs don’t always match up with the economic realities.

[29:29] Lastly, Micah breaks down media hype about AI. According to Sam Harnett, a former tech reporter, journalists are repeating lazy tropes about the future of work that once boosted companies like Uber, Airbnb, and Fiverr. Plus, Julia Angwin, founder of Proof News, debunks fantastical claims by AI companies about their software. And Paris Marx, host of Tech Won’t Save Us, explains how AI leaders like Sam Altman use the press to lobby regulators and investors.

Further reading:

• “High Interest Rates Are Hitting Poorer Americans the Hardest,” by Ben Casselman and Jeanna Smialek
• “Washington’s New Trade Consensus,” by Gordon Hanson
• “How Tech Media Helped Write Gig Companies into Existence,” by Sam Harnett
• “Press Pause on the Silicon Valley Hype Machine,” by Julia Angwin
• “AI is Fueling a Data Center Boom. It Must Be Stopped," by Paris Marx

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Immigration consistently polls as one of the most important topics for voters. According to a recent Gallup poll immigration is the most polarizing issue of the last 25 years, with 48 percent of Republicans saying it’s the most important issue compared to just 8 percent of Democrats. This probably has something to do with the coverage of immigration in conservative media. And recently, right pundits have begun to focus on one of the most dangerous parts of a migrants’ journey north from South America. 

In March, New York Times reporter Ken Bensinger reported a story from the Darien Gap in Panama, which was once thought to be too perilous to cross but which now sees thousands of migrants make their way through every month. For this week's podcast extra, we bring you a recent episode of the podcast What Next, hosted by our former WNYC colleague Mary Harris.  Mary spoke to Ken Bensinger about the right wing media obsession with the Darien Gap. 

Further reading / listening:

• Right-Wing Influencers Descend on the Darien Gap

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On this week’s On the Media we revisit another fraught moment in American democracy: the contested  election between Al Gore and George W. Bush in 2000. Hear about the extraordinary legal battle that ensued, and what it can teach us about partisan politics today. 

Leon Neyfakh, host of the podcast Fiasco, takes us back in time to witness how the Gore and Bush campaigns fought for recounts; how “chads” and “military ballots” became central to the contest; and the role of the so-called Brooks Brothers riot.

Further listening:

• Fiasco: Bush v Gore

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

This week, President Biden announced major new tariffs on $18 billion worth of imports from China. The goods that will be affected include batteries, steel, aluminum, and semiconductors. Tariffs on electric vehicles will go up from 

25 percent to 100 percent. These new tariffs signal a reversal from Biden’s messaging on tariffs during the 2020 campaign, and also a reversal of a decades-long consensus in Washington that lower tariffs are better for the American economy. To understand how we got here, Micah spoke with Gordon Hanson, an economist and a co-director of the Reimagining the Economy Project at Harvard University’s Kennedy School.

Further reading:

• Help for the Heartland? The Employment and Electoral Effects of the Trump Tariffs in the United States
• Washington’s New Trade Consensus

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

In reports about pro-Palestinian college encampments, comparisons to the anti-war demonstrations of 1968 abound. On this week’s On the Media, hear how historical analogies distract us from what makes today’s protests unique. Plus, a reporter debunks a theory that Bill Gates is somehow funding campus activism.

[01:09] Host Micah Loewinger speaks with Danielle K. Brown, a journalism professor at Michigan State university, about how coverage has detracted focus from students’ demands for universities to cut ties with Israel. Plus, Rick Perlstein, a columnist at The American Prospect, says reporters’ fondness for drawing parallels with 1968 has obscured the singularity of today’s encampments.

[16:54] Micah continues the conversation about pro-Palestinian protest coverage with Andrew Perez, senior politics editor at Rolling Stone. They explore the inaccurate reporting on “outside agitators” and funding sources of campus demonstrations.

[31:38] Micah speaks with Oren Persico, a staff writer at The Seventh Eye, about how current events like a potential Israeli invasion of Rafah and the ongoing Israel-Hamas ceasefire negotiations are being covered by Israeli media.

Further reading / listening:

• Media coverage of campus protests tends to focus on the spectacle, rather than the substance by Danielle K. Brown
• The New Anti-Antisemitism by Rick Perlstein
• ‘Politico’ Misses Mark in Story on Who’s Funding Pro-Palestine Protests Against Biden by Andrew Perez
• Will Israel shut down Al Jazeera by Oren Persico

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Last week, news broke that writer Paul Auster died from complications related to lung cancer. The New York Times called him “the patron saint of literary Brooklyn;” elsewhere he was dubbed "the dean of American postmodernists." He was the author of many novels such as The New York Trilogy, and he wrote screenplays, memoirs, and nonfiction, including Burning Boy: The Life and Work of Stephen Crane.

