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WNYC Studios

On the Media is a weekly show that uses the media as a lens to understand our world. On the Media listeners say the show is an essential companion, helping them survive the firehose of media coming at them 24/7. Hosted by Brooke Gladstone and Micah Loewinger, the show does not do ‘hot takes’, instead offering listeners context, historical parallels, media analysis and often a much appreciated deep exhale. On the Media hosts have an eye on the nuances and details regularly missed by other outlets which helps listeners understand where they should be paying attention (and what they can afford to ignore). Our media diets have untruths woven in, and inconvenient truths left out. These are the bits explored every week at On the Media.

On the Media

Micah Loewinger speaks with Judd Legum, the author of the accountability newsletter Popular Information, about the explosive rise of prediction markets, and the implications of their growing partnerships with newsrooms. 

Hi On The Media listeners, we want to hear from you! Taking this podcast survey takes about 20 minutes and your feedback will help us make our podcast better! There are no wrong answers, just your honest take. Take the survey here (onthemedia.org/survey).

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, Bluesky, TikTok and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing onthemedia@wnyc.org.

Predicting the News

Eric Swalwell suspended his campaign for governor of California following multiple allegations of sexual harassment and assault. On this week’s On the Media, how two social media stars worked to make these allegations public. Plus, what it will take for Hungary to rebuild a robust independent press after years of crackdowns under Orban. 

[01:00] Brooke speaks with Melanie Mason, POLITICO’s California Bureau Chief, to trace the “whisper network,” involving an education policy influencer with over 1.4 million followers, that exposed California Rep. Eric Swalwell’s history of sexual assault and resulted in his resignation from Congress and exit from the California gubernatorial race. Plus, what this reckoning reveals about the legacy of #MeToo. 

[18:33] Host Brooke Gladstone sat down with Ivan Nagy, a political journalist and Delacorte Fellow at the Columbia Journalism Review from Hungary, days before the Hungarian election to discuss covering the lead-up, and the lasting damage inflicted on the press by Viktor Orban that will inevitably carry over into the next administration. 

[34:50] Brooke calls up Ivan Nagy again after Hungary’s election last weekend to discuss what it was like on the ground in the aftermath of Peter Magyar’s historic win over Viktor Orban, and what the new Prime Minister could mean for the media.

 Further reading / watching:

 • “‘
If Someone Lit Up a Match, the Place Would Explode • ,’” by Ivan L. Nagy

 • “
The whisper network that caught up to Eric Swalwell • ,” by Melanie Mason and Jeremy White

Hi On The Media listeners, we want to hear from you! Taking this podcast survey takes about 20 minutes and your feedback will help us make our podcast better! There are no wrong answers, just your honest take. Take the survey here (onthemedia.org/survey).

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, Bluesky, TikTok and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing onthemedia@wnyc.org.

Influencers Usher In A New Era For #MeToo

This week we're handing over our podcast slot to NPR's Planet Money. They're currently 3 episodes in to a series all about the book industry. It’s very media, you’re gonna love it. 

 

Hi On The Media listeners, we want to hear from you! Taking this podcast survey takes about 20 minutes and your feedback will help us make our podcast better! There are no wrong answers, just your honest take. Take the survey here (onthemedia.org/survey).

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, Bluesky, TikTok and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing onthemedia@wnyc.org.

Planet Money Wrote a Book And Then Dissected The Business of Publishing!

President Trump threatened to commit war crimes before reaching a shaky ceasefire deal with Iran. On this week’s On the Media, the repercussions of the Nixon-era diplomatic theory that Trump appears to be testing in the Middle East. Plus, why shortwave radio remains a powerful tool for communication.

[01:00] Host Brooke Gladstone sits down with Bill Scher, the politics editor at the Washington Monthly, to discuss Trump’s escalating use of the “Madman Theory” in conflicts abroad and how it’s never been a winning strategy.

[16:15] Shortly after the first attacks on Iran in early March, mysterious messages in Persian were broadcast on shortwave radio. Shortwave radio has long been a tool for bypassing state surveillance, censorship, and regulations, as reporter Katie Thornton found in her examination of shortwave radio for season two of The Divided Dial. In this segment, Katie Thornton took a trip to the 737-person northern Maine town of Monticello to find one of shortwave’s farthest reaching broadcasters.

[37:12] Reporter Katie Thornton continues her examination of shortwave radio. This segment originally aired as part of season two of The Divided Dial, which was supported in part by a grant from the Fund for Investigative Journalism.

 Further reading / watching:

 • “
Trump Believes in “Madman Theory.” But He’s Actually a Madman • ” by Bill Scher

 The Divided Dial, seasons 1 and 2

Hi On The Media listeners, we want to hear from you! Taking this podcast survey takes about 20 minutes and your feedback will help us make our podcast better! There are no wrong answers, just your honest take. Take the survey here (onthemedia.org/survey).

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, Bluesky, TikTok and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing onthemedia@wnyc.org.

