On the Media

Latest Episodes:

Echoes of 1968 at the DNC in Chicago Aug 21, 2024

Show notes

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

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The Rise and Fall of Alt-Weeklies, and Journalism in an AI World Aug 16, 2024

Show notes

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 / 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

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Cat Ladies: EXTENDED VERSION Aug 07, 2024

Show notes

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.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Revenge of the Childless Cat Ladies Aug 02, 2024

Show notes

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

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The Sound of Sport Jul 31, 2024

Show notes

“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.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The Democratic Ticket Change Angers the Right. Plus, Ezra Klein’s Role in Biden’s Decision. Jul 26, 2024

Show notes

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

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Kamala Harris Replacing Joe Biden on the Ticket Isn’t Antidemocratic Jul 25, 2024

Show notes

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.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

How the Media Created J.D. Vance. Plus, the Anointing of Donald Trump Jul 19, 2024

Show notes

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

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Our TOPPODCAST Picks

Follow Us

Stay Connected

Related Podcasts

Links

Stay Connected