He was also a long-time friend of Brooke and her husband Fred Kaplan — they lived a few blocks away from each other in their Brooklyn neighborhood. In November of 2021, Paul Auster walked over to Brooke’s home studio to talk about Stephen Crane.  

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

When politicians publish their autobiographies, often they reveal more than intended. On this week’s On the Media, find out how one reporter sifts through political memoirs for truths about politicians and the people they lead. Plus, in vivid detail, a novelist imagines the private lives of former presidents.

[01:00] Host Brooke Gladstone speaks with Carlos Lozada, New York Times Opinion columnist and a co-host of the weekly “Matter of Opinion” podcast. Lozada explains how he mines political memoirs for deeper understanding of our political figures by examining what they include and what they omit.

[16:59] Brooke speaks with Vinson Cunningham, author of the new novel Great Expectations. Cunningham, who is now a theater critic at The New Yorker, worked on the 2008 Obama campaign and later in the White House. Great Expectations is inspired by that time in his life, and the difficult-to-read candidate for the presidency.

[35:19] Brooke interviews novelist Curtis Sittenfeld about her exploration of the minds of political figures through fiction, first in American Wife (inspired by Laura Bush) and next in Rodham, which considers what Hilary Clinton’s life would have looked like if she had never married Bill. They discuss the questions that led Sittenfeld to write those novels and why fiction based on real people makes readers so uncomfortable — especially the sex scenes.

Further reading:

• The Washington Book by Carlos Lozada
• Great Expectations  by Vinson Cunningham
• American Wife and Rodham by Curtis Sittenfeld

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Chinese science fiction has gone from a niche, underground genre to the country's hottest new export. On Saturday, at the 8th China Science Fiction Conference hosted in Beijing, an animated presenter unveiled graphs detailing the meteoric rise of the genre, claiming that China had raked in nearly $16 billion in revenue from its sci-fi industry in 2023. And in late March, an adaptation of one of China's  biggest cultural exports, 'The Three Body Problem,' premiered on Netflix. The show, based on a book by Liu Cixin, follows a group of modern-day scientists battling an alien invasion, triggered by one cataclysmic decision made by an aggrieved physicist during the Cultural Revolution in China. The show garnered roughly 15.6 million views in its first week. 

But the seed of this science fiction craze was first planted in 2008, with the publication of the book, which quickly became an unexpected global phenomenon. The book and its two sequels have exceeded the total sales of all literary works exported by China so far — thus piquing the interest of the Chinese government. For the midweek podcast, host Brooke Gladstone speaks with Jing Tsu, professor of East Asian Languages and Literatures & Comparative Literature at Yale, about the rise of science fiction in China as a soft power tool, the genre's complicated relationship with the Chinese government, and its evolution through the twentieth century.

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Trump is back in court for his hush money trial hearing, and his immunity case was argued at the Supreme Court. On this week’s On the Media, hear what gets lost in the blow-by-blow coverage of Trump’s legal woes. Plus, an essay from a former NPR editor has lawmakers calling to cut funding to the public radio network.

[01:10] Host Brooke Gladstone speaks with Dahlia Lithwick, who covers the courts for Slate and hosts the podcast Amicus, about her frustration with pundits' obsession with solving political problems involving Trump with the law. 

[15:14] Host Micah Loewinger speaks with Kelly McBride, NPR’s public editor, about the push to ‘defund NPR’ sparked by a former NPR editor’s essay and whether his points have any salience. 

[32:59] Brooke continues the conversation about NPR with Alicia Montgomery, vice president of audio at Slate and former editor at NPR. They explore the real problems brewing at the public radio network.

Further reading / listening:

• The Law Alone Cannot Curb Donald Trump’s Lawlessness
• The relentless focus on Gaza
• The Real Story Behind NPR’s Current Problems

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Alex Garland's new film, 'Civil War,' debuted at no. 1 at the box office earlier this month, and  follows four journalists on a road trip from New York City to D.C. in the midst of societal collapse. The beating heart of the film is Lee, a veteran photojournalist played by Kirsten Dunst, who's determined to interview the president as his administration is on the verge of collapse to rebel forces. 

Lynsey Addario is an award-winning photojournalist who has covered humanitarian crises abroad for over two decades, including the ongoing war in Ukraine, and  conflicts in the Middle East and Africa. For the midweek pod, Brooke Gladstone speaks with Addario about her real-life experience covering wars abroad, and how accurately the film depicts what it's like to report amidst a dangerous war. 