Trump’s “Madman Theory” Is on Full Display in Iran

Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has led Hungary for the past 16 years, the longest-serving leader in the European Union. He has systematically brought the institutions of Hungary under centralized state control, from the courts and the press to the education system, gutting the democratic checks to his power. But political upstart Peter Magyar, head of the opposition party, is currently beating Orbán in the polls. Brooke sits down with Ivan Nagy, reporter for the Columbia Journalism Review, to discuss covering the campaigns, what new leadership would mean for the nation's media, and the lasting damage done to journalism in Hungary, whether Orbán wins or loses. 

Hi On The Media listeners, we want to hear from you! Taking this podcast survey takes about 20 minutes and your feedback will help us make our podcast better! There are no wrong answers, just your honest take. Take the survey here (onthemedia.org/survey).

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, Bluesky, TikTok and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing onthemedia@wnyc.org.

A New Day for the Press in Hungary?

The U.S. has waged war on Iran for more than a month now. On this week’s On the Media, what Defense Secretary Hegseth’s monthly Pentagon prayer meetings reveal about his war strategy. Plus, hear how trans rights are being curtailed across the country. 

[01:00] Host Brooke Gladstone sits down with Brian Kaylor, president and editor-in-chief of Word&Way and author of The Bible According to Christian Nationalists, to talk about Defense Secretary Hegseth’s monthly prayer meetings at the Pentagon. They discuss what the violent rhetoric reveals about Hegseth’s approach to war and why these meetings signal a troubling fusion of church and state. 

[18:46] Brooke talks with Marlene Laruelle, professor at Luiss University in Rome and director of the Illiberalism Studies Program at George Washington University, about Silicon Valley billionaire Peter Thiel’s series of lectures on religion, tech, politics, and society, which he took to the doorstep of the Vatican last month. They discuss his controversial beliefs about the antichrist, and what Thiel’s theology reveals about his desire to reorder politics.

[33:04] Brooke speaks with Alejandra Caraballo, civil rights attorney and a clinical instructor at Harvard Law School’s Cyberlaw Clinic, about the torrent of legal attacks against trans people, and why she's been looking toward a legal framework invented in the wake of Nazi Germany, called "the dual state," to better understand this moment.

 Further reading / watching:

 • “
At Pentagon Worship Service, Hegseth Casts Iran Conflict as Violent Holy War Against God’s Enemies • ,” by Brian Kaylor

 • “
Peter Thiel in Rome: Is Liberalism Ready for the Return of God? • ” by Marlene Laruelle

 • “
The Dual State of Trans Existence • ,” by Alejandra Caraballo

Hi On The Media listeners, we want to hear from you! Taking this podcast survey takes about 20 minutes and your feedback will help us make our podcast better! There are no wrong answers, just your honest take. Take the survey here (onthemedia.org/survey).

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, Bluesky, TikTok and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing onthemedia@wnyc.org.

Pete Hegseth is Praying for a Holy War

Last Friday, the Washington state Attorney General sued Kalshi, the prediction market platform where users can place bets on real world events, such as the number of deportations this year or the winner of Survivor 50. Washington’s civil lawsuit is now one of twenty waged against Kalshi, and follows on the heels of Arizona’s Attorney General filing criminal charges against the platform earlier this month. Prediction markets generated almost $64 billion in trading volume last year, up 400% from 2024. And when the US and Israel initiated strikes on Iran in early February, Kalshi users took to the platform in droves, spending $54 million on “Ali Khamenei out as Supreme Leader?” during the first week of the war. 

Prediction markets are just an intensification of a process that’s been slowly transforming our relationship to our bodies, our careers, our hobbies, our lives – everything is now saturated with numbers, and we can’t stop counting them and tracking them and comparing them. But what do we lose out on when we become obsessed with numbers or lines moving up or down on a graph, when we turn aspects of real life into games? Philosopher C. Thi Nguyen turned to actual games, like Twister and The Mind, to root out the answer in his latest book, The Score: How to Stop Playing Somebody Else's Game. For the midweek pod, host Micah Loewinger speaks to him about the dangers of scoring systems and metrics in the context of real life, why those same scoring systems are so freeing in games, and what the philosophy of games can reveal about the meaning of life.

 

Hi On The Media listeners, we want to hear from you! Taking this podcast survey takes about 20 minutes and your feedback will help us make our podcast better! There are no wrong answers, just your honest take. Take the survey here (onthemedia.org/survey).

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, Bluesky, TikTok and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing onthemedia@wnyc.org.

The Danger of Keeping Score

A judge ruled that the Pentagon’s recent restrictions on the press are unconstitutional. On this week’s On the Media, hear how Pete Hegseth’s ever-changing media policies have made it harder to cover military actions abroad. Plus, how a tenacious journalist used access to the Pentagon building to expose war crimes during the Vietnam War. 

[01:00] Host Micah Loewinger sits down with Dan Lamothe, who covers the US military and Pentagon for the Washington Post, to talk about leaving the Pentagon press corps alongside reporters from major news outlets in October of last year, after refusing to sign onto stringent new rules on how they could do their reporting. 

[09:45] Micah talks with Anna Merlan, senior reporter at Mother Jones, on the cast of right wing influencers and conspiracists now staffing the Pentagon press corps. Plus, Micah interviews content creator Cam Higby, a member of the new press corps, about why he agreed to the Pentagon’s restrictions on access.

