The Account from CNN

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Latest Episodes:

Persuadable: Scrolling Alone May 14, 2025

If loneliness and social isolation are part of what pushes people down the rabbit hole, what’s the cure? CNN’s Donie O’Sullivan sits down with a cult survivor who explains why conspiracy theories can have such a powerful hold on believers, and he learns from a pair of documentary filmmakers who have a prescription for a fractured, lonely society.

Diane Benscoter is the founder of the nonprofit Antidote, and she's the author ofShoes of a Servant: My Unconditional Devotion To A Lie. You can listen to more of Donie's conversation with Diane on YouTube.

Pete Davis and Rebecca Davis are the directors and producers of the documentary Join or Die. You can learn more about their film here.

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Persuadable: Back Up the Rabbit Hole May 07, 2025

What would you do if the person closest to you woke up believing something that sounded completely crazy? That’s what happened to Stephen Ghiglieri when his then- fiancée, Katrina Vaillancourt, became a Q-Anon believer overnight. But their story is a hopeful one. In part two of Persuadable, CNN’s Donie O’Sullivan explores one route out of conspiracy theory belief.

Listen to more of Donie's conversation with Dr. Joe Pierre, author of False: How Mistrust, Disinformation, and Motivated Reasoning Make Us Believe Things That Aren’t True, on YouTube.

Read about Katrina Vaillancourt's book, ReQovery: How I Tumbled Down the QAnon Rabbit Hole and Climbed Out, here.

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Persuadable: Why Do We Believe Crazy S**t? Apr 30, 2025

Conspiracy theories are not new. They’re as old as time itself. But if you feel like they’re everywhere right now, you’re not alone. So, what do you do when somebody you love has fallen down a rabbit hole? CNN’s Donie O’Sullivan has been covering the world of misinformation for more than a decade, but now he's less interested in what people believe than why they believe it. So, he’s trying to find out.

See more of Donie's interview with Dr. Samuel Veissière⁠ on YouTube.

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All Over The Map: Why America Voted, From Actual Voters Nov 11, 2024

As the dust settled in the wake of election day, the All Over the Map team started calling up some of the 86 swing-state voters John King has been visiting and revisiting over the last year and a half. Who they ultimately voted for — and why — offers a window on a country taking stock in the aftermath of an unprecedented election.

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All Over The Map: The Pennsylvania Voters Who May Decide the Race Nov 04, 2024

With just hours before election day, we’re returning to a handful of people who represent a crucial voter segment: unhappy Pennsylvania Republicans. John King interviews three people who voted for Nikki Haley in the state’s primary back in the spring — long after she’d dropped out. How they and others like them fill out their ballots this week may decide the next president of the United States.

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All Over The Map: Why the Race Is So Close in the Rust Belt Oct 28, 2024

Wisconsin and Michigan, the big bricks of the former Blue Wall, are considered must-wins for Kamala Harris. They’re also both toss-ups at this point. This week, John talks to voters in Milwaukee and Detroit who have a lot in common: They’re both Black men, about the same age, born and raised in their respective Rust Belt cities, and steeped in a culture that always voted for Democrats. One is voting for Harris. The other is going for Trump. Their choices — and how they got there — tell us a lot about the very tight election math in the upper Midwest.

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All Over The Map: In Purple Georgia, The Election Math Is Not So Simple Oct 14, 2024

Vice President Kamala Harris’ goal in Georgia is to turn out the coalition that barely tipped the newly purple state to Joe Biden in 2020. That means firing up the base, convincing the unconvinced, and driving turnout as high as possible. Donald Trump, meanwhile, is hoping Georgians think the shift left was a mistake. There's no question that women of color are a huge part of the Georgia equation. John sits down with two who show it would be a mistake to think they’re voting as a bloc.

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All Over The Map: Why Nevada’s Economic Woes Make It an Election Wildcard Sep 30, 2024

Nevada — especially Clark County, home to Vegas and almost 75 percent of the state’s population — is a political bellwether in a very specific way. The pandemic gutted the tourism-based economy, and the recovery has been slow. John King speaks with two voters in Las Vegas with centrist political views who show us why Nevada is very much up for grabs in this election.

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All Over The Map: Desert Demographics: Arizona in Play Sep 16, 2024

In a presidential race destined to come down to a handful of swing states, Arizona is a political puzzle: a Sun Belt state that’s historically gone red, but went for Biden in 2020. Do the changing demographics prime it for Harris, or will it turn back to Trump? John King talks with two swing voters who exemplify how Arizona defies stereotypes — and represent exactly who the parties are trying to win over.

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All Over The Map: The Cracks in the Blue Wall Jul 08, 2024

Michigan and Wisconsin are Midwestern swing states with the power to make or break the election. They’re crucial bricks in the Democrats’ “Blue Wall” strategy, a wall that’s starting to crack. On this third installment of “All Over the Map,” John King and his team visit Milwaukee, site of next week’s Republican convention and home to a Black liberal base increasingly disaffected with a President and party they feel abandoned by. In Detroit, many, especially in the Arab-American community, are heartbroken and angry over President Biden’s response to the war in Gaza. Two voters, Eric and Ibrahim, give us their takes — and remind us why we’re traveling “all over the map”.

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All Over The Map: Georgia’s Swing-State Spotlight Jul 01, 2024

During the 2020 election, there was perhaps no bigger upset than Joe Biden carrying Georgia. This was the first time a Democrat had won the reliably red state in three decades — in years past, Democrats didn’t even think to campaign in the state. So, how do Georgia voters feel about their newfound swing state status? And will this change the way they vote in November? On this second installment of our series “All Over the Map,” John King and his team visit with two small-business owners aware of their electoral power.

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All Over The Map: The Key to Pennsylvania? Nikki Haley Voters Jun 24, 2024

More than 158,000 Republicans cast Pennsylvania primary votes for Nikki Haley nearly two months after she quit the race for president. That’s enough votes to swing a state critical to victory in November – and Haley had similar showings in other battlegrounds. So, how do these critical swing voters choose between Joe Biden and Donald Trump – two candidates they do not like? In the first installment of a three-part series, CNN Chief National Correspondent John King travels to Pennsylvania to hear Haley voters share their doubts about Biden, Trump, and the future of the Republican Party.

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