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Former president Trump says he wants to make America pray again. On this week’s On the Media, hear how Christian nationalism is shaping American politics. Plus, what the new film Civil War has to say about the role of journalism when civilizing norms have broken down. 

[01:08] Host Brooke Gladstone speaks with Matthew D. Taylor, scholar at the Institute for Islamic, Christian, & Jewish Studies in Baltimore and author of the forthcoming book, The Violent Take It by Force: The Christian Movement That Is Threatening Our Democracy. They discuss different strains of Christian nationalism — from the sentimental view of America as a Christian nation, to the desire to uphold Christian supremacy. Plus, how the phenomenon has shaped American politics for centuries.

[17:42] Brooke continues her conversation with Matthew D. Taylor. Taylor introduces Brooke to the world of independent charismatic Christianity and its media, where an extreme form of Christian nationalism has taken root. Plus, the Christian leaders who stoked violence on January 6th.

[35:27] Brooke speaks with Zack Beauchamp, senior correspondent at Vox, about Alex Garland’s new film Civil War, the power it derives from avoiding ideological warfare, and what it reveals about the role of journalism during complete civil collapse.

Further reading / listening:

• How the Alabama IVF Ruling Was Influenced by Christian Nationalism
• Christian Nationalism (Un)Defined
• “Civil War” has little to say about America — but a lot to say about war

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

April 19th, which is this Friday, marks an odd holiday known as Bicycle Day — the day, now 81 years ago, when Swiss scientist Albert Hofmann rode his bike home from work after dosing himself with his lab concoction, lysergic acid diethylamide, or LSD. The first acid trip.

Hofmann’s wobbly ride is what launches us into an exploration of a moment, when Ken Kesey, an evangelist of acid would emerge from a Menlo Park hospital lab, and plow through the nation’s gray flannel culture in a candy colored bus. Some know Kesey as the enigmatic author behind One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest — others, as the driving force in The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test, Tom Wolfe’s seminal work in New Journalism. In honor of the 50th anniversary of the release of Acid Test, Brooke speaks with Wolfe and writer River Donaghey about how acid shaped Kesey, spawned the book and de-normalized American conformity.

Songs:

Holidays B by Ib Glindemann
Im Glück by Neu!
Apache '65 by Davie Allan and the Arrows
Selections from "The Acid Tests Reels" by The Merry Pranksters & The Grateful Dead
Alicia by Los Monstruos
The Days Between by The Grateful Dead (Live 6/24/95)
 

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

New York City’s alternative weekly newspaper, The Village Voice, birthed a generation of legendary writers. On this week’s On the Media, how the Voice transformed journalism and what’s being lost as alt-weeklies across the country die off. Plus, why the feds brought America’s most controversial alt-weekly mogul to court.

[02:17] Host Micah Loewinger speaks with Tricia Romano, author of The Freaks Came Out to Write, about the early days of The Village Voice, including one reporter’s mission to stop Robert Moses and its revolutionary music section. 

[15:09] Micah continues his conversation with Tricia Romano, getting into the Voice’s sale to Rupert Murdoch, the tensions within the paper, and how Craigslist led to its ultimate demise.

[29:11] An alt-weekly mogul, Mike Lacey, became the Larry Flynt of the internet age. The hosts of the new Audible show Hold Fast conducted a series of interviews with Lacey to tell the story of the alt-weekly chain’s rise and fall. 

Further reading / listening:

• The Freaks Came Out to Write: The Definitive History of the Village Voice, the Radical Paper That Changed American Culture
• Hold Fast: The Unadulterated Story of the World’s Most Scandalous Website

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

The Village Voice, founded in 1955, is widely credited as the first alternative weekly newspaper, or alt-weekly. The big show this week is all about the rise and fall of the alt-weekly—the type of off-beat, fearless publication that, once-upon-a-time, you could pick up on a street corner in cities across the country. For the mid-week podcast, Micah interviewed Tricia Romano, the author of a new oral history titled, The Freaks Came Out To Write: The Definitive History of the Village Voice, the Radical Paper that Changed American Culture. Their conversation about this legendary New York publication was wide-ranging, and too long for the radio. And too profane for the radio. So we’re bringing you a longer, uncensored version here. Don’t listen to this one with kids.

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

President Joe Biden is calling for a ceasefire in Gaza as famine looms. On this week’s On the Media, hear how warring media narratives have jeopardized UNRWA, the largest humanitarian aid organization in the region. Plus, what the explosion in sports gambling means for the future of sports journalism. 

1. Mehul Srivastava [@MehulAtLarge], Financial Times correspondent, and Chris Van Hollen [@ChrisVanHollen], US Senator from Maryland, on the warring media narratives around UNRWA. Listen.