[33:23] Micah speaks with Laura Poitras, a journalist and filmmaker whose past works include CitizenFour, All the Beauty and the Bloodshed, and Risk, to discuss her latest documentary, Cover-Up, which chronicles the life of investigative journalist Seymour Hersh and his ferocious drive to uncover government wrongdoing, and what today’s press corps can learn from him.

 Further reading / watching:

 • “
Hegseth order on first Caribbean boat strike, officials say: Kill them all • ,” by Alex Horton and Ellen Nakashima

 • “
‘Signalgate’ report contradicts Hegseth’s claim of ‘total exoneration’ • ,”by Dan Lamothe

 • “
Meet the New Pentagon Press Corps, • ” by Anna Merlan

 Cover-Up • , directed and produced by Laura Poitras and Mark Obenhaus

Hi On The Media listeners, we want to hear from you! Taking this podcast survey takes about 20 minutes and your feedback will help us make our podcast better! There are no wrong answers, just your honest take. Take the survey here (onthemedia.org/survey).

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, Bluesky, TikTok and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing onthemedia@wnyc.org.

The Pentagon Kicks the Press Out … Again

This week, the Idaho Senate is considering a bill that would block transgender people from using public bathrooms that conform with their gender identity, escalating the state’s preexisting trans bathroom ban in public schools. A first offense could land someone in prison for a year. This bill is just the latest in a devastating cascade of legal actions stripping away trans rights. For the midweek pod, host Brooke Gladstone speaks with Alejandra Caraballo, a civil rights attorney and a Clinical Instructor at Harvard Law School Cyberlaw Clinic, about why she's been looking toward a legal framework invented in the wake of Nazi Germany called "the dual state" to better understand this moment. 

 

Hi On The Media listeners, we want to hear from you! Taking this podcast survey takes about 20 minutes and your feedback will help us make our podcast better! There are no wrong answers, just your honest take. Take the survey here (onthemedia.org/survey).

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, Bluesky, TikTok and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing onthemedia@wnyc.org.

Trans People are Facing a 'Dual State' in Trump's America

President Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth are demanding “more patriotic” coverage of the widening war in Iran. On this week’s On the Media, hear how the Pentagon is cracking down on its publication, Stars and Stripes. Plus, fake AI images of the Iran war are proliferating, and they're getting more convincing.

[01:00] Host Micah Loewinger breaks down the calls from the Trump administration for the media to produce “patriotic” coverage of the war in Iran. Plus, a closer look at the reporting by legacy outlets with journalist Minnah Arshad. Arshad analyzed The New York Times’ early coverage of the war, and found that Iranian victims were underrepresented. Next, Micah sits down with scholar Mahsa Alimardani to discuss fake AI images of the Iran conflict, and how AI detection tools are being used to discredit authentic footage.

[22:30] Micah speaks with Samantha Gross, the director of the Energy Security and Climate Initiative at the Brookings Institution, to dissect the developing energy crisis being caused by the disruption of oil exports through the Strait of Hormuz.

[37:54] Host Brooke Gladstone talks to Erik Slavin, Editor-in-Chief of Stars and Stripes, the independent, award-winning newspaper that has served the military for roughly a century, about the Pentagon’s plan to crack down on their reporting and refocus their content away from “woke distractions.”

 Further reading / watching:

 • “
First Draft: How the Media Manufactures Consent for War • ,” by Minnah Arshad and Andrew Perez

 • “
How AI Content Detection is Being Weaponized in the Iran War • ,” by Shirin Anlen and Mahsa Alimardani

 • “
The Fake Images of a Real Strike on a School • ,” by Mahsa Alimardani

 • “
Why Iran’s disruption of the Strait of Hormuz matters • ,” by Samantha Gross, Caitlin Talmadge, and Melanie W. Sisson

 • “
Pentagon says it will ‘refocus’ Stars and Stripes content • ,” by Corey Dickstein

Hi On The Media listeners, we want to hear from you! Taking this podcast survey takes about 20 minutes and your feedback will help us make our podcast better! There are no wrong answers, just your honest take. Take the survey here (onthemedia.org/survey).

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, Bluesky, TikTok and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing onthemedia@wnyc.org.

Trump Demands Patriotic Coverage of the War in Iran. Or Else….

As media empires, from The Washington Post to CBS News, continue to be dealt significant blows, uncertainties abound about the remaining strength of a once robust American press landscape—but media scholars have long questioned how strong our system was to begin with. For this week's podcast extra, Micah sits down with Victor Pickard, professor of media policy and political economy at the University of Pennsylvania, to discuss why what we're seeing now is simply the latest stage of a phenomena called, "media capture," and what we can do to free ourselves from the downward slide. 

Hi On The Media listeners, we want to hear from you! Taking this podcast survey takes about 20 minutes and your feedback will help us make our podcast better! There are no wrong answers, just your honest take. Take the survey here (onthemedia.org/survey).

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, Bluesky, TikTok and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing onthemedia@wnyc.org.

The Century-Long Capture of U.S. Media

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