2. Lex Takkenberg [@LTakkenberg], humanitarian law expert and a former Chief of Ethics for UNRWA, on the lessons to be learned from the agency's founding and its predecessor, the United Nations Conciliation Commission for Palestine. Listen.

3. OTM producer Rebecca Clark-Callender [@Rebecca_CC_] explores how sports media and the gambling industry's relationship keeps evolving, featuring: Brian Moritz [@bpmoritz], sports media scholar at St. Bonaventure University, Danny Funt [@dannyfunt], reporter and contributor to the Washington Post, and Albert Chen, author of Billion Dollar Fantasy: The High-Stakes Game Between FanDuel and DraftKings That Upended Sports in America. Listen.

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With his cool rhymes and even cooler clothes, Basketball Hall of Famer Walt "Clyde" Frazier made a successful transition from NBA star to sports broadcaster on the MSG Network. Frazier sat down with Brooke back in 2012 for a live event to discuss basketball, broadcasting, and the art of being cool. We're re-airing it now because a) it was Mr. Frazier's birthday this week! and b) we're in a sporting mood — we have a big piece in the hopper for this week's show all about sports betting, reported by OTM producer Rebecca Clark-Callender. 

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Following the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, conspiracy theories proliferated. On this week’s On the Media, hear how memes and misinformation obscure the real causes of tragedies, from bridges to planes. Plus, what Ronna McDaniel’s hiring and firing from NBC News tells us about the revolving door from politics to tv news.

1. David Gilbert [@daithaigilbert], reporter for Wired covering disinformation, and Katya Schwenk [@ktyschwnk], reporter at The Lever, on why disasters are fertile ground for conspiracy theories, which obfuscate real quality control issues. Listen.

2. Michael Socolow [@MichaelSocolow], media historian at the University of Maine, on the history of the revolving door between politics and news.
Listen.

3. Calvin Trillin, contributor at The New Yorker, on his career and his latest book, The Lede: Dispatches from a Life in the Press. Listen.

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Beyoncé’s new album, Cowboy Carter, comes out on Friday — and the record has already sparked plenty of conversation about race and the country music genre. This week, we're sharing an episode from our friends at the podcast Today, Explained from Vox media, on this very topic. Hear co-host Noel King take a journey through the history of black musicians making country music, and more.

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Donald Trump said if he isn’t elected there will be a bloodbath. Or did he? On this week’s On the Media, how to understand the GOP nominee’s double speak, eight years into his political career. Plus, a deep dive into Russia’s latest disinformation invention– journalists that don’t really exist. And, life in Russia-occupied Ukraine.

1. Jennifer Mercieca [@jenmercieca], professor at Texas A&M University, on how Trump's rhetoric has intensified. Listen.

2. Steven Lee Myers [@stevenleemyers], disinformation reporter at The New York Times, explains how Russia is creating fake journalists and fake stories to sow animus against Ukraine. Listen.

3. Shaun Walker [@shaunwalker7], central and eastern Europe correspondent at The Guardian, on Russian propaganda and re-education in occupied regions of Ukraine. Listen.

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On Wednesday, March 29 2023, Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich was detained by the FSB, Russia's security service, and charged with espionage. It was the first time that an American journalist in Russia has been charged with espionage, which carries a potential 20-year prison sentence, since the Cold War. OTM producer Molly Schwartz spoke to Valerie Hopkins, international correspondent for The New York Times, Gordon Fairclough, World Coverage Chief for The Wall Street Journal, Gulnoza Said, the Europe and Central Asia program coordinator for the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), and Dan Storyev and Maria Kuznetsova from OVD-Info, a Russian human rights group, about how the Kremlin is using Gershkovich as a pawn in a game of hostage diplomacy.

This is a segment from our April 14, 2023, show Inside Russia's Crackdown on Journalists. The email address mentioned at the end of this piece where people can write Evan Gershkovich letters in prison is [email protected]. 

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Recently, the House passed a bill that could ban TikTok from the US unless the app’s Chinese owners divest. On this week’s On the Media, hear how the bill will likely fail to live up to its promise. Plus, a pulse-check on the book-banning movement, and a look into the larger mission behind Moms for Liberty. 

1. Julia Angwin [@JuliaAngwin], opinion writer for The New York Time and founder of the new outlet Proof News, on why this TikTok legislation won't do what lawmakers claim it will. Listen.

2. Adam Laats [@AdamLaats], professor of education and history at Binghamton University, on the long history leading to Moms For Liberty. Listen.

3. Jennifer Berkshire [@BisforBerkshire], lecturer at Yale’s Education Studies Department, on why Moms for Liberty election losses are not a reason to ignore the group's power. Listen.

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Writer Calvin Trillin joined The New Yorker in 1963, and he continues to contribute today. Trillin’s trademark humility and humor show up in all of his writing, whether it’s a story about the invention of the buffalo chicken wing, or the civil rights movement, or an old ditty about our political woes. Brooke recently sat down with him to discuss his career and his latest book, The Lede: Dispatches from a Life in the Press.

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Donald Trump recently held a meeting with Elon Musk, the owner of the site formerly known as Twitter. On this week’s On the Media, hear how the significance of the social media platform has changed as fewer people tune into traditional right-wing media. Plus, a deep dive on terms like “colonialism” and “decolonization,” and what they mean in the context of Israel-Palestine.

1. Philip Bump [@pbump], columnist for the Washington Post, on what Donald Trump might want from an allegiance with Elon Musk. Listen.

2. Iyad el-Baghdadi [@iyad_elbaghdadi], human rights activist, writer, and co-author of “The Middle East Crisis Factory,” on why the words we use to describe the war in Gaza should be clear and precise. Listen.

3. Valerie Hopkins [@VALERIEinNYT], an international correspondent at the New York Times covering Russia, on the growing intensity of Putin's crackdown on dissent in Russia, and Mstyslav Chernov [@mstyslavchernov], on his now Oscar-nominated documentary depicting the early days of Russia's siege on Ukraine. Listen.

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Few clichés are as well-worn, and grounded in reality, as the dread many Americans feel towards doing their taxes and the loathing they have for the IRS. But as much as the process is despised, relatively little is known about how it could be improved. Reporter Jessica Huseman said that's largely because tax prep companies keep it that way. Brooke spoke to Huseman in 2017 about what an improved system might look like and how tax prep companies work to thwart any such changes.

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A Palestinian-American college student was shot in Vermont last fall. On this week’s On the Media, he reflects on the explosive media attention he’s received. Plus, what the data says about allegations of biased media coverage of Israel and Palestine, and former MSNBC host Mehdi Hasan explains his approach to covering the war.

1. Suzanne Gaber [@SuzanneGaber], producer at Notes from America, speaks with Hisham Awartani, a Palestinian-American college student, about the explosive media attention he received after he was shot in Vermont last fall. Listen. 

2. William Youmans [@wyoumans], professor of Media and Public Affairs at George Washington University, and Mona Chalabi [@MonaChalabi], data journalist and illustrator, on the allegations of biased media coverage about Israel and Palestine and what data reveals. Listen. 

3. Mehdi Hasan [@mehdirhasan], former MSNBC host and CEO of the new media company Zeteo, on his approach to covering Gaza, and his goal of making his audience care about news beyond the borders of the US. Listen. 

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In February, Donald Trump praised Russia for being a "war machine" and said that Russia should “do whatever the hell they want” to NATO allies that do not contribute enough to the military alliance. Far-right figures like Nick Fuentes, who referred to Vladimir Putin as "my Czar," have also shown support for the Russian president and his war on Ukraine. And while more mainstream Republican pundits like Tucker Carlson have walked back past praise for Putin, the American far-right's obsession with Russia goes back almost two decades.

Brooke sat down with Casey Michel, writer and investigative journalist, to discuss why white nationalists like David Duke, Richard Spencer, and Matthew Heimbach have long since looked to Putin's Russia as inspiration for their far-right movements in this country, and why Putin's attempts to create a nationalist Christian ethnostate serve as their model.

This segment originally aired on our March 4th, 2022 program, The Fog of War. 

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An Alabama Supreme Court ruling on frozen embryos threatens fertility treatments across the state. On this week’s On the Media, hear how a particular branch of Christian nationalism influenced one justice’s decision. Plus, how film adaptations of books have come to dominate our screens.

1. Matthew D. Taylor [@TaylorMatthewD], senior scholar at the Institute for Islamic, Christian, & Jewish Studies, on how a particular strain of Christian Nationalism, once on the fringe of America’s religious landscape, is slowly emerging as a political force. Listen. 

2. Alexander Manshel [@XanderManshel], assistant professor of English at McGill University and author of Writing Backwards: Historical Fiction and the Reshaping of the American Canon, on how literary prizes have changed over the last few decades, and how much they actually matter. Listen. 

3. Cord Jefferson [@cordjefferson], writer and director of the new film American Fiction, on his movie's critique of Hollywood and the process of adapting a novel for the screen. Listen. 

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Russia's jailed opposition leader, Alexei Navalny, has died in prison. Navalny had been living behind bars since shortly after landing in Moscow in January of 2021. He had been returning home following months of recovery in Europe, after he fell violently sick on a flight between Siberia and Moscow. 

In the months following Navalny’s poisoning, Christo Grozev, former lead Russia investigator at Bellingcat, was stuck in Vienna with filmmaker Daniel Roher. The two had just been booted from Ukraine, where they had been trying to film an investigation. Grozev suddenly had a lot of time on his hands, a laptop, and a fresh stack of data from the Russian black market so naturally he began to investigate who was behind the poisoning. 

Daniel Roher directed the documentary “Navalny,” which portrays the story of the close collaboration between Navalny, his team, and Grozev, in the hunt for the dissident’s would-be killers. Last year, Brooke spoke to Roher and Grozev about the making of the documentary, which won the Oscar for Best Documentary Feature.

This is a segment from our February 10, 2023 show, Hide and Seek.

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Coverage of President Joe Biden’s age has reached a fever pitch. On this week’s On the Media, hear whether the quality of the reports has matched their volume. Plus, meet Bobi Wine, a pop star and opposition politician who is fighting for democracy in Uganda.

1. Judd Legum [@JuddLegum], founder of the newsletter Popular Information, Charan Ranganath [@CharanRanganath], a neuroscientist at UC Davis and author of the forthcoming book, Why We Remember: Unlocking Memory’s Power to Hold on to What Matters, and Jack Shafer [@jackshafer], senior media critic at Politico, on the flood of coverage around Biden's age following the release of the Hur report last week and the consequences of the media's minute focus on it. Listen. 

2. Lili Loofbourow [@Millicentsomer], television critic at the Washington Post, on Jon Stewart's return to The Daily Show after nine years, and whether the unique form of political comedy he pioneered still holds up in today's drastically different political landscape. Listen. 

3. Bobi Wine [@HEBobiwine] and Moses Bwayo [@bwayomoses], co-director of the new Oscar-nominated documentary Bobi Wine: The People's President, on the journey of Wine, a popstar-turned-politician, who has used his music as a platform to fight for democracy in Uganda. Listen. 

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Last week we learned that ousted Fox blowhard Tucker Carlson had gone to Russia. He was spotted eating fake McDonalds and watching a ballet at the Bolshoi theater. But Tucker was there for more important things than fast food and culture; he was there for a sit down with President Putin. Carlson was mainly silent as Putin delivered an almost 40 minute long speech on the history of how Ukraine belongs to Russia.

But the myths in Putin's and Russia's state-sponsored version of history are not new. Last summer Brooke spoke to Mikhail Zygar who had traced it back at least as far as the middle ages. 

This is a segment from our August 4, 2023 show, Making History.

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In December, the New York Times sued OpenAI for allegedly using the paper’s articles to train chatbots. On this week’s On the Media, a look at how media outlets are trying to survive in this era of generative AI. Plus, why New York’s oldest Black newspaper is joining forces with an AI startup to address biases in the technology. 

1. Kate Knibbs [@Knibbs], senior writer at Wired, on AI clickbait flooding the internet. Listen.

2. John Herrman [@jwherrman], tech columnist for New York Magazine, on the love-hate relationship between AI companies and journalism. Listen.

3. Elinor Tatum [@elinortatum], editor in chief of The New York Amsterdam News, on a push to make AI technology and data diverse. Listen.

4. Abbie Richards [@abbieasr], misinformation researcher and a senior video producer at Media Matters, on the AI-generated conspiracy theories multiplying TikTok. Listen.

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Naomi Klein has been confused for writer Naomi Wolf for much of her career. Wolf rose to prominence with the book The Beauty Myth in the 90s, establishing herself as a bestselling feminist, liberal writer. Klein, on the other hand, wrote acclaimed critiques of capitalism such as No Logo and The Shock Doctrine. To say Klein is often mistaken for Wolf is an understatement. In the interview she did just before ours, a TV host mistakenly called her by Wolf's name. The confusion is incessant on social media, and escalated when Wolf became notorious as a peddler of covid-19 conspiracies. A few weeks ago, Wolf discovered that a fellow anti-vaxxer was spreading a conspiracy theory, this time about her.

Ultimately, Klein decided to plunge down the rabbit hole to follow Wolf, and emerged with a new book Doppelganger: A Trip into the Mirror World, a wide-ranging exploration of doubling in our lives, culture, and politics. Brooke speaks to Klein about how social media has given all of us doppelgangers; why she's proud of her "bad" personal brand; and the value of "unselfing."

This segment first aired in our September 15, 2023 show, The “Too Old” President and Political Doppelgängers.

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Texas Governor Greg Abbott has threatened to defy the federal government’s control over the border as the surge of migrants continues. On this week’s On the Media, a look at what might be a brewing constitutional crisis. Plus, hear MSNBC’s Chris Hayes make a case for why journalists should be paying even closer attention to Donald Trump.

1.  Adam Serwer [@AdamSerwer], staff writer at The Atlantic, on the humanitarian and constitutional crisis at the Texas border. Listen.

2. Jonathan Blitzer [@JonathanBlitzer], staff writer at The New Yorker, on what the media misses when it covers immigration. Plus, how and why U.S. immigration changed in the 21st century.
Listen.

3. Chris Hayes [@chrislhayes], host of “All In with Chris Hayes” on MSNBC, on reasons why the media should re-up their focus on Donald Trump. Listen.

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In Micah Loewinger's introduction to this interview, he shared this personal anecdote:

"Before I landed a job at this show, I worked for a few years, on and off, at a couple record stores around New York City. And some of my favorite albums to this day, were recommended to me by my coworkers. Men and women who I consider to be archivists –– not just of old formats like vinyl records, CDs, and cassettes –– but of underappreciated artists and niche genres. A knowledge of music history that can only come from a lifetime of obsessive listening, research, and curation. 

Nowadays, I pay for Spotify. I try to learn about music off the app and then save it for later listening on Spotify, but sometimes I find myself just letting its recommendation algorithm queue up the next track, and the next. And it definitely works. Spotify has helped me discover great music, but it’s never been as revelatory as a personal recommendation from a friend or an expert at a record store or an independent radio station. 

This feeling … that I’ve traded convenience for something deeper is what made me want to read Filterworld: How Algorithms Flattened Culture by Kyle Chayka, a staff writer at the New Yorker."

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After New Hampshire and Iowa, the GOP field is narrowing to Donald Trump's benefit once again. On this week’s On the Media, hear how Florida governor Ron DeSantis went from right-wing media darling to the party outcast. Plus, what gets lost in the blow-by-blow coverage of Trump’s legal woes.

1. Nick Nehamas [@NickNehamas], politics reporter for the New York Times, Mary Ellen Klas [@MaryEllenKlas], opinion writer at Bloomberg and former capital bureau chief for the Miami Herald, and Tom Scocca [@tomscocca], creator of the Indignity newsletter, on the rise and fall of Ron DeSantis' presidential campaign, and the lessons it offers about how to cover elections. Listen.

2. Dahlia Lithwick [@Dahlialithwick], lawyer and writer at Slate, on how our legal system isn't designed to save our democracy, and what's wrong with mainstream media's coverage of Trump's trials. Listen.

3. Zach Woods, actor known for his role of Gabe Lewis on The Office, and Brandon Gardner [@BrandonJGardner], improviser and writer, on their new Peacock show, In the Know, which parodies public radio, and reflects our current culture wars. Listen. 

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This week we're featuring the work of our colleagues at WNYC:

Valerie Reyes-Jimenez called it “The Monster.” That’s how some people described HIV and AIDS in the 1980s. Valerie thinks as many as 75 people from her block on New York City’s Lower East Side died. They were succumbing to an illness that was not recognized as the same virus that was killing young, white, gay men just across town in the West Village.

At the same time, in Washington, D.C., Gil Gerald, a Black LGBTQ+ activist, saw his own friends and colleagues begin to disappear, dying out of sight and largely ignored by the wider world.

In our first episode of Blindspot: The Plague in the Shadows, we learn how HIV and AIDS was misunderstood from the start — and how this would shape the reactions of governments, the medical establishment and numerous communities for years to come.

You can listen to more of Blindspot: The Plague in the Shadows by subscribing here. New episodes come out on Thursdays.

 Blindspot is a co-production of The HISTORY® Channel and WNYC Studios, in collaboration with The Nation Magazine.

A companion photography exhibit by Kia LaBeija featuring portraits from the series is on view through March 11 at The Greene Space at WNYC. The photography for Blindspot was supported by a grant from the Economic Hardship Reporting Project, a nonprofit organization that promotes coverage of social inequality and economic justice.

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

This year has had a rocky start for journalism. The Baltimore Sun changed hands again, and layoffs loom at the LA Times. On this week’s On the Media, hear how private investment firms broke local news. Meanwhile, nonprofit publications try to repair the damage. Plus, a music critic reflects on the job cuts at Pitchfork and the power of the album review.

1. Margot Susca [@MargotSusca], assistant professor of journalism, accountability, and democracy at American University and author of "Hedged: How Private Investment Funds Helped Destroy American Newspapers and Undermine Democracy," on the tactics used by private equity firms and hedge funds to reshape local news. Listen.

2. Milton Kent [@SportsAtLarge], professor of practice in the School of Global Journalism and Communication at Morgan State University, and Liz Bowie [@lizbowie], education reporter for The Baltimore Banner and former reporter for The Baltimore Sun, on the purchase of The Baltimore Sun by David Smith, the executive chairman of Sinclair Broadcast Group, and what it means for Baltimore's local news landscape. Listen.

3. Ann Powers [@annkpowers], critic and correspondent for NPR Music, on Condé Nast's gutting of the influential music publication Pitchfork, and what this means for the future of music journalism. Listen. 

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EXTENDED VERSION; Nightmarish images of destruction in Gaza have filled the news and social media feeds for months. But within Israel, mainstream media outlets tell a very different story. This week, Micah Loewinger speaks with Oren Persico, a staff writer at The Seventh Eye, an independent investigative magazine focused on media and freedom of speech in Israel, about the Israeli media landscape in the months following October 7th, and the "dome of disconnection" it created. 

This is a segment from our January 12th, 2024 show, Israeli TV News Sanitizes the Bombing of Gaza. Plus, a Plagiarism Fight Gets Political.

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The conflict in the Middle East has already killed tens of thousands of Palestinians. On this week’s On the Media, hear how Israeli media outlets are broadcasting a sanitized version of what's happening in Gaza to the Israeli people. Plus, how one billionaire is going after the media for an article about plagiarism.

1. Oren Persico [@OrenPersico], staff writer at The Seventh Eye, an independent investigative magazine focused on freedom of speech in Israel, on how Israeli mainstream media outlets are sanitizing the destruction in Gaza. Listen.

2. Will Sommer [@willsommer], media reporter at The Washington Post, on how fights over plagiarism have become a political tool. Listen.

3. Masha Gessen [@mashagessen], staff writer at The New Yorker, on how the politics of memory around the Holocaust damages our ability to understand the conflict in Gaza and Israel. Listen. 

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50 years ago ABBA won the contest for the song Waterloo. 

Recently Brooke's old friend Charlie asked her to take part in a new podcast born of his love of and obsession with Eurovision, an international song contest organized annually by the European Broadcasting Union, or EBU, with reps from some 70 countries! 

This week's midweek podcast is episode three of the new series "Mysteries of the Euroverse," hosted by Charlie Sohne and Magnus Riise. 

On Instagram: @euroversepodcast
On YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6GlG8M6PKJOxfx5vk9jRiA
www.euroversepodcast.com

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Daniel Ellsberg, the famed whistleblower who leaked the Pentagon Papers to the Washington Post, died six months ago. On this week’s On the Media, hear about his life, how the Pentagon Papers made it to print, and the impact he had on generations of whistleblowers. Plus, the women who covered the War in Vietnam. 

1. Tom Devine, legal director for the Government Accountability Project, on Daniel Ellsberg's legacy and the ways he changed public perception of whistleblowers in the U.S. Listen.

2. Les Gelb, former columnist and former Defense Department official, on his experience leading the team that wrote the Pentagon Papers, subject of the Hollywood drama, "The Post." Listen.

3. Seymour Hersh, on how he broke the story of My Lai — the massacre now regarded as the single most notorious atrocity of the Vietnam war. Listen.

4. Reporters Kate Webb, Jurate Kazickas [@juratekazickas], and Laura Palmer on how they covered the Vietnam War and why they went. Listen.

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On February 23, 1972, oral arguments began in the Supreme Court for a case that would shape the course of journalism. In the case known as “Branzburg v. Hayes,” the arguments rolled together three related cases that explored the reporter's privilege to protect confidential sources in the face of a legal investigation. The most important of these three cases was United States v. Caldwell. Earl Caldwell was a New York Times reporter who covered the civil rights movement in the late 1960s and early 1970s, including the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and activities of the Black Panther Party. Caldwell was approached multiple times by the FBI to give up sources and additional details surrounding his coverage of the Black Panther Party. OTM host Micah Loewinger mined oral history interviews with Earl Caldwell and spoke with Lee Levine, an attorney and media law expert who is writing a book about Earl Caldwell, to learn about legal precedents for journalists being called on to testify in federal investigations, the limits of First Amendment privileges for the press, and the sometimes tenuous relationship between journalists and the government. 

Special thanks to the Maynard Institute For Journalism Education for allowing us to use its Earl Caldwell oral history.

This segment originally aired in our May 26, 2023 show, Seditious Conspiracy.

On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].